2020 Honda CT125 confirmed for Australia

Postie bike fans rejoice! Honda’s classically styled CT125 arrives in August and, for the first time in a long time, you’ll be able to walk into a showroom and buy a brand-new bike instead of picking up a three-year-old ex-Australia Post example with 25,000km at an auction.

But there’s a catch: the CT125 costs eye-watering $6999 (plus on-road costs) or more than twice the price of Honda’s CB125E ($2600) commuter bike, which comes with a (conventional) five-speed gearbox. The CT125 joins the Monkey and the Super Cub as Honda’s third classic model to get a modern-day revamp.

The CT125 is powered by a 125cc air-cooled, four-stroke single-cylinder engine with electric and kick start. Despite sharing capacity with the CB125E, however, it is not the same unit found in the popular food-delivery runner. The gearbox is a four-speed semi-automatic.

Available in ‘Matte Fresco Brown’ or AusPost-esque ‘Glowing Red’ liveries, the CT125 mimics its distinctive predecessor’s styling with an upswept muffler, air cleaner cover, 5.3-litre fuel tank, large carrier and steel front fender. The new bike, however, has been modernised with EFI, disc brakes with front ABS, LED lighting and a digital dash.

Based on the Super Cub, the CT125 features an increase in wheelbase, seat height and an upswept handlebar for greater rider comfort and versatility, according to Honda.

Suspension comprises a conventional fork with 110mm travel (10mm more than the Super Cub) and twin shocks with 86mm travel while the bike rolls on 17-inch wire-spoke wheels with 80/90-17 tyres. The CT125 has a claimed wet weight of 120kg.

Looking back

Postie bikes, including the CT90 (1960s and ’70s), CT110 (1980s onwards) and the more recent NBC110 (fuel injection and electric start), are iconic bikes, but there were long periods where they were sold exclusively to Australia Post and not available new to the general public.

AusPost only kept them for three years, or around 25,000km, before they were auctioned to the public.

When the NBC110 was introduced, AusPost made the decision to change the colour scheme to lime green. Honda obliged but it was discovered that posties delivering mail in leafy, suburban streets blended in too well with the background, creating an occupational hazard. One particular business in Melbourne made a fortune repainting all the green bikes red.

Honda’s CT series has cemented its cult-status reputation in Australia for its humble ‘Postie bike’ roots and near-unbreakable reputation, boosted by the annual Australian Postie Bike Grand Prix in Cessnock, NSW.