Honda@125
The folk who came up with the idea of using the @ symbol for email addresses should be suitably chuffed - of baffled - because Honda has adopted it as the name for its new 125 scooter. Meet the "@", or "at"So who is this thing being pitched at? If you hadn't worked it out for yourself, the factory is perfectly happy to assist via its Oz website, with the advice it's, "a lively scooter specially designed for urban professionals and anyone who places a premium on high-tech style". And in an effort to prove that the art of ad hype is far from dead, the company seeks to assure the buyer that the machine will be "exuding a brilliant sense of elegance and panache as it carries you swiftly to all your destinations".
We snatched one from Honda HQ recently, for a brief squirt through the northern suburbs of Melbourne.
Wot's this then?
Pushing the plot along is a liquid-cooled 4-stroke SOHC single, which runs a conventional carburettor and 11:1 compression.
It's claiming max power of 10.1kw (about 13 horses) at 9000rpm and peak torque of 11.5Nm at 7250. You have electric start only and this punts along a package that claims a dry weight of 120 kilos. Transmission is the usual fully-auto V-belt, seat height is tallish at 800mm, and it carries 9 litres of fuel (which should be enough for in excess of 200km).
There's no great surprises in the chassis. Suspension is conventional fork up front and single shock rear. Braking is a linked set-up with a two-piston disc on the sharp end and drum down back. Wheels are 13-inchers.
Wot's it like?
An aspect which newcomers to riding will love is the considerable stability of the model, despite its size. Steering is about medium speed, and the machine needs a fair old surprise to knock it off line. We found it rode bumps very well, thanks in part to the larger diameter wheels that we're seeing fitted across a lot of scooter brands.
Power is about what you'd expect. Initial take-off is slow - nice for the novice, and pretty typical of current thinking across a few brands, but it could be sharper.
It's got quite respectable acceleration from 15kmh through to 80, which means you can hold your own in city traffic. Top speed is around 110kmh.
Owners will like the thought that's gone into luggage carrying, with a generous bin under the seat, which will swallow a full-size helmet, through to storage bins in the front and a shopping bag hook. Honda Oz expects to get an accessory topbox before long.
Overall the At came across as a user-friendly device which has been priced competitively at $5890 plus ORC.
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