Is CT125 market saturated?

[tumblingdice54]

It's been an interesting ride from the situation in 2023 when you couldn't find one, even when you put a deposit down and Honda kept slipping the delivery date so you cancelled and bought a different bike, to the situation today where my dealer in Kingston, ON still has 4 (3 red and 1 grey) on the floor for the past 4 months. I had a deposit on a 2024 for 3 months and Honda could never give me a firm delivery. So I cancelled and went and got a new 2022 Kawi Z400 ($7127 Can OTD) from a Gatineau, Que dealer. It's been great. It has 47-hp, is light and very maneuverable. But I still have the CT itch and it's driving me crazy. There is no calamine lotion for this itch - I have to be able to touch it underneath me. So I'm going into the dealer tomorrow and see if they will be reasonable and take either $200-300 off the $5850 (Can) plus tax they are asking or offer me a great interest rate. As someone said on another thread, to buy one you pay $6000 US for a $3000 bike. But that's neither here nor there, if you gotta have one....

 

[Puddock]

Spare a thought for those of us here in Australia where the bike was only on sale for 2 years. I could only find a total of five for sale. I put a deposit on a green 2021 with 3,000 kilometres up. AUD $7,500 - that’s just shy of US $5000.

 

[bukwessul]

Barring politics, and just talking economics - I'd guess the US retailers responded by making large orders at the onset months ago.
Now that the inventory has arrived, it is sitting.
In FL, dealerships are hesitant to take in trades as their real estate is packed, and consumers are holding onto their $.
I'd guess as it gets closer to winter, prices will drop as they normally do, but there might be much better negotiations on price.
My best to you both on getting the ride you want at a reasonable price.
Cheers!

 

[dmonkey]

Also barring politics (there's a debate room section of the forum for those), I'll point to the fact that the US gov has sent notice to Thailand of a 36% tariff and to Japan of a 25% tariff starting August 1, 2025. These bikes are manufactured in Thailand. Many of the name-brand accessories from these bikes are made in Thailand and Japan.

I share your take that they tried to get as much inventory as possible before tariff impacts become significant. I replaced nearly all the appliances in my home earlier this year and that was the case for the appliance vendors. They also had significant discounts to try to keep inventory moving, having adapted that strategy from the recent impacts they saw during the global pandemic and supply chain impacts. Gotta sell the goods while you can.

 

[tumblingdice54]

I did go into the dealer today and we talked about the glut of CT125's available. Without prompting, the salesman said for 2 years they couldn't get more than 2 a year and they sold right away. This year they asked for 4, got them, and here they still sit 4 months later with little interest. After I sat on it and rolled it around and found it fits my 6'1" frame perfectly. I had more room than on my Kawi Z400 actually. On Saturday someone who has a 23 version with 9,000 km on it is going to let me drive it at his farm. Then I'll make my mind up. But it sure felt good under me!

 

[Cpd419]

Anything over 5k otd is stealership robbery. (US dollars).

 

[tumblingdice54]

The dealer price OTD in Canada is $6767 Cdn or $4941 US (exchange rate today 0.73)

 

[AE-22]

My local dealership in Bend OR sells what they get before they even hit the floor. They’ve received, I was told, 6 in the past 3 months and they’ve all sold immediately. I was third in line for the last three and got a new grey one which I’m stoked about btw

 

[kevvyd]

Anything over 5k otd is stealership robbery.

Using the term stealership is not witty, relevant, clever, or new. It cost you extra keystrokes to try to make a point that is disrespectful to everyone trying to make a living at a motor vehicle retailer. Very few of these employees or owners are overwhelmingly prosperous or wealthy. Especially, right now. Most of the staff at a dealership DO have at least some passion for motorbikes and may be present in these type of groups. Dealers know their costs are and what it takes so that everyone who punches the clock under their roof can get a paycheck/benefits each week.
I know sometimes unsavory things happen at dealers, I agree over 5k is getting kind of greedy.
Motorbikes are optional to our lives. You are not being forced into doing what things you don't like, just quietly leave and go elsewhere. Basic kindergarten rules.

Again, your lingo is not clever, relevant, funny, or original.......so at least try to be understood and respectable/respectful.

 

[George S.]

I believe “stealership” is quite relevant in some instances. Even from my personal experiences at two different dealers, and yes, at dealerships where the owner is quite wealthy. So thanks for the lecture but it’s just your opinion so let up on it.

 

[Cpd419]

Using the term stealership is not witty, relevant, clever, or new. It cost you extra keystrokes to try to make a point that is disrespectful to everyone trying to make a living at a motor vehicle retailer. Very few of these employees or owners are overwhelmingly prosperous or wealthy. Especially, right now. Most of the staff at a dealership DO have at least some passion for motorbikes and may be present in these type of groups. Dealers know their costs are and what it takes so that everyone who punches the clock under their roof can get a paycheck/benefits each week.
I know sometimes unsavory things happen at dealers, I agree over 5k is getting kind of greedy.
Motorbikes are optional to our lives. You are not being forced into doing what things you don't like, just quietly leave and go elsewhere. Basic kindergarten rules.

Again, your lingo is not clever, relevant, funny, or original.......so at least try to be understood and respectable/respectful.

Depends on the location. Some dealerships are better than others. The amount of keyboard strokes it took you to defend them is a waste and not clever, funny, relevant, or original. If you don’t like my opinion quietly leave. Basic kindergarten rules.

 

[kevvyd]

@Cpd419
@George S.

Using the term Stealership in the broad stroke, collective way that it is most often applied is real ignorance.

ie: "All (person's race/ethnicity here) are (negative connotation/presumtion/behavior here)"

Perhaps I'm fortunate to know many riders that are good people and happen to be in the motorcycle industry......Choose to represent yourself however you wish. I'll do the same.

 

[tumblingdice54]

Can we please return this thread to the original premise: is the CT125 market oversaturated? Leave the didactic arguments about the rights and wrongs of labels for dealerships to somewhere else?

 

[Dia1Up]

My local dealership had 4 shipped to them in May, the 2 red ones sold immediately, I bought a grey one, leaving the other grey there. I drove by last week, it was still there. I think from my sample size of only 1, there are Trails out there. I got mine below MSRP (scratches all along the heat shield... but I've already put many more on it heh)

 

[bibobike]

My local dealership in Bend OR sells what they get before they even hit the floor. They’ve received, I was told, 6 in the past 3 months and they’ve all sold immediately. I was third in line for the last three and got a new grey one which I’m stoked about btw

I just got mine last week in Thailand, brand new Grey , wanted green, but they only come in red, white, and gray; I want to be kind of invisible in the jungle;

Paid $2500 USD cash, I was told when I ordered 3 weeks ago and paid $30 USD deposit it would take 3-6 months; Then barely two weeks later I get a SMS message from dealer that my bike was in, lucky I had transferred the money early normally I never have that much sitting in the bank;

The tires are terrible, so I have already put on IRC-GP1, the stock tires just shovel-slid in the mud, no directional control;

I hate the shifter, cannot get my ADV boots under the toe, I have a super-cub ( wife's bike ), and never use heel and have no problem getting the toe under that shifter, and like a lot of other when I stand-up my heel hits the back and I downshift;
I bought the 13-tooth front and have not installed, but I find myself always riding in 1st in the 'shit' ( rocks&mud in flooding streams ), 2nd bogs down, so I will install the smaller sprocket soon and hope to find a useful 2nd gear;

Not sure about MPH anymore, but this puppy does about 60km/h max, I did put on a RPM ( Chinese $1 USD model, wire on spark plug ) it idles at 350, cruises best at 1100, and about 1500 sounds like a its going to fly apart;

Put on the front rack&center, back is still a large plate; Good for carrying milk crates, here that would be 50kg bags off cement, dead frozen pigs, or bag's off rice, or 50kg bags of dried dog-food; Back rack is marked 40kg max, but all here say 100kg is fine Lots off flooding new, and the locals all encouraged me to 'drive through the river', as their bikes have a 20cm max ( low exhaust & intake ), and yes I can drive seat level through flooded roads all day long; Village near me people have to carry boats in a pickup to get home, as their roads are under water;

Like Post Office bikes in OZ, these bikes in Thailand are one of the main EMS tools for delivering water to flooded homes; Carrying a dozen gallon jugs drinking water on the back of the bike to peoples front porch;

 

[bibobike]

Anything over 5k otd is stealership robbery. (US dollars).

I guess OZ is the worse, they're talking $7500, in Thailand its $2500 USD equivalent, but then its domestic which means 'tax-free', same with trucks, if its 2-door no tax, a few years ago I got a brand new 3.0 L Toyota 4WD truck and it cost $10k USD, that's right ten thousand USD for a brand new Toyota four wheel drive, if it had king cab, or 4 door, it would be $20k USD, cuz of 'tax', the argument is two doors is for work and 4 doors is for play; With the CT125, that is the cut-off anything bigger than 125 cc is considered 'big-bike', tax & insurance is HIGH, for sub 125cc tax&insurance is $10 USD a year, that's right, your registration & your liability-insurance is $10 USD per year for everything; People are too poor and in general 'insurance' is not a thing, so the GOV just automatically charges everybody $5 USD and it goes into a pool to pay for all accidents;

 

[bibobike]

I guess OZ is the worse, they're talking $7500, in Thailand its $2500 USD equivalent, but then its domestic which means 'tax-free', same with trucks, if its 2-door no tax, a few years ago I got a brand new 3.0 L Toyota 4WD truck and it cost $10k USD, that's right ten thousand USD for a brand new Toyota four wheel drive, if it had king cab, or 4 door, it would be $20k USD, cuz of 'tax', the argument is two doors is for work and 4 doors is for play; With the CT125, that is the cut-off anything bigger than 125 cc is considered 'big-bike', tax & insurance is HIGH, for sub 125cc tax&insurance is $10 USD a year, that's right, your registration & your liability-insurance is $10 USD per year for everything; People are too poor and in general 'insurance' is not a thing, so the GOV just automatically charges everybody $5 USD and it goes into a pool to pay for all accidents;

The CT-125 in Thailand is crazy expensive, being over $2k USD, to give you all an example the the same bike the super-cub, being about same-same 110cc, and being mostly plastic, but some things are strong than the CT-125, but the super-cub is just barely more than $1k USD, that's what I paid for mine; Riding the CT-125 is not notable, but is a joy on the roads at the super-cub only wants to go about 50km/hr, and the CT-125 will go 70km/h, but then that's still a hair over 45mph in USA; PPL in USA going 70mph, must be seriously winding out their CT-125, or perhaps running custom highway sprockets, with no desire for off-road;

Normally when I buy a bike in Thailand, say a CRF250L, the first thing I do is put on a no-limit ECU box, which bypasses the 'governor' as all hondas have a 8500RPM limit, but the custom boxes have no limit, and let you set Dyno curves by USB ( $40 USD Thai cost , but all on earth use same Chinese chip that costs $1 USD ), so all my prior bikes have this box, but I see NO reason to do with with the CT-125, as it clearly runs like a diesel engine, single cylinder 1GM10 (9hp too) YANMAR, runs best at 1200RPM, and red lines 2500, and spits out the dip-stick at 3200rpm; A boat engine that will run forever, so long as you run it at the sweet-spot;

 

[m in sc]

id like to see one of these cdis for the 1st gen FI CT125.

 

[tumblingdice54]

On August 1st, Honda Canada put a $150 discount on 2025 CT125s and $200 on 2024's (but no one has any that I can find). So OTD here it is now $6447 Cdn or $4673 US. The 25 grey one will be coming to my house in September.