Why did you buy a Trail 125?

[Tex68w]

Mine's not a rough number crunch - I've spent a total of $226.44 to cover ~5600 mi, and my petrol is way more expensive than $3.25/gal over that entire time period (see attached). Rego was $161 to renew recently. If not for specific electric vehicles in my stable, this would be the cheapest vehicle I own, including 2 bicycles.

I've mentioned it elsewhere but my gf loves to order certain kinds of takeout with a really high delivery cost. It's between $20 and $25 a delivery. So every time I pick up that instead of her ordering, I consider that money in my pocket. We're at 69 orders so far, so somewhere between $1,380 and $1,725. I will eventually break even for the purchase cost just on that, probably in 2-3 years, maybe longer if our delivery price starts going down.

For starters where do you live that delivery fees would be that high and who in their right mind would pay that? I do agree that if used properly there is a break even point with these little guys, I have been running mine around town for short trips to the hardware store or to drop off a city bill, etc. and I am still on the first tank of fuel that the dealer put in there upon taking delivery.

 

[SneakyDingo]

For starters where do you live that delivery fees would be that high and who in their right mind would pay that? I do agree that if used properly there is a break even point with these little guys, I have been running mine around town for short trips to the hardware store or to drop off a city bill, etc. and I am still on the first tank of fuel that the dealer put in there upon taking delivery.

I'm gonna preface this with it's a genuine labor of love on my part that I do not say anything to my gf about how much I disagree at a fundamental level with buying burritos like this.

<rant>
Seattle is hella expensive and it's completely unjustified. The McDonalds that's a comparable distance (within 10% by distance and time) is a flat $3.49 rate. The vendors that charge the higher rate are Chipotle (majority orders), 2 Sushi joints and a Dim Sum place. Now, my dim sum and sushi making skills aren't great, but I can make a decent burrito, and like 65 of those orders are burritos.

We're not talking crossing county boundaries either; I'm not located in woop woop, there's bus lines running near my house with regular, frequent service, a public library in walking distance, schools that I can walk my dog to sort of thing, old people who complain if I play my music too loud inside my house. Like we're in residential Seattle but not within city limits, it's just... so bloody expensive for delivery for some reason.

Who in their right mind would pay it? We aren't talking huge distances either - Chipotle, the furthest away, is less than 4 miles. Who pays that is probably the cashed up software engineers working from home. Now, I'm also a cashed up software engineer working from home, but I have standards, and those standards insist that $1 for 0.1 mi is daylight robbery. Literally the only time I have paid for and accepted delivery was when I had to bill it as a work expense and it required as a prerequisite for it to be delivered, and because of the huge fees I couldn't get something good, I had to get... burritos.

The cost isn't even the worst part. The worst part is the service is INSANELY SLOW. You'll get a burrito in 45 minutes. I've timed it - I have a store 0.9 mi away. If I go to the store, pick up the ingredients, pay for it at the checkout, come home, heat up my cast iron skillet, and cook the whole thing from scratch, I beat the average time from order to food ready by a substantial margin, and it'll cost me 50% of the cost of food for the 2 burritos, without tip.
</rant>

 

[m in sc]

cool. thats good economics. me, I personally don't care about mileage, but I do get its important to some.

 

[dmonkey]

There's usually some "smiles per gallon" to factor in with practicality. Personally, 15 mpg in a boring vehicle would be harder for me to tolerate than 8 mpg in a fun and enjoyable one.
That's the icing on the cake for the Honda Trail, it's fun and the total cost of ownership is low.

 

[Gene56]

I had a trail 110 in 84, sold for a bigger bike when I transfered to Hawaii. When the trail 125 came out in 2021 I decided to get one. Wish it was a little bit bigger but overall very happy with it!

 

[ChickenChaser]

I had a trail 110 in 84, sold for a bigger bike when I transfered to Hawaii. When the trail 125 came out in 2021 I decided to get one. Wish it was a little bit bigger but overall very happy with it!

When you say bigger do you mean physical size of the Trail or motor?

 

[Gene56]

When you say bigger do you mean physical size of the Trail or motor?

Good point, I was thinking of the physical size, a little more room for the seat that sits farther back, maybe 18 inch wheels that are wider and a longer wheel base. A little more power would be nice too! Overall, I do like the bike and ride it most everyday to work!

 

[ChickenChaser]

Good point, I was thinking of the physical size, a little more room for the seat that sits farther back, maybe 18 inch wheels that are wider and a longer wheel base. A little more power would be nice too! Overall, I do like the bike and ride it most everyday to work!

I haven’t sat on one yet. I’m 6 foot, 200lb, hoping I will be comfortable. I had a cub 90 many years ago and was fine commuting every day. Expecting the Trail to be the same. I had a Vespas in the past, 200 2stroke and 300 4stroke, the power was perfect.

I would like to see a 200cc Trail with slightly wider tires. I live in a mountainous area, I know the hills are going to be a killer. When I had the C90, I lived in a bigger city that was mostly flat by comparison.

 

[mcmd]

I previously posted part of what follows in my member introduction. With that said, my connection to the Honda Trail bike... back in 1969 I was 16 years old... (you're judging me, I can feel it! I stole that phrase from Ang, the TAT video guy, ha ha!). my best friend had a Trail 90. I rode it a couple of times and was fascinated with it. I'll be posting a photo of it here with my ol' buddy sitting on it. Over the course of time I would think about that bike. It left an impression on me that I would/could never forget. There was something about it that really stayed in my mind and I just couldn't shake it. Fast forward to late 2022. I was in a shop near my home and ran into a friend. He said, "Michael (that's me), come outside, I want you to see something. Well, he was on an older Honda Trail bike. He explained that it wasn't his bike. He went on to tell me that a friend of his had purchased it as a "buy it now" on ebay. The bike was located in PA and we are in Ohio. His buddy paid him to drive to PA to pick up the bike. His buddy had never ridden motorcycles. In addition to picking the bike up, he was to teach his friend the basics of riding. Well for me, just seeing this bike flipped a little switch in my brain. My mind immediately rewound 53 years to 1969 and my old friend's Trail 90. I told my wife about this encounter and the back story. I told her of my long fascination with this bike. I mentioned that I'd like to have one. I kind of figured that she'd try to coax me out of the want for this bike. Much to my surprise she said, "well, get one"! I couldn't believe it. Was I really one step closer to the reality of having one of these bikes? A random google search brought me to this forum. Once I started reading posts on this forum, I was on a quest. I started calling dealers, many dealers. Of course, none of the dealers had the bike. Most all of them had no idea of when they would receive this elusive machine. Some had deposits and wait lists and I would, of course, be at the end of the line. I must have left my name and phone number with 30 dealers within a reasonable radius of my home. Next, I started looking at the classifieds in this forum. Lo and behold, I came across Davey's for sale listing. Dave is in Ohio about 4-5 hours from my home. I contacted Dave and arranged to go view the bike when I already had plans to be near his area. When I saw the bike I was impressed. It was in excellent condition and still in warranty. I had previously confirmed with the local dealer in my area that the warranty was indeed transferrable. The dealer also informed me that one could actually purchase additional warranty if desired, but only while the bike was under the original warranty. I'm probably not a taker on this offer but this information could be helpful to others who may find themselves in this position. In any case, I purchased the bike and brought it home in early December, 2022. Not exactly great riding weather this time of year in Ohio but at least I had the bike! The ironic thing is that the day after I purchased the bike from Dave, I got a call from a dealer about an hour from my home... he had just received two CT 125's and was offering one of them to me! I'm happy with the bike I got and glad I made the purchase. No regrets! At the time, I wished we weren't going into winter so I could ride it more. As it turned out, we had a mild winter and I did get to ride it a fair amount. So, my purchase was for a bit of nostalgia and to buzz around on backroads and the occasional trail. I'm not a highway rider and had no illusions about taking this bike on roads where speed was a factor. I'm totally happy with the bike!

 

[Tex68w]

I previously posted part of what follows in my member introduction. With that said, my connection to the Honda Trail bike... back in 1969 I was 16 years old... (you're judging me, I can feel it! I stole that phrase from Ang, the TAT video guy, ha ha!). my best friend had a Trail 90. I rode it a couple of times and was fascinated with it. I'll be posting a photo of it here with my ol' buddy sitting on it. Over the course of time I would think about that bike. It left an impression on me that I would/could never forget. There was something about it that really stayed in my mind and I just couldn't shake it. Fast forward to late 2022. I was in a shop near my home and ran into a friend. He said, "Michael (that's me), come outside, I want you to see something. Well, he was on an older Honda Trail bike. He explained that it wasn't his bike. He went on to tell me that a friend of his had purchased it as a "buy it now" on ebay. The bike was located in PA and we are in Ohio. His buddy paid him to drive to PA to pick up the bike. His buddy had never ridden motorcycles. In addition to picking the bike up, he was to teach his friend the basics of riding. Well for me, just seeing this bike flipped a little switch in my brain. My mind immediately rewound 53 years to 1969 and my old friend's Trail 90. I told my wife about this encounter and the back story. I told her of my long fascination with this bike. I mentioned that I'd like to have one. I kind of figured that she'd try to coax me out of the want for this bike. Much to my surprise she said, "well, get one"! I couldn't believe it. Was I really one step closer to the reality of having one of these bikes? A random google search brought me to this forum. Once I started reading posts on this forum, I was on a quest. I started calling dealers, many dealers. Of course, none of the dealers had the bike. Most all of them had no idea of when they would receive this elusive machine. Some had deposits and wait lists and I would, of course, be at the end of the line. I must have left my name and phone number with 30 dealers within a reasonable radius of my home. Next, I started looking at the classifieds in this forum. Lo and behold, I came across Davey's for sale listing. Dave is in Ohio about 4-5 hours from my home. I contacted Dave and arranged to go view the bike when I already had plans to be near his area. When I saw the bike I was impressed. It was in excellent condition and still in warranty. I had previously confirmed with the local dealer in my area that the warranty was indeed transferrable. The dealer also informed me that one could actually purchase additional warranty if desired, but only while the bike was under the original warranty. I'm probably not a taker on this offer but this information could be helpful to others who may find themselves in this position. In any case, I purchased the bike and brought it home in early December, 2022. Not exactly great riding weather this time of year in Ohio but at least I had the bike! The ironic thing is that the day after I purchased the bike from Dave, I got a call from a dealer about an hour from my home... he had just received two CT 125's and was offering one of them to me! I'm happy with the bike I got and glad I made the purchase. No regrets! At the time, I wished we weren't going into winter so I could ride it more. As it turned out, we had a mild winter and I did get to ride it a fair amount. So, my purchase was for a bit of nostalgia and to buzz around on backroads and the occasional trail. I'm not a highway rider and had no illusions about taking this bike on roads where speed was a factor. I'm totally happy with the bike!

What a great back story, thanks for sharing and congrats on finally getting your very own CT.

 

[mcmd]

What a great back story, thanks for sharing and congrats on finally getting your very own CT.

Thanks Tex!

 

[SneakyDingo]

<stuff>

Every time I read this it makes me smile.

 

[mcmd]

Every time I read this it makes me smile.

Thanks man, much appreciated. I love your contributions to this forum!

 

[harleyddad]

My story starts a few years back as well. Went to pick up a CB450 K0 and the guy had a 67 CT90 K0 I got in the deal. My wife liked riding the CT around the farm and carrying them when we go camping, so I had to find something to ride, bought a CT90 K1. I had a hard time keeping them running, since we didn't ride them very often.
Fast forward a few years, got where I couldn't kick start anything, so my wife said she was going to get a new Trail 125. After looking around for a while, found 3 at our local dealer. She said why don't I get 2 instead of working on the CA77 Dream every time before we want to ride.
Now here we are, ready to ride!

 

[Shoot870p]

Old school hit the reasons fairly well for me. I am impressed with the cost of ownership so far. I really am impressed with the mileage! I wish one of the overseas parts companies would do a repop of the fuel canister and carrier at a decent price. I have no records on expenses so far but I have enjoyed it!

 

[Shoot870p]

And MCMD, I enjoyed the story for sure!

 

[Tex68w]

I just wish someone would sell accessories state side so that we weren't beholden to markups and weeks/months long ship times.

 

[m in sc]

yeah, agree w the last few statements. surprised we havent seen anyone step up yet.

 

[Ironhorse]

My reasons for buying in no particular order.

1. Age: My back will complain if I have to pick up a large bike.
2. Age: Easier to swing the leg through than up over a seat.
3. Nostalgia: The trail 70 was my dream bike as a kid. I never got one. I got the Honda Z50. I did get the Chinese copy of the trail 70 few years ago. The CT125 is the next best thing, but with Honda quality.
4. I live within riding distance of miles and miles of state forest roads.
5. Size. I am past the need for speed age. I would rather poke along and take in my surroundings.

 

[martysgone]

Years ago I got a group of buddies to buy CT90's and one 110 to go on epic off road adventures. That qualifies as 300+ miles on these little things. We all had backgrounds with motorcycle touring and most of us do a lot of off road "adventure" touring. The bikes were a whole different type of fun. I became hooked and even swapped a ATC125 motor into one of my frames. It was to be the trail 90 to tackle the next apocalypse on. So when Honda announced they were bringing the CT125 here I put a deposit down for 2 with the agreement that my wife would do the UTBDR with me on them. 2 years later we got our bikes and we have been making up time taking them everywhere.