The first shock on purchasing a TZR125 is the price. This wasn’t helped by the fact that I also ordered the full fairing and powervalve kit. The fairing was £200 and the powervalve £66 extra. The full price of a derestricted TZR in 1987 was thus £1666, over double the price of my RD125LC purchased in 1982.
The extras had to be ordered so the next shock was the dismal performance in 12hp form. I dutifully ran the bike in as per the handbook. After 500 miles, I began building up to full throttle. The first time I gave it a burst of full throttle I was disappointed to find that top speed, with my 12 stone weight aboard, was about 70mph. The engine was reluctant to rev over 8000rpm, and there was no sudden step in power that appeared on my LC at 6000rpm.
The 12hp limit creates in the TZR, and other restricted 125s, the absurd situation whereby the bike is more dangerous than if it .was not restricted. Acceleration is mediocre, and several times when I attempted to overtake cars I found that I was flat out and had nothing left causing potentially dangerous situations to arise.
The 125 TZR has a single cylinder, reed valve, two stroke engine, liquid cooling and, a six speed gearbox. Electrics are 12V with electronic ignition, an excellent headlamp and wide rear lamp with twin bulbs. The steel Deltabox frame is massive for a 125 and is complemented by fat tyres and hefty forks.
The engine is noisier than an LC with an exhaust note that sounds more like a four stroker, lacking any of the tinny sounds that some two strokes exhibit. But silencing is so good that pedestrians leap into your path, equating a lack of noise with a lack of vehicle. In 12hp form there is no sharp power step - something learners may be thankful for - and torque production is such that frenetic gear changing is not necessary, even on steep hills.
The gearbox action is poor, not helped by the length of the final drive chain, itself subject to excessive snatching. The chain wears rapidly despite frequent lubrication - the first was replaced after only 6000 miles. Tyre life was not brilliant, either, at 5500 miles, although this was better than my LC! The front tyre still has plenty of life left after 9000 miles. The original Jap tyres gripped well even in the wet, and I was sufficiently impressed by them to fit a new one on the back.
The major plus of the TZR is the superb handling. In two years of riding in all conditions I can’t fault it. Bumps in the middle of the road had no effect and the bike wasn’t knocked off line. Yamaha’s vast racing experience is very much in evidence.
After some months, the full fairing which I had ordered arrived. This Yamaha fairing was made in Italy! After the fairing was fitted, top speed improved to 75-80mph and fuel consumption went from 70 to 80mpg - but weather protection was hardly improved; it was still necessary to wear waterproofs in the rain. The fairing did, however, stop the wind buffeting and made long runs less tiring. With the ability of cruising between 45 and 70mph, the bike was quite practical for long runs, neither boring nor uncomfortable.
Sometime later, the powervalve arrived, which sharpened up the motor throughout the rev range. Top speed improved to 85mph, but this was still below the 90mph achieved by my LC, fitted with larger jets and Microns. Acceleration was also below LC standards.
Another fault with the bike appeared a few months ago. Leaving the Yam on its sidestand to close the garage door, I heard a loud crash and turned to see my pride and joy on its side. The clip-on handlebar and gear lever had taken the worst of the impact - would you believe £34 for the clip-on and £12 for the gear lever? A few months later the same thing happened again with exactly the same result - this time I straightened the bits. I had to purchase a paddock stand to be able to adjust the chain. Fitting just a sidestand is quite ridiculous on a bike of this cost My Yamaha dealer tells me he does a roaring trade in bars, etc. Few car owners would put up with such nonsense!
Reliability has been very good, something I’ve come to expect from Yamaha two strokes, my LC has done 34000 miles so far. In summary, I am somewhat disappointed with the TZR’s performance which I expected to be better than the LC, but it does have superb styling and handling.
Vince D. Dusang