Riva 50 / Salient

YAMAHA RIVA 50 / SALIENT (CA50)

In 1982, Yamaha treated Canadians to the first modern 50cc scooter offering in North America, the CA50. In Canada, the CA50 was badged as the ‘Salient’, while American’s models got the name ‘Riva 50’ when it was introduced there for the 1983 model year. This scooter was introduced alongside the 80cc Yamaha Beluga in Canada (aka Riva 80 in the USA) with seemingly good sales success.

The CA50 is a 2-stroke, 49cc, air-cooled scooter that is an obvious competitor to Honda’s Aero 50 (which was also introduced for 1983 in North America). The CA50 was sold until 1986, at which point it was replaced by the Razz (SH50). I think the CA50 is quite a stylish scooter. It’s certainly more modern looking than the Beluga / Riva 80 which wasn’t quite

as clean of a break from traditional Vespa inspired styling. My favourite part of the CA50’s styling is the rear haunches, which have great lines to them.

One thing the CA50 lacked was enclosed storage. Yamaha equipped the Salient / Riva 50 with a ‘gear slot’ rather than a proper glovebox. This gear slot was larger than the useless gear slot Yamaha gave the Beluga / Riva 80 but it still didn’t serve much of a purpose. You could ram a burger or a small purse in this spot but the lack of security and protection from the elements meant that you couldn’t store anything long term like a spare pair of gloves. You can judge the usefulness of this gear slot yourself in the photo above. The CA50 does also have a rear rack which you could put to some use.

Other than the lack of storage (which Honda’s Aero 50 competitor has in abundance), the CA50 compares rather well. Both scooters have automatic oil injection, automatic choke, CVT transmissions, great reliability and top speeds around 35mph. If the storage difference isn’t an issue for you, I’d base your choice on styling, condition and price.

A few other noteworthy attributes include a remarkably low dry weight of 121lbs. Most 50cc scooters are in the 160 - 200lbs range with the steel bodied Vespa’s being at the high end of that. Also, the CA50 has a nice low seat height of just 28 inches. That combined with the light weight of this scooter means it should be a good scooter for smaller riders.

Yamaha designates their vehicles with a letter corresponding to a model year. Yamaha used the letters K, L, N, S to represent the years from 1983 to 1986. If you are unsure which year your CA50, have a look for the CA50 model code and it should be followed by one of these letters.

Yamaha specs the CA50 at 100mpg, but they also spec the larger Beluga / Riva 80 at 95mpg and in my experience that scooter got more like 60mpg, so I doubt the CA50 can achieve 100mpg either. An owner I’ve talked with reports getting around 55-60mpg which is mediocre for a 2-stroke scooter of this size.

Pros:
* Stylish
* Full instrumentation

Cons:
* Storage space
* Milage

Owners Reports:
“I bought my yamaha ca 50 for $175. The guy told me i would never get it running. He put new wheels and cables. The carb was total crap it would bog horrible with 1/2 or more throttle. I bought a new carb and new battery. The electric start still works. The scooter only has 2400 miles on it. The exhaust was rusted a little bit and with a rust hole, the thing would do 40mph but would only do 25mph up hill. So i took the exhaust to a muffler shop had them clean it out with a torch. Once i got the exhaust fix the ca50 will on cruise 30-33mph but it will pull top speed up step hills so it cruise a lot nicer thru town.

I disabled the premixer and always mix 50:1. That works the best for me. The pros of this beast is it is very light and the brakes are excellent. The handling does allow me to zip thru traffic. The turning radius is just crazy. This will turn circles around any other scooters. Cons include there is no storage at all, so always pack light or bring a backpack. Also this thing drinks gas pretty fast i think i only get 50-55 mpgs...maybe less not really sure. But i always run 104 octance with snythetic pj1 2 stroke oil.”

- Tommy

Links:
MotorscooterGuide Forums - Visit the forum on this site to chat about this scoot.
CA50 Service Manual - Very helpful for anyone who works on their own scooter.
BikeBandit.com - Good for looking up OEM parts and finding out what’s still available
Riva 50/80 Magazine Scan - Very nice stuff!
CA50 Maintenance Chart - From Jack’s Scooter Shop
CA50 YouTube Video’s: Here, Here and Here.

Key Specs:
* Engine: 2-stroke, 49cc, single
* Bore and Stroke: 40.0 x 39.2mm
* Compression Ratio: 7.0:1
* Power: 3.6hp @ 6000 RPM, 4.9Nm @ 4500 RPM
* Lubrication: ‘Autolube’
* Carburator: Y12P-5A
* Ignition: CDI
* Starter System: Electric and Kick
* Fuel Tank: 3.8 litres / 1.0 gallons
* Oil Capacity: 1.0 litres (1 quart)
* Length: 1590mm
* Width: 615mm
* Height: 980mm
* Seat height: 690mm / 28”
* Wheelbase: 1125mm
* Ground clearance: 100mm
* Dry Weight: 55kg (121lbs)
* Suspension (front/rear): Bottom Link / Single Sided Swingarm
* Brakes: Drum / Drum
* Tires: 2.75-10-4PR (front and rear)
* Tire PSI: 18psi / 32 psi (front/rear)
* Headlight: 25w / 25w
* Colors: White, Red, Forest Green, Baby Blue