Riva 125

YAMAHA RIVA 125 (XC125)

The Riva 125 is one of my favorite large scooters. The styling of this scooter has held up quite well over the years. The XC125 was first introduced for 1985 and it was sold continously until 2001 and then a final batch was released for the 2006 model year. I think it’s a sharper looking scooter than Honda’s Elite series, but I guess I should leave the style judging up to you. The Elite 150’s scooters do have liquid cooling, more storage and a higher top speed (65mph), so you’ll have to weigh the advantages. The Riva 125 can reach about 55mph and usually averages around 80mpg, which means you can cover about 120miles or 200kms on a tank (1.3 gal. / 7 litres) before you should stop for gas. This is great milage for a 125cc scooter.

Starting in 1986, Yamaha added a ‘Z’ version of the Riva 125 which appears to simply have fancy black paint with gold striping. Overseas, Yamaha sold a scooter called the Beluga 125 which appears to share the same chassis and body panels, but it uses a 2-stroke engine. You can explore this avenue if you’re interested in the history of this scooter or simply desperate for parts.

The storage capacity of the Riva 125 leaves something to be desired. Yamaha equipped the Riva 125 with a decent sized glovebox but was unable to free up any storage space under the seat. As you can see below, Yamaha filled up the underseat area with the gas tank and battery. This is similar to Honda’s usage of the underseat space in their Elite 150 scooter but the Honda does have a front ‘trunk’ which allows for more storage than just a glovebox can offer. If you are going to use a Riva 125 for longer trips, I suggest looking into buying a rear case that you can mount to the rear rack.

The instrumentation on the Riva 125 is pretty standard fare. You’ve got an odometer, speedometer, fuel gauge and a few warning lights for the centerstand, turnsignals and highbeams. The only interesting inclusion is the centerstand warning light which you don’t see very often.

With the Riva 125, Yamaha took a shortcut to save a few pennies and omitted a fuel filter. In my opinion, this is incredibly foolish but I can’t criticize Yamaha too hard because Honda did this as well with the Elite 80. Fixing this omission is easy and only costs a few dollars. Ask for a universal fuel filter at your local motorcycle dealership and then snip the fuel line and slip the fuel filter into place. I strongly recommend you do this immediately, because until you do you are only one spec of dirt anyways from being stranded on the side of the road.

For more info on the Riva 125, check out this ‘RivaRiders’ group on Yahoo. You need to sign up for Yahoo to access this group but they have complied an impressive collection of information that makes sign up worthwhile. They’ve got scans of the service manuals, a FAQ and parts lists. There’s also a photos section and a message area where you can talk to other owners.

Overall, the Riva 125 is a sharp looking scooter with a few shortcomings. Specifically, the lack of storage under the seat and the low top speed means that this scooter isn’t for everyone. You can work around the lack of storage but there’s not much you can do about the 55mph top speed. The problem with a 55mph top speed is that isn’t not really fast enough to venture out on the highway or out of town on a regular basis. 55mph is frustratingly close, but not something you want to have to deal with daily. For comparison, Honda’s Elite 150 scooter has a top speed around 65mph and it a front ‘trunk’

to hold more of your gear. On paper, the Elite 150 seems to make more sense but the Riva 125 seems like clearly the sharper looking machine. Yamaha’s Riva 180/200 is another option as it has a nice top speed around 75mph. Unfortunately, you still lack any storage beyond a glovebox and in my opinion, you lose the attractive styling as well. I suggest that anyone buying a scooter in the 125-150cc range should think carefully about what they are going to be using the scooter for. If you are going to be relying on it to travel on 55mph roads, you might want to move up to the larger Riva or one of Honda’s 250cc scooters. With a 55mph top speed, the Riva 125 is really at home cruising around town with just the occasional trip on backroads.

Pros:
* Stylish
* Lots of OEM parts available
* Official Yamaha accessories available like a windscreen, basket and rear case
* Lots of them out there

Cons:
* Slower than the Elite 150
* Minimal storage (only a glovebox)

Links:
MotorscooterGuide Forums - Visit the forum on this site to chat about this scoot.
XC125 Service Manual - Very helpful for anyone who works on their own scooter.
RivaRiders - Yahoo group of Riva 125, Riva 180 and Riva 200 owners.
BikeBandit.com - Good for looking up OEM parts and finding out what’s still available
JacksScooterShop - Great Info on the Riva 125 and all Japanese scooters.

Key Specs:
* Engine: Air cooled, 2 valve, 124cc, single cylinder, 4 stroke, single overhead cam
* Horsepower: 11.4 HP @ 8000 RPM
* Torque: 7.97 ft/lbs @ 6500 RPM
* Bore & Stroke: 49mm x 66mm
* Compression: 10.0:1
* Fuel System: 22mm Carb
* Spark plug: NGK C6HSA
* Spark plug gap: (0.6 - 0.7 mm)
* Lubrication: Wet sump, 1.0 litres
* Final drive: 0.15 litres
* Air filter: Wet type foam element
* Chassis Type: Steel tube underbone, 27 deg. Caster angle
* Length overall: 74 "
* Width overall: 25.6 "
* Height overall: 43.1 "
* Seat height: 29.9 "
* Wheelbase: 49.2 "
* Ground clearance: 4.3 "
* Weight (Dry/Wet): 209lbs / 225lbs
* Carrying Capacity: 370 lbs (passengers and cargo)
* Fuel tank: 1.8 gallons, 7.0 litres
* Light bulbs: Headlight: 40w/45w, Brake: 8w/27w, Signal: 27w
* Front suspension: Bottom-link fork, 3.3 " travel (85 mm)
* Rear Suspension: Unit swing, 2.8 " travel, (70 mm)
* Shocks: Front: coil spring, oil damper, Rear: gas, coil spring, oil damper
* Brakes: 130mm drum (front and rear)
* Rims: MT3.50 x 10 cast aluminum
* Tires: Tubeless, Front: 3.5-10 4PR Rear: 3.50-10 REINF