After a gap of more than two decades Yamaha once again appears coming alive with this new edition of 125cc Gladiator. One month into riding the Gladiator, and I am convinced about its capabilities. A welcome sign since the first road burner RX 100 came out of the Yamaha stable. The RD 350 was, however, another story.
Firstly, some negatives though.
1) The foot peg bracket gets rubbed each time your left foot moves on to the gear shift.
2) Both the stands fall so close that you can push one for the other. It is annoying. The main stand is so clumsy that it is not smooth to pull the bike on it.
3) The choke lever prevents you from lowering the handle bar to a position where you are very comfortable if you are used to revving up quite often. It would touch the tank.
4) I can’t fathom what went into the designer’s head when he opted for the type of fuel-tank lid (was it to prevent any water from seeping in?). Just outlandish.
5) Flimsy RVMs. I think the quality and feel of the RVMs is worse than what we see on a cycle.
6) The kick not springing back to its parking place is a strange oddity.
7) You can’t see the front wheel while riding. It is just invisible from that position. A peculiarity?
Now, the good ones.
The Glad is all rolled into one bike; commuting, sporty and powerful. The feel of the bike is great. It compels you to ride which is very smooth indeed. Open the throttle by a thread and suddenly you are cruising around 60 then go up to 70 without any shaky feeling. Maneuverability is great and the disc at front is efficient enough to make it still in a wink. I think the midrange power band is restricted as more revs are required when you are on an ascend especially with a pillion. I feel the RX had no such revving needs as it effortlessly did those stretches.
Kudos to Yamaha for packing so many goodies in this bike and that all at a very competitive price.
Given all this two things are sorely missed; Alloy wheels and a Tachometre. Had the bike been longer by two inches it would have been more comfortable for six footers.
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