!!! Yamaha RX135 !!!
The RX100 was the king of auto enthusiasts in its days. Everyone wanted to own this bike for it amazing 100cc almost indestructible 11.3(?)bhp engine & intoxicating exhaust note. Many of them settled for CD100, Max100R etc bikes due to mileage & price constraints but they always had this bike in mind as the best in India.
College kids could kill for a single drive of this bike. But as with everything in the world the bike had to grow due to some of its limitations like Fuel Economy, short 4th gear unable to relax the bike in 4th gear & the competition which was more refined & gave relaxed driving characteristics. Of course no one could match RX100 for sheer excitement. RX100 also inspired loads of oungsters to do engine mods & also add a fifth cog making bike go to 120kmph+ easily. Several bikers modified the exhaust note to make it more rough & so on.
Suzuki ’’Shogun’’ was a good effort with phenomenal 15hp but used to sip fuel like a drunkard!! The other alternative was KB100 (RTZ) & KB125. KB was better suited for longer drives due to wider tires & a little relaxed driving with better driving position. But Bajaj’s bike’s body integrity was not that good & KB used to look aged within 6-8 months : not the chassis & overall dricing experience but paint quality, side panels etc
Yamaha did follow-up with a short-leaved 125cc engine but finally the new ’’avataar’’ of RX was in terms of the RXG with a 12hp 135 cc engine with a much relaxed 4th gear & fuel efficiency of 40+ kmpl. WIth a dry kerb weight of 97 kg the bike had the best power to weight ratio & provided the same level driving excitement & quality. However the intoxicating exhaust note was lost forever in order to lower the exhaust back-pressure(?). The fans of RX also didn’t like the ill-named RXG moniker & soon Yamaha had to revert to RX135 to make it more in line with the RX100 that everyone came to identify the bike with.
I bought RX135 4 speed as my first bike & really enjoyed it before I bought Pulsar 180DTSI aprx 4 months back. I didn’t sell RX even though I went for a long-term assignment in USA (almost 5.5 years!). The bike was with my cousin who took a god care of it & again was ready for my driving!
The bike has a amazing pickup/power from standstill & goes to 60kmph in no time (less than 6 seconds). The two stroke engine makes most of the power in the low rpm-range, very useful for the daily traffic & to fill the gaps in the traffic.
The suspension is not designed for comfort & tuned stiff for a sporty ride which makes the ride pretty uncomfortable on uneven pavements. The front tire is very narrow & I replaced it with a wider one. Same with the back one too. This did affect the fuel efficiency by 3kmpl though.
The handling department is first class, with the bike responding to zigzag movements very well due to lower weight & smaller size. The turning radius is very high due to front telescopic suspension angle & very surprising for the bike of that length. The bike goes to 70kmph but journey after that consumes some time as the 2 stroke engine makes the peak power at 5500 rpm. After that the exhaust note also becomes little too much to bare for a longer drive. The bike has much better power than any bike on the road until 5500 rpm though. There is no bike coming close here. Maybe pulsar 180 but that is a diff beast altogether.
The seats are comfortable for both the rider & pillion but doesn’t grip like newer generation bikes like pulsar/cbz etc. The height of the bike is also less than the newer premium bikes in the segment like Pulsar, CBZ, Wind, Ambition, Fierro etc. The styling is ’’classical’’ RX & still is as fresh as it was in early 90s.
The price is a bit on the higher side for the bike but the 5 speed deserves the premium over the 4 speed & also gives better fuel efficiency. I strongly recommend ’’replacement of Air filter every 2 years’’ This costs only 100Rs but makes wonder for the bike. The effect will be really surprising for you & you will recover the cost within 2 months of driving (fuel efficiency). The pickup also improves a lot with this timely change.
The transmission is FIRST-CLASS & STURDY, after 6 years of abuse it is still as it was when I bought it.
Would I buy this bike today & pay 52grand when there are several alternatives available...probably not but in 90s there was no competition for this bike whatsoever. Bajaj/Kawasaki RTZ did give some fight but lost out it in the end. RTZ does deserve a honorable mention to give a respectable fight to this legend.
My salute to the old man, you served very well buddy but it was time for me to grow up & look elsewhere. Anybody wanting to buy this bike today as new, I would suggest back to back test drive with other segment busters, the bike won’t disappoint you at all but should be aware of what you are getting into...!
(1) The newer bikes: more weight, heft, relatively comfortable suspension, fuel economy, Not as playful as RX135.
(2) RX135: Much better power to weight ratio, Classic piece, Low rpm power, highly tossable due to small size & weight. It is Yamaha RX for God’s sake! :) The all time favorite of younguns!
I won’t sell my RX, will renovate & use it for next 10/15 years until the Govt makes me loose it! :)
Happy Biking.
~Milind