BIGGER MONKEY MEANS BUSINESS

This cheeky 9bhp 125 delivers 189mpg and a lot of smiles

Based on the strangely popular MX125 (or Grom to most people), the reborn Monkey has a 9.25bhp air-cooled 125cc single which makes for a decent step up from the 49cc original. The new Monkey gets a fourspeed gearbox too but the old centrifugal auto-clutch has gone. The new bike is also fuelinjected, delivering a whopping claimed 189mpg, which means you’d get just over 230 miles out of the 5.6-litre tank. Honda’s engineers have worked hard to hide tech under the retro hood, so it has a nifty LCD dash, full LED lighting throughout and IMU-based ABS to keep the rear wheel on the ground under heavy braking. There are still some classic elements like the steel frame and skinny swingarm as well as the world’s tiniest USD forks. More amazingly, it only weighs 107kg!

Softly, softly, catchy Monkey

Key in, turn it on and the LCD dash bursts into life with a cheeky little wink (no really). Fire it up and then set off on one of the most grin-inducing rides you can imagine. Because it’s so small you can just fly around town, hitting gaps in traffic that aren’t really on, before buzzing off into the distance. The little air-cooled single has enough poke to keep things interesting and because it weighs nothing it pulls away quite quickly. It only has four gears though, so it does seem to run out of puff around 55mph. The throttle is delightfully smooth, without any hint of snatchiness at low throttle and the engine is remarkably vibe-free. The suspension is ultra soft, as is the enormous seat, but on the rough roads of London’s West End, it was my derrière’s best friend.

The biggest compliment you can give the Monkey is that it works just like any other modern 125. At £3699 it’s a little more than the MSX125 that it’s based on, but it’s so much cooler that it’s worth the extra. There are a couple of finance options available including PCP for £65 a month and HP for £100 a month, much better than a bus pass eh?