Kymco Visar 2020 — Specifications

Kymco had a slate to wipe clean with the CK1. The Visar is the Taiwanese response to that challenge, and it arrives with a certain assurance in its lines. The fork head dives forward aggressively, the swollen flanks integrate the turn signals without letting them trail like forgotten appendages, the engine guard completes a silhouette that clearly claims its belonging to the roadster segment. This isn't a motorcycle that apologizes for existing.

Under this worked bodywork, the 124 cc single-cylinder engine runs on injection since the 2020 generation, in accordance with Euro4 requirements. The 10 horsepower peaks at 8,000 rpm, the torque of 11.8 Nm arrives at 7,000 rpm. The five-speed gearbox does the job, the chain transmits, and the whole thing is honest for navigating in the city or swallowing a few departmental roads without rushing. Past 90 km/h, however, the mechanics begin to show their physical limits. The announced maximum speed of 100 km/h is a theoretical value that long straight lines quickly transform into a chimera. It’s built for the city and short outings, not for highway connections.

The chassis doesn't surprise: steel tubes, telescopic fork without adjustment, mono-shock at the rear. Nothing innovative, but nothing shameful either for a 125 priced at 2,799 euros. The real evolution of the cycle is in the braking, with the abandonment of the rear drum in favor of a disc on both sides. The 80/100-17 tires at the front and 110/80-17 behind correspond to category standards. The aluminum rims bring a visual touch that partly justifies the price increase compared to its predecessor. The weight of 136 kg fully fueled remains within the standard.

It is on the commercial field that the Visar plays a difficult game. Faced with the Yamaha YS 125 or the Honda CB 125 F, it no longer holds the price advantage, the Japanese being now much better positioned in terms of price-performance ratio. And on the other flank, 125s with a vintage style like the Mash Seventy Five or the Black Seven seduce a clientele that is precisely what Kymco does not offer. The Visar is neither the cheapest, nor the most technical, nor the most typical. It occupies a central position without clearly dominating its subject.

Its public is the young driver with an A1 license or the B license holder who wants a practical motorcycle without complications, with a design affirmed enough not to look like a functional two-wheeled vehicle from a large-surface catalog. The 13.5-liter tank and the reasonable consumption guarantee a correct autonomy for daily commutes. The Visar is not a revolution, but it assumes its role with enough character to deserve that you stop before signing with the dealer next door.