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Things have changed in the years since I first started this website, sometime around 2005. Ebay and motoring sales sites always had a decent selection of KH125's for sale but, at the time of writing (end of 2025), things have significantly slowed down. I suppose 20 years is a long time, especially since the last new UK KH125's were sold in 1998. I've kept my eye on what's been for sale over the years, even keeping a database of bikes, their condition, registration numbers and prices. However, I've found that fewer and fewer bikes are now appearing secondhand. Yes, the K7's & K9's (1992-97) still feature now and again, some still in their original Ebony Black and Sunbeam Red colours. Sadly, more often than not though, the bikes for sale are butchered so-called 'cafe racers' covered in cheap imported parts and awful paint jobs, advertised for ridiculous prices. A lot of money for complete junk that are designed to seduce unwary buyers.

When I started this site there were adverts for used K1's & K2's in their factory standard Luminous Passion Red and Galaxy Silver; K3's in their Candy Cobalt Blue and Candy Cardinal Red and the rare L1 EX versions in Candy Cobalt Blue and Polar White sporting their special alloy wheels. These days? Hardly any of these turn up at all. The odd dodgy 'EX' with either stripped off alloy wheels replaced by spokes or, scam adds selling later 'K' series bikes with secondhand 'EX' badges on the side panels. I haven't seen a decent 1980's K series KH125 for a few years now let alone a good A series example from the late 1970's.

I don't know whether garages around the UK are full of old KH125's; I'd like to think that there are thousands of Galaxy Silver K1's and Cardinal Red K3's out there but I suspect not. Like most cheap 125's, these bikes were never really cherished. They were used and abused often by skint learner riders, they were cheap commuters, serviced and repaired on shoestrings, sold on again and again as tests were passed and bigger bikes bought. Most were crashed, smashed, robbed for parts and finally scrapped. That was the life of a 125cc bike in the late 20th Century.

While I'll still keep an eye on the site, I don't see me adding much here in the future, mainly because there just isn't the new material out there to add anymore. Also, despite my instructions not to do so, I get messages asking technical questions (no, I'm not a mechanic) or for workshop manual scans (and no, buy your own, they're often on Ebay). I'm leaving this site up for information purposes for anyone who needs it; the 'Buyer's Guide' is perhaps more relevant than ever given that buyers should have something to tell them what the bikes used to look like fresh from Japan. Thanks for taking time to visit the site, it's been a fun 20 years.

Original General Website Introduction

Welcome to my small website about the UK version of the Kawasaki KH125, two-stroke motorcycle. Perhaps you're here to find some useful information about how to identify which version of the bike you may have or, you just want take in a bit of nostalgia - either way, I hope you enjoy your visit. If you are looking to buy a KH125, check out the 'Buyer Guide' (with warnings) and relevant model pages first.

In 1983 the UK passed a law that ensured that learners without a full licence could only ride motorcycles up to 125cc. Initially, a learner could ride two years or, with a car licence, a rider could indefinitely use a 125cc with 'L' plates stuck on. I rode my Kawasaki KH125 for four years. It was my main vehicle, I went everywhere on that KH125. It was dented, rusty, hand sprayed, often lacking an MOT and tax. At one stage I had to bump start it as the kick-start shaft had snapped - my neighbours loved me going off to work at 5.30 in the morning in a miasma of buzzing engine and two-stroke smoke!

Pictured below is my former KH125ex L1 with the cast wheels which I sold in 1992. The non-standard Micron exhaust and a bigger piston kit, ensured an 'indicated' and optimistic top speed of 88mph. I re-sprayed it black with aerosols, this L1 was originally Candy Cobalt Blue. For more information on this model see the L1-Ex page.

Like many people in the UK, I eventually passed the bike test on my KH125 stroker. When the law was amended and CBT's and tests became compulsory, I moved on and sold my KH125 to fund a bigger bike.

Nearly 20 years later I saw a KH125 for sale, though neglected for years in a garage, it was the same model I once owned. After a good clean up and a few replacement parts, the old girl is now as good as new and she only has 1700 genuine miles on the clock!

A began to look around the net and acquired some pictures, information and other bits and bobs so decided to try and organise it all into some kind of website. There's a separate page for each of the KH125 models, a little history, a section on magazine articles and a bit about technical matters. I hope you enjoy it. (Below - the brochure for the KH125 A1 from 1977).

A weird French magazine advert from around 1977-78