CFMoto 125NK

How much does the 125NK cost?

CFMoto France sells the 125NK in a single version at €3,399 (recommended retail price, excluding delivery and registration), in Zephyr Blue or Gem Black. It comes with a two-year parts and labour warranty, provided it is serviced within the CFMoto France network. The importer does not state a model year: this page covers the bike in the 2026 range, which keeps the specification and colours of the 2025 launch model.

That is well below its rivals on sale in France, priced from €5,149 (Honda CB125R) to €5,799 (Yamaha MT-125), and still below the KTM 125 Duke and Aprilia Tuono 125 on their current offers (€4,799 and €4,600 in October 2026). Elsewhere in Europe it costs €3,699 in Germany and Austria (delivery included), €3,390 in Italy according to Motorbox and Dueruote, and £2,898 in the UK.

Where does it come from?

Before the 125NK, CFMoto, KTM’s Chinese partner, had never sold a 125 cc motorcycle in Europe, Motorrad noted at its launch. It was first shown as a concept at EICMA 2023, with a single-sided swingarm, carbon parts and a titanium silencer. The production version, unveiled at EICMA 2024, kept the high-mounted exhaust and the swingarm-mounted number-plate holder, but switched to a conventional double-sided aluminium swingarm. Its styling, borrowing the face of the bigger NKs, comes from the Italian studio Modena 40 in Rimini, according to Dueruote.

Which licence do you need?

The 125NK is a light motorcycle under French law: 124 cc and, according to CFMoto France, 10.6 kW (14.4 hp), under the 11 kW limit. In France, it can be ridden:

• on an A1 licence, available from age 16;
• on a car (B) licence held for at least two years, after a 7-hour practical course at an approved riding school (two hours of theory, two hours off-road, three hours on the road), costing €250 to €300 according to Service-Public.fr;
• on an A2 or full A licence.

French riders who got their B licence before March 1980, or who rode a 125 or a three-wheel scooter between 2006 and 2010 with a B licence held for two years or more, are exempt; so are those who took the old 3-hour course before 2011. Keep the course certificate with your licence, as it can be requested at a roadside check. Rules differ elsewhere: in Germany, for example, the bike is also open to holders of the B196 car licence extension, as Motorrad points out.

How good is the engine?

The 124 cc single is a new design, liquid-cooled, with twin overhead camshafts and four valves, Bosch fuel injection and a cable throttle. Strongly oversquare (58 x 47 mm, 12:1 compression according to CFMoto Germany-Austria), it is built to rev. CFMoto France quotes 14.4 hp (10.6 kW) at 10,500 rpm and 11 Nm at 8,500 rpm; the German-Austrian spec sheet lists 10.2 Nm, and CFMoto’s global website 11 kW at 11,000 rpm. The gearbox has six speeds, and Dueruote reports a slipper clutch (which stops the rear wheel hopping on hard downshifts).

Both Italian tests agree: you have to rev it. Dueruote found very little pull below 3,500-4,000 rpm, with the engine only waking up from 5,000-5,500 rpm, and short gearing (6,500 rpm at 70 km/h). The red zone starts at 9,000 rpm although peak power is claimed at 10,500 rpm, so the screen often flashes red when you hold the gears. Their test bike reached 105 km/h on the clock; CFMoto Germany-Austria claims a 99 km/h top speed. Motorbox’s young tester found it lively, as long as he revved it out.

How does it ride?

The chassis combines a steel tube trellis frame, an aluminium swingarm, a 37 mm upside-down fork and a preload-adjustable monoshock, with 130 mm of travel at each end (CFMoto Germany-Austria). CFMoto France describes the fork as adjustable; Dueruote found it non-adjustable and notes that the shock has no linkage. The 17-inch wheels wear 110/70 and 140/60 tyres, Chinese Helios rubber according to Dueruote. The wheelbase is 1,360 mm, rake 25° and ground clearance 150 mm.

Braking relies on a 292 mm front disc and a 220 mm rear disc, with standard two-channel ABS. Official spec sheets disagree on the front end: CFMoto France lists 242 mm, every other CFMoto website 292 mm; CFMoto France, the global website and Dueruote describe a four-piston radial caliper (made by Hangte, says Dueruote), while the German-Austrian sheet lists a two-piston caliper.

Dueruote found it more stable and reassuring in corners than the Benelli BKX 125 S, with the feel of a ‘big’ naked bike, and rated the brakes as well sized, with ABS that shows no delay or pulsing. Motorbox’s tester felt confident through the bends, helped by the traction control, found the suspension comfortable on broken roads and the brakes strong, with ABS that only steps in when needed.

What equipment does it have?

The spec sheet is generous for a 125 at this price: traction control (a simple system working on ignition and injection, as there is no ride-by-wire, Dueruote explains), two-channel ABS, full LED lighting, USB-A and USB-C sockets and a curved 5-inch TFT screen. Paired with the CFMOTO RIDE app, the screen shows Google Maps navigation, phone notifications and the bike’s status; CFMoto France includes one year of services. No riding modes, quickshifter or cruise control are listed, and the key is conventional.

Fuel consumption and maintenance

CFMoto France quotes 2.6 L/100 km (62 g/km of CO2): with the 12.5-litre tank, theoretical range approaches 480 km. Dueruote recorded about 35 km/l, or 2.9 L/100 km, even when riding hard.

CFMoto France schedules services for its 125s at 500 km and 1,500 km, then every 5,000 km or once a year, within the approved network to keep the warranty valid.

Who is it for?

The 125NK targets 16-year-old A1 riders and car licence holders who want a proper small naked bike without spending over €5,000. If you want a stronger engine low down, Dueruote prefers the Benelli BKX 125 S. Its direct rivals, all more expensive, are the Honda CB125R, KTM 125 Duke, Aprilia Tuono 125 and Yamaha MT-125; for a sportbike, see the Yamaha R125. When you move up to an A2 licence, the 450NK takes over in the same family.

Recalls

No recall was found for the 125NK (2025 and 2026 model years), either on RappelConso in France, on CFMoto UK’s recall page or in the US NHTSA database.