SINNIS SCRAMBLER 125

#MCNwednesday
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March 11 2015
15
That #71 seems
to relate to nothing
in particular
Bag some old BSA
badges and you’ll
be laughing
FIRST RIDE
SINNIS SCRAMBLER 125
TECH SPEC
‘Just 20% of the cost of the real thing’
SINNIS RETROSTAR 250
Price
Engine
Power
Weight
Capacity
Seat height
On sale
Contact
£2200
249cc, air-cooled, fourstroke single
20.7bhp @ 7500rpm
130kg (dry)
10 litres
770mm
Now
sinnismotorcycles.com
NEED TO KNOW
Comfort
OK, but this is a fairly dinky bike so
not recommended for longer trips
Practicality
Great around-town, although slightly
small for bigger riders
The engine won’t blow your socks off, but it’s a pleasant, easy-going ride
VERDICT
Will it hold its value?
The $64K question. Unlikely, but then
it’s cheap to start with
well, basic. But in this retro guise that
seems to matter less and the ride was
always going to be some kind of pleasing, charming trip down memory lane
rather than anything demanding performance. In short, I’d happily bimble
across town on a weekly commute or
purr through this green and pleasant
land aboard it on a mild summer’s
Sunday ride-out.
If that’s all you’re looking for, or
perhaps as a step-up from a 125 for
an occasional Sunday toy, or even as
a stepping stone to something with
more range and performance (like
that Bonneville), the Retrostar, at less
than half the price of a SR400, does no
wrong. Buy some faux BSA tank badges
(around 30 quid for a pair, I’ve looked)
and it’d be better still…
No getting away from the fact that
it’s a basic Chinese roadster in
retro clothing, but it’s been done
better than most, is lavished with
all the right styling touches, is an
honest ride and is cheap.
If the Retrostar 250, alongside, looks
great value at £2200 then Sinnis’ other
retro newcomer, this £1695 Scrambler
125 is an absolute steal.
Although ‘only’ a 125, the limited
edition machine is a more tempting
buy than its stablemate. Its ‘Bonneville
Scrambler’-inspired retro styling is
done just as thoroughly and impressively as its bigger brother, its ride is
just as able and charismatic and, though
less powerful, on the road it doesn’t
suffer as much compared to the 250
as you might expect.
The Scrambler ‘look’ has been
achieved without cutting any corners. The high level, heat-shielded pipe
immediately reminds of Hinckley’s
version, there are proper rubber fork
gaitors, a mesh headlamp protector, cross-braced bars, race number
boards (though I still haven’t worked
out what the ‘71’ is a reference to) and
even semi-knobbly tyres.
Yes, a few economies have been
made compared to the 250. There’s less
chrome on the clocks and headlamp,
for example, and the wheel rims are
chromed steel rather than anodized
alloy, but overall, in terms of how it
looks, the Sinnis wants for nothing.
The Scrambler goes decently well,
too. With 11.5bhp available it’s fairly
typical for a 125 commuter (where
the 250, compared to its peers, such
as Suzuki’s Inazuma, does seem a little lacking), handles as well as those
knobblies will allow and is peppy and
(almost) fun.
In short, if you’re starting out in
biking on a limited budget or want a
machine for cross-town commuting,
the Scrambler is great value and, parked
outside McDonalds (or wherever yoofs
hang out these days) surely has more
kudos than most.
TECH SPEC
SINNIS SCRAMBLER 125
Price
Engine
Power
Weight
Capacity
Seat height
On sale
Contact
£1695
124cc, air-cooled,
four-stroke single
11.4bhp @ 8500rpm
115kg (dry)
10 litres
770mm
Now
sinnismotorcycles.com
VERDICT
Clock’s a crude conversion from metric
WE LIKE
Cool looking learner bike with
retro appeal and a peppy engine
but time will tell how that chrome
will survive a winter of abuse
from teenage riders.
■ Looks great
■ Decent equipment and lots of
nice touches
■ Less than half the price of SR400
WE DON’T LIKE
WE LIKE
■ Ultimately just a basic, 20bhp
runabout
■ Residuals and reliability unproven
■ Hasn’t the cachet of a genuine
retro brand
We like the wheels, the brakes are OK
■ Predictable, acceptable ride
WE DON’T LIKE
■ Odd Chinese giveaways
Headlight protector for Scrambler chic