Why I love my NC though it is not perfect

[misterk]

I love the dct, ease of valve checks, comfortable with a Corbin seat and bar risers. It hits 99% of my boxes.


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[CDA441]

Did you have to change any cables and lines to use a 2 inch riser?

No, Just needed to remove the cable clips and disconnect the brake line from the clip. I also removed the clip.
The clutch cable does get too short when full lock to the right, when steering to the left it doesn't do anything

 

[MalcolmReynolds]

The NC is a good blank canvas that starts as the basis of a good "jack of all trades" kind of bike at an affordable price. From there you can make it whatever you want it to be.

The nice part is the cost of this bike is very reasonable to begin with which makes it more affordable to make those changes to fit your needs. Customizing/modding these bikes gets quite expensive. Sure you could run off and buy a bike already setup like a BMW with many of the farkles and toys, but even the BMW riders end up spending a small fortune modifying their bikes to make them work the way they want. I guess it will all depend on your expectations and if the NC checks enough of those boxes to make it fit your needs.

I look at the fuel economy and capabilities of the NC and it isn't perfect, and I don't "love it", but it does enough things well to meet a lot of my needs.

I think my few complaints about the bike center around US model issues. Like no ABS on manual transmission bikes, we should have the 750 in the US like the rest of the world gets, and it would be great to squeeze a little more fuel into the bike. I know a lot of guys here would like to see more off road friendly features also, but I tend to spend most of my time on the road so I am just being selfish.

I have waited for years for the ABS manual trans model to show up in the US. Finally I decided it was clear that Honda isn't going to give the US market the same bike the rest of the world gets or I would have bought one years ago. It would surely save Honda tooling costs etc if they shipped the same bike to the US as well. So I really don't know what they are thinking there. Maybe one day they will give us that bike, or I will have to cross the border and buy one from our Canadian brothers and sisters.

 

[SleepyC]

The NC is a bike for people who want to enjoy motorcycling for the actual joy of it. Not to impress, or be eyeballed. Just ride where you want, carry a lot of stuff and enjoy your day. I am so pleased with the bike. I have owned hard core sport bikes, cruisers, dirt bikes and many more, and this is the most REAL relaxing fun I have ever had on a bike.

 

[scotseam]

I love my nc700x because it will do everything I ask it to. No drama. Life is complicated, the nc700x is easy.

 

[Mathurin]

After 40 years riding only motorcycle this NCX fills all my needs and desires, first the high MPG !, a true and a simple answer to the "carbon defeat", that argument makes me unable to turn back except for an electric bike, which at this time are unaffordable;
I made some indispensable changes: the rear shock (EMC shock 1 french made) and fitted on a Mastad big screen (costs a lot to get it from US!!), , and now got a long trip bike, an every bike, a simple and reliable bike,
but first of all: economic, why 2 wheels should cost more than 4.

 

[MichaelJohn]

My favorite thing to do is switch the DCT to S3 while waiting in traffic at a light (first in line), then flipping the throttle wide open on green, hitting the speed limit before leaving the other side. My choice of lane and all the cagers safely behind me.

Ain't that the truth. Perfect launches every time - that is one of the best things about the DCT. It may be low horsepower, but the torque comes on fast and the DCT allows you to use all of it right away. Since I'm in California I never hesitate to split lanes to get to the front at traffic lights because I know my "slow" motorcycle takes off like a jackrabbit and gets me completely through intersections in the same time most other vehicles have just begun to roll. And that goes for other motorcycles as well. While they are easing out the clutch, I am gone. The NC may not have a lot of top end, but down low it is no slouch. Just today I was cruising along at about 40 mph in 4th with an Audi keeping pace with me on my right. I needed to get ahead of him to make a right turn so I started to accelerate slowly to get in front of him. He started to accelerate as well so I left-thumbed down to 3rd for the nearly instantaneous downshift, pinned it and positively shot away from the Audi. I was actually surprised at how quickly it took off and I must admit it brought a smile to my face. It may not have a ton of power but that torque curve is so flat and starts so early that it gives you everything it has without having to get to higher rpm's (which is a good thing because it doesn't have any!)

 

[Donald4k]

I'd be curious to hear the member's thoughts on this subject. Why do some motorcyclist journalists and aficionados call the NC700X a cross between a moped and something else? I see nothing in its design that's even close to a scooter. The frunk isn't a scooter thing. So what gives?

 

[670cc]

I'd be curious to hear the member's thoughts on this subject. Why do some motorcyclist journalists and aficionados call the NC700X a cross between a moped and something else? I see nothing in its design that's even close to a scooter. The frunk isn't a scooter thing. So what gives?

Because the NC is different and they don't understand it.

I see the same thing on truck forums regarding the new Honda Ridgeline. It gets bashed because they say it's not a real truck and it looks like a minivan. Well it doesn't hurt my feelings because I actually did not want a truck that is built like the other 99 percent, and I like minivans, too. The Ridgeline was exactly what I wanted.

The NC is sometimes bashed in the same way, being called a scooter or not a real motorcycle, perhaps because of the frame design, low reving engine, and available automatic transmission. Well that just shows ignorance because the NC does not even possess the design characteristics that officially define a scooter. And again, it doesn't hurt my feelings because I didn't want a motorcycle designed like the other 99 percent, and I also happen to like scooters, too.

Most motorcycle journalists write articles merely to generate advertising dollars. It in no way makes them experts. I ignore most of the articles because they are just the opinion of one writer, and typically are full of technical errors because the material was not properly researched.

 

[sumo]

RANT - You could ride all day with a guy and he would never notice that you were not slogging away at the clutch like everyone else and he would think you were riding a motorcycle just like everyone else but once you point out the DCT to him then all of a sudden you're riding a scooter which he will immediately tell you would be a good bike for his girlfriend to learn on, which it would be, but that is beside the point.

 

[sumo]

Can you transport your NC in the bed of your Ridgeline?

 

[670cc]

Can you transport your NC in the bed of your Ridgeline?

I have the truck set up to haul my dirt bike. I checked the length of the bed vs the NC and it might fit angle but not straight on. I really have no desire to load a 500 pound bike way up into a truck bed anyway. I have two different trailers that can easily haul the NC, so I am not pursuing hauling the NC in the truck.

EDIT: I installed the OEM motorcycle bed extender and measured the available space. The NC700X would fit in the 2017 Ridgeline bed straight on with a few inches to spare. The tailgate rating is acceptable for the weight, too. Still, I haven't physically tried it and probably won't.

 

[MalcolmReynolds]

I think the whole DCT "automatic" thing is so laughable to begin with. Of those that make that comment ask them if they have manual trans in their car or truck. Over 95% of them will answer they do not have a manual trans in their car or truck. Ask them why? You will get a variety of answers. Then loop back those answers to the bike and tell them the auto is easy, nice, comfortable, and you like it. If that makes it a "scooter" someone better tell Honda because they are turning their entire bike line into scooters then! I would venture to say that most people on the road in a cage today don't know what a manual transmission is and wouldn't know how to drive one. That trend clearly is coming to bikes and the change will happen faster than most of the current bike riders probably think. Not to mention self driving cars, trucks, and bikes.

"It if doesn't have a shifter it is a scooter" We heard the same OLD arguments from everyone about ABS brakes when they came out, now would you want to buy a new bike today without ABS if you had the option to get one with ABS? I think the answer for most of us is no, if we had an option to get ABS we would probably opt for it. Well all of those real bikes with real bikers would say "you just need to practice your skills, ABS is just a gimmic", but funny thing happened, the objections to ABS have largely vanished. Yes we all need to practice our skills, but ABS is a darn fine option to have if you can get it. The same thing is going to happen with the automatic trans on the bikes. There is a reason you can't hardly find a car or truck with a manual trans today. Which by the way really torques me off because I like driving a manual trans! LOL

Now I admit I am a manual trans guy. In my truck, my car when I had one, and on my bike. But I am also practical and I wished I had a auto trans on my bike when I lived in CA for a while stuck in traffic in the Bay Area on my insane commute to and from work. If I were put back in that situation again where I had to ride daily in traffic I would be in the market for a DCT bike without hesitation.

My riding now is only on weekends and for fun so the manual trans works great for me now and I don't live in CA where I have to deal with the stop and go parking lot for a commute. Only thing nice about CA was the ability to lane split or filter legally. Other than that I wouldn't want to live there again. Maybe a nice place to go back and do some recreational riding and see some friends.

The thing with the NC is that Honda is smart. They built one platform to build multiple bikes from. One of those bikes that is built on this platform is a scooter. So they will try to throw the scooter label at this bike. All I have to say to those people is "have you ever ridden such a nice scooter?" It seems to be keeping up with you just fine. Maybe you should get a scooter too! "You meet the nicest people on a scooter!"

But the bike can be made in so may ways on this one platform to appeal to so many people. The S, the CTX, NM4, NC. Just great stuff and it is smart by Honda to do that. Auto manufacturers have done this for years rebranding the same car platform with different name plates and in different configurations. It only makes sense that they do this with bikes. The retooling and constant product refresh cycles costs a fortune. So Honda saves some money, we get a variety of choices to choose from, and the cost savings is actually being passed onto the rider as well as Honda.

For people hung up on looks, status, fitting in with the crowd the NC and the other variants isn't going to be for them. You want "street cred" with those people you have to be riding what they are riding. For those interested in practical, useful, affordable bikes this is a great choice. Depends on who your riding buddies are and what your priorities are.

You watch how fast their tunes change when the transition to automatic trans bikes appears on their favorite brands and they end up on one. Won't it be fun to ask them how they like their "scooters"? LOL I know I am going to have a lot of fun poking and jabbing these guys as this happens... I am not going to let them live it down! ROFL

Clearly the technology is good enough for mass adaption so we will see this spread and at that point people will finally get past the "50cc scooter" mentality. Which by the way is fun to ride also... Just sayin!

 

[Michael Moore]

In re the attitude on auto trans, a pal down under (a good off-road rider with currently a big KTM twin but had auto Husky singles in the past and liked those) just mentioned:

A friend of mine, a very experienced rider on and off-road has just bought an Africa Twin with auto box & ABS. Like me, he was initially cool on the idea of the auto and ABS on an off-road bike, but after only 100km on it, he is completely won over.

He has given me an open invitation to come down and ride it - but has warned me that I will sell my soul for one if I do. ( He's probably right )

So that's now 3 out of 3 of riders whose opinions I respect - that have all told me that the AT auto is the only way to go.

Everything new is the end of the world until people realize "hey, this is kind of nice after all."

However, one drawback of the modern EFI/DCT/ABS bikes that I'm discovering is wiring. Granted, 99.9999% of the purchasers will never even look at the wiring on the bikes, but I'm wanting to do some mods on my CTX that need a few components relocated by several inches to make space for other things, and it is being a PITA. There are a LOT of wires, and Honda doesn't include a mm of wire anywhere that it doesn't have to. The fuse box is incorporated in the main harness and has 30+ wires going into it, and there are wires running all over the place to sensors and actuators and multi-pin plugs and grounding points. It isn't like olden times when you could spend a productive afternoon making a complete new heavy-gauge harness for a big street bike to try and coax a little more power to the headlight.

I suspect that on the Honda production line the first thing installed on a bare frame is the main wiring harness as accessing it seems to be a case of "first remove motorcycle from part".

 

[rpvanoyen]

All good and some less good things has been said, and I agree on most of them. I've made some upgrades in suspension, tires, protection and comfort. Seat and exhaust are original and fine by me.

All I can add is, thanks to the DCT I can still ride and enjoy the motorcyclist communities. It has made riding the motorcycle less painful than driving my car (that's a stick shift). And because of the DCT (in auto mode) I can pay even more attention on the road when traffic is getting heavier, so it adds up to my safety.

My next bike probably might provide me with more horsepower, but I definitely keep the DCT.

 

[406inSLC]

As first time rider on 2 wheels, this bike fulfills all my needs. I actually think the look is a head turner and have received many compliments already. I finally told my wife "Look woman...I mean honey...this is therapy for life as it's very conservative in every aspect and won't allow me to get into too much trouble with law or safety." At 6'1" 210 it is reasonably comfortable and can keep up with freeway speeds with ease and won't have to upgrade to new seat until I venture to my roots with a trip to Glacier National Park Montana. Can't think of a better place to experience being on the NC. I commute to work 60 miles round trip on it about 3 times a week along the Wasatch front and am in heaven and feel alive each of those days.

The best part is having this forum with a great group of riders that I can learn and compare ideas to better the experience. Thanks all!

 

[Techrat]

I finally told my wife "Look woman...I mean honey...

LOL!!! I imagine that after those words the world went dark and when you woke up on the couch with a cold compress on your forehead you THEN completed the rest of that statement.

 

[Fuzzy]

LOL!!! I imagine that after those words the world went dark and when you woke up on the couch with a cold compress on your forehead you THEN completed the rest of that statement.

My wife would not have provided the cold compress if I did that.

 

[dduelin]

The other day I lost the tire pressure monitor off the handlebar as I traveled about 3 miles of rutted bumpy dirt road in the Osceola National Forest. When I noticed it was gone I turned around and rode back at 4 to 6 mph scanning the edge of the road hoping to find the missing monitor. This is operating in the range of 1000-1200 rpm and right at the edge of the friction zone, the clutch engaging and disengaging in what must be no more than a 50-100 rpm range. The fueling was smooth and steady off idle and allowed me to keep moving at barely more than a walking pace while standing on the pegs and looking at the ground. This was about an hour I would have had working the clutch in the friction zone and the DCT did it perfectly. I did not find the TPMS monitor but I gained a fresh perspective of how well engineered the DCT is and the third generation (2016-17 NC700X, Africa Twin, VFR1200X) is supposed to be more refined yet in clutch control.