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What made you decide to buy your NC?

Cheap to ride, cheap to maintain, it fit, and I didn't need to buy luggage right away (which also helped it seem cheap)
So I guess the major draw was that I'm a cheap bastard.
 
I wanted an upgrade from my MP3. I had a V-strom before the MP3 and it was too much sport bike not enough commuter, and I ended up riding too fast all the time. But I was tired of the MP3. So I guess, because it wasn't a sport bike, adventure styling, insane MPG, frunk (better than a regular bike but no contest with the MP3), low CG, Honda longevity, price, the wife didn't dislike her seat (sort of a perch but we have a givi top case with back rest) oh and it wasn't too tall. I'm only 5' 7 1/2"
 
I first learned of the NC on RideApart.com. They absolutely loved the motorcycle. My heart wanted something big and sexy like a MotoGuzzi Stelvio, but the practical side liked the NC. The NC won out because of low CG, valve adjustments, HONDA, and the ability to do easy off pavement. I also like being different, and the NC is different. My only complaint is the ergos. I've done rox risers and Shad saddle, but I can't quite get comfortable. I'll keep working at that.
 
dbtx said:
Wanted a BMW GS but it was trumped by the NC's price and reliability. The low CG, frunk and MPG were big plusses for me also.

Also a huge factor was the great folks on this forum!
Click to expand...

Hi dbtx, which BMW GS were you looking at? If I had the coin to buy and maintain it, the 1200 GS would be in my garage but I am not nor ever will be a bike mechanic--it is just too expensive to pay for someone to pull out a wrench to work on it. With the 800 GS there are some spotty reviews also. My wife road the 650 GS on our bike trip in Europe and she liked it quite a lot (rides a Versys now but if I bring the NC750 home she will want that instead!).

Cheers
 
ChilliRider said:
Hi dbtx, which BMW GS were you looking at? If I had the coin to buy and maintain it, the 1200 GS would be in my garage but I am not nor ever will be a bike mechanic--it is just too expensive to pay for someone to pull out a wrench to work on it. With the 800 GS there are some spotty reviews also. My wife road the 650 GS on our bike trip in Europe and she liked it quite a lot (rides a Versys now but if I bring the NC750 home she will want that instead!).

Cheers
Click to expand...

I looked at the BMWs, and even lowered I found them too tall and very top heavy, the side stand angle was funky on it and it was all I could do to heft the weight of the bike up to riding position. The bars would have needed risers. I'm 5'4" so really limited on whats available and lowerable enough. While the NC is still a little tall its much more manageable with the lower CG.

A friend of mine has a BMW 650 she calls it her 'Bring My Wallet' bike and she has had nothing but trouble with it. The starter switch is done and it was about $300 just for the switch, the shop wants $150 an hour to work on it. There seems to be other issues in the electrics and thinks its related to the kickstand. Now she is having problems with it idling high and it not returning to lower idle. She is done with it and is going to fix it and get rid of it. She likes my NC but doesn't think it can be lowered enough. We both wish bike manufacture bikes that work for shorter riders, they only seem to do that with cruisers and not all of us want one of those.
 
Frunk for my commute, MPG for my commute, price was acceptable. The bike just made sense to me and still does.
 
I wanted a commuting bike I could run around with on the weekends for short trips into the country roads. I talked to a lot of people and then someone suggested I look at the NC. So I read about it, watched videos and reviews, priced it out on Honda, found out about the Automatic version and the storage. A few weeks later, I called the dealer and asked if they had the exact model I wanted: 2014 Black DCT, and they did. Best decision I think I could have made, especially being a new rider. This thing is a weeble. I tested her out this past weekend running gravel, some wet dirt (not quite mud, but close) and of course one-lane twisties in eastern TN and western Virginia and North Carolina.

As for the commuting aspect, I think I have only put on some 200 miles of the 5300 commuting. While the bike is easy to drive, my commute right now is dangerous even in a cage, so until the construction finishes, I will stick to public transportation in and out of downtown. I get home at the same time regardless... So, less stress riding the bus, and I can hop on the bike and go when I get home.

And it is a Honda.
 
Got spoiled not shifting my electric motorcycle plus I needed a gas bike for longer rides. Looked at the Aprilia Mana but I didn't want a CVT - too scooterish. Found the NC DCT, took a test ride and that was that! It's really the only game in town if you want automatic shifting with real gears. Fortunately it's a good game. I love the manual shift override levers on the left grip for quick downshifting to accelerate. However I have accidentally hit the upshift lever more than once because it is in the same place as the flasher on my Zero. I do miss a flasher. Rocking the high beam switch on the NC is clumsy. I flash cages all the time when they are waiting to turn left in front of me or entering the road from the side.
 
DCT only.
The bike is butt ugly, but is the perfect utility mount. I have a very tall clear shield and soft saddles/top case but its' still not a long haul runner.
It would need suspension/saddle upgrades for that. That's where my Motus steps up to the plate.
 
Most who started riding motorcycles during or before the early 70's have at least 10 good reasons why they bought their NC but it comes down to elemental, functional and fun.

Doesn't hurt that it is about as socially acceptable as motorcycles get either.
 
Thanks everyone I find it interesting why people decided to purchase it. I am really liking the fuel economy and the frunk, add the ABS to it to. One of the things generally like about most Hondas is the quiet purr of the motor. I had an old CM450 and she hummed, then my VT500 and she had a throaty growl, which wasn't so loud, but I prefer the quietness to the tooth rattling exhaust noise of other bikes.

I am really enjoying how it rides and handles twisty roads! I think if they had brought the DCT into Canada I would have bought that!
 
My favourite motorcycle engine sound is a 90* V-Twin, and a 270* firing parallel twin comes passably close to mimicking that.
I've always had a positive fetish for storage capability on a motorcycle.
I prefer MPG over MPH so Honda veering off into this New Concept direction was completely embraced by me.
I'm not a long distance pavement slab tourer, and not a commuter on this bike, so a little of both worlds is perfect.
Like to make gravel road/off pavement excursions whenever possible.
User friendly maintenance via screw and locknut valves has always been a liking of mine.


The NCX hits 9 out of 10 for all of the major wants I had on my present day LBS at 50 years old wish list.

I admit I thwacked off the rev limiter more than a few times during my acclimatization to "diesel mode" early period, but in my defense, my daily commuter for the past near decade has been my CBR125R, which lives it's life at 11,000 rpm for nearly every hour of operation, in it's faithful and much abused by me existence...

For my niggles on the bike-

I really would have liked a larger fuel tank instead of the Italian design swoopy a$$ in the air sportbike styled rear end. I don't care if it gets gob smackingly brilliant economy; I always want more when it comes to fuel capacity. *shrug* I'm just wired that way.

I don't like the single headlight and 3-D design of it. I am more old school, and prefer a "normal" plain old round headlight with a flat face. Makes it much easier to put on a rock guard, and I prefer twin headlights to one, for aesthetic looks and back up in case a low beam fails at night. I still haven't been able to figure out a rock protector for the headlight plastic, and I worry. Logging trucks going 100 kph, and me going 100 kph in the opposite direction, adds up to quite the kicked up sharp rocks and pebble impact velocity when it comes to the vulnerable and $$ headlight.

Shaft drive. I'm a bit torn on this one. Knowing now what I do about the low speed nice manners of the bike, I would gladly swap for a shaft instead of chain. If it had come only in shaft, but the gearing wasn't quite right for my low speed wants, I would have been upset. My BMW with it's belt drive sucked because it was geared too high, and like shaft, you couldn't do anything about it. With chain drive, at least you can play with the ratios if required. For gravel and off pavement, I wouldn't want a belt either.


More or less. lol ;)


Edit: mreric made me think of one more niggle- the ABS I don't mind since it actually works on this bike, but Linked Brakes? No thanks, I don't like them personally. And ye gods, the cost of front brake pads for the linked models!!! :O
 
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Hi. I'm a new member here and new NC700X owner. I had an old KZ1000 decades ago as my last moto and have been out of the circuit until now.

I needed something economical and good for personal general transportation and commuting. I had looked at the Versys 650, the Wee-Strom, and the NC. I sat on all of them and paddled them around on the showroom floor. I wasn't as impressed with the Wee as I thought I'd be; it was bigger and heavier than the reviews I'd read had lead me to believe. I like the styling and design of the Versys, but didn't want a bike that was more sport oriented like that. Of the three bikes, the NC felt the best... it fit better, the balance was better (lower CoG I think), and it was the least expensive of the three. It also had the frunk and the best mileage of them all.
 
I needed to downsize from a behemoth Honda Varadero due to a bad back,

Styling,

DCT,

It's a Honda,

Value for money.
 
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