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Who else has a dct that is never going back to a traditional clutch?

Well I’ve just ‘ tested‘ my DCT NC on a five day jaunt to Scotland. The St1300 was left sulking in the garage. To be fair to the Pan I’ve just given it a little 80 mile run and the first thought I recorded was Manual Clutches are so overrated..... the engine on the Pan is sublime but the weight reminded my back how much I enjoyed the light weight NC. I’m sadly getting close to parting with the pan ..... it’ll be a sad day when I do but I have to acknowledge old age doesn’t come on it’s own ..... and the DCT makes riding so much more enjoyable, all IMHO of course And I reserve the right to change my mind about the pan ......
 
Purpose. The purpose for which I use motorcycles is primarily to travel. The two simple jewels that Honda has stumbled upon while making the NC are a very low CG and the automatic transmission. Not much else matters. Oh, yes, there is rake and trail, which on the NC are quite all right, but it's the low CG that makes the NC so easy to ride, and the DCT makes it stellar. Yes, the NC has shortcomings. Why Honda would build a motorcycle with such ridiculously low power is beyond me. And, a single disc front brake? Also ridiculous. And how about that suspension--suitable for pounding nails into your derrière, if you present it with much of a challenge. But all of the above considered, the NC is, for me, a machine that works for any type of road presented to it from awful gravel to super-slab. Enough said.
 
Though i do really enjoy hammering gears all on my own with a manual... I am becoming much more pleased/impressed with the DCT, even more than i thought i would. It simply is just so enjoyable to ride, and hey, the Pillion really likes it too lol! :{)
 
Small bikes (scooters at least) already have an automatic trans - CVT. For non scooters, I do think cost and weight are a factor of why they aren't available. Those that want a small bike without shifting can go the scooter route, so I think the manufacturers think they have that market covered.
I don't think you can compare scooters/CVT with the NC and DCT machines. I think the reason is the conservative nature of riders. We see it all the time in various NC forums - not riding a bike without a clutch/gear lever (much as they all fight for the latest quick shifter to avoid using the clutch lever!). ALso, in the constant -'its a scooter' attitude. VFR riders, and Africa Twin riders don't likely get the comments, so why does the NC?!
Weight? I think it /does/ have a baring for many people - some 10kg on the NC? - but then they load the NC up with racks, stands and panniers.
More general comment, as some others have already complained about the engine being such low power. The main reason the modern machines 'need' such power is the enormous weights they've added as bulk and capacity has increased! 54bhp is (was) more than adequate for those old folks like me and after many faster machines, it's not all about power and speed.
 
Though i do really enjoy hammering gears all on my own with a manual... I am becoming much more pleased/impressed with the DCT, even more than i thought i would. It simply is just so enjoyable to ride, and hey, the Pillion really likes it too lol! :{)
See my earlier comment. The foot shift kit I bought for the DCT was worth every penny for the benefits of all options! If Honda fitted it as standard, they would convert far more 'only ride a manual' riders. But I'm sure they know what they're doing better than I do when it comes to marketing strategy.
 
Japanese "babysitting" dog if I remember correctly, no? Fiercely loyal and protective. Fantastic dogs!
I've never heard "babysitting" dog but when my daughter was brought home from the hospital at 3 days old our female Akita parked herself outside her bedroom door.

They were/are used as guard dogs for the Imperial palace for generations. They are often referred to as Japanese Bear Dogs but I'd know why. They are often cat like in their personalities, in that they are aloof and often prefer to lay somewhere where they can have an overview of their domain/their family. We found that none of ours would allow anyone into our home (which is great if you live in a very rural setting) but if someone came to the door and we put the dog outside, then let the person inside, then brought the dog back inside the dog accepted them. But that person would never want to make the mistake of just walking into our home. Fiercely loyal to the family. Loving to the family but not overtly affectionate. Protective of their domain.

The protection thing is interesting too. Our dogs would chase down anything (baby rabbits - raccoons - full size deer) on our property. But put the dog on a leash and walk it somewhere or drive it somewhere and it was happily social and not aggressive to other people or animals.
 
Purpose. The purpose for which I use motorcycles is primarily to travel. The two simple jewels that Honda has stumbled upon while making the NC are a very low CG and the automatic transmission. Not much else matters. Oh, yes, there is rake and trail, which on the NC are quite all right, but it's the low CG that makes the NC so easy to ride, and the DCT makes it stellar. Yes, the NC has shortcomings. Why Honda would build a motorcycle with such ridiculously low power is beyond me. And, a single disc front brake? Also ridiculous. And how about that suspension--suitable for pounding nails into your derrière, if you present it with much of a challenge. But all of the above considered, the NC is, for me, a machine that works for any type of road presented to it from awful gravel to super-slab. Enough said.

If it had a more powerful engine, it would have dual front brakes....those go hand in hand. Do you need dual front brakes on an NC? Nope. If it had 100+ hp, then the answer would be yes.
 
Purpose. The purpose for which I use motorcycles is primarily to travel. The two simple jewels that Honda has stumbled upon while making the NC are a very low CG and the automatic transmission. Not much else matters. Oh, yes, there is rake and trail, which on the NC are quite all right, but it's the low CG that makes the NC so easy to ride, and the DCT makes it stellar. Yes, the NC has shortcomings. Why Honda would build a motorcycle with such ridiculously low power is beyond me. And, a single disc front brake? Also ridiculous. And how about that suspension--suitable for pounding nails into your derrière, if you present it with much of a challenge. But all of the above considered, the NC is, for me, a machine that works for any type of road presented to it from awful gravel to super-slab. Enough said.
To those late to the party the Honda NC700 platform was designed during the global economic downturn and recovery of 2008 - 2011. The Big Four from Asia lost 60% of annual sales by 2010. Suzuki didn't even import 2010 models that year. Only Honda had the foresight and resources to build a bike for the times and here we are 9 years later still appreciating this humble low powered motorcycle. When it was released IIRC there were something like 12 Asian middleweight competitors in the 600-650 class, Honda alone had two, and all but one had more horsepower than the NC700X. Honda was already selling a 600 that produced 200 hp/liter while the NC produced 'only' 76 hp/liter when it debuted in 2011 but the design brief never was about specific output to displacement, about horsepower, about a howling inline 4 turning a gazillion rpms. Manufacturers had been chasing that for years and had done a good job but those bikes weren't selling in the Great Recession and actually never came back in any numbers. The NC engine was designed for best efficiency for displacement and the frame, wheels, suspension and brakes were designed to be easy to manufacture and keep costs down. The manual 2012 NC was under $7000 MSRP and 20-30% less expensive than the 150 mph four cylinder 600s and somewhat less expensive than the Suzuki and Kawasaki 650 twins. The NC didn't need dual disc brakes up front - it stops from 60 mph in nearly the same distance as some race replica 600s. It won't continue to brake like that running hot track laps or down a fast downhill mountain run but then it wasn't meant to heat up brakes like that. The brakes are best designed for the job it does. Two discs are one too many and still meet the need. Yes, the suspension is built to a low price but what Asian bike in that class doesn't benefit from aftermarket upgrades? One can spend $1000 on a shock and fork valving and have suspension as good as a premium European bike comes with for $$$$ less. The NC700 models were the right bikes for the times and the sales record since then speaks for itself. Honda designed and built what sold during and after the recession in Asia, Europe, and in North America.
 
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To those late to the party the Honda NC700 platform was designed during the global economic downturn and recovery of 2008 - 2011. The Big Four from Asia lost 60% of annual sales by 2010. Suzuki didn't even import 2010 models that year. Only Honda had the foresight and resources to build a bike for the times and here we are 9 years later still appreciating this humble low powered motorcycle. When it was released IIRC there were something like 12 Asian middleweight competitors in the 600-650 class, Honda alone had two, and all but one had more horsepower than the NC700X. Honda was already selling a 600 that produced 200 hp/liter while the NC produced 'only' 76 hp/liter when it debuted in 2011 but the design brief never was about specific output to displacement, about horsepower, about a howling inline 4 turning a gazillion rpms. Manufacturers had been chasing that for years and had done a good job but those bikes weren't selling in the Great Recession and actually never came back in any numbers. The NC engine was designed for best efficiency for displacement and the frame, wheels, suspension and brakes were designed to be easy to manufacture and keep costs down. The manual 2012 NC was under $7000 MSRP and 20-30% less expensive than the 150 mph four cylinder 600s and somewhat less expensive than the Suzuki and Kawasaki 650 twins. The NC didn't need dual disc brakes up front - it stops from 60 mph in nearly the same distance as some race replica 600s. It won't continue to brake like that running hot track laps or down a fast downhill mountain run but then it wasn't meant to heat up brakes like that. The brakes are best designed for the job it does. Two discs are one too many and still meet the need. Yes, the suspension is built to a low price but what Asian bike in that class doesn't benefit from aftermarket upgrades? One can spend $1000 on a shock and fork valving and have suspension as good as a premium European bike comes with for $$$$ less. The NC700 models were the right bikes for the times and the sales record since then speaks for itself. Honda designed and built what sold during and after the recession in Asia, Europe, and in North America.

Fun fact, the Showa forks on the NC are the same ones used in Suzuki's SV650. I'm sure there may be other bikes that share those budget conventional forks as well.
 
Can't count how many times I have saved my own skin by just assuming that a driver is not paying attention or just looking for motorcycles.:mad:

A wise man once told me many moons ago....

"Ride like you are completely invisible to everyone around you"
 
Fun fact, the Showa forks on the NC are the same ones used in Suzuki's SV650. I'm sure there may be other bikes that share those budget conventional forks as well.

Budget forks/shocks can be tuned to work much better with simple spring and oil level/viscosity set up.
 
Purpose. The purpose for which I use motorcycles is primarily to travel. The two simple jewels that Honda has stumbled upon while making the NC are a very low CG and the automatic transmission. Not much else matters. Oh, yes, there is rake and trail, which on the NC are quite all right, but it's the low CG that makes the NC so easy to ride, and the DCT makes it stellar. Yes, the NC has shortcomings. Why Honda would build a motorcycle with such ridiculously low power is beyond me. And, a single disc front brake? Also ridiculous. And how about that suspension--suitable for pounding nails into your derrière, if you present it with much of a challenge. But all of the above considered, the NC is, for me, a machine that works for any type of road presented to it from awful gravel to super-slab. Enough said.

" And how about that suspension--suitable for pounding nails into your derrière, " Agreed. I think the seat, although not great in itself, gets a lot of flack for that suspension. Just turning down a notch or two makes it far more bearable (although clearly not a solution to solve one issue with another).
 
The NC700 models were the right bikes for the times and the sales record since then speaks for itself. Honda designed and built what sold during and after the recession in Asia, Europe, and in North America.

As we are currently in deeper DooDoo than in 2008. The NCs make even more sense. I'm happy to see the Super Cub and Hunter Cub available in N. America. (no clutch on these either and ABS!)
The big displacement bikes' time has come and gone. The younger generation seems to prefer scooters (my work commute takes me through UofMN campus and it is full of Mopeds and electric scooters.) They ride out of necessity and not for recreation or status.
 
As we are currently in deeper DooDoo than in 2008. The NCs make even more sense. . . . They ride out of necessity and not for recreation or status.
Yup

Campus towns are like many European cities. Crowded. Difficult parking. Modest distances that are too far to walk but not actually very far in miles.

Smaller efficient vehicles make a lot of sense. Mopeds work great in that environment. The NC may see it’s time come again as an efficient and capable super commuter.
 
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