over the last month i have rented / borrowed from mates, A Forza 350, X Max 300 and ADV 350 - all for a minimum of a day, and all in different road / riding conditions.....
My conclusion was:
Last place - Forza 350, just felt like i was riding a boat, didn't feel confident round bends, didn't like the look of the clocks, the 3rd rate suspension nor those awful rubber coated bars .
2nd Place - Yamaha X max, boat like as the Forza better round bends better than the Forza, but far from brilliant, suspension betther than the forza but you really have to upgrade. Clocks didn't do it for me nor did the rubber coated bars...
Winner - Honda ADV 350 - Just has a lovely vibe about it - more like you're riding an auto motorbike than a scooter, good round bends (well for a scooter) - suspension would knock the other 2 into next week. Has propper "wide bar" handle bars, a lovely upright commanding riding position and an ADV style instrumment pannel.
So 11 days ago, went to the Honda scooter dealers, to find out about availability and price.....
was told about 3-4 months wait, but the sales lady said she would "see what she could do" ...
So placed a 10k deposit and prepared for a long wait ....
This morning (christmas day) got a message (and photos) from the dealers - "your bike has arrived and can collect tomorrow" (26th) ....
.