Honda Phantom 200cc Or Tiger (pgo In The States) G-max 150cc

[JSixpack]

Law is law.

LOL.. Your still talking about Thailand right ??

But either way you're screwed, farang.

[JSixpack]

I should add that laws are not seldom enforced against farang in particular for the purpose of extortion, an infamous example being the Bangkok littering ordinance.

Edited May 31, 2008 by JSixpack

[Michel1980]

I know its corrupt..

Doesnt mean iff a thai is drunk and you hit him ( and he makes real effort of it)...without a greenbook youre screwed simple as that. Iff you live here youre bounded to there law ( even tho its corrupted like hel_l). That simply means no cash to bad youre screwed.

Example: i know someone that got caught for no helmet, normal price for that is about 300baht and you walk. He had to pay 1000baht, why ? simply because the cop had a bad day, or just did not like the look on his face. And dont gimme that crap WHAHAAH i would not pay!! Yah right...*yawn* i want to see you do that firsthand the will get youre ass to the police station simple as that. Youre nothing in here iff it comes to that. For them youre the walking wallet, big mouth, get in the car lets go for a ride!

Maybe talk a bit more with the GOOD (aint talking bout honda dealer, more the bigbike) motorcycle dealers that laugh at youre face when you show them a bike without a greenbook. There is a reason that you NEED that dam_n book..and it aint for special offers at the tesco lotus!

I dont want act like im the all knowing (i got allot to learn) but thats just it. I talk allot to the ppl that CAN ACTUALLY KNOW the ropes on that. And not some thai friend i happen to met in a bar or something that has a tall story about how it goes. While the drive a motorbike 110cc in there daily lives you know what i mean.

I like the greenbook, in fact iff i have that thing i will sleep on it. Because i know i CAN safe my ass one day iff i screw up. Call me farang, call me thailand noob..i dont really care. I laugh my ass off waving a greenbook were others stand still and can pay the pad thai for the coppers.

Edited May 31, 2008 by Michel1980

[LivinLOS]

I like the greenbook, in fact iff i have that thing i will sleep on it. Because i know i CAN safe my ass one day iff i screw up. Call me farang, call me thailand noob..i dont really care. I laugh my ass off waving a greenbook were others stand still and can pay the pad thai for the coppers.

And so how do you know its not a bent book ?? A huge % of the green books are recycled.. So how do you know yours isnt ??

This is what I mean when I say theres rarely and black and white.. Its all a mess of grey.. So you get a bike with no book.. So then just put a book on it.. Do it fully legal, do it a little bent.. do it totally bent.. Its all a scale of grey.

But laughing while you wave your book.. all well and good until someone comes back and says its not legit... that many years ago it was modified.. Thats not an uncommon thing in the big bike world.

[Richard-BKK]

It is easy enough to know if the book is counterfeited, simply because you not have go too the Department of Land Transport... but some guy behind MBK is going to do it for you.....

And some of this fake books not even fool a completely drunk police officer.... So better forget about them.......

Edited May 31, 2008 by Richard-BKK

[LivinLOS]

Yes but you also have recycled books.. and then months / years later they suddenly find it had a suspicious color / engine number change a few years back..

I know someone who had a full green book in his name.. and then when he went to sell it major hassle as they found it wasnt a legit history.

We all know that if its not a scooter even Red Baron, Siam Racing, etc etc all have these kind of books..

[Michel1980]

I like the greenbook, in fact iff i have that thing i will sleep on it. Because i know i CAN safe my ass one day iff i screw up. Call me farang, call me thailand noob..i dont really care. I laugh my ass off waving a greenbook were others stand still and can pay the pad thai for the coppers.

And so how do you know its not a bent book ?? A huge % of the green books are recycled.. So how do you know yours isnt ??

This is what I mean when I say theres rarely and black and white.. Its all a mess of grey.. So you get a bike with no book.. So then just put a book on it.. Do it fully legal, do it a little bent.. do it totally bent.. Its all a scale of grey.

But laughing while you wave your book.. all well and good until someone comes back and says its not legit... that many years ago it was modified.. Thats not an uncommon thing in the big bike world.

Uhmm let see ...because im not a idiot and make dam_n sure that the book fits the bike

That means when i need to get the book at the (official) honda dealer (highly uncommon that it will be counterfitted) i bring a very good thai friend of us with me. That is known with these so called counterfits. It doesnt matter, but youre telling me now whenever you buy a NEW bike at a OFFICIAL dealer. The greenbook maybe a counterfit. Afterall i got everything on the bike that i need to have includes the payment that has been made includes the name of the seller ectra (we bought 5 bikes there allready)

Forgive me for being a complete moron all of sudden. But that a secondhand bike gets a greybook. Doesnt mean a new one gets that same fate specially at a official dealer (even the headoffice were we buy oure bikes) that will counterfit/bend you a greenbook so lateron you could be in deep trouble?

Sorry..i dont buy that one. I know that thailand is corrupted like hel_l, everything so far is very official and looks as it should be and checked up for. You get a nice plate on youre bike, takes bout month here or so. Includes everything youre the owner and lets face it. Reading the greenbook and checking the framenumbers ectra isnt that hard to do youreself.

I think and know by now, many farangs are just simply to lazy to checkup themselfs. Im not one of them There is saying in my country and goes for thailand to "you get what you pay for"

Anyways got 400km on the counter now see review.

[LivinLOS]

As we are now discussing big bikes and not scooters.. Please tell me which honda dealer that you use sells new big bikes ?? Where can I get a 600 hornet or anything more than a joke phantom type thing.

This is where the green book nightmare begins. In the big bike world as I said above. The big bike systems doesnt have much of a dealer system. We do now have Triumph and Yamaha are trying also in the market, BMW has some presence (tho our dealer keeps vanishing then reappearing etc).

Green books on new bikes are not the problem.. But if you think a green book on a harley, or a buell, or a bandit, or a hornet, or, or, or, means its sure to be legal and you can sleep peacefully your joking. The whole market of big bikes is flooded with this grey book problem so if you want a bike thats in that market living with some uncertainty is just a reality. No ones going to be worried about some 80k faux chopper, its the 800k ducati or a million baht on a MV Agusta Brutale or some other exotic.

So what big bike have you bought new from the dealer ??

EDIT:: I just see your the OP of the thread so have bought a Phantom new.. Theres almost no green book risk with a phantom (or boss or other low cc bikes) and none at all when bought from a dealer new. My point was just that its nothing to do with stuff the farang can 'check for himself' when it comes to big bikes there is always some risk, just follow the threads about siam racing, xtremebikes, etc etc etc. With any imported bike theres a green book risk, even if you hold a book, and all the numbers match, it doesnt mean you have no risk. Once you realize there is always some risk then its just a 'shades of grey' set of choices, the less grey the choice the higher the costs usually.

Edited June 7, 2008 by LivinLOS

[JSixpack]

Where can I get a 600 hornet or anything more than a joke phantom type thing.

You don't need a 600 hornet and will probably just hurt yourself on it. The perfect bike for Thailand is a Phantom. It would be a joke back home, but not here.

[PeaceBlondie]

Where can I get a 600 hornet or anything more than a joke phantom type thing.

You don't need a 600 hornet and will probably just hurt yourself on it. The perfect bike for Thailand is a Phantom. It would be a joke back home, but not here.

Amen to that. When I was buying my rainsuit at the Ducati dealership in Houston I had to show them photos before they believed Honda made a CBR in 150 cc size. Even the Asian boy on the boulevard was riding a new Ducati 1000 retro. The best bikes for most regular riding in Thailand are the Phantom 200 and the CBR150. I know a guy who rides a Thai-made, Honda Phantom 1000 (one liter), but I think it is overkill.

[LivinLOS]

My buddy has a phantom.. It is what it is.. I dont want to knock any one elses ride but you wont find me on one.

I dont go for the cruiser position much either.. Another buddy had a 600 steed that actually rode better than I expected, it really tightened up in cornering as the torque pushed it through. Surprised myself by enjoying that more than I expected.

I tend to think a small hornet would be ideal for here, tempted by the FZ6 too but a bit pricey. The Duci 696 will be for sale in August in the market too.. All nice new developments.

Edited June 8, 2008 by LivinLOS

[nonthaburial]

We have just purchased a Phantom to modify to a Fire First Strike Unit ( for expressways and highways) and trust me there is a lot of interest.

our usual production model in Europe is the BMW 1200 but its too heavy for the Asian market, hence the Phantom, and with a payload of 126Kg on normal model, we find that after stiffening the rear suspension. its a well balanced and reliable unit. Strange tho that if ignition is on, the lights are automatically on. My guess is a few batteries will be needed to be changed/charged during its lifetime.

[Michel1980]

As we are now discussing big bikes and not scooters.. Please tell me which honda dealer that you use sells new big bikes ?? Where can I get a 600 hornet or anything more than a joke phantom type thing.

This is where the green book nightmare begins. In the big bike world as I said above. The big bike systems doesnt have much of a dealer system. We do now have Triumph and Yamaha are trying also in the market, BMW has some presence (tho our dealer keeps vanishing then reappearing etc).

Green books on new bikes are not the problem.. But if you think a green book on a harley, or a buell, or a bandit, or a hornet, or, or, or, means its sure to be legal and you can sleep peacefully your joking. The whole market of big bikes is flooded with this grey book problem so if you want a bike thats in that market living with some uncertainty is just a reality. No ones going to be worried about some 80k faux chopper, its the 800k ducati or a million baht on a MV Agusta Brutale or some other exotic.

So what big bike have you bought new from the dealer ??

EDIT:: I just see your the OP of the thread so have bought a Phantom new.. Theres almost no green book risk with a phantom (or boss or other low cc bikes) and none at all when bought from a dealer new. My point was just that its nothing to do with stuff the farang can 'check for himself' when it comes to big bikes there is always some risk, just follow the threads about siam racing, xtremebikes, etc etc etc. With any imported bike theres a green book risk, even if you hold a book, and all the numbers match, it doesnt mean you have no risk. Once you realize there is always some risk then its just a 'shades of grey' set of choices, the less grey the choice the higher the costs usually.

First of all READ..i did not say the bigbike was NEW.

If a phantom is a joke, then many farangs and thai ppl would be ver unhappy at the moment. The only joke i see is that a farang like you did not look further into this then youre nose is long I hear allot of sorry to say so fellas BS stories, that went from one farang to another.

We bought 5 bikes here, and 1 Bigbike all with greenbooks. Indeed the bigbike is a secondhand, and indeed we did oure homework..happens to be that the dealer is like many thai do. In business with a farang, that takes good care of THERE business. Were not talking about a local bikershop in the middle of no were may i add.

The papers checked out..we had to goto immigration to proof that we live here ectraectra.

So sorry sure, buy youreself a shit fly pair of speedo glasses you will need them on that Hornet of yours. I love my joke of a phantom and im dam_n proud if it to have one. It beats every rice rocket youre driving on to do youre small things with..i got for comfort. If i wanted speed i would have bought the yamaha r1 or a busa.

Its the tone that makes the music farang...and your music sucks so far. Sorry to say this so cruel but thats me direct.

Edited July 28, 2008 by Michel1980

[LivinLOS]

First of all READ..i did not say the bigbike was NEW.

As it seems it escaped your attention my comment was "as we are now talkign about" meaning "as the discussion has grown from the OP".. You seem unwilling to pick up in simple statements.

[12DrinkMore]

My FIRST camchain tensioner broke at 43,000 kms. Complete rebuild, new pistons, valves the lot. The SECOND broke at about 47,000 kms, luckily only needed to replace it and the camchain. The THIRD broke around 56,000 kms, another complete rebuild. The FOURTH broke around 64,000 kms, the garage wanted to replace the camchain as well, but I was well fed up with the whole issue, so just a new tensioner.

Maybe I have just been very unlucky, but I now have no faith in the ability of Honda to fix this and will NEVER buy another Phantom again.

The tensioner is basically a spring loaded device which pushes out a piston onto the camchain guide. The problem is that it jams, allowing the loose camchain to slip over the side of the guide. The chain then eats its way through the tensioner and eventually slips a notch or two, causing an expensive collision beween the piston and the valves.

The tensioner is not checked as part of a service, and I doubt whether it would do any good anyway, as I would guess the time between jamming and engine failure is fairly short. If you are lucky, you will notice a "tink tink tink" noise coming from the chain. This means URGENT ATTENTION is required.

My recommendation would be to replace the tensioner at 30,000 kms (end of Honda guarantee) and every 2 years/15,000 kms afterwards. It is easy to replace and costs a couple of hundred Baht. A rebuild like I have suffered will set you back around 8,000 Baht.

[JSixpack]

My recommendation would be to replace the tensioner at 30,000 kms (end of Honda guarantee) and every 2 years/15,000 kms afterwards. It is easy to replace and costs a couple of hundred Baht. A rebuild like I have suffered will set you back around 8,000 Baht.

Sounds like a good tip for preventative maintenance. Thanks!

[Michel1980]

First of all READ..i did not say the bigbike was NEW.

As it seems it escaped your attention my comment was "as we are now talkign about" meaning "as the discussion has grown from the OP".. You seem unwilling to pick up in simple statements.

You got a point, there is nothing new to what you say AT all..but do you honostly believe..that a GOOD WELL KNOWN dealer on the ISLAND. I dont even have to give you the name because its know here for a longtime, were a american FARANG is involved with, and GOOD running...that he will give you bunch of bogus papers?

Yes there properly grey..so what! do you really think you get in trouble over it? I talked to renters here, i said why you ask passports? i mean not drivers license if the get a accident and all. The laughed, yah so what ahaha...no prob all good.

I got hit by a pickup while i was walking ! do you think the stop nope...do you think a cop comes towards you when you had youre accident oww youre papers are crap? My brother was involved 3 times *i know idiot* BIG accident here, not license no nothing...no probs or what so ever. Cost him the hospital bill for himself thats all even tho the pickup he rammed was dented..the just drive on the dont give a crap.

Money is not the only thing that gives you power, knowing the right ppl to ! I dont even have to tell you this at all. You seem scared of it even in youre "statement" the 800k ducatti ectra, dont even think the bother or KNOW the value of youre bike man! to take away youre bike ! such a nonses the got better things to do as is ticking you for wearing no helmet. Unless offcourse youre able to piss them really off...ehehe seen that happen to

Then the start diggin, even if you have good papers the will screw you over. It happen to someone i know lost his passport, visa in it ectra. He went to Bangkok, he had to pay 20000baht overstay. The conveniantly could not find his visa in the computer. Was it a fake one NO!! I crossed borders many times with my its all legit. Yo get screwed on everything if the get the chance nothing new !

[aitch52]

Hi

interesting thread, I have been researching this cam chain tensioner problem for some time now, a cutaway drawing of the engine would be useful, googled it with no joy. I have 10,000 Kms on my Phantom from new and being of the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" philophosy I am not about to strip the engine down to rectify a problem which ain't there yet, if I had a schedule and a clear idea of what and how to check it then I would. I am very interested in the sportier cam fix but can't seem to get that through to the local Honda dealers. This is where a pic of the engine cam chain, cam and tensioner will come in useful. From people who have had this happen to them, the engine does start to make unusual noises just before the point of failure. Any help or pointers in the right direction would be much appreciated.

Cheers

Chris

[tampasailor]

To qualify I have an 86 Aspencade wing and a 2000 Heriage softail at home. I use the wing for highway holidays and the Heritage for local bike meets and an evening run near home but it is a pain if you need to ride long. The wing will not fatigue you like the Harley. Both are extremely reliable bikes. I got the wing new and couldnt be more pleased. I have owned 16 motorcycles, mostly Honda.

While in Chaing Mai I rented a Phantom as the scooters are too toylike for my taste. I came to appreciate its small size on the Chaing Mai streets and became quite comfortable in local traffic. It has enough poop to keep you in front and size so you can squeeze through the cars to the front. With either big bike I would have to stay with the cars. Its ok on hills with the gf on back as you can't go roaring through the hills and live long anyway. Thailad is a continuous obsticle course haha I guess you all know that, even on the super highway nr 1.

Met some big Thai bikes on Highway 1. They were travelinig bkk to cm and one beamer passed me doing about 200 and others followed around 170. I was in the bike lane realaxed at 90-100. The phantom has power to about 140 but it is light and gets squirley in the wind above 100... no fun on a long trip. I would hate to think about parking the Harley or the Wing in most places I frequent in cm. Might as well have a car. I met with the big bikes at a pit stop 30 minutes later.

Some photos of the Thai big bikes here. They welcomed me to join them for coffee. Nice guys and gooooood riders! Note most with full armor! and emergency address tags. They have good brains too!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/lymanduggan/ThaiBigBikes

Edited January 12, 2009 by tampasailor

[Richard-BKK]

After a weekend offline we went on a trip, we where offered ex-show model of the Tiger Gmax, which we found out after a bit of bigging was developed in cooperation with the Taiwanese giant PGO. After looking and riding the scooter it is not comparable with anything we currently call scooter in Thailand. This Tiger "beast" was designed to be sold in Germany and be able to keep up with European traffic.

Riding Thai roads this is a major advanced, these 150cc scooters are actual riding pleasures... I rode a lot of two-wheelers in Thailand, and after riding a imported Suzuki Sixteen I had the idea that everything in in the scooter world would change... But Suzuki Thailand did not bring this ultra scooter to Thailand, and so experiencing power scooters in Thailand is buying as Tiger 150cc....

[aitch52]

My FIRST camchain tensioner broke at 43,000 kms. Complete rebuild, new pistons, valves the lot. The SECOND broke at about 47,000 kms, luckily only needed to replace it and the camchain. The THIRD broke around 56,000 kms, another complete rebuild. The FOURTH broke around 64,000 kms, the garage wanted to replace the camchain as well, but I was well fed up with the whole issue, so just a new tensioner.

Maybe I have just been very unlucky, but I now have no faith in the ability of Honda to fix this and will NEVER buy another Phantom again.

The tensioner is basically a spring loaded device which pushes out a piston onto the camchain guide. The problem is that it jams, allowing the loose camchain to slip over the side of the guide. The chain then eats its way through the tensioner and eventually slips a notch or two, causing an expensive collision beween the piston and the valves.

The tensioner is not checked as part of a service, and I doubt whether it would do any good anyway, as I would guess the time between jamming and engine failure is fairly short. If you are lucky, you will notice a "tink tink tink" noise coming from the chain. This means URGENT ATTENTION is required.

My recommendation would be to replace the tensioner at 30,000 kms (end of Honda guarantee) and every 2 years/15,000 kms afterwards. It is easy to replace and costs a couple of hundred Baht. A rebuild like I have suffered will set you back around 8,000 Baht.

Thanks for sharing this valuable information Drinkmore, personally I love the Phantom, it does everything I want it to do, would like a bigger bike but with a glass back and knackered knee cartilage the bike isn't too heavy to handle. I "think" the limited edition Fire model has the uprated cam as the performance is superior to that reported on earlier Phantoms ie it is not slow off the line and accelerates strongly to 120KPH and it isn't slow on the mountain climbs around here, I have never had her flat out to discover what she tops out at, as above 120 handling is jittery and I have either become sensible or chickensh*t.

http://www.productreview.com.au/showitem.p...IEWS&next=1

Cheers Mate

Chris

Edited January 14, 2009 by aitch52

[kano85]

Plus the tiger comes with 1 year guarantee on the engine.

I informed with Tiger The tiger engine has a 3 yrs guarantee with a max of 30k .

Charlie

[kano85]

My FIRST camchain tensioner broke at 43,000 kms. Complete rebuild, new pistons, valves the lot. The SECOND broke at about 47,000 kms, luckily only needed to replace it and the camchain. The THIRD broke around 56,000 kms, another complete rebuild. The FOURTH broke around 64,000 kms, the garage wanted to replace the camchain as well, but I was well fed up with the whole issue, so just a new tensioner.

Maybe I have just been very unlucky, but I now have no faith in the ability of Honda to fix this and will NEVER buy another Phantom again.

The tensioner is basically a spring loaded device which pushes out a piston onto the camchain guide. The problem is that it jams, allowing the loose camchain to slip over the side of the guide. The chain then eats its way through the tensioner and eventually slips a notch or two, causing an expensive collision beween the piston and the valves.

The tensioner is not checked as part of a service, and I doubt whether it would do any good anyway, as I would guess the time between jamming and engine failure is fairly short. If you are lucky, you will notice a "tink tink tink" noise coming from the chain. This means URGENT ATTENTION is required.

My recommendation would be to replace the tensioner at 30,000 kms (end of Honda guarantee) and every 2 years/15,000 kms afterwards. It is easy to replace and costs a couple of hundred Baht. A rebuild like I have suffered will set you back around 8,000 Baht.

Thanks for sharing this valuable information Drinkmore, personally I love the Phantom, it does everything I want it to do, would like a bigger bike but with a glass back and knackered knee cartilage the bike isn't too heavy to handle. I "think" the limited edition Fire model has the uprated cam as the performance is superior to that reported on earlier Phantoms ie it is not slow off the line and accelerates strongly to 120KPH and it isn't slow on the mountain climbs around here, I have never had her flat out to discover what she tops out at, as above 120 handling is jittery and I have either become sensible or chickensh*t.

http://www.productreview.com.au/showitem.p...IEWS&next=1

Cheers Mate

Chris

Thx for your honesty not many people are daredevils like you. In 24 years of biking i can tell you numerous stories like yours . But still people believe in the power of money publicity. But still Honda is a great bike

Charlie

[Freddie_fly]

PS

Ive read in here in a very old topic, the Kawasaki Boss is like the phantom suppose to be better. I dont ever seen them driving over here tho so whats the story about the 175boss these days?

I currently have a 2 year old Phantom, just bought a optimate 4 because I am away too much and the wifey forgets to start it for me. I like the phantom, its easy for town driving and you can pick your poison, either weave around or drive with the cars. Its fairly light , low and good cruiser riding position. the 1 down 5 up gears mean I change a little more frequently than with the Boss but I am pretty smooth on the gearchange anyway.

I had a Kawasaki Boss 175 about 7 years ago, loved it, I really did and I never understood why Kawa didnt upgrade it to 200 when the Phantom came out as I am sure that 25cc difference made a lot of difference in people buying. In between these I had a Virago 750 Midnight, shame they stopped making these and decided to build bikes that looked more like Harleys, I think the Virago was the most beautiful looking metric cruiser ever made, I loved riding it although it was a little heavy for me ( I am only 5' 5" and 68Kgs), I reluctantly returned it to my friend who sold it to me as he/I couldnt sort out the registration to my satisfaction, and he gave me a buyback clause ( nb: the rego was truely un-kosher due to that rascally Chatree on Sai Sam Pattaya, and I would never recommend him to anyone).

So after the Virago I decided on the Phantom and am still with it.

I would like to go up to a middle weight again something from 400-700CC, but not sure where to look for a decent one, all I seem to see are second hand or customised ones for sale ( by customised I mean generally that involves adding a set of pipes to make it sound like a HD...and yes I do mean that in a disparaging sense).

Anyway, I am sure you will be happy with the Phantom, I believe the fire has a little more oomph than the regular version, and for your wifeys back, try ebay for a custom seat and larger backrest, and practice those soft gear changes..

'cheers'

Freddie

[aitch52]

I also had a Kawa Boss for 4 years and I also loved it, I had 12000 trouble free Kilometers on her in 4 x 3 week visits per year. Performance wise it is equal to the Phantom in my opinion, although at 100KPH the engine is working appreciatively harder. The only reason I changed was for the extra 25cc for longer rides. I can recommend the Boss as a comfortable and reliable workhorse and I do miss my old bike sometimes but very happy with the Phantom. I am due a service shortly and will have the camchain tensioner checked at the same time. I have arranged to be there for the work at my local dealer in Nong Phai, will keep you all informed.

Cheers

Chris