Best Pattaya Runabout Bike

[beginner]

I recently hired various bikes for one or two weeks at a time to see how they suited my lifestyle.

Honda Airblade: FOR: I loved the combi brake which lets you use the left lever only to stop securely. I can't understand why other manufacturers haven't copied this idea.

The fuel filler on the transmission tunnel is also a good idea but means the tunnel is higher than the competition. You have to lift your leg high to get over it. Most bikes have scratched paintwork on the tunnel because of this.

I liked the cutout connected to side stand. Some people hate this feature.

AGAINST: The small wheel diameter means it bottoms noisily on many speed bumps.

There is very little storage space under the seat. Unlike Nouvo Elegance, you can only store one helmet not two.

There are no pockets to store water or sunglasses etc on front. There is no hook to hang shopping bags.

CONCLUSION: it rides very well on smooth roads but is not very practical for shopping trips. In slow manouvering it feels very heavy and cumersome. It looks good.

YAMAHA NOUVO ELEGANCE. FOR. Bigger engine 135cc gives even more acceleration and a feeling of stability at speed.

It feels much lighter and more agile. The bigger wheels don't bottom out on speed bumps.

The storage space is bigger than airblade. Pockets and a hook are provided making carrying shopping much easier.

AGAINST. Not a lot but would be improved with a combi brake system.

CONCLUSION. Yamaha Elegance suits my needs very well. Shopping trips are easy and handling feels very predictable and safe. Even a large unexpected pothole didn't throw it off course.

SUZUKI HYATE 125. FOR: Cheaper than the other two?

AGAINST: my first bike wouldn't start and run without a long warm up period before I drove off. This made early morning runs dangerous as it kept stalling.

The replacement (both bikes were new with less than 1000 km) wouldn't start at all one morning and had to be pushed back to base.

CONCLUSION. Quality control is lacking. A close examination of build reveals many cheap and nasty engineering solutions compared to Honda and Yamaha. Where are they assembled?

FINAL THOUGHTS. I also tried other models but they are basically too small and uncomfortable for a large farang like me but suited Thai riders very well. The Yamaha Nouvo Elegance pleased me most but the idea of an even more powerful auto appeals.

The new Suzuki Skydive looks good on paper and may be better if it is as well built as the others. Has anyone ridden one yet?

Does EFI make much difference to the ownership experience?

[moo9]

I recently hired various bikes for one or two weeks at a time to see how they suited my lifestyle.

Honda Airblade: FOR: I loved the combi brake which lets you use the left lever only to stop securely. I can't understand why other manufacturers haven't copied this idea.

The fuel filler on the transmission tunnel is also a good idea but means the tunnel is higher than the competition. You have to lift your leg high to get over it. Most bikes have scratched paintwork on the tunnel because of this.

I liked the cutout connected to side stand. Some people hate this feature.

AGAINST: The small wheel diameter means it bottoms noisily on many speed bumps.

There is very little storage space under the seat. Unlike Nouvo Elegance, you can only store one helmet not two.

There are no pockets to store water or sunglasses etc on front. There is no hook to hang shopping bags.

CONCLUSION: it rides very well on smooth roads but is not very practical for shopping trips. In slow manouvering it feels very heavy and cumersome. It looks good.

Hmmm....the Airblade feels heavy?

I think it is fun to ride. Had Nouvos and all that stuff before, but the Airblade is the best overall.

[Chaimai]

Currently renting a brand new Nouvo Elegance.

The 135 cc engine gives it a bit more zip and it feels heavier/meatier than Wave/Mio/Nouvo. GF likes it for shopping.

Did manage to get another "Pattaya birthmark" when dismounting, as a passenger, tonight - the G/F told me to get off om the kerb-side, that avoids the exhaust !!

[beginner]

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Hmmm....the Airblade feels heavy?

I think it is fun to ride. Had Nouvos and all that stuff before, but the Airblade is the best overall.

Yes. I like the Airblade too but it did 'feel heavy' when manouvering at slow speeds. I wonder whether that's because of the wider tyres?

I said 'feels heavy' because I don't know if it actually is any heavier than the Nouvo Elegance (not MX). Can't read the Thai specification leaflets.

How do you manage to carry stuff or do you use a car?

Chaimai. I forgot to mention under AGAINST. The rear footpegs are too high for me. An after market mod would solve the problem but my knees are much too high up when riding as a passenger. Its no problem for Thai ladies.

Pattaya GoGos usually have at least one girl with a Pattaya Birthmark on her inside leg. I always assumed it was courtesy of Honda not Yamaha who usually put heat shields on the exhaust pipe. In any other country, legal action for damages would have eradicated this Red Hot Feature years ago. But TIT.

[Familyonthemove]

I've been running a Nouvo Elegance for a couple of months now ...... recommended as good all-round town bike. Bigger wheels help with rough roads and the large under seat storage is very useful. The extra few cc also help in the race away from the lights. Brakes have excellent feel for a small bike. I've been riding bikes for years and prefer non-linked as it's what I'm used to. I also like the option of using the back brake only to lose excess speed on slippy road surfaces. Make sure you use 91 'gas' as it will be unwilling to start if you fill with 95.

Just one extra thought ..... I went for an auto as I use it for stop-start city riding in Bangkok traffic, but the geared Honda step-throughs are good bikes if you're not riding in permanent traffic queues. I've no data to back this up, but I reckon a well riden geared bike is quicker than an auto if ridden well? No under seat storage though.

[beginner]

I've been riding bikes for years and prefer non-linked as it's what I'm used to. I also like the option of using the back brake only to lose excess speed on slippy road surfaces.

I have searched TV for a discussion of Combi Brakes but nothing much comes up.

As I understand it the Honda design splits 70% of the power you apply to the left brake lever to the rear brake and 30% to the front. (You can use just the one lever and use your right hand for other important matters like texting on your cell phone or holding hands with your passenger! ) . This, Honda claims, is the optimum for straight line stable braking.

My own experience was that it works very well.

You can still use both levers if you wish and you simply over-ride the combi feature, In an emergency I found myself pulling up using both levers as an instinctive survival response born of years of riding all sorts of motorbikes.

As a test of the system, I braked on the sharp downhill bends on Pratunmak Road. (A long time ago I dropped a bike doing the same thing and gave myself a bad fright ). Since then I have always tried to brake before a bend and gently accelerate out of it.

The Honda held its line and slowed down without any drama. It was impressive.

Regarding slippy surfaces. The larger Elegance wheels felt more stable and safer to me than the smaller Airblade wheels but there is not a huge difference. I hit a large pothole on Soi NernPlubwaan when a truck pushed me off my chosen line and despite the noisy impact I was not thrown off the bike and survived without even a buckled wheel. I am not going to repeat the experiment on an Airblade but I suspect that the Airblade would have suffered more.

Thais are fortunate in having such a choice of small framed bikes that fit them well. The Honda Sonic is a hoot to drive as are some of the Waves and step through scooters. But they are all too small and uncomfortable for me.