Honda Pcx

[jackcorbett]

i v got Airblade PGM Fi and yammy Elegance in my garage. Elegance has much better range, even if it doesnt have a huge 4,8 gallon fueltank as you say, it shure has much larger fueltank than airblade.

Yamaha's already got fuel injection on its Spark. If I were Yamaha this is what I'd do. First off, I'd completely ignore Honda's latest innovation, the stop start feature of the engine that saves fuel at traffic lights. If I could gain fuel economy by putting fuel injection in the Nouvo Elegance I would. I'd then introduce it with a 150 c.c. engine. I'd go with slightly larger tires. the tires are rated at 16-70/80 in the front and 16/80/90 in the back. In fact I've been thinking of going with the 80 width for my front tire and the 90 for my back. This would give Yamaha as fat a tire as the Air Blade already has, and I could do the same. And the 16 inch wheel offers more centrifugal force giving the Yamaha more straight line stability. I'd then put in a larger fuel tank.....say in the 6 liter range. What is important is the new Yamaha would seem to be much more fuel efficient than the 135 c.c. Elegance I already have---even if it isn't.

Fuel injection would give Yamaha equal bragging rights to Honda and Suzuki. But Yamaha would also have 25 cc's more engine. That could be decisive. I"d bill it as a breakaway machine that completely walks all over Honda in the performance department. And I'd undercut Honda in price. I think this would make serious inroads in Honda's market share.

Hondas market share is made of Waves and Clicks. Airblade is small numbers, and the PCX will be too.

For yammy it was Mio and is Fino. Nouvo is small in numbers, and moving it upmarket in price with larger injection engine would make the numbers even smaller.

Farang places the figures are some different, but still.

That is very true. However, image counts for a lot and the manufacturer that presents the best image whether for reliability or performance or state of the art design is going to reap dividends from the achievements of its flagship models in its bread and butter machines. Example...After having a boring lackluster image Ford got into racing big time while it improved its bread and butter machines it was selling to the American public. Its GT-40's conquered both Porsche and Ferrari. Meanwhile Ford had improved its lineup of cars and Ford consequently got a shot in the arm. General Motors had its Corvette and although Corvette sales were limited the image presented by Corvette as a high performance car enable GM to sell a lot of Pontiacs and Chevys. From what I've read Yamaha has an excellent machine in its Spark which will run away from a Honda Wave but the sales of the Spark are nowhere near as good as the Honda Wave's. But if Yamaha can do well with its flagship auto----the Yamaha Nouvo Elegance, this will spin off into increased sales of Sparks, Mios and Finos.

[katabeachbum]

i v got Airblade PGM Fi and yammy Elegance in my garage. Elegance has much better range, even if it doesnt have a huge 4,8 gallon fueltank as you say, it shure has much larger fueltank than airblade.

Yamaha's already got fuel injection on its Spark. If I were Yamaha this is what I'd do. First off, I'd completely ignore Honda's latest innovation, the stop start feature of the engine that saves fuel at traffic lights. If I could gain fuel economy by putting fuel injection in the Nouvo Elegance I would. I'd then introduce it with a 150 c.c. engine. I'd go with slightly larger tires. the tires are rated at 16-70/80 in the front and 16/80/90 in the back. In fact I've been thinking of going with the 80 width for my front tire and the 90 for my back. This would give Yamaha as fat a tire as the Air Blade already has, and I could do the same. And the 16 inch wheel offers more centrifugal force giving the Yamaha more straight line stability. I'd then put in a larger fuel tank.....say in the 6 liter range. What is important is the new Yamaha would seem to be much more fuel efficient than the 135 c.c. Elegance I already have---even if it isn't.

Fuel injection would give Yamaha equal bragging rights to Honda and Suzuki. But Yamaha would also have 25 cc's more engine. That could be decisive. I"d bill it as a breakaway machine that completely walks all over Honda in the performance department. And I'd undercut Honda in price. I think this would make serious inroads in Honda's market share.

Hondas market share is made of Waves and Clicks. Airblade is small numbers, and the PCX will be too.

For yammy it was Mio and is Fino. Nouvo is small in numbers, and moving it upmarket in price with larger injection engine would make the numbers even smaller.

Farang places the figures are some different, but still.

That is very true. However, image counts for a lot and the manufacturer that presents the best image whether for reliability or performance or state of the art design is going to reap dividends from the achievements of its flagship models in its bread and butter machines. Example...After having a boring lackluster image Ford got into racing big time while it improved its bread and butter machines it was selling to the American public. Its GT-40's conquered both Porsche and Ferrari. Meanwhile Ford had improved its lineup of cars and Ford consequently got a shot in the arm. General Motors had its Corvette and although Corvette sales were limited the image presented by Corvette as a high performance car enable GM to sell a lot of Pontiacs and Chevys. From what I've read Yamaha has an excellent machine in its Spark which will run away from a Honda Wave but the sales of the Spark are nowhere near as good as the Honda Wave's. But if Yamaha can do well with its flagship auto----the Yamaha Nouvo Elegance, this will spin off into increased sales of Sparks, Mios and Finos.

agree

but according to yamaha thailand they have chosen to sell their big bikes officially to boost image. they are not expecting profit on this business

I think the existing elegance and additional similar bike with 150cc injection at 70k would boost too

[rixalex]

I'm very happy with it so far,

Any danger of you posting some pics of the machine?

[nev]

this is it mate.

I'm very happy with it so far,

Any danger of you posting some pics of the machine?

[rixalex]

this is it mate.

Thanks mate. Was hoping though for some photos not from the brochure.

[b19bry]

this is it mate.

Thanks mate. Was hoping though for some photos not from the brochure.

I'll try to post some tomorrow, bit dark outside now !

[b19bry]

Actually the dash looks better illuminated at night !

[LivinLOS]

Separated at birth..

[Richard-BKK]

Nice find LivingOS, really nice find...

Maybe Honda knows of a new Alien movie coming up...

[nikster]

Who buys a motorbike on price only, or any vehicle?

I do, for 71k i can buy a new Click and still have change for atleast 30 short times down Soi 6.

Or you could buy a 5 year old wave and have enough left over for 60 short times down Soi 6.

Up to you!

[Spoonman]

Or you could buy a 5 year old wave and have enough left over for 60 short times down Soi 6.

Up to you!

Yeah, i dont do waves, my size 11.5 hoofs dont seem to be user friendly enough to heel and toe the gear shifter, its all good though, i get bored after the first 20 consecutive short times anyways

[jackcorbett]

Who buys a motorbike on price only, or any vehicle?

I do, for 71k i can buy a new Click and still have change for atleast 30 short times down Soi 6.

Or you could buy a 5 year old wave and have enough left over for 60 short times down Soi 6.

Up to you!

I totally disagree. First off now that I live here I've sold two cars, a nice 4 wheel drive pickup truck that I needed (on the farm) and a Mazda Miata sports car (that I did not need but desperately wanted). I had big insurance premiums, repair costs (in the few instances when either needed to be repaired or serviced). When compared to the costs of car ownership I've contended with and no doubt most of those posting here have also, the difference in price between a Honda Wave and say a Yamaha Nouvo is laughable. And for me, there is a huge difference between how safe it is driving a Nouvo and any manual transmission bike and the comfort level between a Nouvo and say a Wave. Anyone who fails to recognize the huge danger level one faces daily driving among a bunch of brain dead drivers in a place such as Pattaya is blind. In such city driving situations automatics allow their drivers to focus on how they can avoid colliding with the idiots all around them instead of having to worry about when to shift. Moreover, a bike such as a Nouvo (I'm thinking here of Air Blades as well) has a comfortable seat whereas Waves have narrow uncomfortable looking seats). Although one can change them for bigger tires, Waves come standard with spindly tires. The bikes appear to be built less robustly. So an automatic such as a Nouvo will be heavier, more stable and just safer to drive for the reasons I'm mentioning.

Spending 70,000 baht for a new Honda PCX i does not seem to be unreasonable at all, if the person buying it perceives it to be the finest machine of its kind. An ex girlfriend of mine had a bright red Fino and I thought it was just gorgeous. And it drove well. It just doesn't compare with my Nouvo Elegance for all around prowess in a variety of conditions. But to someone who feels that he/she is driving the most stunning machine out there the purchase of a Fino makes sense so long as this same person realizes he's not getting the all around prowess of the Fino's bigger brother. A lot of Thais including taxi drivers buy and drive Waves because they cannot afford anything else or in the case of many taxi drivers, Waves do get better fuel economy which once again means they can afford to buy only Waves. Most of us are fortunately not in the same predicament. We can afford to buy what suits us the most. And as for myself, I'd pay even 150,000 baht if I thought by doing so I could have a much better all around machine for the conditions I drive in than what I am presently driving. When I bought my first BMW motorcycle with shaft drive I thought chain driven motorbikes were pretty prehistoric in comparison. They do have their place, however, on dirt bikes for instance or bikes one wishes to race, on roof augers on top of grain bins on the farm, etc. But if a man wants the utmost state of the art in a motorbike, the automatics are the way to go. And although I personally feel Yamaha will soon once again trump Honda with its new Nouvo model that is sure to come, I don't think anyone here can disagree that the new Honda 125 PXI represents a sense of style, ease of driving, and overall technological refinement that makes a Wave look absolutely stone age in comparison.

Edited December 3, 2009 by jackcorbett

[b19bry]

Well said jack, 'you pays your money and you take your choice' and as far as I'm concerned the PCX is Honda's flagship model here and is currently the best small automatic on the market by some margin. Some may not like the styling and I was a little unsure from the initial pictures I saw but I really like the looks now I have seen it for real. It looks real good in black.

Edited December 3, 2009 by b19bry

[LivinLOS]

how safe it is driving a Nouvo and any manual transmission bike and the comfort level between a Nouvo and say a Wave. Anyone who fails to recognize the huge danger level one faces daily driving among a bunch of brain dead drivers in a place such as Pattaya is blind. In such city driving situations automatics allow their drivers to focus on how they can avoid colliding with the idiots all around them instead of having to worry about when to shift.

Some of us dont need to 'think' about when or how to shift.. The whole process is just part of riding.

If anything the safety is clearly in the manual camp with engine braking and control.

[LivinLOS]

A lot of Thais including taxi drivers buy and drive Waves because they cannot afford anything else or in the case of many taxi drivers, Waves do get better fuel economy which once again means they can afford to buy only Waves. Most of us are fortunately not in the same predicament. We can afford to buy what suits us the most.

Durability.. Power.. Lower maintenance..

All reasons why Mocy taxis are using waves, dreams, sonics, sparks, over autos.

[Spoonman]

Wow, side by side to a click sure makes it appear to be a decent chunk of a scoot.

[LivinLOS]

For my money, I just wish they would make something like the X1R with a nuovo or airblade like under seat storage.. I dont mind if it makes it less 'thin' and racy.. But keep that 135 spark manual which absolutely kills any elegance or the new honda for the same cc.

[bobbin]

That headlight/windscreen looks way out of proportion in the photos!

I'll wait to see it up close before I say it's ugly but....

[LivinLOS]

What about the bigger engines of this model.. I can see it making more sense when that wide large size is matched with a 300 engine which I thought they were making ?? Only for other markets ??

[nikster]

Who buys a motorbike on price only, or any vehicle?

I do, for 71k i can buy a new Click and still have change for atleast 30 short times down Soi 6.

Or you could buy a 5 year old wave and have enough left over for 60 short times down Soi 6.

Up to you!

I totally disagree.

And I agree. Haha. If you've read my previous post you'd know I am well aware that most times, you get what you pay for. It's 70k. Because it's better. Like I said, our choice of vehicles depend on many things - definitely not price alone. If I have the choice to spend 50k on a Click or 70k on a PCX, I'd get a PCX. Just me.

[b19bry]

how safe it is driving a Nouvo and any manual transmission bike and the comfort level between a Nouvo and say a Wave. Anyone who fails to recognize the huge danger level one faces daily driving among a bunch of brain dead drivers in a place such as Pattaya is blind. In such city driving situations automatics allow their drivers to focus on how they can avoid colliding with the idiots all around them instead of having to worry about when to shift.

Some of us dont need to 'think' about when or how to shift.. The whole process is just part of riding.

If anything the safety is clearly in the manual camp with engine braking and control.

Like you, ordinarily I would prefer a manual and have just sold my S2000 which was very much a car to drive using the gearbox. However changing gears on a bike wearing sandals or flip flops is a pleasure I can easily forsake .

[b19bry]

Wow, side by side to a click sure makes it appear to be a decent chunk of a scoot.

Yes it's a fair size bigger which helps make it more stable and a whole lot more comfortable.

[b19bry]

That headlight/windscreen looks way out of proportion in the photos!

I'll wait to see it up close before I say it's ugly but....

Yes, wait to see, I felt much the same way till I saw it in the flesh.

[b19bry]

And I agree. Haha. If you've read my previous post you'd know I am well aware that most times, you get what you pay for. It's 70k. Because it's better. Like I said, our choice of vehicles depend on many things - definitely not price alone. If I have the choice to spend 50k on a Click or 70k on a PCX, I'd get a PCX. Just me.

To my mind PCX to Click it's not really a fair comparison, the PCX is so much more capable in virtually all areas. A world of difference between them.

[LivinLOS]

To my mind PCX to Click it's not really a fair comparison, the PCX is so much more capable in virtually all areas. A world of difference between them.

Urban / City traffic..

Probably its 9 times from 10 place it will be used.. But look at the width of it.. Can hardly see that cutting traffic lanes and slicing through parked vehicles.

[b19bry]

To my mind PCX to Click it's not really a fair comparison, the PCX is so much more capable in virtually all areas. A world of difference between them.

Urban / City traffic..

Probably its 9 times from 10 place it will be used.. But look at the width of it.. Can hardly see that cutting traffic lanes and slicing through parked vehicles.

I'm using it all the time in Urban/City traffic it's not actually much physically or noticeably wider than the Click when ridden and it's just as capable when cutting traffic lanes and slicing through parked vehicles. It's also got much better acceleration pick-up which helps.

[jackcorbett]

Durability.. Power.. Lower maintenance..

All reasons why Mocy taxis are using waves, dreams, sonics, sparks, over autos.

I'd say there is more maintenance to the manuals. From what dealerships have told me and from what other posters have expressed when it comes to changing the drive belt of an automatic it's not much money at all. And you only have to do it every 25,000 kilometers or so. And chains need to be replaced at least twice as often. Now, I had my first Nouvo for 3 years and sold it so I could buy my Elegance at 14000 kilometers or so. I figured I had another two years of driving before I'd have to replace the belt. hel_l, I had been keeping my bicycle in the bedroom and finally took it out on my balcony. About a week ago I noticed a bit of rust starting in on the chain. So I lubed it up pretty well. So far that bicycle just a sittin has been more maintenance than my present Yamaha Elegance which is approaching its first year of ownership. Which recalls those days of my old Honda 350 CB when I was adjusting the chain fairly often and making sure it was well oiled. As far as the automatics one just parks them and forgets them. And if one has a carburetor, one should drive it at least once every few days to complete the maintenance procedure just to keep the carb clean. Oil every so often and that's about it.

And as for those motorcycle taxi drivers being professionals, whatever they are driving I don't want. For the most part they are complete idiots who are complete menaces on the road. For the most part they are guys who can't get hired or don't want to get hired doing anything else. Because they are pretty far down the food chain, one cannot expect them to buy nice machinery such as a PCXi or Yamaha Nouvo. And even if they could, they'd want to reserve the nice bike for occasions not involving work such as driving the bike to church on Sundays. I noticed you mentioned the Honda Sonic. Man...I doubt if even 10 % of the guys posting here could even begin to get comfortable on one of those midget mobiles. Starting with the seat, they'd be getting hemorrhoids for sure.

Edited December 3, 2009 by jackcorbett

[nev]

There is a PCX for rent already in pattaya on soi bukhaow saw one today asi passed on the baht bus,looked nice a black one with brown seat. nev

[FrankHKT]

Does anybody know the max. KW (or PS) of the new Honda PCX?

[jackcorbett]

No clue as to the horsepower of the Honda 125 c.c. PXI and I want to know the answer. But not to worry no one at the dealerships seems to know either. I went to three dealerships today. I started at Mityan at 3rd Road and Pattaya Thai and sure enough they had two Honda 125 PXI's in the back so I got my first look at them. First off, a Westerner came up to the sales girl and me and asked just what you are asking--"What is the power?" which is exactly what I asked her. She didn't know so the second time she got the same question she went back to ask her higher ups the answer, then she came back and said, "We don't know what the power is." Well, she didn't know what the fuel capacity of the tank was either so I told her that it had a 6.2 liter tank, up from the four liter tank of the Air Blade and nearly 50 % more than the Nouvo Elegance as well which has a 4.8 liter tank. Well, if you think this is bad, wait till you hear what brought me to the three dealerships.

Yesterday I had been at Lotus where there was a Yamaha exhibit. They had my favorite color, red so when I was looking at the machine a woman representing whatever dealership had the display came up to me and told me the 135 c.c. red Elegance I was looking at had fuel injection. I asked her for a brochure and she said they didn't have any. Then she pointed at a little portion of the paint detailing and told me that stood for fuel injection. Well, I thought right off that was a pile of horseshit and when I got back to my own 135 c.c. Elegance I checked and saw that my bike had the same paint detailing that according to this woman stood for fuel injection.

Okay...here's the good news. The Honda PXI 135 is currently selling for 69,000 baht, not 80,000. I'm thinking that as the first and 2nd Pcxi's hit various dealerships those dealers stuck the price way up to 80,000 baht based on supply and demand. Yeah.....they were in short supply so we'll just clobber the guys who are too anxious to purchase the latest and greatest at whatever price. Not good business tactics. The guys buying in at such ridiculous prices will know they've been screwed and are not likely to come back, to either the short sighted dealership or to Honda. So I expect this 69,000 baht figure will start to go down as more and more PCX i's hit the showrooms. I liked the bike. First off, I had read from a brochure at the Honda dealership here in Naklua that this bike would have a 6.2 liter fuel tank. Hey...that's a great improvement because assuming the fuel injected 110 c.c. Air blade and the 125 c.c. PCXi both get the same fuel economy this means you will fill up your fuel tank 50 % fewer times. This also means a much greater margin of safety if you are out cruising in the boonies where gas stations are few and far between.

The luggage compartment underneath the seat seem to have at least as much room as the Air Blade did. But still another improvement is the tire size. They seemed massive for a motorbike. Most Waves i've seen have a 60 in front. My Nouvo has a 70 in front and an 80 in the back. Air Blades seem much more motorcycish than Waves and practically anything else. unlike the Nouvo with its 16 inch diameter wheels the Air Blade has a 14 inch tire but the front tire is pretty fat. It's an 80 and the rear tire is a 90. In comparison the spindly tires of the Wave the way most of them come equipped seems a very wimpy 60. But.....you can easily opt for a bigger tire as many Waves in Vietnam had fatter tires than I'm used to seeing around here. Those PCXi's I was looking at must have had 100's in the rear and 90's in the front. The machine looked like a rear motorcycle except for the fact one does not have to straddle the gas tank.

Then I went to my dealer where I had purchased not one but three motorbikes. This is Watchara Marine at Pattaya Klang and Sukamvit Roads. Service was working but the dealership had been gutted. Once again I got exemplary service. The mechanic who serviced my bike the last time got right on my bike and I was out of there in about twenty minutes or so. He changed the transmission fluid and the oil, adjusted the brakes, blew out the air filter etc and I started thinking as he was doing all that. Most places renting out bikes won't be this scrupulous about service and a lot of owners won't be either and that's why some automatics start to make funny noises and get problems. I asked the mechanic about my drive belt and he said I should have it looked at every 7000 kilometers or so and to have it replaced at 20,000 kilometers. I think that unless one gets a lemon and observes these maintenance precautions one's going to wind up getting a new belt every 20,000 kilometers for a pittance, but he might well trade bikes long before that happens.

I then noticed an older model Nouvo MX sitting next to mine. The owner had retrovitted skinny tires on it. They were 60's in front and I feel the driver is Thai and he's out to maximize his fuel economy. So I then decided to go to the new Watchara Marine dealership which is the East side of Sukamit opposite Lotus at Threppasit Road. This is where I will be getting my bike serviced from now on as Watchara Marine is no longer doing business at its old location I had just come from. This new location is quite large, about the same size as Mityan's. Not only did it have a full line up of Yamaha's including an R-1, a T Max and an R-6--it also had boats, Yamaha motorboat engines and a number of Wave Runners.

I went back with one of the salesmen to the parts department to inquire about my getting bigger tires. Won't cost more than about 1300 baht to upgrade both of my tires to an 80 front tire and 90 in the rear. This should give me a little better ride and better road adhesion because I'll have more rubber on the road, but I'm sure my fuel economy will be hurt a little.

But here's the biggest news. According to this dealership there is to be no fuel injection for the Nouvo Elegance "this year". But the Mio and possibly the Fino will be getting fuel injection. The Spark's already got it. So the woman at Lotus was as I suspected completely ignorant about the products she was selling. So apparently Yamaha is pretty happy with the carburetor setup in its present Yamaha Nouvo Elegance models. at least for now. I'd say it's considerably improved over the 115 c.c. MX. So I have to back off of some of my earlier statements re 150 c.c. Nouvo's and an imminent fuel injected model. My latest guess is Yamaha will hold its pricing down and in 6 months to a year come out with a fuel injected 150 c.c. model.