Motorcycle Forums

My vote

When I saw quality, I immediately thought it was in terms of reliability so I went with Yamaha. Ive owned litres bikes from all the Jap brands except Honda, and the Yam was the one that never gave me any grief. But My dads got a Yam and that plays up quite a bit, and the Kwak I got now is a nightmare, so I guess its just luck of the draw !?

Kawasaki

If you didn't vote Kawasaki you obviously have no idea what you are talking about and thus your vote should be deleted.

Honda

My choice is Honda, but to be honest I really do not have much experience out side of honda and yamaha, I know some people with kawi and they all suffered rust fairly soon after buying. Perhaps if MCN would like to loan me one of every make I could give a more un biased report! I have seen more broken down triumphs so far this season than any other bike, but SURLY this is more about what people ride than brand reputation, who would buy something they think is shit and unreliable?

Chinese

While undoubtedly some Chinese made motos and scooters are junk (like the off-brands sold over the Internet), my Chinese made Honda NXH110 Elite (aka Lead 110) has been perfect, unlike my Montesa-Honda (Barcelona) built NT700V Deauville, which has had two warranty repairs (rivet holding latch on a pannier came loose, and shift-lever pivot bolt fell out), although the latter may have been a dealer assembly issue.

NT700V Deauville

The shifter attachment bolts on mine lack yellow paint dabs, which indicates dealer assembly, and not factory assembly.

Static seat height is 805mm (31.7 inches), however the seat is rather wide. I have a 33½-inch inseam, and am fine except for trying to back up a slope, where I only have leverage to move the bike a couple of inches at a time. Try at the dealer to see if you can get both feet down.

For me the NT700V is a long-term keeper, unless Honda comes out with a significantly improved model (and imports it to the US – it is not in the 2012 line-up here, which indicates poor US sales).