Tell me about Honda Trailies

[Lee Halsall]

Hi Folks
Just stopped by to say hello, and maybe pick a few brains.
I have been thinking of changeing my Buell for a big trail bike, I used to have an XT500 when the first came out in the early seventies, and although useless off road it was a good back road bike, I wondered what I could expect from Honda.
I was thinking relability, fuel consumption ,price and availability of parts, and most of all , are they pleasant to ride, free from vibration,surefooted ?
My Buell is Exilerating to ride ,but you have to be in the mood, if traffic gets in the way or the roads are slippy it's not so much fun, you can't just potter along,
I quite fancy a Dominator, but are they closely related to the rattly old XLs that were on the go in the seventies. Are the Vtwins a good compromise, between nimble handling ,and the ability to cover miles.
Any mechanical issues, I'm not that naive to believe Honda cant have
design faults ( VFR camshafts ).
Cheers
Lee

[Sharribee]

Hi Lee, welcome to the site.

I went from a Buell Lightening to a Honda Transalp and never looked back. The transalp is smooth, not as nippy or aggressivenas the Buell but as far as reliability goes the Transalp wins by a mile.

I have ridden the transalp in all weathers, over distance and fully loaded, it's fuel capacity was the one thing that I found problematic and it is quite a heavy bike in comparrison but handled well in traffic, gives lots of confidence on corners and is capable on light trails in the hands of a novice off roader.

I have also got a Africa Twin and again, the V twin is smooth and has a bit more power than the Transalp, but is older and no longer made so there are more things that may go. One problem with the AT is the fuel pump, but this is fairly easy to remedy.

Both are fairly similar in yrou specific questions,
relability - very,
fuel consumption - I used to get about 160 miles out of £14 of petrol in the TA and about 190 out of £15 in the AT
,price - depends on what your looking for but in comparison to some other bikes they are very good value for money
and availability of parts - Dave Silver Spares has not let me down yet with either of my Hondas,
and most of all , are they pleasant to ride, free from vibration,surefooted - both are an absolute pleasure to ride, I have found some vibes on the AT but no where near what I used to get on the lightening, it's nice to get off a bike and be able to still feel your fingers.


I have loved both of my Hondas and haven't regretted buying them at all, but I have regretted selling my TA as it's been a difficult bike to replace. I have stuggled to find anything that is equivalent in reliability, comfort and as much fun to ride.

You will find it very different to the Buell and you really need to go for a good test ride before commiting because there's nothing worse than paying for a bike that you end up hating. Honda's aren't for everyone I know that Mabel's Old Man much prefers his GS 1200, as does my other half.

[StumpyFingers]

The Transalp has been going for a long time, over twenty years, so most of the niggly flaws have been rectified, the main one on going at the moment seems to be the quality of finish on the spokes and rim rot but engine wise they are quite reliable.

[Lee Halsall]

Thanks for your replies,I like the look of that AT you have for sale, sharribee.
What are the singles like ?
Lee

[Sharribee]

Lee, Hubbies got a XR 650 and he loves it, they are great off road, light and easy to handle but it's not a bike for distance and I'm fed up of buying new tyres for it

My AT I am reluctantly selling because I do lots of miles on my bike as I commute every day and we do lots of touring as well, so I wanted something newer similar to the Africa Twin, I wish Honda hadcome up with something that compared to the AT but they didn't and the new TA just doesn't have the fuel range so I've gone German instead. She's a cracking bike and is going to make someone very very happy.

Not so sure about the Dommi's as I've never ridden one.