Vehicles & Servicing Best Posts in Thread: Motorcycle Type and Dealer

I totally agree with everything you said but would add one thing. Since my XRM was stolen and the cops told me how many of them do get stolen and neighbors actually showed me how easy they are to steal, I would get one of those GPS locating devices to hide on the bike. It means if the bike is stolen you can trace it from your smartphone.

 

My mind is 99% made up, comments positive and negative are welcome, thanks.

Honda XRM 125 Motard (comes with front and rear disk breaks), replace rear sprocket with 10% larger sprocket, aftermarket air intake and exhaust (better air in and out since the sprocket change will result in higher rpm, not louder), add 1" of foam to the seat. Total cost of upgrades should be p3,500-ish.

Why? I rode my rented XRM a little past Siaton yesterday (120km round trip) and had the following thoughts:
1)80kph seems like it is fast enough speed for the road conditions and matching other drivers
2)A bigger bike would be a more comfortable ride and more comfortable at higher speeds but reaction time is reduced for both road conditions and other drivers.
3)The seating position on the XRM works for my back although my butt was complaining after an hour and a half or so (hence the seat upgrade)
4)stock power was fine on this trip so the limitation seems to be in steeper elevations like are found in Valencia (hence the sprocket change)
5)90% or more of my riding is in city limits anyway and the small frame of the XRM is great for maneuverability in traffic and parking
6)If I ever do want to cruise the Philippines I will get another bike more suited specifically for that purpose
7)If I do decide to take a longer trip there is nothing wrong with taking my time and enjoying it. After all, I am very rich in time. What does it matter if a trip takes a week instead of two days?

Thanks,
Steve

 

I will never go back to GUD after all the issues I had with them with my first Rouser 135 in 2011. I bought it and didn't know how to drive a clutch yet (had a friend who would teach me) so I asked them to deliver it as I planned to only learn and practice later at night on non busy small roads near where I lived. When delivering it it stalled and they had a number of issues and had to walk it back to their shop. I said I wanted a new non problematic one as they sold me the showcase bike and they said no because the paperwork had already been written up but only like an hour before. I had to settle after a lengthy argument with them *fixing* my new bike and they found water in the tank and some nasty gunk built up inside the gas cap that should have been obvious to them yet they ignored it instead hiding it from me. I continued to have issues for the first couple of months having to get it checked every now and then and they kept blaming me or something not their fault.

Further with GUD they damaged my oil bin (or whatever its called) by tighening the bolt to tight which created a leak and damaged it. When questioned them about it they blame some other mechanic who changed my oil and when I informed them I only ever went to their shop to have service done and oil changes they continued to blame someone else having no idea who.

So many issues with that bike from the start and their uncaring about selling a defective bike. They will never get more business from me or any recommendations.

 

I'm watching this thread with interest in case you find a local guy who does a good job with that. Even on my couch at home I need to sit on a pillow so an 1" of padding on the ole Rusi would be a blessing.

 

I have back issues as well and the Rouser is no issue for me. Longer rides my arms are fine but hands get a bit sore which I counter with a simple pair of rider gloves for those longer hauls. As far as the seat its on my *to do list* which means it gets pushed back again and again due to other financial responsibilities. No idea where to get the seat done though but friends have said any of the leather workers in town can do it while I'd rather a better recommendation.

As far as traffic maneuvering it does fine. Its not as agile as one of those tiny bikes but for a midsize bike I don't see how it could get any better. I also love the wider tires as more traction.

 

I went looking for the parts sources I used to look at and it looks like a vast wasteland now. I can't find squat like I used to see in 2013. With this in mind, I would go talk to Low at Taco Tayo. He has a motorcycle repair shop also and I have spent some time there shooting the bull and talking motorcycles and modification.

 

Steve, I think you may be on the right track. I doubt that a 10% gear change will limit top speed at all because usually it is the power to push into the wind that limits top speed and not engine RPM with a small bike. You are also grabbing a bigger lever which works continuously at all RPM.

Except for racing application, I'm not a big fan of aftermarket exhaust. Engines make more power at all RPM with a certain amount of backpressure and there is a tipping point where too little pressure is counterproductive. I know one guy who brazed a washer in his aftermarket exhaust rather than put the stock back on to regain the backpressure and power. I think port matching with the stock exhaust might be better but you could always try that if the aftermarket exhaust doesn't suit you.

Airbox mod. Yes the airbox is restrictive by design. It limits the amount of power the engine can make so that Honda can keep their reliability reputation. You won't blow the engine on the stock bike with the entire family on it because the engine in stock trim has not the power to destroy itself because it is limited by exhaust and the airbox. That said, it is carbureted and carbs like a little bit of vacuum and it is easy to go too far on an airbox mod and make it run worse.

First step before I did anything to the airbox would be to up the jet size. I would buy the next 3 larger sizes as it is going to be a trial fit because no two engines are exactly the same. The engines are jetted for fuel economy and the stock jet probably works better at altitude than it does at sea level but if you let more air in, you are going to need more fuel to go with it or you are going to be too lean. I have a friend who just drills small 5/16 holes in the airbox that he can easily cover with a blob of epoxy putty so that if he goes too far he has a quick remedy.

If you look at some local bikes that have aftermarket exhaust, they have a build up of black soot in them, caked on. Likely way over jetted because that is all they know to do and if they didn't do it they would probably fry the engine. It is probably costing them some power, fuel milage and unnecessarily polluting. Possibly fouling out plugs also. Sometimes less is more. That is my peso.

Now for the fun part, to hard break in or to not hard break in. I am of the opinion that the hard break in is best to get everything seated well and really for the life of the engine. You only have seconds from the first time it is started before you need to put it under a hard load, drive it like you stole it for the best hard break in results. I have seen where people buy Suzuki Raiders one after the other selling their old barely used one because it doesn't run as well as someone else's because I believe they broke it in soft just putting around town.

I broke in my Suzuki GD110 on the highway and didn't get out of second gear until I had about 5 miles on it. Great little runner. I only picked it over the Honda because it had a beefed up transmission better for trike use and an actual oil filter. Ran quieter than my mothers sewing machine.

 

I refuse to do business without good documents. If title can not be changed to me it drastically reduces the value. I saw an advert online of an expat wanting to sell a multicab: It's like this, I don't have any papers because the 3 previous owners didn't have any, you just register it in the name of the last owner with good registration. That stuff may work for Filipinos but I'm not Filipino. If you move to a different zone I doubt you will be able to register it there as they will give the paperwork a rectal exam. I know someone who took a vehicle to a different zone and tried to register it again in the zone it came from but they wouldn't accept the smoke test from a different zone. The vehicle would have to be registered in the new zone requiring complete paperwork, or you have to take it back to the zone it came from to register it. I sympathize with the widow that Dave mentioned but I saw an advert for an awesome jeep on Cebu, someone had probably spent 200k on getting it fixed up nice but they only wanted 40k for it because of no papers. I would have bought it for parts but I didn't know if I would have trouble getting it back to Negros. before I left I had POA drawn up so my jeep could be legally transferred to a new buyer because there are enough b@st@rd vehicles with no papers.