The Honda PCX / Forza / ADV150 / SH Forums

I suppose I must start this post with an apology...my last post here was back in 2018 when I had just passed my full licence and bought a Ninja 650, which - well, is comparing apples and oranges, so I won't. It's bloody good fun though...

So what did I do with my Honda PCX? I kept it of course!!

I have frequented here many times, just for advice on questions that most have already asked and others answered, but never felt the need to post; been a shady creepy lurker I suppose.

It's funny, people used to comment on my PCX and say "When are you getting a real bike?" - to which I'd reply, "I've got one, it's at home - this is still a fun bike you know!!". A lot of people here in the UK just don't "get" scooters; they are still far too lost in the old 1990s 600cc Sports bike mentality, the PCX never had and never will melt your eyeballs regarding speed (we all know this) - but that's missing the point. I have both, so I feel I can comment - and I love both for entirely different reasons.

The Ninja is for fun, the PCX is still fun - but has really been the workhorse these last 5 years. Going fast is fun, but being to just hop on, twist and go and flick it about - there is still a lot of fun to be had in my opinion on little capacity bikes - and for daily stuff like going to the shops and not fancying the commute to work when it's raining, its perfect (My Kwakky doesn't like the rain and I don't like the Kwakky in the rain either). By the time I have got all my gear on; leathers and all the rest on the Kawasaki - I would have been at the shops already on my little PCX - so why bother with the Ninja!

My little 2013 125cc PCX was an ex-demo bike and only had 412 miles on it when I bought it. I think I posted a picture of it on here when I first registered here too, in fact, the image I did post was when it had literally just been delivered and I hadn't even sat on it, let alone rode it when I took that picture.

Well, the clock ticked over to 30,413 the other day on the PCX- and I only glanced down at the time and it made me think "wow, 30k on this little gem of a bike". Now, the mileage aspect is totally coincidental; I have always been of the mindset that I will have a Sportsbike for the weekends and a smaller capacity bike for the daily stuff. I am 39 and don't have a car licence and totally refuse to get one - is it impractical, yeah it is - but I like my two wheels far too much.

I Bought a Forza 300
With the PCX getting on a bit now - even though I know, that little Honda engine will more than likely outlive me to be honest and probably do another 30,000 quite easily, it was time for a change. So I bought 2018 Forza 300 with 2,000 miles on the clock - and it was delivered 2 days ago. The Forza 300 is something else, it's almost like someone has scooped into my brain and took parts that I like about both my Ninja and PCX and mashed them together. I am so impressed with it and so happy, yeah the screen is crap and pointless as I am 6ft so it may as well not be there - but that is the only thing I don't like.

My brother is having my PCX; I am not selling it to him - I am giving it to him, the bike doesn't owe me anything - in fact, it's saved me so much money over the years and save my arse on a few occasions - that it wouldn't feel right, it will be his first bike and I know it will look after him too. I never ever thought I would get "emotional" over a piece of metal; it sounds stupid - but I love that little bike and am glad that it will be looking after my bro too from now on.

I'll sign off with this, I plan on being around here a lot more than I was before - I was just too busy riding I guess - and after 2 days and already 200 miles, I know I am going to love the Forza 300 even more, I will write up my initial thoughts and impressions on the Forza properly, but as this post is already waaayyyy to long, I will leave it there for now.

Here she is:

Here are some more pictures...as I know you guys like pictures

Enjoyed your post...........Think you'll enjoy that Forza......sure enjoy mine.....we only have the the 2014-2016 in USA. [think]

How long will it be till you sell the 650.....

gn2 wrote: ↑Tue May 18, 2021 6:13 am How long will it be till you sell the 650.....

Haha, this is something that has crossed my mind over the last few days, after only having the Forza300 for just under a week. I stood in my garage looking at both and thinking; "do I really need to keep both?"

However, the Ninja 650 makes me smile in a different way - and after I passed my full licence, I still kept the PCX 125; I like having the option on what to ride, depending on the mood I am in. If I cant be arsed; I'll take the scoot, if I want to rip it up a little - I take the Ninja.

Whilst comparing the PCX and Forza; isn't very fair - as the engine displacement size makes ALL the difference, I can still foresee me keeping both. I guess only time will tell

I watched SO many reviews on YouTube of the Forza 300 before I bought it, I felt like I had ridden it already lol. After just under a week, here are my initial 500miles reflection on my 2018 Forza 300

The Looks
I love the looks of this scooter, I was never a fan of how the PCX looked, which I always thought was a weird looking thing but not necessarily ugly at the same time. The Forza though, exudes style in my opinion. The finish is fantastic and the attention to detail I think is extraordinary. I was seriously considering the XMAX 300 at one point, which yeah - that might be quicker, but I think the Forza wins in the looks department all day long.

The Ride
is so smooth, at times it feel likes more like am floating rather than riding - maybe I was used to the rougher ride on the PCX? That is until the potholes of Britain kick in and the front suspension just gives up, ouchy! I wasn't expecting anything great on this front, after all - it is still a scooter and has scooter suspension. I have ridden it on back country roads, up dual carriages ways, motorways, city centres - basically I have rode my Forza through any and all environments that it ever will - and it was flawless. I got it up to 70 on the motorway pretty quickly and the speedo states 90 as the fastest I have gone, although after 30,000 miles with a PCX, I learnt that Honda speedos are usually 5mph faster indicated than "actual". The fact I can go on the motorway and do a quick 10mile commute; without having to put boring commuter miles on my other bikes - is very welcome, especially considering how much of a "nice place to be" the Forza is.

I am due to go touring around Wales, UK next year - I am seriously considering taking the Forza: I am not even joking!

The Electronics
Having a clock is nice lol, I am not so sure I need to know battery voltage and air temp but its useful if I ever needed to know I guess. I have noted the MPG and estimated mileage available interesting but I think I need more time on the bike to learn if this is anywhere near correct or not. I did note it changing alot when I was pushing it hard on motorways etc, so it was good to see it changing reflecting on how fast I was going for longer durations of time. Overall the HUD and the rest is very nice. It did take some time getting to use to the keyless ignition and if and when I do use the Forza for touring, I can see the USB charging point being very useful for my phone etc.

The Seat
I love the seat, its so damn comfortable - the seat on my Ninja may as well be made out of wood and the PCX gave me square arse after about an hour of continuous riding - but I love the laid back style of the Forza, where I can just watch the world go by as I ride whilst sat in comfort. However, I am 6ft and I am still tippy toed on the floor when putting both legs down at the lights, I think shorter riders would struggle with this. I rode my PCX with legs fully stretched forwards on the higher footplates - I did this on the Forza out of habit - and found there was plenty of room, but the angle must be somewhat different to the PCX as I found my legs aching really quickly; this is something that seems to have worn off and I don't notice it now. The missus LOVES the seat, the PCX was NOT pillion friendly and she always felt like she was falling off the back end, so she loves how wide it is but isn't keen on how "high" up she is - but that's her problem lol.

The Screen
I wasn't expecting it to be as bad as some of the reviewers were stating, its such a nice premium feature to have on this bike - but damn its pointless for me personally. The wind just goes right into the visor of my helmet, making anything above 30-40mph horrendous. I would rather than the full force of the wind, equally distributed - like on my PCX - than use the screen at all - such a shame. I am sure aftermarkets will sort this out; but it shouldn't have, I hope Honda address this in future.

The Storage
Wow - I use my bike to go and do food shopping and general stuff like that, which I mean - if I wanted more space, which I don't think any other bike other than tourers and panniers offer - I would just buy a car if I wanted more.

The Engine
She's a peppy little thing isn't she! I wasn't expecting it to pull as much as it does. After being on PCX and then melting my eyeballs off on my Ninja, I wasn't expecting 650cc acceleration or pickup much beyond 50 - but she just keeps going. There seems to be what I can only describe as a "Second Wind" that kicks in around 40-50; where she just seems to pick up more and I can feel the back wheels just pushing me even more. I was expecting something of a rough ride on faster roads, with smaller wheels and a 300cc engine, but this bike feels like it would sit at 70mph all day long!! I was rather shocked how planted it feels on the road.

Overall
I LOVE this bike and reading this back; it may seem like I am complaining a lot - I am not really to be honest, as I said I LOVE this bike and its drawbacks for me personally are tiny. There is no measurement available in "giggles" and how a bike "makes you feel" - first time out on this bike, I headed up to Matlock (on my doorstep) and I was amazed, I was giggling my head off when I wringed the throttle on some twisties. Some of the reviews I have read, said this bike was boring, typical Honda and nothing exciting - they must have been Anti-Scooter people to start with - or rode something different to what I have because the Forza 300 is bloody awesome!

You get the second gen. We don't in Canada. Jealous, enjoy.

@ RichyP
I can't agree more with you. I have mine now for almost a year now and I am very satisfied with the looks, and throttle response even at 100 km/h it still has the same force to go to 130 km/h with ease.
Here in the Netherlands we got the top case standard with the scooter so my storage capacity is even bigger .
I can say I am very pleased with my Forza, just like you

Another good read...........Have to agree even though mine is a 2014 model. Haven't had many bikes that came with a better seat. Too bad Honda
didn't nail it with the windshield. Did buy their tall version.... mostly pleased with it.

That was the first thing I changed for an other the windscreen.
My new one from Givi [ D1166ST ] is 11 cm taller and 8 cm wider

And just to add, the Forza 350 fixes the screen height problem. Think they spec it as 40mm taller. I'm 6ft 2 and no major wind in face issues atall - at least up to 60mph. Haven't been faster yet ;-)
.

A great review, it just shows how we’re all different, I think Forza is really an ugly bike, I like the PCX much, much more. The new Forza I think is just stunning, really a great redesign

Jge64 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 11, 2021 3:37 pm I think Forza is really an ugly bike,

Which one 2014 - 2017 or the 2018 - 2020 ?

Jge64 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 11, 2021 3:37 pm The new Forza I think is just stunning, really a great redesign

The 2021 Forza has the same design as the 2018 - 2020 Forza accept a few minor changes

all the forza 300’s look bad to me, the ‘21 forza 350 is a stunning redesign.

johnparham wrote: ↑Fri Jun 11, 2021 3:25 pm And just to add, the Forza 350 fixes the screen height problem. Think they spec it as 40mm taller. I'm 6ft 2 and no major wind in face issues atall - at least up to 60mph. Haven't been faster yet ;-)
.

Hmmm, I find the screen on the new 350 still poor and am adding a Vario screen in an attempt to get some calm air at speed (I have been faster than 60mph... ). Worse is how narrow the screen is + no handguards. These should come as standard, as should the rack, which Honda seem to have trouble delivering. It's a great ride overall, but let down by detail. Likewise the underseat storage is poorly designed, with the pointless document holder prongs really getting in the way. You can't lift the seat up above a 35 degree angle, so packing is more awkward - again, I can't see a reason for this.

johnparham wrote: ↑Fri Jun 11, 2021 3:25 pm And just to add, the Forza 350 fixes the screen height problem. Think they spec it as 40mm taller. I'm 6ft 2 and no major wind in face issues atall - at least up to 60mph. Haven't been faster yet ;-)

On my 300 I mounted a screen from GIVI D1166ST It's about 11 cm [4.5"] taller and 8 cm [3.5"] wider than the original Honda screen. now I have no trouble with the wind, I'm 1 m 86 [6'1"]

I have had two PCXs for the last nine years. A 125 for three then a 150 for the last six. I really enjoyed the PCX and was very happy with it until a friend who has a Forza 300 was going away for a month and offered to lend it to me while he was away. One day on the Forza and I was at the Honda dealer trading in my PCX for a new blue 350.
Unfortunately after waiting three weeks, each week "it will be here on Tuesday and you'll have it on Wednesday". Checked today and "sorry we can't get a blue one", despite assuring me they had one in stock at the Honda distribution centre in Barcelona. (Hondas in Portugal all come from Barcelona).
I have now decided to have a white one as it's in stock at the dealers. Should have it tomorrow.
The dealer really didn't want to take my 150 in part ex., said no one wants them here as a 125 can be ridden on a car licence, and people with bike licences buy bigger bikes or scoots. They finally took it but only gave me €1200, I thought it was worth more, but didn't want to be stuck with it, as may have been difficult to sell.
The Forza I have been using has a Puig screen. Taller than the standard one which I thought was useless, causing a lot of buffeting. The Puig screen is 55cm / 21.5 inches at full extension, much better than the standard one. The 350 screen is supposed to be 40mm taller than the old one, so let's hope it's OK otherwise it will have to be changed.

Love that 2018 you picked up. Does it have a 13” rear wheel too? That 13” wheel on the 2016 would be my only complaint. Otherwise I love it.
Cap.
2016 Forza.

What is wrong with the 13 inch rear wheel ? Mine causes no issues, shod with Pirelli