Will a Forza be the "ultimate" bike for me?

[JoshM]

I know, I know... everyone is different, people are blah blah blah...

But I'd like some knowledge from the guys (and gals) who actually own a Forza!
Be warned - this is going to be a lot of rambling, but hopefully you can help!


My daily commute is ~35 miles that my PCX does fine with. However, weekends, holidays, etc, I like to ride for a while. My wife likes to ride on the back. For this, we typically use my father in law's Kawasaki touring bike (similar to Goldwing, I don't recall it's name). It's just way too big for needs.

I'm 240#, 6'. My wife is 5'10", 150#. The biggest issue I have found with most bikes is that she is simply not comfortable due to her long legs. The typical "cruiser" has her knees are where my elbows should be. The typical touring/sport bike is not comfortable at all for her for obvious reasons. The local dealer doesn't have a Forza in stock at the moment, so I'm we're not able to have a "test fit".

I rented a CTX700 over the weekend and we were both comfortable on it. It was comfortable at 30mph and it was comfortable at 80mph. However, if we were to get the CTX, I'd be keeping my PCX. I hope that the Forza will be a good in the middle so I'm not paying insurance on two bikes for one "driver"... she will NOT get a license... she refuses. Ugh.

So about that Forza thingy... How will the Forza do at 70-75mph (solo/highway) up mountains/hills? Will the speed decrease dramatically? What about 2-up? Will we be limited to ~65mph for safety? She doesn't ride too often, but when she wants to ride with me, I'm pushing her out the door before she changes her mind! So 99% of the time I'll be solo, which is fine... it's more fun that way anyways. But if we travel, I'd like to not be limited to the routes I take. I live in the middle of the country and quite a bit of our roads are 45mph-55mph.

Thanks for your time and help!

[gn2]

A Forza will hold 70-75 uphill no bother at all.
I've only ridden mine a few miles two-up with a combined weight in excess of you and your wife.
It did 70 with ease on the flat.
Will it be ok for the two of you can only be answered by the two of you sitting on it
I would suggest a Silverwing or Burgman 400 might be a better fit.

[willajabir]

Josh,
If you plan on changing just for that 1% and you'll be riding those mtns in your area, then I'm in agreement with gn2.
The Silverwing will do great with 2 up, loaded, riding the mtns, decent mpg, and you'll only need a back rest for your bride.
If the 1% is minor consideration, then I don't think you'd be considering upgrading.
Trying to read between the lines, I'm thinking you are trying to upgrade a little and using your wife as the reason/justification and that means the Forza is what you really want.???

[JoshM]

Thanks for the input, fellers!

Larry, I'm not necessarily upgrading just for the few occasions my wife wants to ride with me.

Like stated above in all the ramblings, my PCX is great for my daily commute. The highest MPH road I have is 50mph, and it's only for 5 miles or so. The PCX handles it fine. Wouldn't hurt to have a few more CCs, but it's not a necessity.

Having the extra 130ccs would be beneficial for my weekend riding. It often includes many miles of 50+mph roads that the PCX struggles at times due to the hills. IMO, the PCX is a great commuter. I don't believe there's a better scooter for a daily commute. But it's not designed for long distance cruising at higher speeds.

[gn2]

But it's not designed for long distance cruising at higher speeds.

Neither is the Forza.
If you want to be really comfortable two up at 70-75 you would be better to look at a 400 as the minimum starting point.

[JoshM]

Bleh, I was afraid of that. Not a big fan of the larger scooter's look.

I guess the PCX will have a stablemate.

[gn2]

Kymco Xciting...?

[you you]

By ultimate did you mean suitable?

[JoshM]

Kymco Xciting...?

I know Kymco has gotten better in terms of reliability, but I still don't know that I want to test out that theory.

By ultimate did you mean suitable?

I said what I meant.

[garrup]

I'll go along with the opinion that, if you are going to be riding solo more than 90% of the time, that you pay close attention to what you yourself want in the way of performance and comfort. The Forza 300 is a marvelous machine for a solo rider. With its frugal single cylinder you can easily ride at freeway speeds and still benefit with the excellent mpg (i've been averaging 87).
Since i'm talking to a PCX rider, you are aware of limitations inherent to small displacement bikes and obviously have easily come to grips with them. My hat is off to you.
I've been riding a Forza now for about six weeks, and can make these observations:
-if i was to ride frequently two up, i'd want something not only bigger, but something that didn't pose the passenger up high on the back as is now common with the seating position on so many bikes. In my area 90% of the bikes are large displacement V-twins. Not for me, but if i was a lot heavier and frequently carried a passenger, i'd probably look at one of those. Maybe even prefer one to a big scoot.
-since this is a single cylinder machine with, what, 27HP, don't expect miracles. You can do 70 in heavy traffic, but that will often be almost flat out. If the wind is behind you expect some passing power and maybe a top of 80mph.
But if you are pushing the wind, be happy just staying with the fast traffic.
-long distance riding (anything over 50 miles) can be problematic with the Forza seating position. It places a lot of strain on the tail bone since you can't move around much - and especially so if you are a tall rider. Or maybe its just me....... my scrawny ass has no padding to protect the base of the spine.
-you mentioned hills. We all will have different experiences with that. Two up riding, going up hill..... well you might and you might not stay with fast traffic. Depends on the speed you are travelling before you get to the hill.

I'm a tall rider (six feet/150lbs) and the bike works for me. Its nice to just maintain one machine that does pretty much everything well. I don't need a bigger bike for faster/longer trips and i don't need a smaller more nimble bike for shopping and errands. The Forza does it all and this saves big bucks on insurance, etc. That may or may not be very important to you.

The amount of riding you do has some bearing. If you are on the bike for more than an hour a day, and like to ride out somewhere every week for a couple of hundred miles, well then the small wheels and relatively harsh ride of the Forza might need improving on. Personally, i would in that case get the Honda NC750 - esp for its big storage area and good gas mileage. The center of gravity on that bike is a bit lower than some, so should feel ok to a pcx rider like yourself.

[Kalemakapii]

I have been ride a Yamaha V-Star 650 Silverado for the past 6 years and recently picked up a Forza for fun riding on weekends. Love it so much have decided to sell the VStar. Ain't gonna ride a cruiser ever again. Forza is quick and nimble and comfortable. Am 5'9"" and sit comfortably. Haf loud pipes on other bike but Forza is so quiet, I can now listen to my music. Great ride. Not looking back on the cruiser.

[MichRocks]

If I were purchasing a ride knowing that I wanted 2-up for long distance cruising in mountains, I too would definitely look larger than the Forza. Even solo, I found the 750cc class and up ideal for long distance cruising; certainly better than my 500/550cc class machines. Having that extra weight and power was perfect for freeway use, and made wind a lot easier to ignore. But it became a PITA in parking lots, single lane road u-turns, rutty dirt roads, etc. But needs change; I now do solo 300+ mile trips on the Forza with ease. Freeway only becomes an issue here when the traffic gets heavy, then comfort suffers. If I drive 70-75mph, cars will tailgate within 10 feet, and will pass on the left without fully leaving my lane. If I travel 65mph, that doesn't happen because they try not to get behind me in the first place. But then I feel like I'm holding traffic up. Here, one needs a bike that can effortlessly cruise 85mph to simply flow with traffic. That is NOT the Forza. Once by myself, 65-75mph is easy and comfortable on the bike, though I prefer 70 and below just because I want the bike to last forever. I have ridden since 1960, and have yet to find an 'ultimate' bike for all my riding needs. For daily wants and weekend getaways though, the Forza keeps a large grin on my face, and my 70 mile daily work commute is never enough. I find myself constantly trying to find some stupid errand to get me back out the door.

(...Damn! Forgot to have a key made while I was just at the store....have to go back...! )

[willajabir]

Josh,
Kymco is good. They make parts for other manufacturers. BMW chose them for their 2 Maxi scooters. I'd say they have been tested and proven.
But you can get a lemon from anyone. I don't mean the Exciting is for you or not. Just don't discount it because you are unfamiliar with it.

[you you]

By ultimate did you mean suitable?

I said what I meant.[/quote]

I'm sure it will be awesome then. It's probably just the amount and period of ultimate awesomeness that might be the issue.

But then something more suitable will come along

[waspmike]

You might go down to your local Kawasaki dealer and ask them if they know when the J300 will be available?

[Vulcandanny]

I do pretty much agree with barrup. In my past, i owned almost all kind of bikes, from superport bikes to choppers. when i moved to thailand 13 years ago, i sold them all and did not ride a bigger bike for a few years here in thailand. after a while, when i saw the wonderful roads in the north of the country, i could not resist any longer and bought a chopper again, it was a kawa vulcan 900 classic, modified to the LT version. great chopper but to heavy for the curvy mountain roads. after about 36'000km, i sold it and bought a kawa versys 650 and fitted sidecases and a topcase. perfect bike for thailand as long as you travel but for daily uses here in town, i always used my old, small honda wave 125i.
the versys i did use only for longer trips around the country, most of the time it was parked in the garage....... so i was looking for a smaller bike/scooter, i can use for daily uses and even longer trips. in january i sold the versys and bought a PCX 150. because im tall 6'2, i modified the saddle (made it higher and took awas the hump), the ride was perfect. but soon i did wish to have a bit more power and a better ride on longer trips.
here in thailand, especially in the countryside, we do not have a big choice, kymco has no dealerships in thailand, SIM u can get in bangkok and tourist destinations only, so the Forza was the only bike available here. i contacted also kawasaki thailand but they said, that the J300 (a bit more powerful than the Forza) will not be sold on the thai market.........(big mistake from kawa.....).
because i could sell my PCX for a good price, i bought a Forza 3 weeks ago. first i also modified the saddle (again made it higher and took away the ugly hump), now its perfect and my girl also can sit close to me, what is a big advantage when u ride it on curvy roads.
i love the Forza and i use it every day, for shopping, for fun and for longer trips. i also fitted a givi 45L topbox, so storage is not a problem any more and since i have the Forza, i do not use my truck any more. ok, a bit more power would be great but its not really a problem. on flat roads i can do 80mph at any time, if its no wind, even speeds up to 90mph are possible. its not a rocket but its powerful, comfortable and i can do about 30km/liter with an avarage speed of about 70mph.
as long as Kymco does not sell scooters (xciting 400i) i will stay a very happy boy with the Forza and i do not miss the big bikes i owned in my past......