[Gotz]

Hello everyone!

I am very new to this forum, and have a few questions.

Will a Honda Grom be a good first bike?
Is it easy to maintain?
How hard is it to ride? (Never ridden or owned a bike before)
How hard is it to modify? (Rear fender, exhaust, etc...)
What is it's top speed Km?
Could I take it on the highway?
Would i regret buying this bike?

I am a student looking for a cheat economical way to get around my city. I am 17 with a full time Sales job. I am looking for a bike that is easy to ride, easy to maintain and one that I could modify in the future if I wanted to.
Would this be the right bike for me?


BTW i just joined, sorry if I made this post wrong.

Thanks!
Gotz

 

[armoredpig]

Honda grom is about as easy as it gets to maintain--being air cooled and fuel injected. The valve clearance interval is shorter than other bikes, however, it is easier to do than others.

Modifications are easy and aftermarket parts are a plenty, but do you need to go on the highway? Top speed is around 100km/h

If you know what you are looking for and do your research, you won't regret your first bike purchase. If you need highway, 250/300/650 would be better bikes for you. But if you want a mini bike that is probably the most fun bike you can ride under 100km/h you are looking at the right one!

 

[Gotz]

I do't know what I am really looking for. I guess something easy to learn on and maintain. I don't foresee myself going on to the highway. Anyways thank you for the quick reply! :smile:

 

[sailomb]

this would be a great first bike for you. if you need to upgrade in the future just sell it and move up in bike.

 

[JetPilot]

I would suggest something bigger and more practical... The GROM is a great extra bike, tiny, and a lot of fun when you want something different, but not a great ONLY bike... My wife rides a GROM because she is short, and needed something very light and small to learn on. So the GROM was perfect for her.

I would strongly suggest at least a 250 CC bike if it is going to be your only one. Check out the CBR300's... It would be a much better motorcycle.

Mike

 

[Capn Kirk]

My Grom is my second bike. I must agree with the advice from JetPilot above. It is not great as an only bike because of the limits in practicality for higher speeds and longer trips. I also have my "primary" bike, the new Yamaha R3. It can ride the mountains, town, & freeway all day without a fuss. My Grom tops out at around 58MPH on the flats and I only weight 155 pounds. There is no power for escape or passing when traveling on a 55MPH road.

I frequently ride my Grom all over town and to work but I am always in a 45 MPH speed limit or below. Since you are a student and if you plan on ONLY riding around town, the Grom may be a great fit for you.

The larger 250-300cc class bike will be much more forgiving and easier to ride due to the larger size. The Grom's 12" wheels make it a bit squirrely at higher speeds but also make it really fun to throw around in the city streets. My Grom is a toy. Feels like I am riding the neighbors kids mini bike on the streets....legally!

You really need to know in advance what your plans are for the bike. If your just riding around town, it is an inexpensive option both in maintenance and fuel economy. If you want to ride longer rides into neighboring towns or go on longer trips, I would recommend buying a bit bigger bike and reevaluate the Grom later for beating around town.

Ride Safe!

 

[pwr2wh8]

the grom is my first and only bike. i have zero regrets as i got it knowing what it "can't" do. as mentioned above, it shines as a city bike and to many, a hobby/fun bike. while it can do long distance traveling, in my opinion, a larger bike would be a better choice. take into account that i don't have much experience with bikes, but i would say the grom has been a great bike for me to learn on, as well as my girl. being that it's light and limited on power, you can really focus on learning and improving fundamental riding skills, skills that will transfer over to larger bike. assuming you have some mechanical background, it's relatively easy to maintain as it's a single piston air-cooled motor with most of the vitals exposed for easy access. mods are very easy to add. as a matter of fact, it's so easy, abundant, and reasonable priced to modify, i and i'm sure others have modified more than planned.

 

[RACER X]

It's a great learning tool, unless highly modified not a great frwy cruiser. I would suggest a 250/300 unless you want a toy bike to fiddle around with.

I've had many bikes and used to be an MSF instr.

Obviously take the MSF class before you do anything

 

[quaker495]

Since you are 17 you may or may not know this: any vehicle you buy brand new (car or motorcycle) loses much of its value the moment you drive it off the lot. If you can find a used Grom at a good price (someone not trying to recover all the cost of mods they've added), wonderful. You might have more luck finding a used CBR 250 or 300, Honda Rebel or Kawasaki Ninja 250 or 300; there are simply more of them out there. Unless you have the garage space to keep a car and one or two bikes, you are likely going to sell whatever bike you buy, in a year or two when your circumstances change and you move. So ease of resale and amount you will recover are important factors.

 

[Gotz]

Thank you everyone for the great responses! I forgot to mention in my post that I do own a car aswell! So if I were to go a far distance I would drive my car instead of ride the Grom. I am planning on going to my local Honda Dealer tomorrow morning to look at a few bikes. I have a few in mind, the Grom, CB300F and the CB500X. More then likely I will go with the Grom since I do have my car. I understand the value drops as soon as it leaves the lot, same thing happend with my new car, I am willing to take the loss. Again I would really like to thank eveyone for their input! You really helped me get a good idea of what I am looking at!

Gotz

By the way what brand of helmets would you recommend?

 

[quaker495]

By the way what brand of helmets would you recommend?

Good luck on your motorcycle search. I was wondering what you were going to do in the winter. Good thing you have a car! I don't know about Canadian designations, but you can go by the U.S. safety designations on helmets: there is "DOT" (Department of Transportation) and there is "Snell", with "Snell" being a higher safety rating. Easier for you to Google it than for me to explain it. Other than that, know that there are several head shapes and it is always a good idea to visit a store and try them on. A good salesperson will also make sure you understand how tight they should fit. I'm sure most people here will vote for "full face helmet" as I certainly will. I don't think you can go wrong, brand-wise, with a full-face helmet that is Snell rated and fits your head shape.

Happy Gromming!

 

[MKE GROMLIN]

I agree with Quaker. I would also add, wear the helmet around the dealership for 20-30 minutes before you commit to buying to make sure you don't develop any pressure points. You can just browse the store to kill some time and pay attention to any sore/red spots that my develop.

My personal favorite brand is Arai. They also make helmets specifically for different head shapes (round, intermediate oval, long oval). My second choice is Shoei. Full face always for me.

Cheers!

 

[quaker495]

Speaking of gear, give some thought to your materials and color scheme before you start buying things. I'd wait until you get the bike and see what color it is. Then select your jacket, then finally your helmet and gloves. (Helmets come in more colors than jackets.) If Mom wants to get you a present*, have her buy you this: Olympia Blaze Hi-Viz Vest - RevZilla.

*Being part of this club means putting up with disapproving comments from friends and family. One way to address that is to dazzle 'em with your safety gear.

 

[kzam]

More expensive helmets are often lighter weight and provide more air flow/less fogging on cold mornings. You get what you pay for and a high end brand like Arai and Shoei (handmade in Japan) have much greater attention to detail and will often last longer.

Scorpion and HJC are good brands that make quality products at a reasonable price. I would avoid no-name Chinese helmets that costs less than $100 because I value brain function. Am I safer? Maybe not but I FEEL safer with a reputable brand.

Bright colors such as neons, red, orange, yellow, and white make you more visible to cars. I'm older now and I've decided that being seen and avoiding an accident is more important than looking cool and being dead. Whatever you choose, find something that fits your head-shape and is comfortable. Wear it like your life depends on it. Because it does.

 

[vinnie]

The Grom is my only bike and my first. I find that the maintenance is more than a 250. Oil changes are not a big deal, but I find that when you wring it out (like most people have to in order to keep with traffic outside city speeds), you need to change the oil sooner than 2500 miles. I'm sure that depends on what oil you are using and preference. I like that it is cheap and does not hurt to change early...but I don't think my oil has much life left after 1300 miles. I also realized if you change the oil every 1000 miles, you are doing 6-7 oils changes for one oil change on a liquid cooled 250 or 300. I also have had to change my tires every 3-4k miles. Maintenance isn't hard, but I find it frequent. It's my only bike, so I don't know if I would feel this way with others...I just always feel like there is something I need to do maintenance-wise. There's a lot of upgrades you might want to do that also cost you, but make the bike even more awesome.

I really like the CB300f, but already have the Grom and don't think it's worth upgrading at this point. I do take my Grom everywhere, though, and love riding it. I just wish it had a little more juice for the highway. If I knew (before buying) what I know about the Grom now and what I want to do with my only bike, I'd go for the CB300f.

 

[norwegian_viking]

Hi and good luck finding a bike!

Another thing worth mentioning is the fuel consumption. I used to have a Grom, sold it and bought a Ducati Scrambler instead. 5,5l tank vs 13,5l. And I did not drive any further on the Ducati before I had to fill it with gas. I have now sold the Ducati, and are looking into getting a new Grom again. I miss the little bugger ;-) it is also extremely fun and easy to ride. Many bigger bikes takes more technique to handle, but the Grom is like a bicycle with engine

As for the maintenance. It is a Honda. Not some cheap China crap. The engine is of good quality, and you will have no problem following the service intervalls in the manual. As long as you fill it with gas and makes sure it has enough oil, you will have a reliable bike for a very long time. Specially if you buy it brand new. I haven't read about anyone yet with bigger problems technical wise.


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[JetPilot]

CB300F and the CB500X. More then likely I will go with the Grom since I do have my car.

Gotz

The CB500X is AWESOME, and the best value for the money you will find in any new Motorcycle. You get SO MUCH MORE motorcycle and capability for that extra 2000 dollars, and you can ride it anywhere in the world. The ABS is also giant safety advantage, the first accident it prevents will pay for it many times over. It is very smooth, powerful, and much more comfortable than the CB300. But not so powerful that it will get you into a lot o trouble as long as you are smart and careful. If you are reckless, and ride to fast for conditions, then ANY size motorcycle will get you hurt. I have the CB500X and love it !!!

 

[mitchc1985]

If you're looking for a dead simple learning bike that is reliable and not intimidating, the Grom will do that job well. However, I think the Grom makes an amazing secondary bike. I love mine. But if you're looking for something to actually get around on long distances eventually, take a look at the CBR500R. It's a great learner. Enough power to get you out of trouble, but not enough power to get you into trouble. Then go buy a Grom to compliment it. Just my $.02. Be safe and have fun!


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[i heart ricers]

Hello everyone!

How hard is it to ride? (Never ridden or owned a bike before)

please do not just go buy a grom and hop onto the highway

take classes at your local dmv first b4 you even think of buying a bike

 

[Macloven]

Now that I finally have a Grom, I can say that I think it would be an excellent first learning bike. My first bike in my early teens was an SL70 which isn't all that different than the Grom. Fast enough to get around, but not so fast to get you in trouble. And the simple motor is great to learn basic mechanics on. Also, the Honda clutch and transmission are quite forgiving and a good platform to learn shifting skills. And as others have posted, take a class to learn the basics. Have fun.