2025 Honda NT 1100

BamaRider

BamaRider

Guy
Joined
Jul 23, 2006
Messages
597
Age
69
Location
Prattville, Ala
I recently took a 50-mile test ride on this bike at the request of a local dealer with whom I've done business for over 50 years.

I can tell you this is a sport touring bike like nothing I've ever seen. Honda took the Africa Twin and made a damn good touring bike if dirt is not your thing. Comfortable seating, cruise control, heated grips, ride modes, and excellent wind protection via manual, simple screen adjustments. TFT display with a menu that will tell you anything you want to know. Apple CarPlay was simple to connect to, and Android connectivity is available if you need it.

The parallel twin is fast with great mid-range pull, which is where touring bikes work.

The DCT is simply fantastic. I never thought I'd like it, but I saw enough on this ride to know it is the way to go. Computers and stuff keep you in the right gear, but you can always switch to manual on the fly by a lever on the left bar. I live in Central Alabama, and few roads to lean, but it did very well, not having to shift and worry about what gear to be in is transforming for an old guy like me. The bike always knows where to put you. I'm done leaning hard and riding fast, which works for me.

This bike feels like a 750. Riding, parking, and getting in and out of the garage is easy. It will commute around town, lean in the canyons, and do slab miles.

The suspension is good and quickly adjustable. The bike is fully decked out with panniers and summer tires, and the price is 13,500. That's what I paid for my new CB 1100 in 2017. I don't know how Honda did this.

This bike weighs about 200 lbs less than my ST 1300, FJR, and RT.

The brakes are good but could be better.

What the NT showed me is that four cylinders are overkill. You don't need them.

The only thing is that the bike is sort of ugly, because of the hideous exhaust that is mandatory to comply with government emission controls. Also, chain drive, but that technology is not what I remember. It will give many miles of life and delivers to the rear wheel more efficiently with no lash.

My thought is to sell my three full-on sport tourers for and go with the do-all NT, free up garage space, and ride something I can handle better now that I'm 70. We'll see.
 
It's only 70lbs lighter than the RT. An additional gallon of gas would make it almost perfect IMO.

Sounds like a great ride.
 

Got's me a 2025 NT1100!!!! | General-NT1100

Boy, what a job securing this thing!!! Bought it on Friday 5-2, picking up Saturday 5-3. These things are hotcakes!! So as reported in another thread, on Tuesday this week I was looking at Cycletrader, 2 popped up in Ohio. Then Wednesday, more started showing up on Cycletrader, one was 45 miles...
www.nt-owners.org
 
I was riding my :bl13: around the block, when I see our new neighbor wave at me while I passed by his house. He had his garage open I could see a bike with a cover over it. So I turned around and stopped to chat. It was a 2025 NT1100. So he was happy to show it to me.

The one issue I would have is maintaining the chain. I've only have shaft drives since 1983, I'm not sure I'd remember to oil it, much less adjust it! :unsure-2x:
 
I have had my chain drive bikes now for quite some time V-Stroms, Versys, and now the NT1100. I have never had to adjust the chain between tire changes. Lubing take 2 min. after each ride with Dupont chain saver, wax base. Cleaning is a wipe down with a rag soaked in WD40 during oil changes. Not a big deal once in the habit. Of course I have not given up on shaft drive as I still have my FJR shafty. (I don't ride in the rain anymore if I can help it.)
 
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SupraSabre said:
I was riding my :bl13: around the block, when I see our new neighbor wave at me while I passed by his house. He had his garage open I could see a bike with a cover over it. So I turned around and stopped to chat. It was a 2025 NT1100. So he was happy to show it to me.

The one issue I would have is maintaining the chain. I've only have shaft drives since 1983, I'm not sure I'd remember to oil it, much less adjust it! :unsure-2x:
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I think you could make do. Chains today are easy to maintain and I rarely adjust it between tire changes.
 
I put a cheap chain on my ZRX once, I could not keep it adjusted. Finally removed it after about 5000 miles and "Holy Smoke". It was destroyed, held it up sideways and bent over 90 degrees.
Spent the money for a good one and haven't had to adjust it more than once after initial break in.
Cheap is like free, usually worth what you paid for it
 
Mellow said:
It's only 70lbs lighter than the RT. An additional gallon of gas would make it almost perfect IMO.

Sounds like a great ride.
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70 lbs still feels like a bunch at the end of a long ride. I can remember passing on taking pictures when on my NT700V, simply because I didn't want to deal with the weight on the side of the road.

I'm not sure what an additional gallon of gas would do for an owner, except make the bike weigh more and be top heavy. It already holds 5 gallons of gas.

At a very conservative MPG of 45, that's still 225 miles. At the high end of 54 MPG (source Fuelly), that's 270 miles. I don't think my butt could last that long. :D

SupraSabre said:
The one issue I would have is maintaining the chain. I've only have shaft drives since 1983, I'm not sure I'd remember to oil it, much less adjust it! :unsure-2x:
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Chains are not really all that bad to maintain. My F900XR is my first chain-driven bike since about 1980. At 11,000+ miles, I still haven't needed to adjust it, and the cleaning for me is even simpler and less messy than what @ChucksKLRST describes. The horrors of owning a chain-driven bike are more fantasy than fact now.

Chris
 
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Daboo said:
At a very conservative MPG of 45, that's still 225 miles. At the high end of 54 MPG (source Fuelly), that's 270 miles. I don't think my butt could last that long. :D
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Then there's 7.9 gallons... and yes, my butt was not happy.. .lol.. and I still hadn't hit the low fuel warning.. double lol

P6170115.JPG
 
That is one thing about getting old....... The fuel in the tank and my butt limit are getting really close, as long as I am not on the ST with a near 8 gallon tank. I need better excuses for stopping than "Need Gas".
I have about a 3 gallon butt now. Can go to about 4 1/2 in an emergency
 
Tons one could discuss on chain maintenance...... We've all read about automatic chain oilers (e.g. Scottoiler and such), and using manual sprays of various flavours..... I had it all down to what Chuck does, and last year a friend showed me his new manual oiler..... the thing is brilliant, just uses 90W gear oil, fill it and good for 2-3000 miles...... when you start out, give the cap 1/4 turn and it dispenses (drips) oil, then after lunch, give it another 1/4 turn for the rest of the day. Chain stays clean (mostly) and you control it..... the good news is they are cheap! I mounted mine near the rear footpeg so I can reach down on the fly. Some mount it on the handlebars, but I felt that looked too fugly.......
Anyway, this will solve any chain maintenance concerns anyone should have.... and like Chuck, I give the chain a little wipe at tire changes.

 
I use a similar one, the biggest difference being I bought mine on Amazon. Otherwise, they are the same. I found a full quarter turn put too much oil on the chain that ended up flinging off. But a turn of about 75 degrees instead of the full 90, works perfectly.

I'll occasionally use a chain brush and rag to wipe down the chain. When I wash the bike, I'll spray Simple Green on the chain and then just rinse it off later. The chain comes out pretty clean. And then the next ride, I'll use the automatic/manual oiler to relube the chain. No mess, no fuss.

Chris
 
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The DCT trans can only be described as brilliant. After living with one for awhile, you wonder why they don't put them on every bike.

I wipe my chains down with a rag with WD 40 on it after a rain or if they look dry, and then run them thru a rag with 80/90 gear lube on it. Like others chain only gets adjusted when putting a new tire on every 8-ish thousand miles. The 520 chain on the NC 750 lasts about 23,000 miles. The 530 chain on my CB 1100 about 40,000 miles.

I would imagine the 525 chain on the NT will go about 30K, the sprockets probably 60K
 
I use one of those chain oilers on my WR250R and love them.

Years ago, I needed a 530 chain for my rigid frame bike and money was tight. Noticed the local farm store had the correct pitch chain for about $3 per foot and I thought "hmm, no suspension means less stress on a chain, I can get away with a cheap one". I had to adjust it multiple times in the 1200 miles it was on the bike, wouldn't even recommend one "in a pinch".
 
Mellow said:
It's only 70lbs lighter than the RT. An additional gallon of gas would make it almost perfect IMO.

Sounds like a great ride.
Click to expand...
The RT handles well but is tall. And you can feel that extra 70 lbs stopped.
SupraSabre said:
I was riding my :bl13: around the block, when I see our new neighbor wave at me while I passed by his house. He had his garage open I could see a bike with a cover over it. So I turned around and stopped to chat. It was a 2025 NT1100. So he was happy to show it to me.

The one issue I would have is maintaining the chain. I've only have shaft drives since 1983, I'm not sure I'd remember to oil it, much less adjust it! :unsure-2x:
Click to expand...

motornut said:
I put a cheap chain on my ZRX once, I could not keep it adjusted. Finally removed it after about 5000 miles and "Holy Smoke". It was destroyed, held it up sideways and bent over 90 degrees.
Spent the money for a good one and haven't had to adjust it more than once after initial break in.
Cheap is like free, usually worth what you paid for it
Click to expand...
Chinese chain, I suspect
 
SupraSabre said:
The one issue I would have is maintaining the chain. I've only have shaft drives since 1983, I'm not sure I'd remember to oil it, much less adjust it! :unsure-2x:
Click to expand...

I know they don't make chains like they used to — they make them better. They don't need to be oiled as often or adjusted as often.

Still I want shaft drive. I don't want to clean up oil. I don't want to adjust. Been there done that don't want to do it again.

Now If I liked the looks a lot more I could be tempted. The DCT is really calling me. But I don't. Just not my aesthetic preference even though I don't find it nearly as unattractive as many many other bikes. Or— if it was a shafty I could live with the looks and DCT would be tasty icing.
 
I appreciate all the wonderful comments on the NT1100. I currently have 45k miles on my 2018 Goldwing Tour DCT. It’s been a great bike. I may take a look at the NT. Just feel, as good as the bike is, it may feel too much like a step down from the Wing.
 
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