PC800, Pacific Coast

spd2918

spd2918

Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
83
Location
Superior Wisconsin
I have a buddy who just bought a K1200LT in Ft. Lauderdale. He is flying down Monday and will ride it back with a pit stop in New Orleans. I couldn't let him go alone so I bought this:
pc800.jpg


She has a lot of miles, but has been well cared for. There are new Metzlers, a new stator, and a diesel truck air horn under the left side bag.

Who here has had one, and what did you like / dislike about it? This will be my commuter bike and my ST will be my over the road bike.

I have not been to New Orleans since before the hurricane. Where is the best place for seafood etouffee?
 
Last edited:
i owned one for a year or two back in the early nineties. really didn't have any dislikes about it other than i wanted to get an ST1100. i think it will make you a great commuter bike with the nice cargo area under the seat.
 
I had an '89 for 11 years. Bought it new in the crate in 1991. At the time I lacked the coin for an ST1100, and it was a steal at $4500. As I look back it was a pretty benign machine...not very fast, neutral handling, Honda reliable. Brakes were adequate but nothing like the ST1300.

I suggest some lithium lube in the rubber grommets and pins for the tupperware. The lower pieces especially can crack if you force them without lubrication in those grommets.

The trunk rules, nothing else like it in bikedom. Be sure to fill it with ice and beer at your next camp site. Pull the rubber plugs in the morning, let it drain, and you're good to go. When you pull the trunk release lever, the trunk should "pop" up so you can raise the lid without still holding the lever open. Mine stopped doing that and the owner group had the fix: there are rubber bumpers, nearly out of sight on the underside of the lid. Unscrew them a half turn, problem solved.

I replaced the Dunlops with Metzelers and liked the handling improvement.

The PO addressed the one issue I ever heard about PC's, the stator. The stock shield created a lot of buffetting. I replaced it with a Clearview +1, much better.

When I was on the PC800 owner sites, there was a guy with more than 300,000 miles on his bike. Look here for useful links.
 
My main riding buddy has a 1990 model and really likes it. He got me to become a member of his Yahoo group. "IPCRC" (Internet Pacific Coast Riders Club). This is a great bunch of folks. Have since been to many of thier events.

Lot's of good info on the Yahoo site.
 
spd2918 said:
Who here has had one, and what did you like / dislike about it? This will be my commuter bike and my ST will be my over the road bike.
Click to expand...

I bought a crate 96 PC800 in early 98 and rode it 2 seasons before trading on a crate 98 ST1100A at the end of 1999. As the PC800s were then no longer made (and black 98 ST1100s still in crates in 99), I got a tremendous deal in trading up to the ST. The depreciation on the bikes value for my PC800 was only $200 for 2 years!!! It helped that it was spotless...the dealer rolled it into the showroom as they already had it sold to a guy who'd given them an order for a clean used one. :D

But why did I trade? Because at 8,000 to 11,000 feet elevation power was lackluster and deficient to pass. Mine would hesitate and sometimes slow down when I tried to accelerate at those altitudes because the carburation was not altitude compensating. Granted, that may have been tunable, but dong that was not of interested to me as I wated more power and I didn't want to have to tune it for high elevations or low elevations.

I also had permission from my wife when I bought it to trade up if I felt I needed or wanted to. And when I negotiated trade, it was a price I could not walk away from. ;)

FYI, my PC800 would develop very noticeable valve tick after sustaining highway speed for 15+ minutes. It would resolve by pulling in the clutch and idling for ~5 seconds. So, I got in the habit of doing that. I never did get to the root of it (and I was not willing to let the dealer tear it down), but I started to suspect that I'd been putting in too little oil even though i was following instructions on filling and using the dipstick.

One thing I liked about it was how easy it was to keep clean. The gage cluster was covered with one large polycarbonate lens, plus all the body work was so smooth and continuous that it was very easy to clean up.

You'll enjoy it, and it will be really good for commuting and grocery store runs...that trunk is unbelievable, the bike is easy to handle, and it gets great fuel mileage.

Enjoy!
 
Like Bones, I bought a new '89 in 1992, but I was able to steal it for $3,000 (I got $3,200 when I traded it for a '93 ZX600).

I loved the looks of the bike, but it had no soul. I know alot of people say that about ST's, but the ST can haul a$$--the PC could not. You really had to gun the PC to pull away from traffic at a light. I believe motorcycles should have the power to get away from traffic, not remain stuck in the middle of it.

On a good day, with enough room (the Bonneville Salt Flats?) it could break 100mph--but it was a long, arduous struggle to get there.

My bike remained flawless during the couple of years I owned it, giving me zero problems. Like others said, I wanted, but couldn't afford, an ST.

If my ST1300 had the PC's trunk (and the beautiful Pearl White paint job), I'd be as giddy as a school girl.
 
Bought a beat up 89 many years ago for 500.00.
Yeah it was BUTT ugly and had busted plastics on it, but it ran pretty good.
Leaked a bit at the case seam (crack from the lay down that got the plastics), but a daily check kept it full.

I put over 3000 miles on that bike before the stator went and I decided that it was too much work/money to fix. Besides I wanted my ST. :D
Sold it for parts to the local salvage yard for 600.00. :D

Couldn't complain one bit about that bike and if I could have bought a brand new one I just might have.

Looking back now though you may find it a bit of a "slug" if you try tossing it about the curvy's like the ST.
 
In my experience, the PC handled fine, just not enuff beans. Derek had 2, first one totaled when he got rear ended in North Carlina. Second was sold to finance his ST. PC is good for spirited one-up or leisurely two-up. Okay comfort.

Honda had a Kenwood radio for it. Worked pretty good. Derek adapted one for his ST.

It was very popular in France, many police agencies had'em, in light blue.
 
George said:
It was very popular in France, many police agencies had'em, in light blue.
Click to expand...

Dutch police had them, too. There was a shuttle service from Central London to Heathrow via PC800.

In the years I had mine, I received many unsolicited direct mail requests to buy it. ("We're paying TOP DOLLAR for clean PC800's!") When I finally put it up for sale the first person who enquired paid my asking price, sight unseen, and drove in from Syracuse with a trailer. I was sad to see it go, but the ST does everything way better.

Except maybe for that trunk.
 
Brad,

It'll be interesting to see how you like the PC. I had one for a year. Sold it for a profit. The boys called it the Roboscooter :)
 
I'm back from my ride and I am very impressed with the PC800. Its paint is faded from the Florida sun and it has an oil leak, but it rode well and surprised my K1200LT riding buddy.

The little bike it so smooth and quiet you almost forget how fast you are going. It came with near new Metzlers and a Clearview shield, but the shield is a tad short for me on the highway. It is light and tossible, and it handles very well. This would be an ideal ride for a shorter person wanting to get into a sport touring long distance ride.

We rode very fast for long streches up in the Ozarks and the bike still had more. I am impressed.
 
The tank holds 4.2 gallons. Most PC owners wish the tank was larger. As far a MPG's it depends. If you keep the rpm's below 4,000 (60 mph) the bike will deliver over 50 mpg. If you travel at 5,000 rpm's (75 mph) the mpg's will drop below 45.
 
I used to go 200 miles on a tank. One time in Nova Scotia I went 220 miles and really sweated those last 10 miles.
 
I had a 96 PC800 that I bought new in 98. Kept it till I traded it for my 06 ST
this past Sept. The PC is a great bike, I used it for commuting to work & also traveled long distant with it. In the last 5 years of ownership of that bike, I had been to all four corners, in all 48 states & to Canada. The fastest I ever had it was 110mph indicated. Best gas mileage i got with it was 54mpg & the worst was around 32mpg (letting it rip thru Texas).

The oil leak you have may be coming from the cam seals at the top of the engine. They are notorious for that. Mine did it, but I had it fixed at my dealer since he gave me a really good deal for the repair. If your are an able body mechanic, you can find all the info for doing the repair on the IPCRC site. They are a great bunch. Lots of info there. The PC is a very dependable ride IMHP.
I do miss my PC......but am very happy & satisfied with my ST:D

Debbie in NC
:06biker:
 
illzoni said:
What's it get for mileage?
How big's the tank?
Click to expand...

I think my mileage was around 40 MPG. I filled it up when it read near empty, but I never put in more than 3.2 gallons (I guess my gauge reads low).

As far 60 MPH, I was not able to go that slow. I got the above mileage hammering the little beast around 85 to 90 all day (overloaded, too:D ).
 
I put 50K on an 89 model. I liked it a lot. I tended to obey the speed limit more than I do on the ST 1300. It did everything OK and nothing great.
My stator failed at 32K on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It killed the battery but I was able to push start it and rode it home. I had a complete electrical failure at 50K in the Smokey Mountain national park. That really sucked. My wife was there and we had a hard time getting help. The problem was a fried rectifier. I sold it and moved up to the ST, I still miss her, (weep, sob)
 
Ah, the station wagon of motorcycles. Entirely practical and not the least bit sexy. Personally I'd love to have one and will someday buy one if I can find a really good deal.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom