2014 Honda CTX700 Threadfest

I live in a small town in rural Washington State. Dealer here does OK, in that he sells Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, KTM, and boats, motors, trailers, and all kinds of power equipment. He hires over 12 people, and has hired more in better times. Almost all have families and all that. His prices are generally not the lowest if you want to travel 50 to 100 miles. I like to keep my money in the community a bit. I want to keep all these people around.

mid summer? Dealers have always told me the motorcycle selling season is over by July. It seems to me that NOW is the time to be causing a stir in the showrooms. I was at the Yamaha dealership Saturday, and there was a line of people there to check out the Bolt. Meanwhile the Honda dealer next door was pretty quiet, even with a CB1100, CB500R, and NC700X on the floor.

Come to think of it, the Yamaha dealer (also carries Suzuki and Kawasaki) had a V-Star 1300 Deluxe and a BOSS C90T, and those were not attracting a lot of attention either.

hm, i'll hafta check into that. at this point, i'll try anything!

lake city powersports in wa says they expect their first units in the first week of june. the media silence has me a bit worried, though -- i want a bike now that the days are getting nicer!

Someone asked on Honda's Facebook page back on April 23 at 9:57pm
"When will we see CTX700ND ??"

Honda Motorcycles & ATVs - US's response was:
"These should be arriving in your dealerships in May--thanks for your patience!"

I have a deposit on a CTX700N in black (standard transmission). It can't get here soon enough!

my local Honda dealer says the CTX will be on the floor in June. He said the first 6 he gets are already spoken for.

Yamaha has seriously over hyped the Bolt. I predict it will flare up and then disappear. It is practically worthless as a real world motorcycle, and is clearly being sold on image alone. The CTX should make an excellent all around motorcycle. And it's available automatic transmission and relaxed riding position make it even more appealing. With the automatic you could go for a leisurely cruise through 50 stop lights without killing your arm or foot with the clutch or shifter, just like a scooter, or hit the interstate and ride across the country. When you consider that the automatic version of the CTX700N costs the same as the stripped down Bolt, it sure sounds like a good deal to me.

I wish Honda would make a full dress version of the CTX with ABS, Stereo, Cruise and a few power outlets. Like a small scale Goldwing.

Think I will swing by the dealer and see if they have any.

I love your sig line. Very profound.

I thought you could get ABS on this bike already, as long as you also took the DCT. I would like to have both. This morning on my way to work, it was raining. I came over a hill and the police had traffic stopped. I was in the truck so it was not a problem, but I thought about how it was a good example of why I want ABS. I realize other folks do not agree, just stating my preference.

As for the stereo and cruise - if this bike sells in sufficient numbers, I think the aftermarket will take care of that. In the meantime, throttle locks are inexpensive, and you can carry an mp3 player in your shirt pocket.

I don't want ABS, and have even less use for a stereo. My Goldwing 1500 had a stereo, but I never used it. Sometimes I would turn it on while working in the garage. While riding, I want it to be just me, the bike, and the road. No distractions. I ride to get away from those. I did use the cruise control, till it quit working. I have also used the Throttlemeister throttle lock and liked it.


The problem with Honda making a fully loaded CTX700 is that it would cost almost as much as a Goldwing. When I suggested on a Goldwing forum that Honda had gone to far with the Goldwing, and that they should go back to the 1100 or 1200 four cylinder Interstate, nobody liked the idea, and pointed out that Honda had made alternatives, one of which was the NV700. To me that bike could have been a winner. If it had had a more upright riding position, like the CTX, around 1000cc, and came with the trunk included (all of which should have been possible considering the bikes $12K price tag) it would have been an excellent solo tourer. Honda always seems to just miss the mark.

I would have a hard time not buying the CTX700N with the automatic (I have severe arthritis which makes shifting in town a pain, literally) if it came without ABS. I believe the ABS can be disabled, but it is still seriously over complicated, and expensive things can go wrong with it that don't happen with regular brakes. I've heard of ABS failures on BMWs costing thousands $$$ to fix.

Just saw a new review article on RideApart (formerly HellForLeather).

http://rideapart.com/2013/05/rideapart-review-honda-ctx700/

hm, good review. a little disappointed with the overall guts, and i think may go for the non-dct version just to keep my clutch skills in practice despite my carpal. (my bv 350 has been working a little TOO well for freeway commutes.) however, if i'm not gonna use it as a commuter, i may cancel my preorder and get a bolt. gotta think on this one...

Jerry - I am with you on the stereo thing. I don't want one either. I had a GL1500. I used the stereo a few times, but frankly I prefered the peace and quiet. And the CB was mostly just an annoyance to me.

I think you are basically right on the NT700V. It could have been great - but all Honda did was bring us a bike they had already had for a long time in Europe. It was old tech with a new price tag. If it had been more reasonably priced, it may have been able to survive.

I think you are wrong about ABS, though. I would urge you to at least not shy away from the DCT model because of the ABS. Don't let it be a deal breaker. Sooner or later, it will save your ass, and then you will be happy to pay $$$ to fix it if necessary.

Jerry, ABS probably does cost thousands to repair in an auto, too. Most autos come with ABS as standard equipment now, and personally I've never heard of anyone making its inclusion a deal breaker. All three of my cars have it, and that's good by me.

I have ABS on my BMW R1200RT, and have had to use it a couple of times, and am glad it has been there. Repairs of ABS units can be expensive, but are seldomly needed, on autos or motorcycles.

Not my favorite web site, but it looks like Motorcycle.com put up a review yesterday as well

http://www.motorcycle.com/manufacturer/honda/2014-honda-ctx700n-review-91603.html

The rideapart review was more informative, but between the two, it looks like Honda has a great potential winner in the CTX line. Guess we'll see in the next few weeks.

Here's Motorcyclist mags "First Ride" review. They really like the DCT and the ride quality

http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/firstrides/122_1309_2014_honda_ctx_first_ride/

The reviews were interesting. Too bad about the fuel capacity and the estimated range. OTOH if it ends up as efficient as the NC700X (slightly more efficient wouldn't surprise me), it may have longer range than they estimated.

Wish Honda would have demo days for their new bike models.

for y'all what care, my ctx700n (with dct) will be available (supposedly) for pickup on may 28 (in wa state). for those of you wondering when they'll hit showrooms, that's probably when they'll start appearing.

in tangentially related news, i also preordered a grom. if i buy any more bikes in the next 5 years, i'll probably get divorced