New CT - first impressions!

[haggetty]

Well, the deal went through and had my first ride back home from the dealer with the wife on the back.
A great ride from Macclesfield over the Cat and Fiddle pass and back to Nuneaton on a variety of roads.
Took it easy with the missus on the back of course and recorded a decent 52 mpg for the trip.
The Bike is only 8 months old and with 700 miles it’s pretty well box fresh!

She is indeed a heavy old girl ( the bike, not the wife) and this was expected so care is needed at low speed and taking off. Once on the move though I found the bike very neutral and easy steering, rolling into corners and holding a line easily.
I found none of the expected jerky shunty on/off fuelling problems reported by others. Progress was smooth a d this pleased me no end. 
The screen is too short by 2 or 3 inches and this needs sorting - it always does on bikes I get. Head buffeting for me at 6’2” is unpleasant.
The seat is initially fine but I’m shifting after 1 hour. I have an Airhawk so will give that a try.
The induction howl between 3-4500 revs was surprisingly loud and I didn’t find it that pleasant to listen to. Engine sounds great chuffing around up to 3k and pushing on above 5k revs.
Cruises easy at 79-80-90 and beyond notwithstanding screen deficiencies.
Looks great, proper quality fit and finish - typical Honda premium product.
One strange negative for me is how short the handlebar grips are! I have biggish but not massive hands and the grips could do with being a bit longer As I feel a little cramped.

I was a little sad to see my 2019 V-Strom go - absolutely nothing wrong with it. It had a better stock seat - all day comfy, a great aftermarket screen option (Givi Airflow) and a strong enough and characterful engine as well as cheaper insurance and easy 60mpg.
I was also confident in taking the Strom up muddy 4wd tracks on road tyres without fear of dropping it!

The V-Strom lacks the premium appearance, componentry and feel of the CT and of course does not have shaft drive or a v4!

The CT is a different proposition altogether.
Funnily enough, the riding experience reminded me more of riding my mates 1200 Goldwing years ago than of riding my Strom yesterday - such is the greater sense of occasion you feel when riding it.
When seat and screen are sorted I look forward to building my relationship with it further. Definitely got an anti-clockwise NC500 planned for next year.

You may wonder why I sold my V-Strom since I liked it so much. Well, nothing’s forever and I like change. I’ve had all the other ADV options apart from Ducati and KTM and as motorcycling is a hobby rather than a necessity, buying criteria is different. I’ve done the GS1200, S10, AT, and VStrom and to be honest the lowly Suzuki is my favourite machine so far - I may go back to one in the end.
I expect to have the CT for a year or two, maybe longer. I have nowhere to go and nothing left ADV wise. There’s something about Triumph, KTM and Ducati that just doesn’t appeal and I can’t say why. Maybe I just like the assumed competence and reliability of Japanese stuff.

If I have any updates of any interest, I will surely give an update.

Cheers, D.

[thumpercrazee2]

Congrats on your new ride.
Like you I came from a V Strom (2004) which had nothing really wrong with it. I hated to part with it too. I had put 69000 miles on it with half being off road. She was really my long term friend and at times I miss her.
When I got my CT, it was a dream ride albeit it has some deficiencies. But all in all it is one of the smoothest bikes I have ever ridden. I'm planning to get a new Corbin seat this year. I hope you enjoy yours. Ride safe.

[scribbler]

Hi Haggetty welcome to the CT club...congrats on your new bike . I'm 6 1 and find the MRA touring screen works really well. Its quite short but broad so it also smartens up the front of the bike.
Enjoy your new ride! 

[haggetty]

Thank you for the kind welcome and the recommendation for the MRA screen. It's good get first hand experience.

[Max2007]

I have original screen with small MRA wind deflector on the top, it is a good solution for me 185cm!!

[bazza950]

thanks for the test report.Now the "personalisation" starts -and there is a well defined list you will find on the forum. Glad you didn't find the jerky throttle that has bugged many -maybe the last models had it sorted?
ride safe
bazza

[haggetty]

Originally Posted by bazza950

thanks for the test report.Now the "personalisation" starts -and there is a well defined list you will find on the forum. Glad you didn't find the jerky throttle that has bugged many -maybe the last models had it sorted?
ride safe
bazza

Yes indeed, the personalisation starts now.

The bike already has a hugger and a radiator guard so that’s a start.

Priority 1 is the screen.
Stock screen isn’t too bad. If I duck a couple of inches, it’s fine, so I have a Wunderlich screen extender on order. Small and quite pricey but well made and very adjustable. If this doesn’t work, I’ll probably bite the bullet and go with CalSci Large.

Priority 2 is the seat.
I have an Airhawk so will see if that’s enough but if not, I may go Touratech or Top Sellerie. I want the seat to remain as stock looking as possible.
Might give Tony Archer a call too! Corbin too pricey at £750ish

Priority 3 Suspension.
Same basic problem as the NC750x I had a while ago. Fork internals are cheap and unsophisticated and have fixed compression damping which is simply too hard.
NC750 was transformed by a GP20 cartridge conversion by Maxton. Instantly became a magic carpet ride with sharp bumps totally eliminated.
Expensive but worth it.
Maxton can re-valve existing internals for about £500 or install a cartridge kit for £900 or so. This includes left fork leg dedicated to compression damping and the right dedicated to rebound. With a re-valve, you can only hope that the setting Maxton chooses is right for you.

On the rear, a shock which includes compression damping adjustment would be just fine.

Re the throttle snatchiness. I went out for a ride last night and I think I now appreciate what people complain about, however, it is not down to poor fuelling (at least on my machine).
The throttle is very sensitive that’s all, any slight movement gets a reaction and that’s what causes the jerkiness and with a torquey motor like the VFR the effect is magnified.

I found that if I slid my hand outboard so I had the bar end in my grip as well, this stopped the small movements that cause the jerkiness. It was the same with the vStrom.

Also fitted one of those poor man’s cruise control plastic palm rest £5 thingys. That helps immensely too!

Might get a Givi plate so I can fit my larger Trekker 52L. Top box.

Might get R&G crash bungs in case I drop a bike for the first time ever! Feels more likely with this than anything else I’ve had!

That’s it I think!

[Pickaxe]

The throttle on my CT is also very sensitive and on/off. Like many other FI bikes I would put this down to  over weak fueling caused by emission regs and obviously exacerbated by the low down power of the engine.
I've ordered a Booster Plug and will report back my findings.