HONDA GROM (MSX-125) Owner's Review
We will introduce TTR's passionate story about his riding experience with his beloved motorcycle, GROM (MSX-125), from Webike community "My Beloved Moto" campaign. He shared with us about his GROM (MSX-125) review, including its advantages and disadvantages, which he knows well because he's the owner.
TTR's Brief self-introduction
- Motorcycle history and how I usually enjoy my motorcycle riding
I have a really long motorcycle history. I've been riding for decades. I love riding in on-road, off-road, touring, and on the track. As long as it has 2 tires on it, I love it, regardless of engine displacement. I love riding, but I also love servicing and remodeling. Well, I'm totally immersed in my motorcycle lifestyle.
- Period of riding this motorcycle
I bought the GROM (MSX-125) from a local authorized HONDA dealer about 4 years ago. I mainly used it for city riding and short touring.
・Purchasing motive/purpose
I used to ride the XR50 motard, but I've been messing with it, the engine has been refurbished and fully tuned, and it was a bit inconvenient to ride around the city. So I bought the GROM (MSX-125) as a more casual motorcycle to ride.
Satisfaction/Advantage
- For purpose
It's very easy to get a fuel injection motorcycle with an electric starter. Nowadays, both injected and with the electric starter are ordinary, but previous small engine displacement motorcycle with carburetors often had only a kick starter. There is no problem when it's normal, but changing the carburetor and replacing it with high-compression bored-up pistons were quite a hassle, as it was hard to kick it after the compression top dead center is set properly.
Also, you had to know the motorcycle well enough to check the outside temperature and pulling the choke to even get it started. Well, that was part of the fun of riding a motorcycle, but it was a hassle to ride around town, that's for sure. It is passable enough for city riding purposes.
- For riding
It is enough if you don't want to demand a lot, but it is easy to ride at any rate since it's a utility motorcycle engine but can be frustrating when it comes to power performance. When compared to the XR50 Motard Modification with the full-tuned 115 engine, it would lose in all aspects: starting acceleration, overtaking acceleration, and top speed. (It is normal, so I don't have a choice.)
- For appearance
It's funny and fits the character of the moped motorcycles. I prefer the earlier model with round eyes better than the later model with the Gundam-chic. Fuel economy is very impressive. For short touring, it's always over 60 km per liter. You can get over 70km per liter if you do an eco-ride. The position is comfortable and not constrained for a minibike split. It's a utility motorcycle engine with a 4-speed transmission, but the suspension is surprisingly sporty where you can enjoy the corners of the mountain passes. I bought high grip tires for the GROM (MSX-125) (^^;)
Dissatisfaction/Disadvantage
- Dissatisfactions
The one thing most people would complain about would be the seats that are too tight. I've bought 2 seats from the outside brand. The STD seats can be used if you replace the sponge. The seat in the photo below shows with sponge replacement.
There are many after-parts out there and are easy to tune, but there are many restrictions since it is injected. Also, since the speedometer sensor is on the drive shaft rather than the front wheels, changing the gear ratio would throw the speedometer/accumulator off, requiring a compensator.
The quality of the OEM Thai parts is poor. The bolts are prone to rust, and the rear brake pads have smoothness problems and don't work well. I changed it into Japanese parts right away.
Summary (Recommended for riders)
I can recommend it as a 2nd or 3rd motorcycle for riders who owned big bikes. It's really easy to go around with it and not hard to get it out of the garage. It's easy to ride on and I'd recommend it to any beginner who wants to start their motorcycle lifestyle.
I also recommend it for lady rider as well, but it's not for petite women. The foot grounding is not as good as you might think for STD height. Since the rear shock is directly attached, the low down link cannot be used either, so there is no choice but to use a low down seat.
It's a moped motorcycle, but it's possible to do a long touring if you wanted to (the small fuel tank is a disadvantage) and it's full of fun on the motorcycle. HONDA is producing overseas where costs are lower, so I hope Honda sells the motorcycles more cheaply so that young people can buy it easily.
Thank you, TTR, for sharing with us about your riding experience with your beloved GROM (MSX-125)!
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See Accessories for HONDA MSX125 (GROM)
