hey folks. new to the forum and new to riding in general. Only been on the bike for a week, first bike ever, first time riding. that being said, I spent the last 16yrs driving everything from boats to dump trucks, so I felt pretty confident when I decided to purchase the new 2017 Honda Rebel 300.
You may ask, why the 300? Well, let me explain:
Honda rebel 300 standard
The bike is fairly light, weighing in at about 365lbs. I'm a small man of 165lbs and 5'5. Don't need a big bike, don't want one. The 300 was just appealing the moment I laid eyes on it, and in all honesty, I didn't feel like driving 8hrs to the nearest dealer to get a 500. The 300 was only 4hrs away.
So I'll lay out my personal experience so far:
Operation and Function:
No complaints. You take off in 1st, 2nd or 3rd without any issues what so ever. The gear changes is smooth, though I had to adjust the gear peddle angled about half an inch higher to get my boot under it. Easily done. The brakes feel good, though being new, had to get used to using both brakes. First couple days I was just using the front, never had any issues, but excessive use of just the front brake and it won't last very long. got a handle on it now though.
Other than that, bike is very simple and easy.
City driving:
Driving around the city, being new it was absolutely nerve racking, but once I just tuned out all the other vehicles around, and just concentrated on me and the bike, I got ever it quickly. As stated, you can be in the first 3 gears and take off easy. Great balance, soon as the wheels move your good to go. You can go from stopped to 60kms pretty quick, but just cruising around town, stick to forth gear. No reason or sense to make all those gear changes just to stop again in some feet or other ahead.
Highway:
Well now... have done a lot of reading and everyones seems to have mixed feelings with the 300 being able to handle the highway. For all the negativeity, their full of s**t. The 300 handles the highway just fine. Went on a 4hr road trip and the 300 had no problems staying at a constant speed of 110kms. From 110 to 145kms took mere seconds, not long at all, and bike was stable. Windscreen wouldn't hurt, but honestly don't feel i need it. Had no problems sitting up straight. Just hold on, keep arms loose, and just relax and enjoy. Bike will take care of you just fine.
Comfort:
Well this in part I have to agree with some people and not agree with others. Could they of put a better seat on this puppy? Absolutely, would of went a long way in comfort. Do you need it, well, your weight, and don't mean to be rude, will have an impact on comfort. I'm light and short and had 0 issues. The highway drive, ya at those speeds with this bike you do feel a bit of a vibration. Maybe find it intimating. However, I learned that after the first 40min, your butt will either get used to it, or it will just go num and then you won't feel anything at all. I was the latter one. lol. But it didn't overly bother me, I was just enjoying the ride too much to actually care.
Suspension:
With more heavy set people, or heavier than me at least, I can see where there would be a problem. The suspension is relatively light, and you will feel a bump. For those times I agree some small change would need to be done, but if your a lightweight, don't worry about it. You get used to it then you'll be glad you left it alone.
MPG:
Well, honestly don't know how you do the math in the states. From a full tank I got 225kms out of it and still had over a letre left to use out of the 11 letre tank. And it costed me a whole $8 to fill. However, 225kms on a full tank is both highway and city. I believe and correct me if I am wrong, city driving you'd probably get more out of it. Lower rpms, higher gear, etc etc. Think the highway will chew it up a bit, but I am confident you can still get quite allot out of it.
Closing comments:
Well folks, maybe down the road I'd look into a bigger bike, but for now, even after a week, just thinking about sitting on that bike gets me excitted. Its like an addiction I swear. lol. Now all I need is my full license so I am not risking the drive with just my beginners. lololol.
You may ask, why the 300? Well, let me explain:
Honda rebel 300 standard
The bike is fairly light, weighing in at about 365lbs. I'm a small man of 165lbs and 5'5. Don't need a big bike, don't want one. The 300 was just appealing the moment I laid eyes on it, and in all honesty, I didn't feel like driving 8hrs to the nearest dealer to get a 500. The 300 was only 4hrs away.
So I'll lay out my personal experience so far:
Operation and Function:
No complaints. You take off in 1st, 2nd or 3rd without any issues what so ever. The gear changes is smooth, though I had to adjust the gear peddle angled about half an inch higher to get my boot under it. Easily done. The brakes feel good, though being new, had to get used to using both brakes. First couple days I was just using the front, never had any issues, but excessive use of just the front brake and it won't last very long. got a handle on it now though.
Other than that, bike is very simple and easy.
City driving:
Driving around the city, being new it was absolutely nerve racking, but once I just tuned out all the other vehicles around, and just concentrated on me and the bike, I got ever it quickly. As stated, you can be in the first 3 gears and take off easy. Great balance, soon as the wheels move your good to go. You can go from stopped to 60kms pretty quick, but just cruising around town, stick to forth gear. No reason or sense to make all those gear changes just to stop again in some feet or other ahead.
Highway:
Well now... have done a lot of reading and everyones seems to have mixed feelings with the 300 being able to handle the highway. For all the negativeity, their full of s**t. The 300 handles the highway just fine. Went on a 4hr road trip and the 300 had no problems staying at a constant speed of 110kms. From 110 to 145kms took mere seconds, not long at all, and bike was stable. Windscreen wouldn't hurt, but honestly don't feel i need it. Had no problems sitting up straight. Just hold on, keep arms loose, and just relax and enjoy. Bike will take care of you just fine.
Comfort:
Well this in part I have to agree with some people and not agree with others. Could they of put a better seat on this puppy? Absolutely, would of went a long way in comfort. Do you need it, well, your weight, and don't mean to be rude, will have an impact on comfort. I'm light and short and had 0 issues. The highway drive, ya at those speeds with this bike you do feel a bit of a vibration. Maybe find it intimating. However, I learned that after the first 40min, your butt will either get used to it, or it will just go num and then you won't feel anything at all. I was the latter one. lol. But it didn't overly bother me, I was just enjoying the ride too much to actually care.
Suspension:
With more heavy set people, or heavier than me at least, I can see where there would be a problem. The suspension is relatively light, and you will feel a bump. For those times I agree some small change would need to be done, but if your a lightweight, don't worry about it. You get used to it then you'll be glad you left it alone.
MPG:
Well, honestly don't know how you do the math in the states. From a full tank I got 225kms out of it and still had over a letre left to use out of the 11 letre tank. And it costed me a whole $8 to fill. However, 225kms on a full tank is both highway and city. I believe and correct me if I am wrong, city driving you'd probably get more out of it. Lower rpms, higher gear, etc etc. Think the highway will chew it up a bit, but I am confident you can still get quite allot out of it.
Closing comments:
Well folks, maybe down the road I'd look into a bigger bike, but for now, even after a week, just thinking about sitting on that bike gets me excitted. Its like an addiction I swear. lol. Now all I need is my full license so I am not risking the drive with just my beginners. lololol.
