In 2014, the Japanese company Honda presented a number of its new products, the most interesting among which is the Grom Honda - a 125 cc motorcycle intended more for the younger generation.
The Honda Grom electric motorcycle has become extremely popular abroad in a couple of years. Honda Grom 125 belongs to the “pit bike” class. It is compact, economical, maneuverable, and is equipped with a fuel-injected 4-stroke engine with a volume of 125 cubic meters.
Americans especially loved the pit bike. The lightweight Honda Thunder motorcycle is not only being bought up with lightning speed, but is simply adored, tuned and competitions are held on it. In Russia, it is still perceived as exotic and practically does not go on sale.
If you are lucky enough to find it, the price will scare you away. For Russians, an entry-level lightweight motorcycle costs so much that for this money you can relax together somewhere in the Caribbean. Is this exotic really worth the asking price?
Exterior
In appearance, the small motorcycle looks unusual and even cool. You can have a pretty fun ride on it around the go-kart track.
When you sit on a funny motorcycle, your face involuntarily breaks into a smile from how small it seems. Nevertheless, it is comfortable to sit on the soft seat behind the wheel, although it is difficult for your legs to wrap around the tank. Ergonomics are also in order.
Its small wheels make its seat height seem childish. It's just right for girls, but an adult man sitting on it looks a little funny.
Honda Grom 2022. What's new?
A new engine, available (for now) only on Grom: 125 cc, two-valve, injection with overhead camshaft. The cubic capacity has also not changed, but the geometry has: yes: the piston stroke has increased, but the diameter has decreased. The compression ratio has increased quite significantly. Honda doesn’t provide power or torque figures, but according to the guys at the festival, the stock Honda Grom produces between 8 and 10 horses. The new version has most likely reached the upper limit of this range and has become a little more torquey at the bottom.
Honda Grom 2022
Another important difference of the new engine is the addition of a fifth gear and a reduction in the first four. The input shaft sprocket was accordingly increased by four teeth. In addition, the new engine will be easier to maintain: it has a small internal oil filter that can be simply removed and replaced, while the previous version had a centrifuge for separating solid particles, which is quite troublesome to clean. The new version also has a larger, and therefore more durable, air filter.
The components and dimensions of the chassis have also changed slightly, and the design and ergonomics of the new Honda Grom 2022 have changed even more noticeably. The trim is now easier to remove (this is done to facilitate customization), and the new seat, although it remains at the same height, 76 cm, has become flatter, allowing tall riders can move back for a slightly roomier seating position.
Peculiarities
When you take off on a Grom Honda, instead of a smile on your face you can read melancholy, since the motorcycle does not go more than 4000 rpm. For active driving, you need to crank the engine to the limit, squeezing it out to 5000-7500 rpm. In addition to the 125 cc unit, the minibike, like large sportbikes, has full equipment. At the same time, it costs less.
In a dense city traffic flow moving no more than 80 kilometers per hour, driving the Honda Grom MSX 125 is fun: its dimensions make it possible to squeeze in everywhere, and there are enough dynamics for maneuvering, unlike driving on highways, where while driving it can and reflect and look at the landscapes.
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You can forget about overtaking someone on a Grom Honda, because at speeds above 80 km/h comfort disappears, giving way to vibrations appearing on the steering wheel and throughout the moped. The engine begins to strain and after an hour, having reached a speed of 120 km/h, the needle finally freezes.
Riding a Grom Honda with a passenger looks even more boring, because the motorcycle is designed for two riders. First, the short seat. This means that the passenger will be pressed tightly against your back (some may like this).
The spinal frame underlying the structure was developed specifically for the Thunder. The rear suspension has a monoshock absorber.
Video: Honda GROM motorcycle
Short sprockets will help to cheer up the Thunder somewhat, but you can’t get rid of the traditional four-speed gearbox for pit bikes for pennies. This is the main drawback for the Thunder, making long trips impossible. There really aren’t enough boxes on the asphalt, and the full potential of the 125 cc air vent, which is well boosted, is simply not used.
Another drawback of the Grom Honda is the standard dull-looking exhaust and trashy sound. It is advisable to immediately replace it with a thoroughbred direct-flow type such as Tyga, Brocks, etc. And, of course, Akrapovic.
The Grom Honda electric bicycle originates from Thailand and we must not forget about this, especially when looking at the standard unsightly Vee Rubber tires, which slide all the time, leaving no confidence in the future.
An adequate owner will immediately send them to the trash heap after the standard exhaust.
Having appeared in 2013, the Honda Grom pit bike literally in a couple of years became as popular as some girly boy band!))) In the next test drive, I decided to check whether the Grom is really so cool, or is it just a good job of PR and Honda's marketing department? Enjoy watching! ps: under the cut, as always, there are beautiful photos and a text version.
Abroad, particularly in Asia and especially in America, the Honda Grom is one of the most popular pit bikes, entry-level lightweight motorcycles. They don’t just buy it like hot cakes, but they truly adore it, tune it, and even organize separate competitions for Thunderbolts. And in Russia, Grom is truly exclusive and exotic! You can hardly find them on sale. And, as far as I can tell, no one has done reviews about Thunder before me.
And if Thunders are on sale, they cost as much as a good vacation for two somewhere in the Caribbean! Moreover, even the very first versions were released in 2013. But is there any point in overpaying for such dubious exoticism, albeit shrouded in an aura of coolness and adoration?
I won’t hide it, and I succumbed to Honda’s PR and marketing charms and also passionately desired to ride the Thunder. It is small, but at the same time laconic, unusual and simply cool. A funny and stylish moped that can be used very vigorously, but at the same time quite safely, on some go-kart track.
When you first climb onto the Thunder, a smile automatically appears on your face at how small it is. No, it’s quite comfortable to sit behind the wheel, the seat is soft and the ergonomics are all right, but it’s difficult for your legs to grip the tank. And the seat height is really childish due to the tiny 12-inch wheels front and rear. For girls - just the thing! Well, a grown man on such a flea naturally looks comical.
But as soon as you start moving on the Thunder, the smile is immediately replaced by a grimace of melancholy and sadness. This little crap doesn’t go up to 4000 rpm at all! To drive the Thunder at an active pace, you need to keep the engine in the range from 5000 to 7500 rpm, periodically cranking it to the limit. In the city, in heavy traffic, the Grom is fun to drive - its small dimensions allow you to squeeze in everywhere, and the dynamics are quite enough for maneuvering in traffic moving within the permitted speed of 60-80 km/h. But in the Moscow region and on the highways, driving a Thunder, you have to let go of all this fuss and just look at the landscapes and immerse yourself in thought. Overtake a passing car? Forget it! It's easier to relax and follow. After 80 km/h, all comfort disappears, some vibrations appear on the steering wheel and throughout the body of the moped, and the engine begins to slowly break down. And after an hour, at about 120, the needle finally freezes. Boring(((
And riding a Thunder with a passenger is generally masochism! Although, the seat is very short, so the little guy will constantly be pressed against you with his magnificent (if you're lucky ;)) bust)
Yes, the Thunder can be cheered up by installing “short” chainrings, but you can’t get rid of the standard 4-speed gearbox, typical of pit bikes, for pennies. This is the main drawback of the Thunder, which negates long-distance travel. On asphalt, such a box is simply not enough. The full potential of a well-boosted 125 cc air intake is simply not used.
Another drawback is the trashy sound and dull look of the standard exhaust. It must be immediately changed to some purebred direct flow. From what I've heard, my favorites are the can soundtracks from Yoshimura, Brocks, Tyga and, of course, Akrapovic. Of course, we should never forget where this moped comes from - Taiwan! What follows from this fact? The stock Vee Rubber tires are poor, to say the least harsh. These pieces of plastic constantly slide and give absolutely no confidence in the future! An adequate owner will immediately send them, after the standard exhaust, to the trash heap!
In general, this is the most ordinary moped, which is perfect not only for girls, but also for completely novice riders. If you have at least some sense in your head, it will be impossible to kill yourself on this hybrid of a motorcycle and a children's scooter. It is light, easy to handle and maneuverable, but floats a little due to the tires and sways on rough roads due to the soft suspension. But these features will serve as a natural factor that instills uncertainty in newcomers and limits their ardor. And the Thunder brakes surprisingly well, not like Chinese pit bikes. And if you change the tires, it will stop in a matter of meters.
But the aura of cool that was inflated around this miracle of technology by world-famous motorcycle bloggers like Royal Jordanian or Jake the gaRden snake, and many foreign motorcycle magazines is pure soap bubble. Here's the thing. There, this toy Honda is a cheap adrenaline generator, for which you can buy tons of spare parts at an inexpensive price. At its core, it is an analogue of the Chinese pit bikes that have flooded our market. But in Russia, the Thunder costs as much as a used, but full-fledged motorcycle. And bringing tuning for him from overseas is tantamount to automatic ruin. Why buy this marvelous wonder, if for less money you can buy some 160 cc Kayo or YCF and also, if not even more fun, race it on go-kart tracks or in the surrounding forests?
And even Grom’s penny fuel consumption of 2 liters per 100 kilometers will never pay for this overpayment for the Japanese brand.
So it turns out that with such a ridiculous price tag in Russia, almost no one needs Grom. Perhaps for the construction of a unique custom project.
Brakes
But the Grom Honda’s brakes are in perfect order, unlike other pit bikes produced in China. If you also replace the tires, the Thunder will brake even better.
It turns out that motorcycle magazines inflated the aura of coolness in vain? And, all because for them a toy motorcycle is just a source of adrenaline, for which spare parts are inexpensive, unlike us: bringing them from abroad means automatically being ruined.
History of the Honda Grom model
It all started in the early 2000s, when the Honda Ruckus 50 scooter appeared. Honda was surprised by the excellent demand for this baby, which gathered a real army of fans and was considered in certain circles almost a separate class of equipment - an all-terrain naked scooter, if you like.
The hype around the model contributed to the creation of the 125 cc Grom, and Honda then even registered a trademark. In general, the word Grom comes from surfing: grommet or grom is a young, clumsy surfer or some other extreme sportsman - an energetic enthusiast, in short. The spirits were pretty happy and began to buy Grom with enthusiasm: in America, from 8,000 to 10,000 copies were sold per year, which actually made this model a bestseller among road builders.
In recent years, variants of the Honda Grom engine have been used in three retro models: the Monkey, Super Cub and Trail 125. These babies took a bite out of the Grom market, which in turn gave Honda the idea to give the Grom its first major update.
Honda Grom on the track
I turned down a couple more events in favor of the opportunity to ride the Grom around the karting track. It was very curious whether he was suitable for training in any capacity.
I hadn't been on a track of any kind in ages, but I soon discovered that I had a pretty good understanding of where to enter a corner, where it apexed, how to open up on the exit, and where to shift so that you didn't have to slow down too much later. On such a baby, any changes in weight distribution (even changes in head tilt) affect handling. Of course, you need to drive it, as they say, in the moment - maintaining effective speed and passing everything smoothly and widely, without abruptly dropping or accelerating. I have to admit that I had fun and probably even improved my skills on the stock Grom, but there are a couple of things I would like to improve (if I decided to buy myself a Grom and race around the go-kart track or collect cones at the gymkhana).
Honda Grom 2022
Firstly, the standard tires - sometimes they were torn off in corners. This, of course, is not surprising: it was definitely not designed for a karting track. There are a lot of good grippy rubber models in Grom size, so this can be solved.
Hence the second nuance: even on standard tires, I started cutting off the footpegs along with the boot sliders. So moving the footpegs back and higher is absolutely necessary here.
Another funny feature is that it’s unclear when to switch. Its exhaust is almost inaudible, and the tachometer is almost invisible
