In my first post here a member suggested I write a comparison of my new Triumph America to the bike I traded in. My old bike was a Shadow 750 ACE which has been out of production for many years, however my wife rides a Shadow 750 Aero which is a current model and a more relevant comparison.
Both bikes sell new for aproximately the same $8,250.
The Honda has a 1-inch longer wheel base and 1-inch lower seat and it's 10 lbs heavier than the Triumph.
Power: very little. Honda forgot the 'motor' for the motorcycle. This was a bit of a shock since my older 750 ACE with nothing more than Vance & Hines exhaust and a good tune was much faster than my wife's brand new 750 Aero. Honda had gone from dual carbs on the ACE to a single on the Aero and when they added shaft drive it cost more power at the rear wheel. What's worse the shaft drive prevents adjusting highway RPM like you can with sprocket changes on a chain bike. To me this bike is seriously underpowered and its not like Honda doesnt know how to build powerful engines.
Aside from the rider having to rev the hell out of it to maintain 70 mph the bike handles heavy almost numb feeling. Steady to a fault you have to push it around a bit in the turns. The Aero feels heavier than it is but it has a very low CG. The chassis of the Honda is so low I have to hold the bike off of it's side stand just to get my hoist under it while there is room to spare under the America.
The build quality is very good but there are many price point compromises. Almost every chrome part on the engine is plastic. From the valve covers right down to the case covers they are just add-on pieces for appearance not actual finished engine parts. I swear someone at Honda engineering is trying to figure out how to make the exhaust out of plastic.
Reliability: perfect. It's an '06 and not one thing has failed. There was a recall for the headlight switch though.
I bought Honda because I rode them off-road when I was young and they performed flawless. When I was ready to buy again I actually looked at a VTX but the local dealer will not take trades or have anything to test ride, find out if you like it on your way home. Bye Honda...you dont need to sell motorcycles anymore anyway you have cars, and lawnmowers, and generators ect...
Seriously, in this price range you cannot beat the Triumph Bonneville: America, Speedmaster, T100, Scrambler whatever you like.
