2017 Honda PCX 150

 From two other models of this scooter realesed on year 2015 and 2016, they decided to add another year model for 2017. Giving it a new color of Dark Blue and Peaarl White for additional choices and variety of colors. Another new scooter model has come for us and are you guys excited on what this model scooter can do? Lets start on looking on what are the best things in this scooter.

As you can see on the image of the PCX 150, the first thing you would notice is the bold style of this scooter. It was really big compared to other models released by Honda. The dual headlights mounted on the front will really provide you best lighting and aid in your visibility. The body works flows together making it a great looking machine. It is also mounted with a 12V accessory adapter that can charge your gadget while you are in travel. Great design for the speedometer placed beyond the wind shield and just below the handle bar.

PGM fuel injected engine provides liquid cooling and Programmed Fuel injection for fuel efficiency and great performance for the owner. Installed also with V-Matic automatic transmission for more easier and convenient used. The fuel capacity is great with a fuel efficiency of 100 miles per gallon.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Engine:	liquid-cooled single-cylinder four-stroke SOHC; two-valve
Displacement:	153 cc
Bore:	58.0 mm
Stroke:	57.9 mm
Induction:	PGM-FI with automatic enrichment
Ignition:	Full transistorized ignition
Compression Ratio:	10.6:1
Transmission:	Honda V-Matic belt-converter automatic transmission
Rake:	27.0 degrees
Trail:	3.4 inches
Suspension, Front:	31 mm hydraulic fork; 3.9-inch travel
Suspension, Rear:	Twin shock, 3.0-inch travel
Brake, Front:	Single 220 mm disc with three-piston caliper and CBS
Brake, Rear:	Drum with CBS
Tire, Front:	90/90-14
Tire, Rear:	100/90-14
Wheelbase:	51.8 inches
Seat Height:	29.9 inches
Curb Weight:	286 pounds
Fuel Capacity:	2.1 gallons
Fuel Economy:	100 mpg
Model Id:	PCX150
Colors:	2017 - Dark Blue Blue, Pearl White

Flat Tire Problems

If you are a rider you already encountered a flat tire while travelling. Time consuming and hassle full specially when you are in a hurry. Now a days the use of tubeless tire is vogue, with thick tire surface it prevent punctures of small sharp objects to pass through the tire but if you encounter punctures from long sharp objects. Different industries now offer a new product that will help you to save time from having flat tires.

The use of tire sealant is now the latest way to prevent being bother by this flat tires. With this new product you will not need to find someone to seal the puncture of your tire anymore. When I first heard about this product I actually got excited to try it on my scooter tires and test how effective it is. The best thing about this tire sealant is it saves you money, time and keep your driving stable on the road. It also helps your tire efficiency and expand the tire's life. Have you imagine while driving and suddenly hit something sharp in the road and you don't even notice because it does not cause you any hassle.

Or just imagine that while you are driving at a constant speed and got a flat tire, usually the control on the motorcycle will be hard because of the vibrations and shaking of the handle. Compare it when you are driving with a tire sealant installed in you tires, it will give you the confidence and safety while driving on road. Tire sealant is not hard to apply because it is just like a water to be injected in the tire.

If you doubt about the safety of the tire sealants, I can assure you that this product is safe. This product is non-flammable and will protect your wheels and mags from corrosion and oxidation.

Transmission Battle

Which do you prefer to use, a manual transmission or an automatic transmission motorcycle? Which is better between the two types of transmission? What are the benefits that you would get in these types of transmission? Lets start with what is the difference between these transmissions.

Manual transmission is the transmission that uses a driver-operated clutch engaged and dis-engaged by hand lever, for regulating the torque transfer from the engine to the transmission and a gear selector operated by foot. You are maybe familiar with these kind of transmission as you can see a lot of this type of motorcycle operating in the high ways. In terms of operation, the manual transmission is a little bit hard than the automatic, requiring for some practice and training to learn how to shift gears.

Automatic transmission is a type of motor vehicle transmission in which as the vehicle moves gear ratios is automatically change, giving the rider to tide more convenient without having to shift manually. Normally operated with a belt and torque drive placed inside a crankcase and gears are installed just near the rear wheel. In terms of operation, automatic it so much easier that manual operation. Just like a operation of Squeeze-and-Go.

You can notice that if you go for a bike in a dealer the cost of manual compared to automatic really vary a little cheaper. Thinking on how much you can save in buying manual transmission rather than automatic. Same way when it comes with the maintenance. Even your mechanic wii tell you that its much easier to repair a manually transmission motorcycle. The cost of the repair and parts are also much cheaper than parts from automatic motorcycle. MT( manual transmission ) can travel for long distance without any problem, just need to change your oil and have a check up for you engine.

Learning to drive a motorcycle is easy specially with automatic transmission but there are some reasons that MT is much better than AT. When you stop in an intersection and you are driving a manual transmission you will just need to change your gear to normal and wait for the green light, while when it comes with AT you will need to hold your brakes while waiting with the green light. Holding your brakes will ensure a safety for you. Another is that there is a special feature for a manual transmission that an automatic transmission don't have. An engine break or the third break for the manual transmission. This is a great feature that really add a safety for the rider, specially for the time that there are emergencies that we don't expect.

It is your choice on what will be the transmission system you will choose. Each have benefits for you but in different way. But always be sure when buying a motorcycle is to make sure that you prioritize your safety and convenient.

HELMETS

A very important gear that can help you have comfortable travel. This gear is the most important to have when you want to ride a motorcycle. Helmets varies in styles, designs, weights and compatibility.

How would you choose the most effective helmet for you. First of all I recommend to use a full face helmet rather than half face. Full face helmet are those that covers all your entire face. It is better than the half face that covers only almost the top part of the head. Full face helmets can have more effectiveness in avoiding injuries to your head.

In choosing your helmet face shield I prefer for the transparent or clear type of face shield. It can give you a very clear visibility in the road while driving. Specially when driving at night, you won't have a problem seeing the road. Tinted face shield are good when there is high source of sun ray but poor when driving at night. Some helmets also comes with a built-in internal sun visor that will help you to drive even in high source of light.

When it comes to color of your helmet you should choose bright colors. In driving a motorcycle other motorist see a rider in the highest part which is the helmet. That is why it is important that your helmet has the color that can be easily seen by others even at night. There are helmets with neon colors printed on them, I recommend this kind of helmet as I own one kind of this the Scorpion EXO 500 Oil Neon Helmet.

When it comes in durability and weight you should choose helmets which is light weight but have strong durability. Your safety will be base on how your helmet can handle a hard impact. That is why helmets with high quality and strong enough are your best choice. You should also think about the size of the helmet. Helmet size varies from small, medium, large and extra large. Don't just buy helmets when you see them try to fit them so that you will be sure that you are comfortable with it.

Leave your comments and suggestion if you have guys.

PROTECTIVE GEAR

Wearing personal protective gear when driving is the most important thing to remember. It will protect you from injuries when falling in the ground or hitting others and bikes. Usually a personal protective gear consist of a jacket, pants, gloves, boots, knee panels and elbow panels.

KEVLAR / JACKET

This will protect your body from scratches or injuries when falling off your bike. I highly recommend you to buy for jackets with armour inside like carbon fibers, titanium, hard polymers or foams. This will help reduce the impact of your body and reduce also the shears strain to the wearer. More important is the panel that will protect your backbone from injuries. Be sure to check the quality and durability of the jacket and be sure that you are comfortable wearing it.

ELBOW PANELS 

Sometimes you can buy elbow panels separated from the jacket. I recommend to do it so. This elbow panels are mostly made of steel, titanium, carbon fibers and hard polymers. Usually when a motorist fall off while driving his elbows are the one which will have contact to the ground because it will help to reduce fracture chances on the arm.

GLOVES

Motorcycling gloves are typically gloves made of leather. They may have gauntlets to protect the rider's wrists from injury, and help reduce drafts while riding in colder climates. Motorcycling gloves typically have reinforced palms intended to protect the rider from abrasion injuries in case of an accident.

PANTS / SHORTS

Pants also gives the rider a comfortable sitting on the bike. You can use either leather pants but be sure that they are thick enough to prevent shear to your lower of the body. Mostly there are shorts that can be bought with padding already equipped in the back part and in the hips part. If you plan to wear a short with padding be sure to buy knee padding also.

KNEE PANELS

These are like elbow pads that can be bought separated. Mostly its hard to find leather pants with already knee pads set that is why I just recommend to buy this stuff. It can help to avoid the fracture in the feet and scratches in your knees. It comes with a hard polymer or steel for the knee and a separate pad for the low part of the feet.

BOOTS

Boots are worn by motorcycle riders and passengers to prevent or reduce harm to their feet and ankles while riding and in the event of a crash. They are designed using materials and seam construction that are impact, abrasion, cut, tear and burst resistant. Tough, strong, moderately flexible boots with stiff soles provide the rider protection from a number of risks. It also gives a comfortable shifting and braking for your feet.

LONG LASTING ENGINE

With this post I will you give you some tips to make your motorcycle engine last longer and with just low maintenance cost. Some of riders don't mind about its motorcycle condition until he figured it out after an engine failure. More often we forgot to check the engine condition and just ride our motorcycle without knowing its problems and limitations. To start with, I will give some tips and reminders for you and your motorcycle engine.

ENGINE OIL

Motor oil, engine oil or engine lubricant are used for lubrication of internal combustion engine. These lubricants helps to minimize the wear on moving parts of the engine, clean the engine, prevent corrosion, improve sealing and give cooling purposes for the engine by removing heat from moving parts. I advice you to change the oil regularly to maintain the cleanliness and coolness of the engine. I also recommend to use only 800 ml. of oil. This is to allow a small amount of air inside the engine for the oil to be stirred up by the moving parts. I sometimes saw motorists who put 1 L. of oil and I disagree with it.

GEAR OIL

Almost all of scooter owners forget to change their gear oil and that is the most common problem. They usually encounter problems with the gearing without knowing what are the reasons behind it. Gear oil provides protection specially for transmission. Changing gear oil is not often like with the engine oil. You can change the gear oil maybe quarterly or based on how frequent you use your scooter. For those who don't know where the gearbox location is, it is located at the crankcase near below the shock absorber mounting. Remember the gear oil because it has a huge benefit for your scooter.

GREASE

Maybe you would ask me if where you can apply grease on your scooter. I had just figured it out about a month ago after I brought my scooter to my mechanic. He asked me when did the last time I applied grease on my torque drive. Yes, you need to apply grease on your torque drive to lessen the friction between your torque face and center springs. Grease helps minimize the heating of your torque drive and gives the belt a smooth flow. You can apply grease on your scooter quarterly or ask your mechanic for further advice.

TUNE UP/CHECK UP

Every time you drive your scooter, your engine works hard with its limit giving you the power and efficiency to move a place in time. But did you do something to give the favor back to your scooter? Bring your scooter to your mechanic for its check up, not only with the reason that your scooter malfunctioned. Give time to check the condition of your scooter engine. Check its condition, engine starting, carburetor tune and other things. If you want your scooter to have a long lasting life, give him  even a little amount of time. 

EXHAUST PIPE CHOICE

Every engine needs an exhaust pipe to allow the burned mixture of air gasoline to come out from the main chamber of the engine.Aftermarket exhausts may be made from steel, aluminium, titanium, or carbon fiber.

Every type of engines vary in kind or type of exhaust used. For example a twin cylinder engine can have two separate exhaust system or it can have also a single exhaust section known as two-into-one.

But for our scooter with only one cylinder, it only comes with a single exhaust system. So the question will be what are the things to remember for a perfect choice of exhaust system.

Here in the Philippines we have two types of exhaust pipe and they are called as Power Pipes and Open Pipes (Mufflers). Lets start with the Power Pipe exhaust system.

POWER PIPES

What is a power pipe or how do it look likes ? Power pipes looks like also a little the same with your stock pipe. They only comes with different designs and styles. They consist of a more bigger pipe than the stock, heat guard and a little opening in the end most.

Use of power pipes will defend on how powerful your engine is. Not all power pipes are compatible with the engine.

 So you should how you will make your engine run in its best performance with the pipe.  

Just be sure to know what is the power of your engine and could the pipe you would choose will be compatible for it. You can ask your mechanic on what will be their choice for your engine and choose on what will be your choice too.

OPEN PIPES (MUFFLERS)

Maybe some of you already know or does have an idea about what is an open pipe. We are generally talking with pipes with noise performance. These pipes are the one with big elbows and large opening tip that produces a very loud noise.

These pipes are highly recommended on racing events because it can give you the strong and powerful performance. With its large pipe and tip opening it allows the burned gas to go out easily from the engine. But in contrary it also gives you headache with it sounds. 

Some government agencies already gives regulations about using this kind of pipes and sometimes prohibited in some areas.

It is your choice to pick for your exhaust system. But I hardly recommend you to use the power pipe rather than open pipe.

ENGINE MODIFICATION

ENGINE

It is your choice on how powerful the engine will be. You will need also to save a budget for this work because engine power up will cost a little. If you will be short on budget you can do the following.

 Most people would agree that there's no replacement for displacement, but if you want to add some hp without bumping up the cc, you can try to make your engine breathe a little better by giving your cylinder head assembly a complete head work, like port and polish, shave the head for a higher compression rate, replace or regrind the cam to a more aggressive profile and stiffer valve springs (if available). 

A bigger carburetor and free flowing exhaust system will compliment the make-over. But if you're looking at just bolt on power adders, there's really not much other than bigger carburetor  and ditching the restrictive stock muffler for an open after market pipe. 

And maybe an ignition upgrade too.

But if you have a good budget you can choose the bore up. You can search or ask someone with knowledge about engines. You should be careful on choosing the mechanic that will work for your engine upgrade.