Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Sounds good but due to the work that I'm involved in, taking time off to doing such a ride is out of the question. Nothing says that we can't just correspond back-and-forth, sharing our experiences and adventures. Come to think of it, I don't think that I've EVER seen a DN-01 on the road before. We ARE a rare breed! I do plan on going down to Daytona in March since it's only about 75 minutes away. I was looking at possibly getting a Corbin seatback to go with my Corbin seats ... they do look cool! Saddlebags possibly but definitely some type of cruise control for long trips. Ride safe L8r

Al

Hi Kerwin, I felt like that, I'm in the UK, and I love the dn01, this is my second dn, afraid to say it is a bike for 'loners'. Most people call mine a scooter, who cares, It is a great machine, the technology is fantastic. I've been round and up the alps about 4 years running and it is fantasticcccccccccccccc! on the hairpins I just keep a bit of throttle and feather the rear brake whilst all the sports bike riders are struggling with the bends, I'm having no probs!!Going again to spain this year. And after 56 years as a biker I speak with confidence when I say it will be the most memorable bike you've ever owned. Good luck and best wishes. ps wish we could have some of your sunshine, it rains so much here my feet are becoming webbed!!!

It's not so much that they think of the DN-01 as a scooter, it's just that they are "uncomfortable" thinking that a "motorcycle" can have an automatic transmission. Look at the evolution of the car ... it started out with a manual gearbox and then the "automated" gearbox was created. So NOW most "cars" come with an automatic transmission. Go Figure! We are pioneers of the future ... our names "may" just go down in history!! NOT!!! I think this WILL be my last bike that I will ever own/purchase. I AM happy!

Hey there. I also own a Honda DN-01. In fact I bought 2 of them so I could get someone to go ride with me. I bought the first one while working in TX and after not being on a bike is 25 years I rode it back the 1200 miles to AZ in 1.5 days. Can you say...sore butt! I've since picked me up a rojo air hawk pad and it helps a lot as well as a plexiglas air deflector to go on the short factory one to get the air up and over the rider.

The bike does it for me although it is a bugger to work on. On the first one I had the dealer install a brighter head light bulb and the factory passenger back rest. On the second one I did those myself as well as putting in some K&N filters. Holy cow do you have to remove a bunch,of plastic!!! And you better have a collection of the Honda plastic plugs to replace those that break. I also added a 12v plug on each bike and am trying to decide which cruise control to install. I bought a couple of zippered leather bags that neatly attaché on the passenger seat, but there are a couple of things I sure wish Honda would have addressed when they built these.

1. Some kind of affordable hard storage (I guess Honda offered something early on for $800?)
2. How about just another 10-15 hp?? (Better have a long straight when passing)
3. Another gallon of fuel capacity (with that 10hp) would be sweet

I bought the 2 used with 800 miles on one and 2300 on the other for less then one sold for new and although I have not done a 1200 mile repeat trip, my bud and I have done several weekend 500 mile round trippers so far. Just need to figure out how to get tunes, cruise control, 2ways and a little more power outa these things. Anyone seen a good exhaust that won't blow out your ears for these?

I too was interested in having sort of cruise control for the DN-01. I discovered a simple device called: "Throttle Mate" that I recently installed. It works great BUT requires a bit of "fabrication" before you can use it. The idea is that underneath the throttle (between the throttle cables) is a small hole that can used to thread a screw into to apply pressure to the throttle body inside the housing. I had to "tap" the hole to 1/4 20 to use the star screw provided with the kit. I also had to "remove" the "star" leaving me with just the center housing because the throttle cables are so close together. The kit comes with the "Throttle Mate" lever with is then attached to the remaining housing. The concept is pretty simple ... you could design your own and it should work!

Finding a bike that you really enjoy riding is the secret to being happy...but you don't need to have others with the same bike to feel comradery, just other riders. I ride a bike that I have never seen another of, the Yamaha MT-01. It's the muscle car of the bike world and I love it...but by the sales numbers, I'm one of a very few. It's not the fastest bike out there and it isn't a cruiser/tourer, so it's kind of an odd duck but it's the bike for me.

You just have to ride what puts a stupid grin on your face and makes you feel like a kid again. I just enjoy getting out there and riding. My riding buddys range from a Honda CBR125R to a BMW R1200GT and quite a few in between (including one guy on a Ural Sidecar rig...very cool!) All of them can do the speed limit, so we can all ride together and enjoy our ride...the different opinions at the stops is what makes riding with other bikes interesting...everyone notices something different.

Anyway, I'm rambling...just thought I would say that you aren't alone, but you are a long friggin distance away and I'm jealous today since we still have snow and ice...damn spring!

Later.

Your bottom sign off has been my motto for years (or at least very close-"you're doing something wrong")

I agree wholeheartedly!!! Ride what works for YOU.

Just wish I could figure out a way to get a few more ponies out of this beast. I can fix the storage, music and cruise thing, but the lack of a little more umph has me stumped.

Sometimes just looking good or in the DN-01's case. looking fast is good ENOUGH for me. I, too, like the uniqueness (made that word up) or the rarity, of the DN-01 which works. The way I figure, too much more UMPH will only get me into trouble sooner. It is what it is ... somethings just are not meant to be messed with! Then again, it's a guy thing: you just have to mess with whatever you've got ... to make it "better!"

dbs1 wrote:Your bottom sign off has been my motto for years (or at least very close-"you're doing something wrong")

I agree wholeheartedly!!! Ride what works for YOU.

Just wish I could figure out a way to get a few more ponies out of this beast. I can fix the storage, music and cruise thing, but the lack of a little more umph has me stumped.

Turbo kit...but I would check into the torque input rating of the transmission before going too far...if you over torque the trans, it could be quite costly...not that fitting a turbo will be cheap anyway, I would check...

There are always incremental gains to be had changing air movement efficiency...air intake & exhaust...cam profiles, throttle body, higher compression pistons, shaved heads...but all will effect how the bike rides and it's durability/longevity. You will probably gain about 10% with intake & exhaust without too much side effect...anything more and you take your chances.

But really if you want something faster, get a different bike. It will be cheaper...I don't think the DN-01 was meant for the speed demon, it's more of a style & cruise bike. Enjoy it for what it is.

Thanks about my Signature line...it's my moto: if it doesn't make you happy, don't do it...life's just too short to not chase happiness.

Later.

I'm not looking for much more grunt, just what you'd find with a typical pipe change probably, but not much out there for these guys. Some days I like the quiteness and other days I'd like to hear just a little exhaust rumble.

I admit to having the "go fast" gene in a fair abundance. I can usually use the 650hp camaro to take care of that. I think in the case of the DN-01 7-10 hp would make the diff I'm looking for when passing. With the computer on these it seems that would be the logical way to get that by messing with the tune a little bit and not screwing with my remaining 4 year warranty. Works with all my GM products. Gain 15-20hp while picking up 1-2 mpg when retuning their computer. And I won't be getting any other bike. This is the last one for me I'm thinking.

I did finally find some soft bags that attaché under the seat without interfering with the latch. FINALLY. Now if I could just figure out which breakaway cruise control will work I'd like to get that installed. Picking up a pair of helmet radios today so almost finished up.