1983 Honda C70 Passport

Summary:

Great

Faults:

The gas tank is rusted out.

Kills headlight bulbs (always use a fully charged battery, or kiss the bulb goodbye).

Nothing really has gone wrong with bike.

Oh, replaced the carb... rust kills!

General Comments:

This is an amazingly reliable bike. Small yes, and it sure is not a hotrod.

It is a great bike to learn how to ride, shift gears, and balance on a bike. ***Stay away from pine straw... yikes!

Here it is 2005, and the bike was made in 83. Still cranks! I had to replace the carb (replaced with a carb off a 70's model Passport, and it runs fine. The gas tank rusts easily, and rust is bad for the carb... I wish I could find a plastic gas tank replica).

Would you buy another motorcycle from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 4th October, 2005

6th Mar 2006, 15:24

I have managed to tune my 1982 C70. I fitted a larger rear sprocket and chain assembly. I removed the air filter box and swapped for a cone filter. My last modification involved swapping the carburettor for one off of a 1986 CB-125N.

I have had it up to 79MPH, but it was very wobbly at that speed. I almost fell off when I hit a small bump in the road. I am now welding extra metal to the frame so it can handle better.

1982 Honda C70 Passport

Summary:

One awesome bike

Faults:

A multitude of blown lights, but that's from me starting it without a battery.

Blown turn signal relay, also from starting the bike without a battery.

Tire replaced for only $25 due to brake stands and bleach burnouts, don't laugh, it will do it.

The spotless on the outside chrome exhaust rotted through from the inside causing it to snap in half during a ride, it sounded wicked cool, but was replaced at a cost of $70 due to ensuing headaches.

Shift shaft striped from morons who don't know how to shift, but repaired relatively easily by drilling through the center and sliding in a bolt. This problem is exactly why you take it easy on any Hondamatic bike until you learn how to shift the bike properly.

Change the oil every 1000 miles and use synthetic 10w-40. This bike revs very hard while just driving around town, so it needs it.

General Comments:

This is a great little bike for the beginner, the economically minded, and those who don't want a scooter with a girlie automatic.

Shifting its three speed transmision is very tricky at first due to the lack of a clutch, however once you get used to it, it's very snappy and will chirp second gear with the stock tire.

If revved properly between gears, it can pick the front tire up in all three gears. I've been able to lift it up while going as fast as 40MPH, it actually picks the tire up easier than my 750, but I think that's mostly due to the fact that this is an incredibly light bike.

Easily the most agile bike I've ever been on, it's extremely forgiving and near impossible to drop even when making low speed parking lot maneuvers. With practice you can make one lane U-turns with both feet up. Cornering grip is excellent making peg scraping no problem, though it does have a very nervous, jumpy feel that needs some getting used to.

Brakes are adequate at best, but they get the job done.

Top speed is about 55MPH, which is somewhat of a guess considering it only has a 50MPH speedometer. Down a hill it can do over 65MPH.

Acceleration around town is peppy and believe it or not, this bike can out accelerate some small economy cars of the line and can downright smoke a Hyundai Accent :). Passing is possible, but I wouldn't recommend it unless you've got some room.

It hates steep hills, but it can still usually manage 30MPH. Performance results will vary, but most people looking into such a bike will be smaller than my 6'2", 190lb frame. It can actually haul around me and my 230lb buddy and still do 45MPH.

Always use premium gas, otherwise your performance, gas mileage, and reliability will suffer. Besides with an average of 110MPG there's no need to be cheap. My best gas mileage out of this bike has been around 130MPG with 93 octane Shell gas (not the new stuff either).

Would you buy another motorcycle from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 6th December, 2004

13th Sep 2005, 19:49

Thanks for the review on the Honda Passport 70cc scooter. I just picked one up and with check out all of the possible weaknesses.

Thanks, Gail - Boston.

14th Sep 2005, 14:48

Be very careful riding around Boston on a scooter.

3rd Oct 2005, 21:30

Thanks for the review. I have an 1982 Passport. I have found that by removing the stock air box, and using a cut gas funnel and a Honda lawnmower air filter from Home Depot, you can really get a nice snappy response on the low end. This will also act like a ram air intake, helping on the high side and the hills. That and going up two teeth on the front sprocket, thanks to dratv.com. Great little machine!