I bought a Honda Magna

[tasop7]

For quite some time now I've been looking for a nice cruiser to buy. As much as I love the FZ6 I sometimes get in a cruiser mood. So my goal was to have a comfortable sport bike (the FZ is all that and more) and a comfortable cruiser. So I went into several dealers to sit and feel out all the different cruisers out there. I've done hours and hours of research and narrowed it down to a couple different bikes. I was close to getting a Honda Shadow 750, but decided to keep looking around. Almost all the new cruisers are V-twins and I really wanted a V4.

I then came across the Magna. For those that don't know about it, it's considered a "power cruiser." Since I'm used to a pretty zippy sport bike (the FZ), I felt like I would get bored with a 750 V-twin. At this point I don't want to shell out the money to get a bigger cruiser (1300-1600). So the Magna seemed to be the perfect fit for me. Honda basically took a sport bike engine and put it in a cruiser frame. I was also looking at a Yamaha V-Max (the older ones... the 2009 is an insane bike!) but they are really only good with straight line acceleration (from all the reviews I've read), and I wanted a bike I can have fun with in the twisties.

I found a guy that was selling one 5 minutes from my house. I went to check it out and fell in love. He let me take it out for a test ride and I was sold immediately. It handles really well, is very fast, is very comfortable, and is very pretty! :thumbup:

So here are some pics. It's a 1998.

^How many of me can you count in the bike? lol

-Taso

 

[n1one]

Nice choice!....You won't be sorry!:thumbup:

I had the original 1982 V45 Magna (750) for 15 years and I hated to let go of that bike. The motor has 40+ miles and runs as strong as it did in 1982. My cousin now owns and drives that bike daily.

Great bike; as much as I am love'n the FZ6, I will always love that Magna.

Good luck with it. Honda V4 is one of the best motors ever!

 

[fz6nick]

Sweet!!! My first bike was a 1985 V30 Magna. The strong V4 engine has a good amount of midrange. My old 500 will keep up and might be faster than any HD (not vrod). It was in close to perfect condition before I sold it to a guy in the next town and bought his 01 Zx6r.

 

[cv_rider]

That looks pretty cool. I love the cruiser look, but never wanted cruiser handling nor the cruiser foot forward positioning (leading to sore butts from what I hear). That Magna looks to have a more "normal" rake than the hugely extended front wheel on most cruisers, which would make it handle better. Feet aren't too far forward either. Does it have a good rumbling cruiser sound, or does it sound more like the sportbike that its engine came from?

When do you think you'll take the Magna and when the FZ6?

 

[champion221elite]

Nice bike :rockon:

 

[Jman]

Congrats....always liked the look of those....glad to hear it performs well, too.:thumbup:

 

[tasop7]

That looks pretty cool. I love the cruiser look, but never wanted cruiser handling nor the cruiser foot forward positioning (leading to sore butts from what I hear). That Magna looks to have a more \\"normal\\" rake than the hugely extended front wheel on most cruisers, which would make it handle better. Feet aren't too far forward either. Does it have a good rumbling cruiser sound, or does it sound more like the sportbike that its engine came from?

When do you think you'll take the Magna and when the FZ6?

Well a lot of the cruisers I looked at had a very limited lean ability in turns. They're obviously not made for aggressive riding. My neighbor has a new Honda VTX1300 cruiser and I took it out for a test ride. The foot controls were pretty far forward. It was a little awkward at first but about 3 minutes into riding it felt very good. I just went around the block a couple times and down a 2 mile straight road. I actually didn't want to stop riding it. I'm 25 and definitely a sport bike guy, but like I said, sometimes I get in these cruiser moods where I just want to go out for a nice relaxing ride down some back country roads.

Most cruiser owners I've talked to have an aftermarket Mustang or Corbin seat and they can ride all day. I've sat in a Mustang seat and they are soooo comfortable, I can't even explain it. Combine the seat with the fact that your legs are pretty straight (which helps blood flow) and you can ride for a long time. Obviously everyone's body is different though.

The Magna's foot positioning is right in the middle of a cruiser and a standard. The positioning is a little forward but still allows you to ride it pretty aggressively if you want. You can lean this bike pretty far over in a turn. And most Magna owners get highway pegs which will allow you to put your legs out straight if you wanted to.

The Magna's exhaust sound is right between a cruiser and sport bike. It doesn't have a deep throaty sound but doesn't have a high winding sound either. It has more of a "power" reving sound (it's hard to explain, but it sounds good). I may put an aftermarket exhaust on to give it more of a deeper sound in the future.

Have you ever ridden any of the bigger cruisers (1100 and above)?

-Taso

 

[FZ1inNH]

Those are great bikes and I cannot believe you found one in such great condition! It looks showroom ready! :thumbup:

Well done!!

 

[Hellgate]

It sure has a lot of mufflers.

 

[Aggietaco]

It sure has a lot of mufflers.

Why have dual exhaust when you can have quad exhaust?

 

[sportrider]

that's the same engine my old VFR had in it basically, very linear power plant.
good choice not getting the shadow 750. I spanked one in a drag race on J's Ninja 250