First impressions of the 1984 Honda CX650 were not very good. 45000 miles in six years had left it well travel stained, rattly and smoking on the overrun. My test ride revealed that the bars shook a bit at low speeds and swung violently from side to side if I took a hand off. It couldn’t have been serious, though, as the problem cleared up after 25mph was attained.
The five speed gearbox was as clunky as most old Hondas, but I could live with that. Despite its appearance verging on that of a rat, there wasn’t any play in any of the bearings, nor was the Pro-link back end exhibiting any signs of wear - I could actually see the odd bit of grease under the grime.
Mine for 500 notes if I wanted it. As I needed a set of wheels like yesterday, the cash was handed over - only then did the owner recommend that I keep an eye on the oil level if I was planning to do any kind of mileage. I checked this after riding home 200 miles, it had consumed just over a pint.
The bike came with a massive fairing that completely obscured the front wheel, as I am on the short side it was only with difficulty that I could peer over the high screen. I was able to test its effectiveness almost immediately as the skies opened and a wild thunderstorm was company for the evening’s run home.
The power from the water-cooled V-twin engine was not very startling, nowhere in the rev range did it seem to come on cam with any urgency. I consoled myself with the realisation that it could be kept in top gear for any speed between 25 and 100mph. The result of trying to play the gearbox like a lunatic was an excess of undignified lurches and not much by way of additional acceleration.
A surprising amount of vibration rumbled through the chassis between 65 and 85mph, which just happened to be my favourite cruising speed. It had more in common with the low frequency vibes of a British twin than the frenzy of a Japanese four. It never faded right into background but caused no problems for my hands or feet, so I soon learnt to adapt.
The period of grace lasted for only 1800 miles. The camchain started chattering away and I cursed whichever Honda designer had insisted on using a chain in an overhead valve design even those old sixties Triumphs had gears driving their cams! Perhaps the most common problem with CX’s, the tensioner had jammed and allowed the loose chain to thrash around in chainsaw mode. Oh well, one new tensioner and camchain later and all was fine with the motor.
Oil continued to be burnt at a rapid rate, but mostly on the overrun, indicative that either the valves or piston rings needed attention. Oil consumption improved when I adjusted the valves to the correct clearance, they were so tight it was a wonder that all the valves had not burnt out. It still needed a pint every 250 miles, but was so predictable in its appetite that I always knew when to feed it some more oil.
I also had to keep an eye on the coolant level because there was a slight leak around some of the joints and the head gaskets were also weeping. At 49200 miles the bike lost all power and gently rolled to a halt on the A1, two miles from home. The battery was dead. Replacing that and then the rectifier/regulator only provided a temporary sop to the machine’s need for power - the alternator was burning out, as soon as one coil went the power flowing through the rest quickly left a black molten mess. An exchange for a rewound one (£40) solved that but it left me a bit dubious about doing long distances on a bike with 50k on the clock.
When both tyres needed replacing I had a serious think about selling the bike, but decided that with 3mm of tread left on the Roadrunners I might be able to ride through the twitches that had developed and get at least another 1000 miles out of the beast. The Roadrunners last for an acceptable 8000 miles at each end. The machine and I seemed to reach an accord in which it would deliver reliable service if I moderated my right wrist action, but not before the left-hand switch cluster fell apart and the sidestand fell off. Oh well!
A new set of Roadrunners, 60psi in the rear shock and tearing off the fairing to accompany the approach of spring all but transformed the feel of the machine. From a lumbering carthorse it became an almost taut stallion. With the chassis in such good shape I started pushing the engine again, ignoring the top end rattles and clouds of blue smoke that intensified with every extra mile once the clock had gone past 63000 miles.
At 53239 miles the engine came to an abrupt halt with a terminal series of mechanical grating noises. The pistons and valves were OK, it was down to shagged rockers and bent pushrods. The local breaker provided replacements for next to nothing and the CX responded to such generosity by refusing to start. It was launched down the steepest hill in town and only reluctantly fired up when bumped with 30mph on the clock. Having used the old gaskets I was not that surprised when coolant and oil started spurting out but clever use of Araldite soon solved that.
Other chronic problems turned out to be seizing calipers, disintegrating exhausts and Pro-Link bearings that were adverse to grease. Running the shaft drive dry didn’t seem to help its smoothness but apart from a (justified) whine it appeared a lot tougher than the rest of the bike. I changed the engine oil every 3000 miles, ran the carbs without the air filter (expensive, short-lived and a nightmare to replace) and generally neglected the CX until with nearly 60000 miles up it had enough and cunningly packed in its ignition unit.
The combination of open carbs and rusted exhaust had not upset the carburation to any great extent. If anything, fuel economy improved; averaging only 35 to 40mpg any help the motor could get in breathing better was obviously much needed and in its sorry state I often managed better than 42mpg. With such a voracious appetite for consumables the CX was a very expensive beast to run for performance that would not worry a de-restricted 125 for a moment. I felt sorry for the beast so stripped it down over a weekend and cleaned, polished and replaced (with used bits) whatever was necessary. It cost a total of £175 to put back on the road, which included newish pistons (the bores were both surprisingly good), valves and exhaust system, as well as the black box.
The CX responded by putting 110mph on the clock on the first bit of dual carriageway we hit, before going into an almighty tank slapper. I took the hint and thereafter never ventured above the ton. Over the next ten thousand miles appearance and performance gradually declined again as neglect got the upper hand on maintenance, but there were no major breakdowns or expense. By the time 70000 miles were on the clock it was in desperate need of a rewire, small fires breaking out where insulation was breaking down and the engine cutting out when it felt like it. I'm useless on electrics so had to bung a mate a couple of tenners to come round to sort it out.
I shouldn’t have bothered. 3000 miles later the main bearings started to rumble. I rode the bike until it died a death with 73127 miles on the clock. Not bad going for a much maligned Maggot. As well as an expired crankshaft, the gearbox had become absolutely useless, so it just wasn’t worth the effort of tearing the machine apart... in addition to the engine new tyres, brakes, wheels and suspension were urgently needed. A breaker offered me a hundred notes for the old heap and I took the money with alacrity - I had thought I would have to pay someone to come to take it away.
As it was, I was quite satisfied that I had had a good couple of years out of the Maggot and that it had justified its purchase cost. As bikes go, it had no exceptional qualities, its weight and slightly ponderous nature bracketed it as a tourer but although reliable in general, running costs would inhibit travelling great distances. I used mine as a week day commuter and weekend short hop tourer. I’d be quite happy to buy another for the same purpose if the mileage and price were right.
Iain Holmes