2012 NOS Silverwing at 6 and 6

Okay guys and gals,

I've owned my Silverwing just a little over 6 months now and it has something over 6K on the OD.  Reporting in with brief review and impressions.

1st - I like it!  Twist and Go.  Plenty of power, ample storage, plenty of protection from the elements.  Handles great on the backroads AND the super-slab.

2nd - I come from 60K on Suzuki Burgmans.   Two 400's and a 650.  So, my impressions of the SW are in the context of that experience.

3rd - I'm VERY happy with the Swing in most ways.  I got it NOS with 15 miles the OD … I plan to ride to 100K:-)

4th - Generally, I describe the SW like this … if you were ever riding down the road on a Burgman 400 and thought … "I wish there was a scoot about this size with "mo powa".  Then the Silverwing fits the bill rather nicely.

The Swing weighs in at about 75lbs more than the Burgman 400 BUT has way more get up and go.  The Burgman 400 is no slouch by any means, but the SW 49 hp, 582cc twin kicks butt.  The 400 is a little unpowered in some situations. Namely on the express way.  If you're gonna initiate a pass on the on the 400 ... you'd better plan ahead.  On the SW, just crank that throttle and you're at 85-90 in a heartbeat.  Bye bye semi's.  This is no knock on the 400.  It does everything it's designed to do AND more.  It's just not a fair fight between the SW and the 400 in the power department though.

On the other hand … if you're ever riding down the road on a Burgman 650 and thinking .."I'd like to have a scoot with this power, a little less bulk and a LOT more vibration … then the SW is you're scoot.:-(        My only real complaint is the buzziness, the harmonic resonance, the dat gum fairing/tupperware shudders, and the occasional jingling of the man berries.  The Burgman 650 is ultra smoothe.  Nary a vibration EVER from my 2007 that I put 40K on.

Not a deal breaker on SW.  Just a minor disappointment:-(  I've read all the post about it … the nature of the beast seems to the prevailing opinion here. {IF I missed the fix fer it ... somebody PLZ lemme know}

5th - Lastly, here's the add on's to this point:

1- Givi windshield - one piece.  The stock windscreen sux.  
2- Givi V37 topcase - sweet. (Like the new locking mechanism.)
3- Mirror risers ... so I could have a better view of them vibrating:-)
4- NEP throttle lock - effective, cheap, easy to install.
5- Corbin seat and Backrest.  Happy cheeks and lower back!
6- Just added the Admore Light Bar. {Thanks TIM}

Just a tad over 400 miles in a day is my longest ride to date.  It's a keeper!

**There's a pic in my album***

Enjoying this website … great info. available. Thanks to all who post here.:-)
:not worthy:
Sirkitrider

Sirkitrider, thanks for the good, honest review. I'm not bothered by the SWing vibrations compared to other bikes I've ridden, but if I had a previous Burg 650, I would probably feel the same.

You set your SWing up with good additions. Now you're set for 100 k. It will do it all with only basic maintenance. Enjoy!

Great review! I agree with most of your comments! Vibration is not a problem for me, mine has very little. I have only owned one bike smoother on the road and that was a GL1800 Goldwing and that is to be expected. Keep us posted on your quest to 100K!!!

Good observations and points, I almost bought a Burg 650 but the first impression was hello it's way to much like my G Wings, nice but to large for what I wanted, my S'Wing fits runs just fine for this old guy.

I have a good friend who has a full stable of riding options - from a Burgman AN650, 700 dual-sport, a lazy 800 tourer to a 1300 BKing beast. What does he choose to ride most, but my old Swing which is for sale! Just easier and more comfortable than all the others! Enjoy your Swing.....

I pray you have miles of smiles

Great Review!

I have an 08 SWing that I had converted over to a trike last year and like it a lot. It was just too hard on two wheels to balance while taking a drink of Beer at 85 mph.

Just kidding. I NEVER drink and ride or drive. But I do like the trike.

+1

Dale N. Just curious, but what type of Trike did you add to your SW? How has the trike changed your SW performance?
Thanks.

Not to speak for Dale, however, we both have the same Motor Trike kit, Mine was put on a 2012 Swing. MPG went down about 5MPG, acceleration is a bit slower, with that said....I wish I had made the conversion years ago

Dibber, It's a Motor Trike GT3 kit where there are only two wheels in back and not three like those drive on/off models. It cost me a total of about $8.000 for Motor Trike to make it, ship it and have it installed. And like Pastor Ron said, about 5 mpg lost on the highway. A bit more in town with stop and go riding. It still has pretty good acceleration and doesn't take long to get up to highway speeds. The only tricky part, if you want to call it tricky, was learning how to corner around intersections. You don't lean into them you steer into them. And DON'T put your feet down when you come to a stop. You might run over them when you take off again and from what I've heard it hurts like heck.

All in all I really like it and have no regrets having it done. There's no center stand on it anymore seeing as it's not needed. The side stand is still there, probably for the cutoff switch. That's not used anymore either. I do still use the parking brake tho. That's still needed. I try parking on either a flat spot or one with a slight uphill angle. It's pretty easy to push backwards that way. If I happen to park in a spot with a down angle I try to back in.

This is what she looks like. I sure get a lot of looks and comments on it too. Not that many SWing trikes around so it's somewhat unique.

I'm sorry, for the newbie here, what is "NOS" ? or is there a dictionary here I an check?

Previous watching movies / tv, it sounds like Nitrous like used in street racing.... but I can't imagine putting that into Swing...

NOS new old stock. A new SW that's sitting on dealer floor or in Honda warehouse .

Yup. NOS.  New old stock.  Mine is a 2012 that I bought "brand new" with 15 miles on the OD June 2018.  It now as nearly 11K.  Not new anymore:-)

Sirkitrider

Same here 2013 bought in Dec. of 2015.  Starting 4-th season 16.760 miles.   Last summer rain cut my riding time down this year is better so far.

Got it. Thank you all for your responses

Sirkitrider, you mentioned vibration from your SW but not the Burgman 650. I find a small amount of vibes from my 2005 with 16500 miles ,but mirrors remain clear though. Hopefully someday I'll try a Burgman 650 and experience the smoothness you claim. The complexity of the tranny is what scares me. Thanks for your report on both maxi-scooters ;this is what makes a great forum.

"Hopefully someday I'll try a Burgman 650 and experience the smoothness you claim. The complexity of the tranny is what scares me."

I sold a '13 Burgman 650 and bought a '12 Silver Wing. The possibility of belt failure was the main reason why. I'm not in a position where I can just say "Oh well" and throwaway a $5,400 bike. If the belt fails, it would cost almost that much to replace it.

It's also a big, lumbering boat at speeds below 10 mph and a beast to put up on the center stand.

I bought it from a dealer that doesn't offer test rides because they don't carry insurance for that. If you are really interested in a bike, you make a deal, do the paperwork, and head for home. If you come back within the hour and don't want it, they tear up the paperwork. So the first time I rode a 650 was when I owned it, and my reaction within 30-seconds was, "Dear God, I just bought a giant bathtub." I considered going back to the dealer but the big ride won me over.

Statistically, I probably would have been fine with the CVT because few belts fail on post-2013 650's. But the reliability and flickability of the Wing were winning factors. I don't have to worry about belt failure. I changed the Wing belt myself a few weeks ago.

I will say this about the B650. There is no smoother, more comfortable maxi-scooter ride on Earth. It's the Lincoln Town Car of scooters. The CVT sounds like a commercial jet winding up for takeoff. I miss that a lot. Every now and then I muse about getting an older, well kept 650 as a second bike, because sometimes you just want to kick back and cruise in style.