[sendler]

Not quite half off but close. $7700 discount. A collectors bike. I wonder what Honda will do for the people that bought one at full price?
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Honda Motorcycle

 

[umbralAeronaut]

They're doing exactly one thing with the money from all five people in the US who already bought a DN-01: cutting their losses and putting it all into a bank. The current economy isn't exactly going to be kind to something that is best pitched as a "collectors bike" right now.

I mean, what exactly do we have here? It's a fully-faired cruiser with shaft drive and automatic transmission at a medium-small displacement (relative to the rest of the cruiser market)... and it somehow stumbled into the "Sport" section of the website. It's press in US motorcycle rags is probably exactly what you'd expect from such an awkward duck: just above a gnat's whisper. American motorcycle buyers simply don't have the imagination for this sort of thing.

These things are priced to move so they can dump inventory and never bring it back to this market. This is why we can't have nice things... although for my part I wouldn't buy one either. Nothing against DN-01 but cruisers just are not my cup of tea.



EDIT: I had to laugh when I saw that Honda has "N/A" in the Ground Clearance section of the specifications. Unintentional I'm sure but humorous, although actual ground clearance doesn't even look that bad from the pictures for a cruiser.

EDIT 2: I should have noticed sooner that you linked to Honda Canada. I'm less certain what your market preferences are like but I can certainly guess. On the Honda America powersports website the DN-01 is instead the solitary beast in a "Crossover" section, and it still only has an entry for a 2009 model. So my semi-ironic statements about it at the beginning of this post were probably right on the money.

 

[bungie4]

Not quite half off but close. $7700 discount. A collectors bike. I wonder what Honda will do for the people that bought one at full price?
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Honda Motorcycle

So how do you figure a bike nobody wanted/wants is a collectors bike? You don't see ppl collecting Pacers do you?

 

[hondafan]

DN-01...a $4000 bike, with a $10,000 transmission.
L.

 

[Naked_Duc]

The DN-01 is a pile of steaming poop so rare that you have to pay Honda $15K for the finder's fee. I saw that bike for the first and only time at the international motorcycle show in Seattle. Even the rep had a uncomfortable smile when people jokely asked if this was for real.

 

[Skyway6]

well the joke i read somewhere was that the DN-01 stands for Do Not Own One.

 

[hondafan]

In Canada, the DN-01 was the same price as a non ABS ST1300. What was Honda thinking?

 

[7point62fmj]

they always remind me of a sturgeon with goofy handle bars.

 

[hondafan]

LMAO! Perfect description.

 

[somebody5788]

My local dealer has one. I wouldn't buy one however I did like it more then a Gold Wing haha.

 

[Metalstorm]

If money was no object I would buy one in a heartbeat.
It's the perfect candidate for 'Hoverbike Conversion'.
And if the experiment failed and the bike went down in a big ball of flames I wouldn't be bummed about it in the least

 

[bungie4]

Mmmm hoverbike....

 

[Skyway6]

actually would not mind seeing the mechanicals of this bike put to use in a more normal looking bike. A real automatic transmission on a bike instead of the snowmobile transmission used in scooters. My old scooter was a bloated pig of a bike with the big motor hanging off a swingarm. So much unsprung weight. Felt every little bump. (was a Piaggio X9)

 

[somebody5788]

actually would not mind seeing the mechanicals of this bike put to use in a more normal looking bike. A real automatic transmission on a bike instead of the snowmobile transmission used in scooters. My old scooter was a bloated pig of a bike with the big motor hanging off a swingarm. So much unsprung weight. Felt every little bump. (was a Piaggio X9)

You don't want a CVT automatic trans like that thing has. They don't last and when they go they are VERY expensive. DSG is a much better alternative.