Make it Rain

[OffbeatAnimal]

Very highly considering purchasing a PCX in the next 6 months. It would be the first motorcycle/scooter of my own. You could say that I've fallen in love with this scooter at the dealership.

Would you guys consider the PCX to be weather-proof, or overly burdened by an occasional rainfall? Is it too unsafe to ride the PCX on the highway with some rain?

[fish]

Are you in an area of the world that has 24 typhoons each year - like the Philippines?
Or, are you riding an Inter-State 75MPH highway?
In the rain or in the dry - you will want a bigger bike if you're going to run in that kind of traffic..
Some owners may tell you it is perfectly safe to run this scooter at full throttle in traffic on a North American highway...
Roll a PCX out side, stand back and look at it. Do you want to be in highway traffic, at full-song (maybe 62MPH) on a machine that size?

PCX owners will tell you about the wet qualities of the stock tires - (or, Michelin City Grips work VERY well in the rain)
Do scoots survive in the wet?.....all the time!! - in areas like the far Pacific and India.
One rider's point of view....Fish

[Valiant]

I think riding in the rain is equal with all 2-wheelers.

I do it all the time, but I'd probably give it a pass if I can't see further than a few hundred feet in front of me.

The city grips would be great in turns, but IMO not going to be much better than stock if the PCX is upright(because that section doesn't have sipes in the middle). Will still slide in wet painted surfaces if you're on the brake when you're over them(speaking from experience).

[kramnala58]

There are plenty of owners from the UK on this site ... that tells me that the rain can't be too hard on the PCX.

[iceman]

Just ride safely and keep a look out - don't try and burn your knees on bends, don't ride like a joy-rider because sooner or later you will come a cropper, watch out for the idiots (worse words to use!) who should never be on the road, because if your a safe rider, they aren't!, and if you are allowed to filter through traffic in your locale, don't go at crazy speed through the gap but slow down and keep looking. Never can say your going to be ok on the road, but do the above and your chance of enjoying the ride and getting home in one piece vastly improves.

The past year has been my first year riding a 2 wheel powered bike on the road, in fact it took me time to get my balance back on a push-bike as I had not ridden one in 20 years!, but through the past winter with sub zero temps, heavy rain and heavy in-city traffic, the PCX and me have survived - on stock tyres! - now have my 1st yr 2-wheel no-claims.

That said, hardly a day goes by where some low-life scum bag doesn't do something stupid - tail-gate, pull out at the last minute, and yesterday had some moron cross lanes in front of me on a band at a round-about and when I called out, he and his 'mate' gave me verbal!

Besides some tyres not being the best for grip in the wet (if you full ride fast and low round corners) the only issue the PCX will have in wet conditions is from road dirt/salt and the underside suffering because of that - the bike will not stay pristine for long in those condtions, but you can use ACF50 (or something like that) to help protect it. Some users here have been riding in poor, cold and wet conditions for years and the bike is still going stong.

[Mr Elbows]

Hasn't been 3 weeks since I had my scooter and I'm already encountering idiots. I was in a turning lane at a red light a few mornings ago heading home from work. I'm at the very front of the line. The light turns green, so I begin turning. Suddenly the guy next to me in the non-turning lane turns right into my lane, cutting me right the hell off. It's moments like this I wish I had a helmet cam.

Haven't ridden in the rain yet. I'm kinda scared and nervous of doing it since I'll be riding on stock tires. I've definitely ridden this thing in high windy weather. I kinda feel like an empty aluminum can being blown left and right. Gonna be that way all week out here.

[iceman]

I've definitely ridden this thing in high windy weather. I kinda feel like an empty aluminum can being blown left and right. Gonna be that way all week out here.

That's what I've found worse - when there are strong winds the pcx gets blown sideways quite a bit - and this is in town at low speed! I've dealt with sub-zero, torrential rain, congested traffic and idiots, and the only time I've felt really uneasy and panicked was the few occasions there's been strong wind and the scoot has been blown around a bit. Others say go with the flow and it's fine, well, not my experience - almost has no real grip on the road when the wind is pushing it backwards, sidewards or un-weighting it a little.

[Mel46]

You will be ok as long as you ride cautiously during rain and don't try to take turns at the same speed you did when things were drier. They make motorcycle and scooter tires better than they use to, with the rider in mind. Still, it is a light bike. There isn't much you can do about that, so just slow down some and be more aware. I have never liked riding in the rain, even on heavy bikes, but I have never had an accident during rain because i rode with caution during the rain. I once rode a little 350 Honda 1,000 miles in heavy rain because i had no other transportation. It wasn't fun but i arrived safe, and that is what really matters in the end.

[Safety Man]

I went down just this past weekend in rainy Florida weather. A thin strip of white painted lane got me as I was braking and preparing to make a right turn into a gas station. I had IRC on the front and City Grip on the back. Not sure if having City Grip on the front would have made a difference.

Lesson learned: slow down considerably and maintain a steady speed before tires make contact with any pained over surface, no matter how small that area is.

[Valiant]

Skip to 18:31.

Wet riding tips:
-Ride slower than usual.
-Always be upright when going over painted or metal surfaces(manhole covers) or those stupid plastic reflectors.
-Don't be on the brakes when over painted or metal surfaces(manhole covers) or those stupid plastic reflectors.
-Try not to put your foot down on said surfaces.