LiveWire Here you go .
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From: Nunya.
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Taking a LiveWire on a long journey is kind of like watching a dog walk on its hind legs: you're amazed that it can be done, but in reality it's not actually done well.
Yes, he made it. Took him 10 days (average 140 miles per day at around 55 mph) but he made it, even with absurd complications like losing his key fob.
Thing I don't understand is: why do people always bring up the touring thing? Who cares? It's not a touring bike, it doesn't want to be a touring bike, it's not marketed as a touring bike, and I guess it's news to some folks but there are bikes out there that are NOT for cross-continent touring... I've never been in a sportbike forum where people rag on the bike because it wouldn't be able to handle a 500-mile day... everyone knows and accepts that that's not what the bike is for. Honda's best-selling model is the Grom, a 125cc bike, and you really wouldn't enjoy going cross-country on that either, yet people love them.
The LiveWire is a brilliant bike, outstanding at what it does well. Cross-country touring isn't really its thing though.
Yes, he made it. Took him 10 days (average 140 miles per day at around 55 mph) but he made it, even with absurd complications like losing his key fob.
Thing I don't understand is: why do people always bring up the touring thing? Who cares? It's not a touring bike, it doesn't want to be a touring bike, it's not marketed as a touring bike, and I guess it's news to some folks but there are bikes out there that are NOT for cross-continent touring... I've never been in a sportbike forum where people rag on the bike because it wouldn't be able to handle a 500-mile day... everyone knows and accepts that that's not what the bike is for. Honda's best-selling model is the Grom, a 125cc bike, and you really wouldn't enjoy going cross-country on that either, yet people love them.
The LiveWire is a brilliant bike, outstanding at what it does well. Cross-country touring isn't really its thing though.
Last edited by FatBob2018; Jul 4, 2020 at 12:30 PM.
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From: Virginia
You beat me to it. I just came here to post this article:
https://www.visordown.com/news/gener...-mexico-canada
https://www.visordown.com/news/gener...-mexico-canada
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2018
Posts: 4,607
Likes: 3,312
From: Virginia
Taking a LiveWire on a long journey is kind of like watching a dog walk on its hind legs: you're amazed that it can be done, but in reality it's not actually done well.
Yes, he made it. Took him 10 days (average 140 miles per day at around 55 mph) but he made it, even with absurd complications like losing his key fob.
Thing I don't understand is: why do people always bring up the touring thing? Who cares? It's not a touring bike, it doesn't want to be a touring bike, it's not marketed as a touring bike, and I guess it's news to some folks but there are bikes out there that are NOT for cross-continent touring... I've never been in a sportbike forum where people rag on the bike because it wouldn't be able to handle a 500-mile day... everyone knows and accepts that that's not what the bike is for. Honda's best-selling model is the Grom, a 125cc bike, and you really wouldn't enjoy going cross-country on that either, yet people love them.
The LiveWire is a brilliant bike, outstanding at what it does well. Cross-country touring isn't really its thing though.
Yes, he made it. Took him 10 days (average 140 miles per day at around 55 mph) but he made it, even with absurd complications like losing his key fob.
Thing I don't understand is: why do people always bring up the touring thing? Who cares? It's not a touring bike, it doesn't want to be a touring bike, it's not marketed as a touring bike, and I guess it's news to some folks but there are bikes out there that are NOT for cross-continent touring... I've never been in a sportbike forum where people rag on the bike because it wouldn't be able to handle a 500-mile day... everyone knows and accepts that that's not what the bike is for. Honda's best-selling model is the Grom, a 125cc bike, and you really wouldn't enjoy going cross-country on that either, yet people love them.
The LiveWire is a brilliant bike, outstanding at what it does well. Cross-country touring isn't really its thing though.
Who says you can't tour on a Grom?
https://jalopnik.com/this-nutty-bast...-to-1625358412
Yeah I wouldn't either, and wouldn't tour on a Livewire. But you can, you just have to take a slower pace and longer recharge times.
Make it about the journey and not the destination.
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From: Texas
Who says you can't tour on a Grom?
https://jalopnik.com/this-nutty-bastard-rode-a-honda-grom-from-portland-to-1625358412]
https://jalopnik.com/this-nutty-bastard-rode-a-honda-grom-from-portland-to-1625358412]
So it CAN be done.
But it shouldn't.
Yeah I wouldn't either, and wouldn't tour on a Livewire. But you can, you just have to take a slower pace and longer recharge times.
Make it about the journey and not the destination.
When I got off that 135cc and onto the new Moto Guzzi, it was pure heaven. Pure bliss. And here's the fun thing -- I can drive the Guzzi just as slowly as a Grom can go, drag the trip out so it takes just as long as it would have on a Grom, and still enjoy the trip 10x more than I would on the Grom.
What I'm getting at is: if your concern is touring long distance, then the LiveWire (or the Grom) are terrible choices. Not saying it's impossible, just saying -- it's hard to imagine a worse bike to choose for that purpose. The Grom and the LiveWire are both utterly brilliant at what they do well, and the focus should be on that, rather than constantly "how can I shoehorn this into doing something it was never designed to do?"
Just my take, anyway. Like I said, been there, done that, got the T-shirt, glad to not have to do it again, but if someone else wants to, more power to 'em.
Last edited by FatBob2018; Jul 5, 2020 at 12:30 PM.
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From: Virginia
Shouldn't that be up to the rider to decide?
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He proved two things. One that he could do it. And two why it just not a very good idea. Not against the electric bike but stick to riding it local to work and back. Not many motels I know of would go along with you running a cord out to charge the all night long.
140 miles a day . Bet there are a few that can almost do that on a bicycle .
140 miles a day . Bet there are a few that can almost do that on a bicycle .
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From: Texas
Obviously. And, like I'm saying, I actually did it, so I'm speaking from experience. Not 3,000 miles in one trip, but 600 miles in 24 hours, which is probably 2x to 3x what that guy did per day.
My only point here is -- well, look -- y'all do whatever you want with your own property. But when someone says "see, you can totally cross the Sahara Desert in a Geo Metro, this guy did it", don't you think it's just not a great idea? Because it's not. If someone was looking for a vehicle to cross the Sahara desert with, I would not suggest a Geo Metro, even if some nutty bastard did it once.
That's all.
You can unscrew flathead screws with a chisel. But I wouldn't. And if someone said "here you go, someone else did it" I wouldn't use that as justification to say "oh, well, the other guys are all wrong, I'll go buy a chisel to unscrew these flathead screws with." Because it is an inherently bad idea, and there are other tools MUCH better suited to that job.
I saw a video where someone shot a .223 round out of a Glock 9mm. I would recommend against doing that. Yes, he did it, but it was still an extraordinarily dumb idea.
I saw a video here recently where someone replaced a Harley touring bike engine with a lawn mower engine. While it CAN be done, I would think that for 99.999999999% of us it's a bad idea.
If someone wants to burn up their $30,000 LiveWire's battery by recharging at Level 3 over and over and over, day after day after day, in direct contradiction of what the owner's manual calls for, just to show that they can do an Iron Butt or something equally silly, well -- again, their property, their decision. Doesn't make it a good idea and if I wanted to do an Iron Butt, just about the last bike I would choose is a LiveWire. Even if someone did it once.
But then again, people eat Tide Pods just to get their face on YouTube, so -- to each their own.
My only point here is -- well, look -- y'all do whatever you want with your own property. But when someone says "see, you can totally cross the Sahara Desert in a Geo Metro, this guy did it", don't you think it's just not a great idea? Because it's not. If someone was looking for a vehicle to cross the Sahara desert with, I would not suggest a Geo Metro, even if some nutty bastard did it once.
That's all.
You can unscrew flathead screws with a chisel. But I wouldn't. And if someone said "here you go, someone else did it" I wouldn't use that as justification to say "oh, well, the other guys are all wrong, I'll go buy a chisel to unscrew these flathead screws with." Because it is an inherently bad idea, and there are other tools MUCH better suited to that job.
I saw a video where someone shot a .223 round out of a Glock 9mm. I would recommend against doing that. Yes, he did it, but it was still an extraordinarily dumb idea.
I saw a video here recently where someone replaced a Harley touring bike engine with a lawn mower engine. While it CAN be done, I would think that for 99.999999999% of us it's a bad idea.
If someone wants to burn up their $30,000 LiveWire's battery by recharging at Level 3 over and over and over, day after day after day, in direct contradiction of what the owner's manual calls for, just to show that they can do an Iron Butt or something equally silly, well -- again, their property, their decision. Doesn't make it a good idea and if I wanted to do an Iron Butt, just about the last bike I would choose is a LiveWire. Even if someone did it once.
But then again, people eat Tide Pods just to get their face on YouTube, so -- to each their own.
Last edited by FatBob2018; Jul 6, 2020 at 11:12 AM.
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