Re: Honda Eterno

Scooter Ownership Experience Approved

Re: Honda Eterno

I rode this scooter in college. Awesome scooter. Its refined as hell, cool sounding, good FE, lots of space the only let down is the horn, although i kinda like it. Its better than any commuter bikes out there. Don't know why people didn't like it. Maybe a self starter and telescopic front would have helped. Dad still rides it. I rode it yesterday only.

Re: Honda Eterno

Thank you Sir

Let me share how this Scooter came into my family...

My dad had a LML vespa.. Man, it was a legendary scooter.. it was with us for 18 years and it served us like anything.. I learned the concept of clutch, gear, brake, accelerator , in short RIDING on it.. I loved it.. by the time i was in class 10 my friends got bikes and i could still smoke them with the vespa and i loved it..
But sadly the vespa could not take the beating of time and grew old, getting it serviced was becoming a headache for my dad as it was his life line and finding a good mechanic at my place for vespa was not easy..

Getting a bike for my dad was not an option as long back when the 2 strokes used to rule the roads, dad had met with a serious accident. He had a Yezdi when the accident happened. It left him bed ridden for 2 years since then riding bikes became impossible for him as his left leg was hurt badly. So getting a new bike for him was out of the question.

He always wanted to change the Vespa and get a Bajaj chetak as it was the "hot-cake" at that time. But sad for him that i didnot like the chetak and forced him not to get it. It happened for sometime. Then one day i saw the Honda Eterno while suring the internet and showed it to dad. He instantly took a liking to the model. It was matching all his needs..

1. Spacious
2. Super leg room ( Dad is 6'2")
3. Under seat storage
4. Nice plush seat (comfortable for mom )
5. 3rd wheel

So began the wait for its launch.. After it was launched, one fine Sunday my dad said "Hey, lets go for a test ride of the Eterno".. so me and my dad went to the showroom on our reliable vespa. i was happy that i was going to take a test ride of a new scooter :P So went to the showroom.. My dad was busy talking to the sales person in the showroom while i was ogling at the big beauty, Big as it was bigger than our Vespa.. After dad had finished talking to the person, came up to me and said lets take the test ride.. i said Yeah!! and went out for the same..

I will never forget my first test ride of the Eterno. Since it was a big scooter and i was a small guy back then my dad kick started it for me ( yeah u read it right ) i was just sitting on the seat and my feet were barely touching the ground. Once he started it i settled on the bike. there was this humming noise coming from beneath me.. not the regular noise of the engine. It was a bit strange for me as i was used to the vespa engine sound and i was new to Honda then i looked at Dad with strange eyes and he signaled me its alright. So i was ready to set the scooter in motion when suddenly i found it very hard to put it in first gear. I was trying hard to press the clutch and move my wrist upward but the gear was rock solid. Then the showroom guy told that the gears are all down just like in a bike. Hearing this even my dad was amazed

So i put the scooter in 1st gear and let go of the clutch and whoosh the big mammoth started to move.. but strangely it was not making any noise!!!!!!!!!! 2nd, 3rd, 4th but the scooter was like hhhhmmmmmm.. the only thing i could hear was the wind and the new tyre noise.. it was amazing!! i instantly fell in love with it..
i returned back and handed over the scooter to dad for the test ride. once all the test rides were done we went back into the shop. I was again busy looking at the display bikes while dad went back to the sales person.

After some time Dad came up to me and said lets go home. I came out of the showroom with dad following me. Our vespa was parked in front of the showroom. i walked up to it when my dad called me from behind and said "hey not that scooter, This" and then he pointed at a new Eterno being rolled out of the showroom. it was a surprise for me

I saw the big, bright, shiny grey colored scooter being rolled out of the showroom. The sales guy came up to my dad, handed him the new key and took the old key from him and shook hands and went inside. Thats when i realized that it was the last day i was seeing the vespa.. i was sad but at the same time happy.
Dad sat on the new scooter and i jumped up behind him on the wide sofa like seat and went back home smiling

This is how an Eterno came into my Family in 2005, and now its 2013 and its still serving my dad. Thank you Japs for this scooter

Re: Honda Eterno

It would be great if you could include more details about your eterno like the fuel efficiency and the spares changed, how easy it is to get spares for it etc. I have test driven Eterno a few times and was simply blown away by the refinement and the quality of the scooter. Sad that it did not sell in good numbers and was discontinued.

Re: Honda Eterno

Hi all Eterno fans,

If all goes well I would be finalizing a deal - Eterno 2004 Oct - 15500 used - the damage - 17k . The old man from whom I am buying is one tough guy and didn't budge and I didn't want to let go so ended up with this hefty price.
The scoot does need good TLC. I would have to replace the front brake lever, get new rear view mirror and get a dent on the front side fixed. The headlight dome is also cracked near the left rear view mirror due to a fall, but is not very noticeable. I may get that replaced as well at some point of time.

I am not sure of how much money I would pour in. Will keep you guys updated. Dear fellow Hyderabadi Eterno owners, kindly point me to a good mech for a general service and resolving issues.

Cheers

- Srikanth Y

Re: Honda Eterno

[MENTION=61102]DebayanS[/MENTION] nicely written, brought back old memories of scooters. The older Activa & Eterno basically shared the same design with different power plant & transmissions. Do update on the service & maintenance part, loved to read it.

Re: Honda Eterno

Hi srikany,

Sorry was travelling so couldnot reply.

Well after 8 years its giving an economy of 50-55 kmpl..

Got it serviced last week and availability of Spare parts is very bad. Couldnot get a replacement air filter. it was of paper type.. Better check dealers near you for availability of spare parts.if they can get it for you then it is good..

Really sad that this didnot take the market.. Honda engines are superb...

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That's a quite on the high side. Considering the non availability and the damage to bike i think its bit high

Please check the showrooms before hand because finding parts is difficult.

Re: Honda Eterno

@Traveller01 glad you liked it This was and is the best scooter till date...
The service and maintenance is difficult now.. finding parts for replacement is difficult as the shops don't stock the parts. I guess some of its parts can be replaced with current models like active, dio, etc.

I recently got it serviced and repainted the scooter.. will post share the details in somedays

Re: Honda Eterno

I changed the oil with 10W30 grade 800 ml approx after a good engine flush with diesel. The gear shifts have become better and there is noticeable difference in idling. The approximate average I am getting now is 50kmpl . THe speedometer seems to malfunction when I go over some potholes at speed. I would have to get it diagnosed. The next weekend target is to get the carb cleaned and tuned, and gear shifting throw adjusted along with the cluthch play.

Re: Honda Eterno

People, can someone share someinfo on what is the best way to shift gears on an eterno. I am fumbling for the right gear in slow moving traffic but absolutely fine on the highway.

Re: Honda Eterno

yes [MENTION=25995]srikany[/MENTION] that is one issue with eterno as it gets old.. Dont know why but in slow moving traffic it is a pain to shift gears, specially when you are searching for the 2 nd gear.. i guess you will get used to it as you ride it more often.

Re: Honda Eterno

Hi Debayan, Bingo that was the exact problem I was facing. Changing from the first to the second gear in very slow moving traffic. I have found out the reason though! one (of the two) gear shifting cable outer has gone kaput near the engine side. I tried to source the cables near my home at two different show-rooms and was not successful. I will have to go to ramkote I guess. It would be great if you could share the number of your regular mechanic please my gmail id is the same as the xbhp profile id.

Re: Honda Eterno

Recently when the puncture guy was putting back the tube I noticed rust on the inside of the rims. Is it worthwhile to sandblast the 10 year old Eterno rims and get them galvanised. If cost permits, I might as well get them chrome plated after galvanizing. Any pointers where I can get quality work at Reasonable cost.