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Why a Honda Pantheon you may ask. Well quite simply I was wanting some sort of bike/scooter that had good weather protection, reasonable performance, economy, comfort and quality, Oh yes and it had to be within a limited budget so it would have to be used. I've had my Honda 90 Cub back from the repair shop since September 2000 following it being stolen and damaged but somehow it's remarkable fuel economy (120+mpg.) was no longer enough. I thought about a normal motorcycle, something like a CG125 but like all motorcycles with few exceptions there's absolutely no weather protection, so this was a none starter, therefore it had to be a scooter. After looking around I narrowed the field down, a lot of modern scooters don't have much in the way of a screen just a small piece of plexiglass that offer little protection. Next consideration was engine size anything less than 100cc's was out, Sheffield's a VERY hilly city (built on four hills, but who's counting) and so something with a reasonable amount of power was needed. Next on the list was storage space, I wanted a scooter that could carry a few bags of groceries or whatever. Finally the last item on my wish list was build quality, I needed a scooter that looked good and would last a few years. With these things in mind I narrowed the field down to these 3 scooters - Suzuki Epicuro, Piaggio Hexagon and the Honda Pantheon. I liked the look of the Epicuro, it seemed to have just about everything I was looking for plus compared to the other two it had a four stroke engine which means cleaner emissions and better fuel economy but after checking around it seemed that only the very latest models have a reasonably tall screen. The main thing that went against it was a comment on a web site that said getting tyres was a complete nightmare because they're an unusual size.
The piaggio Hexagon appealed because it had everything I was looking for except maybe looks (I think it looks a bit funny - sort of top heavy-ish). Another plus point is that there seems to be lots of companies supplying aftermarket spares - pistons, cylinders, etc, etc. But after ringing various local dealers, reading Bike Trader, etc. there didn't seem to be any for sale within my budget. I suppose the final reason for not searching around was, I really liked the look of the Pantheon.
Just around this time I found the 'Twist and Go' magazine on my local newsagents shelf, my luck must have been in because there was a review inside of the Pantheon. Well after reading the review I knew that this was the scooter for me. My only concern was the 'advanced' two stroke engine. I haven't ever owned a two stroke bike before, I didn't like the sound of them and the smell they make, generally I wasn't sure a two stroke was for me.
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