2025 Honda Forza 750 Review: Way More Fun Than You’d Imagine

If you’ve ever been on holiday to somewhere like Italy, Spain or France, you might have wondered why maxi scooters are so damn popular. The Forza 750 and related X-ADV are some of Honda’s best-selling models in some parts of continental Europe, but here in the UK, they make up a tiny fraction of the Japanese manufacturer’s bike sales. So could the 2025 Honda Forza 750 do anything to change that?

The tweaks for the updated bike, though many, aren’t massive, but they should add up to make what was already an excellent all-rounder an even better machine than before. It’s unlikely to shift bike-buying attitudes in Britain, but after riding the Forza on a mix of roads in Sicily at the international launch, shared with a first ride of the related X-ADV, I came away longing for such machines to get more recognition back home. 

What’s new on the 2025 Forza 750?

We’ll start with the looks, as for once, we have a quite noticeable facelift that makes the front of the Forza 750 a whole lot sharper. There’s a new dual headlight unit with daytime running light indicators, and the use of a fancy plastic called ‘Durabio’.

The electric screen also looks different, because it’s now 25 per cent wider than the old bike’s. It has 120mm of height adjustment and comes with an automatic lowering function that activates when the ignition is turned off, rising back up to its previous position as soon as you’re moving again over 3mph.

You also get redesigned wheels, with the 17-inch front/15-inch rear sizing of the old bike retained. There are twin 320mm discs at the front combined with four-piston callipers, a two-piston calliper and a 240mm disc at the rear, and all of that works through two-channel ABS. The chassis retains the outgoing machine’s 41mm upside-down fork and Pro-Link rear suspension.

The seat height is a very accessible 790mm, and underneath it, there’s enough space to fit a full-face helmet. You won’t need to plug your mobile device in down there, though, because the USB-C socket has been shifted onto the handlebars. While there, you might also notice the updated five-inch TFT display, which uses the Honda RoadSync system for smartphone connectivity.

Also on the electronics front, there’s still a three-stage traction control system with Rain, Standard and Sport modes, although Rain has been tweaked for the 2025 model year bike. Cruise control, meanwhile, now features as standard.

Powertrain-wise, things look very familiar, with a 745cc parallel twin providing 58bhp and the option to buy a restricted 47bhp version for A2 license holders. As before, it drives the wheel through a dual-clutch transmission (DCT), but it’s been tweaked, gaining new tech that estimates oil pressure in the clutch piston chamber. This new system gives, according to Honda "Improved, more delicate clutch response”. The manufacturer focused on improving smoothness off the line and control under 6mph, while the latter aimed at making U-turns easier.

2025 Honda Forza 750 pricing and availability

An exact figure hasn’t been released just yet, but we’d expect a modest rise on the £10,499 charged for the outgoing model. When it is available, you’ll be able to pick one of three new colours, all of which are a little subdued. There’s ‘Mat Ballistic Black Metallic’, ‘Iridium Gray Metallic’ with ‘Graphite Black’, and ‘Mat Warm Ash Metallic’.

A whole host of accessories will be available, either individually or grouped together in the Comfort Pack, Style Pack, Travel Pack or Urban Pack. Highlights include heated grips, fog lights, panniers and a parking cover.

What’s it like to ride?

Throwing a leg over the Forza 750 is an odd experience, because, well, you have to ‘throw a leg over’. It’s not a step-through design, but the riding position is still of the classic legs-forward-at-right-angle kind, and with additional footrests should you want to stretch your legs in a cruiser bike-like fashion. Those are a little bigger, by the way, although I found myself only trialling that seating position a couple of times.

Behind the bars, the updated switchgear is immediately noticeable, making the old bike look dated and cheaper by comparison. The backlit elements are a nice touch, but I can’t help but prefer the old riding mode button, which was much bigger and therefore easier to locate on the move.

The new TFT is really smart, with an easy-to-navigate menu system and all the key information easily displayed. It’s also bonded a little differently, making it less susceptible to fogging and glare.

Selecting ‘drive’ with the dual-clutch transmission (DCT), the Forza moves off the line smoothly. It’s hard to know how much difference the tweaks to the system have made in that regard - I did briefly try a pre-update X-ADV with the old DCT at the event, but there isn’t much to pick between them.

There was still one moment where the clutch operation felt a bit ‘binary’ when going through a town at low speeds, but generally, it just blends into the background, which is the best compliment you can pay to a gearbox. The shifts are always silky smooth, and I never found myself wanting to override the system using the manual shifters or the manual mode, unless in Sport mode, when it’s a little keen to hold onto gears.

Reasonably soft suspension ensures a comfortable time in the reprofiled saddle, and the 17-inch front wheel makes for more confident progress over crappy sections of asphalt. And in Sicily, you get plenty of those, plus the odd town with aggressively cobbled streets. Making things further pleasant behind the bars, the new electronically adjustable screen is excellent. I’m the ‘wrong’ height for most motorcycle screens, which tend to just fire turbulent air at my forehead when fully extended, but the coverage of the Forza’s screen cuts out wind noise dramatically.

The 745cc parallel twin is one also used by Honda in the NC750X, and the Jazz supermini. Well, sort of - it’s half an inline-four from everyone’s favourite ditheringmobile, with a 270-degree crankshaft added to give an offset firing order. 

I find the engine a bit dull in the NC750X, but here, weirdly, it’s a whole lot more enjoyable with its grunty attitude and mid-range clout. It’s not one for high-revving heroics, tapping out at a mere 7,000rpm. That’s fine, though, as there’s a sort of effortlessness to the pace it gives the Forza 750, especially with the DCT almost always keeping it spinning at effective RPM.

With 58bhp and 51lb ft of torque to its name, it might not sound that pokey considering the Forza 750 weighs 235kg, but it feels perfectly judged and gives more than enough firepower for the kind of overtakes that’d feel cheeky on a ‘proper’ motorcycle but somehow feel acceptable on a big scoot.

When pulling off such manoeuvres, the Forza feels super agile, giving a clue as to how it’ll perform in the twisty stuff. Excellently - is the answer. The 750 is a hugely fun bike to chuck around, and even though the narrow bars don’t give masses of leverage, it doesn’t matter, so keen is the bike to tip in.

A long-ish wheelbase (compared to traditional scooters, anyway) makes for a feeling of stability in faster corners, and the Pirelli Diablo Rosso Scooter tyres offer plenty of grip and traction. Riding position aside, it feels very much like a motorcycle to ride, not a scooter.

In a testament to just how well-sorted the maxi is in terms of handling, I didn’t find myself clamouring for something a bit fruitier on the twistier bits of road. You can ride this thing flat out and it’ll feel like you’re covering ground very quickly, but not quick enough to worry about your license.

And then, of course, when you’re back town, narrow bars makes it a filtering weapon, and that aforementioned agility makes it brilliant for nipping in and out of traffic, despite being a big thing as far as scooters go. 

Should you buy a Honda Forza 750?

The changes to the Forza 750 don’t fundamentally alter the bike, they merely make it a bit more appealing than it already was, especially to look at, with the outgoing version looking a bit dorky by comparison. The tweaks bolster our opinion that it’s one of the best maxi scooters you can currently buy new. If you are in the market for a big, premium scoot, it’s an excellent choice.

The problem remains that few in the UK are in the market. It’s hard to pin down exactly why - perhaps it’s different attitudes about image, the role motorbikes play in the UK as actual transportation devices, the climate, or a combination of all of those and some other factors. Most will look at the expected £10k+ price tag and shirk it for a ‘proper’ bike, even though the Forza will be more practical, and as proven on the launch, not far off as fun and fast.

Honda is hoping to shift about 200 of these in the UK next year. Those will be 200 very happy riders, who’ll be extra satisfied knowing they have an extremely capable two-wheeler that most buyers here overlook.