#HondaNM4

Winning our Reader’s Choice award for top scooter is the same scoot your MO staff picked, the BMW C650… wait, what? You voted for the $10,999 Honda NM4? Wow, we didn’t see that one coming. In fact, the final voting wasn’t even that close, either – the Honda’s 36.3% of the votes gave it a commanding lead over the second-place finisher, BMW’s C650GT, with only 21.4% of the votes. The Suzuki Burgman 650 ABS came in a close third, with 19.6% of the votes.

Man, I want so badly to like this thing, given that it seems to be my mission in life to embrace the Weird. But this Honda isn’t even all that weird, not when you compare it to blue-sky shots like the old Pacific Coast (which has achieved cult status) or the outlandish Rune, or even the Fury chopper – which is a thing I never thought I’d see Honda build. Then again, it’s pretty out there: No bike I’ve ridden before lights up the wild-eyed street people of the OC quite like this one.