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Honda’s novelties for the coming season should inspire all groups.

A reassuring message for all fans: The VFR is still called VFR, and Honda’s new flagship tourer Pan European ABS has only dropped the abbreviation ST 1100. Well-known names, but in both cases they are completely new motorcycles.
Worrying news for all traditionalists: The VFR can tell at first glance. After years of careful model maintenance of its former technology and image bearer, it was decided to start a European-Japanese co-production ?? was developed in Offenbach and Asaka ?? to the rigorous cut. With the result that the rather sedate appearance of the old VFR gave way to a progressive exterior.
Moving away from emphasized understatement, the new one is massive, crouched, full of zest for action. Four open-area headlights under a deeply drawn-down glass dome seem to light the way into a more dynamic VFR future. From behind, the exhaust system called “Center-Up” by Honda, with two oval silencers under the rear fairing, offers the viewer completely new perspectives, increases passenger comfort thanks to lower footrests and emphasizes the technical independence of the VFR from the side. Because the missing right swing arm and the filigree five-inch rim only come into their own when they are not installed.
A further technical feature can still only be recognized by the connoisseur in the typical, lateral arrangement of the cooler under the new plastic cover. The unique 90-degree V4 engine is still working there, the dimensions of which for bore and stroke are still 72 by 48 millimeters and which thus comes to 782 cm3. But there are also innovations at the power source. In an effort to give the sports tourer more bang in the lower and middle speed range, Honda thought about a method that has long been common in the automotive sector: variable valve control. With this system, Honda takes advantage of the fact that smaller valve cross-sections mean better filling in the lower and medium speed range? and quickly shuts down one intake and one exhaust valve per cylinder up to 7000 rpm.
Many will regret that another VFR specialty fell by the wayside. The camshafts are no longer driven by gears, but by a timing chain. A pleasant side effect: the engine has become three kilograms lighter and the valve angle has been reduced by 1.5 degrees thanks to smaller drive wheels. And because you were already at it, the previous single-hole injection nozzles gave way to those with twelve bores.
Honda expects these measures to increase combustion efficiency by 20 percent, which in conjunction with a tank capacity increased by one liter (22 liters) ensures a greater range. This will especially please the tourists among the VFR drivers, for whom the new, optionally available ABS (and only in this variant is there a spring base that can be adjusted by handwheel) as well as the suitcases available in the vehicle color (35 liters each) and the matching one Topcase (45 liters) should be an incentive to buy, while the sports faction will enjoy a stiffer steering head area, 43 mm instead of 41 mm fork tubes and a modified composite brake system that shifts the braking force forward more clearly than before.
Armed in this way, the VFR does indeed seem to have a greater majority than ever. Want to serve everyone: sports drivers, tourers and those who cannot really make up their minds. At Honda’s second premiere, the Pan European ABS, things are traditionally a bit different. It primarily addresses long-distance travelers ?? and nevertheless shone in the past with thoroughly dynamic qualities. So that nothing changes in the future, Honda made the Pan European lighter, stronger ?? and still more comfortable. In numbers: 283 kilograms dry ?? and thus 15 less than before. 1261 cm3 that means an increase of 176 cm3. 118 instead of 98 hp? consequently a solid 20 hp increase in power.
To achieve these values, Honda constructed a completely new motorcycle. Take the engine, for example: the carburettors have given way to an injection system with 36-millimeter throttle valve housings; instead of a toothed belt, a timing chain drives the camshafts of the four-valve engine. The crankshaft is 20 millimeters lower, the alternator between the cylinders, the cylinder liners are now made of aluminum instead of steel, and the ratio of the five-speed gearbox is a total of six percent shorter, two gear-driven balancer shafts reduce vibrations, and a regulated catalytic converter ensures low levels of pollutants.
A solid aluminum frame replaces the steel construction of the chassis, and the same applies to the swing arm. The wheelbase shrank by 50 millimeters, the shorter engine moved 40 millimeters further forward. In return, the diameter of the fork tubes has grown from 43 to 45 millimeters, and the spring base can be adjusted to the current load status using a handwheel. Honda’s own compound braking system Dual CBS, which is combined with an anti-lock braking system in the current German version, is already a tradition.
All Pan European drivers can enjoy the equipment features that are supposed to make traveling even more pleasant. This includes an extensive cockpit as well as a rotary knob for adjusting the headlight height; a driver’s seat that can be adjusted vertically and horizontally in three stages is complemented by a panel that can be adjusted in height and incline at the push of a button. For years, standard cases (35 liters) and an optionally available top case (45 liters) or storage compartments in the fairing have been part of the good tone in this class. If you want even more, you can grab the Honda accessory shelf: Inner pockets for suitcases and top cases, tank bags, heated grips, radio, CD changer ?? everything is there.
But even those who get by with a little less will now be served even better in Honda’s 2002 vintage. Because the Pan European’s little sister, the Deauville, has also been modified. More suitcases, less vibrations, more brakes, less exhaust? this is how the current state of the art can be described. The suitcases did not grow in width, but in height and now with 43.5 liters offer a total of 7.8 liters more storage space. Extensive engine modifications (80 parts were revised) ensure a more refined power output, a new secondary air system in connection with new two-way catalytic converters ensure that the Deauville meets the Euro 2 emissions standard. And the braking force is now automatically distributed even in the small V2 tourer, but ?? in contrast to the dual CBS in VFR and Pan European ?? only when you step on the footbrake. The front brake system works conventionally. An obvious distinguishing feature of the new Deauville: It is now adorned with a transparent open-area headlight.
Honda’s flagship athlete (see MOTORRAD 14/2001) appears with a significantly more tidy appearance than the previous model. It starts with the name: The whole R-fuss fell away, only Fireblade remains. And it not only has a modified upper part of the fairing, a flatter and shorter tank, new ?? now one piece ?? Side panels and a dynamic rear fairing with a diode rear light, but also more displacement. The bore grew by one millimeter and the displacement to 954 cm3. In order to ?? and with a throttle valve cross-section enlarged from 40 to 42 millimeters ?? the fire blade should now produce real 150 hp according to the ECE standard. As befits an athlete, this increase in performance goes hand in hand with a further reduction in weight. Honda promises four kilograms less with increased stability, for which the new swing arm is primarily responsible.
Schwinge is also the keyword for Honda’s second renovated sports car: the VTR 1000 SP-2. Because here it becomes clearest that many changes to the HRC factory racers are now also being incorporated into the series. Added to this are modified engine mounts, a modified shaft tube in the steering head and modified wall thicknesses on the rear frame cross member, a revised fork, a new strut with a wider damping adjustment range, new rims and a modified master brake cylinder at the front. The revision of the engine, which was already convincing in the SP-1, was gentler. As with the factory racer, the throttle valve diameter on the SP-2 is a huge 62 millimeters, and the four-hole injection nozzles have been replaced by twelve-jet double nozzles. As a result, the rated output (135 PS) grew by three PS at now 10000 / min (previously 9500 / min).
Externally, the extensive measures are rather sparse. A slightly higher windshield based on the factory machines and other indicators: of course, the inner values ​​count here.
Quite the opposite of the new 900 Hornet (see MOTORRAD 17/2001). She likes to show what she has, and that’s all kinds of things. The engine of the 1998 F.Ireblade, for example, which is supplied with fuel via an injection system with a throttle valve diameter of 36 millimeters and in this configuration releases 110 hp with a compression reduced from 11.1: 1 to 10.8: 1. All in all enough for a naked bike that weighs only 194 kilograms dry and has a shorter secondary gear ratio than the Fireblade, which should make sprint duels a real pleasure. But not for the environment. With the Hornet, just like with the SP-2, Honda does without a regulated catalytic converter despite injection. And that is permanent? despite Honda’s pioneering role among Japanese manufacturers? no majority.

Technical data: VTR 1000 SP-2

Engine: water-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke 90 degree V2 engine, four valves, bore x stroke 100 x 63.6 mm, displacement 999 cm3, intake manifold injection, secondary air system Rated output: 99 kW (135 PS) at 10,000 rpm Max. Torque: 120 Nm at 8000 rpm Power transmission: six-speed gearbox, O-ring chain Chassis: aluminum bridge frame, upside-down fork, guide tube diameter 43 mm, spring base, adjustable rebound and compression, two-arm swing arm, central spring strut, spring base, adjustable rebound and compression, cast aluminum wheels 3.50 x 17; 6.00 x 17, tires 120/70 ZR 17; 190/50 ZR 17 Dimensions and weights: L / W / H 2025 x 725 x 1120 mm, wheelbase 1420 mm, seat height 820 mm, dry weight 194 kg, tank capacity 18 liters Colors: white-black

Technical data: Fireblade

Engine: water-cooled four-cylinder four-stroke in-line engine, four valves, bore x stroke 75 x 54 mm, displacement 954 cm3, intake manifold injection, 0 42 mm, secondary air system, regulated catalytic converter Rated output: 110 kW (150 PS) at 11,000 rpmMax. Torque: 101 Nm at 9000 rpm Power transmission: six-speed gearbox, O-ring chain Chassis: aluminum bridge frame, upside-down fork, guide tube diameter 43 mm, spring base, adjustable rebound and compression, two-arm swing arm, central spring strut, spring base, adjustable rebound and compression, cast aluminum wheels 3.50 x 17; 6.00 x 17, tires 120/70 ZR 17; 190/50 ZR 17 Dimensions and weights: L / W / H 2065 x 680 x 1125 mm, wheelbase 1400 mm, dry weight 166.5 kg, tank capacity 18 liters Colors: red, red / white / blue metallic, yellow / blue metallic

Technical data: Hornet 900

Engine: water-cooled four-cylinder four-stroke in-line engine, four valves, bore x stroke 71 x 58 mm, displacement 919 cm3, intake manifold injection, 36 mm diameter, secondary air system, U-cat.Nominal output: 81 kW (110 PS) at 9000 / minMax. Torque: 92 Nm at 6500 rpm Power transmission: six-speed gearbox, O-ring chain Chassis: square central tube frame made of steel, telescopic fork, standpipe diameter 43 mm, two-arm swing arm, central spring strut, spring base 7-way adjustable, double disc brake in front, 0 296 mm, disc brake in rear, 0 240 mm, cast aluminum wheels 3.50 x 17; 5.50 x 17, tires 120/70 ZR 17; 180/55 ZR 17 Dimensions and weight: L / W / H 2125 x 750 x 1085 mm, wheelbase 1455 mm, seat height 795 mm, dry weight 194 kg, tank capacity 19 liters Colors: black, blue metallic, silver metallic

Technical data: Deauville

Engine: Water-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke 52-degree V2 engine, three valves, displacement 647 cm3, constant pressure carburetor, 36 mm diameter, secondary air system, U-cat. Rated output: 41 kW (56 PS) at 7750 rpm Max. Torque: 55 Nm at 6250 rpm Power transmission: five-speed gearbox, cardan shaft Chassis: bridge frame made of square steel profiles, telescopic fork, central spring strut, hydraulically adjustable spring base, CBS Dimensions and weights: L / W / H 2215 x 780 x 1260 mm, dry weight 228 kg, tank capacity 19 liters Colors : Red / green / silver metallic, white

Technical data: Pan European ABS

Engine: water-cooled four-cylinder, four-stroke 90-degree V-engine, four valves, displacement 1261 cm3, intake manifold injection, secondary air system, regulated catalytic converter. Rated output: 87 kW (118 hp) at 8000 rpm, max. Torque: 117 Nm at 6500 rpm Power transmission: five-speed gearbox, cardan shaft Chassis: aluminum bridge frame, telescopic fork, two-arm swing arm, central spring strut, hydraulically adjustable spring base, dual CBS, ABS Dimensions and weights: L / W / H 2282 x 935 x 1332 mm, dry weight 283 kg, tank capacity 29 liters Colors: red, metallic silver, metallic green

Technical data: VFR

Engine: water-cooled four-cylinder four-stroke 90-degree V-engine, four valves, variable valve control (V4 V-tech), bore x stroke 72 x 48 mm, displacement 782 cm3, intake manifold injection, secondary air system, regulated catalytic converter. Rated output: 78 kW (108 HP) at 10500 rpm Max. Torque: 77 Nm at 8500 rpm Power transmission: six-speed gearbox, O-ring chain Chassis: aluminum bridge frame, telescopic fork, standpipe diameter 43 mm, spring base continuously adjustable, single-sided swing arm, central spring strut, hydraulically adjustable spring base (only in conjunction with ABS), rebound stage continuously adjustable, double disc brake at the front , 0 296 mm, three-piston calipers, rear disc brake, 0 256 mm, three-piston caliper, dual CBS, optional ABS, cast aluminum wheels 3.50 x 17, 5.50 x 17, tires 120/70 ZR 17; 180/55 ZR 17 Dimensions and weights: L / W / H 2218 x 735 x 1190 mm, wheelbase 1457 mm, seat height 805 mm, tank capacity 22 liters, dry weight 227 kg (223 kg without ABS) Colors: metallic silver, black, metallic blue, red

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