All Tests – CTX1300 Test: Honda’s New Cruiser – Honda Launches Touring Cruiser

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CTX1300 test: Honda’s new cruiser

All Tests - CTX1300 Test: Honda's New Cruiser - Honda Launches Touring Cruiser

The Honda regiment is completed this year by a new recruit: the CTX1300. Halfway between a custom and a road, this “ cruiser ” has as weapons an original look, the Pan European V4 and a host of standard equipment. Test !

Honda launches its touring cruiser

Among the many novelties of Honda 2014 is a brand new model: the CTX1300. After having discovered his sister, tested the new one, gauged the trail version and opposed the, Site participated in the press launch of this new "cruiser touring".

CTX1300: availability, colors and price

  • Availability: immediate in the

  • Colors: red, black or white

  • Price: 17 699 €

"Flag bearer of a new family (the CTX, Editor’s note)who intends to offer a different approach", this new machine" made in Japan "- manufactured at the Kumamoto plant more precisely, from which also come the Goldwing, Fireblade or VFR1200 in particular – is intended to be both easy, practical and dynamic.

It is to allow MNC to verify the statements of their Japanese colleagues that the Honda Moto France team offered us to travel a nice 150 km loop linking Draguignan, Frejus and Mandelieu by the small roads of Provence….

Posted in front of us alongside the small CTX700 and the big one, the CTX1300 impresses almost as much as the "baggerized" Goldwing … Its plastic cylinder head covers shine and blend perfectly with the double chrome exhaust.

The rest of the engine (from the, read our Technical point on the third page) is painted in black, which amplifies, on the white and red colors, the contrast between the visually discreet mechanics and the dapper aesthetic, specific to this new model which should attract those whom the American look (Harley-Davidson, but also Indian or Victory) does not seduce.

Despite a shorter rear than the F6B and less carefully integrated cases, the CTX1300 has a strong family resemblance with the Honda "big bagger", especially when viewed from the front. It is nevertheless skillfully distinguished from the "Gold" by its lower and more elegant mirrors..

The fully LED lighting, more compact and angular, is topped by more frowning eyebrows than on the F6B: it has beautiful cubic 571 cc less than the flagship (1261 cc for the V4 against 1832 cc for the 6-cylinder flat opposites), the new Honda "touring cruiser" plays the big arms !

Fortunately, it is not necessary to do weight training to raise the bike from its side stand: of course, the full weight peaks at 338 kg, but the low center of gravity allows this to be put into perspective. Taller and wider, the F6B requires more effort, experience and focus.

We note that the Japanese originally equipped the Honda CTX1300 with small anti-drop appendages, in case the pilot was caught by a slope, a side road strewn with gravel – MNC almost got caught! – or a small drop in form or attention.

Equipped with a low and elongated general line, in the vein of custom-type motorcycles, the new CTX is also inspired by this category in terms of the geometry of the chassis (open frame, long wheelbase and large rims, mainly).

The very first laps of the wheels will therefore be obvious for those who have already ridden this type of motorcycle, but will appear more destabilizing for novices who have never driven a motorcycle while sitting as in a chair: buttocks flush with the ground, arms outstretched. and stretched, lower back wedged in the double-stage saddle, legs bent at 90 ° and feet slightly forward.

Experienced or not, bikers with long legs will only be really bothered by one thing: the right cylinder head – moved back compared to the left – which can interfere with the top of the shin. A concern that the large riders do not know about the Goldwing and its "top-down" version…

The warm-up remains fast: a few kilometers in the city are enough to understand the instructions for use of the all-new Honda. Thanks to its neutral front axle and its remarkable balance at low speed, the pilot quickly gains confidence. This time, the CTX scores points against the heavy F6B !

The wide and eccentric handlebars require a certain mobility at the level of the bust, which one acquires over intersections, roundabouts and other urban maneuvers. These developments at low and medium speeds are greatly facilitated by the engine and its transmission..

Agreeing to drive at walking pace without hiccuping on first gear, to start again from idle without flinching on third gear and to cross the village streets peacefully at 50 km / h in fifth and last gear, the 4-cylinder V is the engine. one of the main strengths of the CTX1300.

The shaft transmission ideally assists the V4 by limiting to the strict minimum the jolts generated by possible cuts or sudden gas changes. The only weak point in the motorization radius: the hardness of the hydraulic clutch control, which tires out over time.

Some will regret all the more the absence of DCT on this CTX, while the 700 is equipped with it as standard. Incompatible with the "good old" V4, the double clutch could have improved the "experience" of the bikers at the controls of the 1300.

As a reminder, the "X" of CTX "rhymes with eXperience", specifies Honda:"experience of a driving position typical of customs, but also smooth and pleasant performance". Apart from the somewhat harsh command, the CTX1300 fulfills its contract.

The "T", synonymous with Technology, refers on the CTX1300 to the refined version of the V4 of course, but also to the braking system, very convincing: in "normal" driving, it suffices to press the rear brake pedal to effectively slow the beast.

The three pistons of the rear caliper bite hard on the 316mm disc, while the central piston of the front left caliper (see our Tech Point) simultaneously attacks its own 320mm disc, distributing the braking between the two wheels..

During our emergency braking tests, which were carried out, it should be noted on impeccable roads, the ABS (supplied as standard with the CBS) did not have to intervene once. Powerful and adjustable at both the lever and the pedal, the braking of this new Honda is flawless..

In passing, we congratulate the Dunlop D423 for their excellent grip, at least in the dry. The 200mm rear section works well with acceleration too, as Site was forced to deliberately ride on zebra crossings to dent the traction control (TCS). And this despite an "astounding" torque of 106 Nm reached from 4500 rpm…

By opening the throttle on the white stripes like a fat stupid journalist concerned about a job well done, we notice that the rear wheel barely slips. The rear axle for its part remains perfectly in line while the "TCS" light flashes on the instrument panel..

Classic in appearance with its two analog meters and its central LCD screen, the panel incorporates LED indicator lights: that’s also being "high tech"! Perfectly readable and controlled via buttons placed on the tank (we will come back to this in the second part), the instrumentation is quite satisfactory. It would be perfect with the gear indicator engaged and the tire pressure…

Also with LED, the indicators are managed by an electronic system which turns them off automatically (see our Technical point). In fact, the indicators turn off correctly at the exit of the crossroads, but as soon as the arc of a circle is larger the cancellation occurs a little too late. To refine !

In town, the good balance of the CTX1300, its flexible and smooth motorization and its benevolent CBS-ABS and TCS counterbalance the faults that can be blamed: absence of DCT, hard clutch control, size and weight to watch.

Once out of town – rather "well out", therefore – the CTX1300 tackles the road, the real one, on which it must showcase even more striking and convincing qualities. Ready? Start on next page.

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