All Tests – Honda CB1100 test: the CB always more Four – MNC riding the Honda CB1100

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Honda CB1100 test: the CB always more Four

All Tests - Honda CB1100 test: the CB always more Four - MNC riding the Honda CB1100

After five years of waiting, French bikers will finally be able to ride the Honda CB1100 in February. But Site has taken a step ahead: first test of the new Honda roadster particularly awaited by our readers…

MNC on the handlebars of the Honda CB1100

Before embarking on the controls of the CB1100 on the 170 km of the route programmed by Honda, Site takes the time – one last time it is promised before giving our opinion on the dynamics of the beast – to inspect the new Honda ( carefully reread our).

Qualified "timeless"by Honda, the lines of the CB1100 are successful: the big round headlight, the long and straight tank adorned with the winged crest, the (almost) flat saddle, the steel mudguards and the chrome plastic lights – the speedometers are in black plastic, bad pick! – the observer plunges back a good thirty years.

The choice of rims may surprise, even disappoint, but the designers of the CB1100 have prepared their justifications: on the one hand they did not want to go too far back in time, and on the other the presence of spoked rims would have inflated the bill…

Tall and thin, the split-five spoke rims nonetheless stick perfectly with the double steel sub-frame, the conventional 41mm Showa fork and the Showa dual shock absorber combination too: just like on the motorcycles of yesteryear. !

The choice of the exhaust may also surprise the oldest experienced of our readers: the CB1100 is equipped with an ordinary 4 in 2 in 1 which in no way evokes the famous four separate pipes of the CB Four of the seventies….

Four legs, but not four pots

According to the manufacturer, it was here to contain the weight of the beast – already estimated at 248 kg fully loaded! – and, once again, to limit the final cost of the motorcycle. "Beyond that, understand that the CB1100 is not just a tribute to the CB750 Four, it perpetuates the CB family", recalls Honda.

"If the demand becomes widespread, we will study the question of a further tribute to the CB750, but for now we present the CB1100", finally retorts the head of the project, Fukunaka San…

The centerpiece of this new bike, the in-line 4-cylinder (double overhead camshaft, 16 valves, air and oil cooling) is well highlighted. The oil cooler is perched above the manifold and no water line – by definition! – does not tarnish the pretty picture.

On the other hand, we can regret that the engine of the "European" CB1100 does not receive the same finish as the Japanese model: the polished casings and the black color of the Japanese mill are likely to be envious on the old continent. !

Same observation at the front wheel … Admittedly, the two discs remain directly mounted on the rim, which doubly lightens the wheel – on the scale and visually -, but on the right side, the 3-piston caliper and its multiple hoses made a bit of a gas plant next to the simpler two-piston system – you follow ?! – sold in Japan.

"In France, the CB1100 is delivered as standard with the C-ABS system., explains Bruno Chemin, press manager of Honda France. And according to the French team, this decision is based on three criteria: customers appreciate this combined ABS system, it lends itself well to this machine … and ABS will be mandatory in three years anyway. (read our) !

In the saddle !

First observation when getting on the CB1100 for the very first time: the operation is extremely easy thanks to the saddle located at only 795 mm in height and its part reserved for the passenger hardly raised. No need to lift your paw too high.

Placing the feet on either side of the large engine does not cause any more problem for the rider, even a small one, because the saddle is not wide and the calves are naturally placed in front of the footrests. The big ones, on the other hand, have enough distance not to hit their knees against the prominent cylinder heads..

"The tank is deliberately thin in order to give the pilot a direct view of the engine’s beautiful cylinder heads", explains Honda. Incidentally, this also prevents the thighs from being too wide apart, which one could fear by observing the width of the tank at the level of the crotch. !

By offloading the side stand, the pilot said to himself that Honda seemed to have overestimated the weight … But when maneuvering the big CB, the 248 kg all full became more present.

The less beefy – or less confident – riders will once again appreciate being able to put their heels on both sides of their bike. "The size of the CB1100 is similar to that of the CB750, so it is easier to handle than users expect".

This observation made by Honda proves to be correct, provided you start – with an electric starter and not with a kick! – the 4-cylinder in-line. It’s time to hit the road: black clouds are starting to gather in the Valencian sky….

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