2018 Honda CB1000R Test: Change of Universe
Ten after making headlines, the Honda CB 1000 R is looking for a new style. Storing her modern influences in the closet, she plunges both wheels forward on the retro trend. Retro, but not too much, since the manufacturer announces an electronic unboxing in line with the increase in power and a reduced weight. Test.
CB1000R 2018 Test – Page 2: Dynamics
Goodbye the seaside, we’re heading for Ronda, up in the mountains! The private Ascari circuit awaits us there, imagined and financed by the billionaire of the same name. But first it is the obligatory passage on the highway along the "Costa del Sol". Nothing to say: at legal speed this Honda is imperial. Its slightly hollow seat improves ergonomics and its narrower crotch width does not detract from the comfort.
Rare in the category: the passenger is treated almost better than on the old model. The engine, very smooth from low revs, does not distill any vibration in the controls. The new instrumentation is very rich in digital information (see page 3) and readable, except for the circular tachometer. Let’s get on the road quickly …
With pilot Steve Plater as the opener, the game promised to be good! It was without counting on the drastic directives of the little men in red who asked the champion to be reasonable. And even more. Result, we will drag ourselves cock scorched throughout the test drive, on a wonderful course, in the ass in the wheel of the winner of the Tourist Trophy and the North West 200. Life is too unfair and the CB 1000 R, which some villagers watch pass with envy, above all criticism.
Balanced chassis and engine without brutality
With 12 kg less, we find the legendary balance and stability of the previous CB1000R. When other bikes of the style tend to shake you over the bumps, it flies overhead. With a fully adjustable fork and a Showa monoshock, still attached to a sculptural single-sided arm, the Honda is even easier and safer. Its new single-beam steel frame, which replaces the aluminum Backbone version, shows no more weakness. At these speeds, all that would be missing !
The braking entrusted to a radial system is impressive, brutal limit! But since it is assisted by an ABS – which cannot be deactivated – the only risk is to be surprised by its effectiveness. If the anti-locking of the wheels is not configurable, we can vary the distribution and the values of power and torque, of anti-slip as of engine brake.
These parameters are adjusted from the left stalk, by selecting from the driving modes offered (three, plus a configurable "User" mode) on the left stalk. More details in our technical section on page 3.
What about the engine? Below 5000 rpm, it would almost be forgotten because it is so smooth, linear, without holes or bumps … Perfect in its role for winding, as the selection of rare flexibility and precision. But so much perfection, almost submission, bring back recent memories of the tests of the Triumph Speed 2018 and the Yam MT-09 SP … Two motorcycles which, it must be said, we had otherwise shaken the trippes with their 3-cylinder much more expressive from low revs !
The Speed Triple in focus ?
The circuit is approaching. "Avoid changing to leather suits to respect the spirit of the grindstone during the photoshoots", we are told. Honda would not want to miss its target! Open to the privileged few and closed to the public, the Ascari circuit is breathtaking. 5 km 425 long, its curves have been pumped – oh, the ugly word! – on the most beautiful slopes in the world. Its "banking" refers outside the rings of speed. We will finally see what this CB1000R has in the belly: compulsory "Sport" mode !
And there, we discover a whole different motorcycle. Not that its rigor betrays us, because it is at the level of the best, but the mechanics are finally expressed. After 6,000 rpm, a delightful turbo effect sticks our eyes to the back of our sockets. It’s not the explosive V4 of an Aprilia Tuono, nor the Herculean twin of a KTM SuperDuke R, nor the inline 4-cylinder "fire pump" of an S1000R. But this engine which seemed to push us gently behind our backs on the road finally tears our arms away !
In the first two gears, the front wheel offloads, and the bike goes for 10,500 rpm, ignoring its false restraint in the lower revs. The 145 horses are there, dashing! The exhaust noise is louder, the pickups enhanced by the electronic accelerator are straightforward and the chassis follows suit (well, so to speak!). A Speed Triple is certainly sharper, but the legendary balance of the CB1000R hits the mark.
However, the bike does not dive alone with the rope, without however resisting to join it. And above all, she takes the traj ‘without flinching! Its very powerful brakes never destabilize the chassis. They do nothing to regret the C-ABS coupled system of the earlier version. Designed for the latest hypersports, the Bridgestone Battlax S21R tires are honey for the CB1000R. Even the choice of 190 mm at the rear, useless on the road even if it does not affect handling, finds here a semblance of justification by granting remarkable traction to the Honda roadster. !
Verdict: the habit does not always make the monk
At the end of this test, we can say that the clothes do not always make the monk: this Honda CB1000R perfectly assumes its offbeat positioning, between very modern sporting skills and a style – more or less – retro. This innovative aesthetic goes hand in hand with improved performance, high-end equipment and a polished finish. So many assets able to satisfy a large part of the clientele.
What more can you expect? A hint of character at legal pace as well as a more assertive tone of voice. For the rest, the CB1000R does everything, and it does it well … like its popular predecessor, by the way! Bruno Skotnicki, head of communications at Honda France, plans to sell a thousand copies by the end of the year, a third of which are in the "+" version. Still at € 13,199 for the basic version (€ 14,699 for the CB1000R +), its price is 1,300 euros higher than in 2017…
This price places it at the equivalent of a Yamaha MT-10 (€ 13,999 and € 15,999 in SP), certainly much less elegant but much more expressive. Same story with the aging Z1000, significantly cheaper (€ 12,799). Finally, the CB1000R will cross on its road another equally desirable and refined rival: the Speed Triple, of course, at € 13,750 (€ 15,850 in its very high-end version "RS") !
Related articles
-
Duel Honda CB1000R 2018 Vs Triumph Speed Triple RS: chic duo for shock duel Two new maxiroadsters land in 2018: the CB1000R, eagerly awaited by Honda…
-
2018 Honda Goldwing Touring test: more watts, less cotton wool On an exceptional motorcycle, exceptional measures: after 17 years without major…
-
Roadster – Test Honda CB1000R 2018: change of universe – Test CB1000R 2018 – Page 1: Static
2018 Honda CB1000R Test: Change of Universe Ten after making headlines, the Honda CB 1000 R is looking for a new style. Putting her modern influences in…
-
2018 Honda Goldwing Touring test: more watts, less cotton wool On an exceptional motorcycle, exceptional measures: after 17 years without major…
-
Africa Twin 2018 test: looking for a new model, Adventure Sports if affinities Honda successfully revived the Africa Twin line in 2016 with a finely…
-
Duel Honda CB1000R 2018 Vs Triumph Speed Triple RS: chic duo for shock duel Two new maxiroadsters land in 2018: the CB1000R, eagerly awaited by Honda…
-
Speed Triple RS test: the Triumph roadster raises the tone and the sound in 2018 Only two years after its last update, the Speed Triple benefits from…
-
Roadster – Test Honda CB1000R 2018: change of universe – Test CB1000R 2018 – Page 3: Technical point
2018 Honda CB1000R Test: Change of Universe Ten after making headlines, the Honda CB 1000 R is looking for a new style. Storing her modern influences in…
-
Honda CBR1000RR / SP 2017 test: neither gross nor submitted ! Forget the old CBR1000RR lacking in performance and technology: Honda celebrates 25 years…
-
Duel Honda CB1000R 2018 Vs Triumph Speed Triple RS: chic duo for shock duel Two new maxiroadsters land in 2018: the CB1000R, eagerly awaited by Honda…