The Honda Neo Sports Cafe concept bike that’s been teased over the past few months has been unveiled.
This concept bike is about looks, not performance. It has interesting styling, blending old-school performance bike looks with modern angles, like something out of Blade Runner.
But on the tech side of things, there’s not much to get excited about; that four-cylinder engine seems to be derived from the old Honda CBR1000RR (no doubt re-tuned for torque). There’s no talk of other features to make this machine more exciting (no hints at electronic wizardry, trick suspension, etc.).
Frankly, what this bike needs is an electric motor to go with its information-age styling. But that’s not going to happen; instead, we’re getting a mash-up that’s aimed at the mature sport rider. It seems Honda reckons there’s a market of motorcyclists who want old-school ergos mixed with some angular Euro styling and Japanese affordability/reliability.
And, that could be a wise gamble. Retro Japanese bikes do seem poised to take off as a sales trend. If the finished product (supposedly to be unveiled at EICMA) includes enough technology to back up its futuristic accents, the Neo Sports Cafe could hit a market that nobody else has identified yet—and that’s something Honda has proven capable of doing, again and again.
GALLERY
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The production version will have the full electronics package at EICMA. I seriously doubt in this day and age that it would be released without it. The only changes I see is the instrument panel with a colour TFT display and a mudguard attached via the swingarm. In addition the headlight will be LED with turn signals with bar end mirrors (I hope) Of course there will be a cat under the engine.
But if Honda can replicate everything else into a production, I will consider it or the Kawasaki Z900RS. I can’t wait to swing a leg over it at the Toronto motorcycle show.
Shows that a modern design can be done tastefully, well done Honda. Hopefully Yamaha will take a hint…
This one fails the old maxim, “Two shall be the number of cylinders, and the number of cylinders shall be two.”
(recited in Monty Python accent)
Followed by the sound of coconuts being smacked together ?
“This one fails the old maxim, “Two shall be the number of cylinders, and the number of cylinders shall be two.”
(recited in Monty Python accent)”
I think it’s a nice bike and Honda has a legacy claim to the idea of the inline four MC engine.
Therefore, “I fart in your general direction.”