So, there’s a new Honda 750 parallel twin platform coming for a global debut at EICMA, far as we can figure, and Honda plans to debut an updated version of the Transalp adventure bike using that engine.
And now, thanks to the wonders of social media and spy photography, we have what’s probably our first look at that bike:
It might be a bit more offroad-ready than the NC750X series, or even the original Transalp lineup. Look at a photo of the 1987 model, though, and you can definitely see some family heritage on display:
If Honda brings back the Transalp, it will fill a hole in the company’s lineup that’s basically been empty since the last Transalp was canceled (in the early 2010s, depending which market you were in—they hadn’t been sold in Canada for a long, long time before that). BMW, Triumph et. al. have adventure bikes in the 750-900 range. Honda hasn’t had anything like that for about a decade, unless you count the NC series, which is more of a commuter machine than a hard-core ADV.
We’re almost certain to see the new Honda Hornet, which is based on the company’s new parallel twin 750-class engine, debuted at EICMA. That machine is already for sale in Japanese dealerships. But the word on the street is that we’re going to see a whole line of bikes based on that same engine, and this spy shot of a 750 Transalp on Instagram is the first peek we’ve had at that line. Honda has gone to the trouble of protecting this model name in overseas markets over the past few months, and it’s hard to imagine that doesn’t point to a release of the new bike this coming show season.
