Honda E-Clutch Goes Small-Capacity With CL250 and Rebel 250
Honda is expanding its range of E-Clutch models, with the CL250 and Rebel 250 being next in line to gain the technology.
Honda looks set to add more E-Clutch models to its range this year, as the CL250 and Rebel 250 are confirmed as receiving the gear-changing technology.
While both bikes mentioned are not included in the European range, it’s an interesting move and confirms how much faith Honda has in its automated clutch system. The European market does carry both the CL500 and Rebel 500, both of which utilise the 471cc parallel twin-cylinder engine that is shared in the NX500 adventure bike, CBR500R, and CB500 Hornet. It’s not yet clear whether the CL500 or Rebel 500 (or the bike mentioned above) will be following suit and gaining E-Clutch in the future.
You may also like to read out Honda CB650R E-Clutch review.
E-Clutch allows the rider to pull away, change gear and come to a stop all without ever touching the clutch lever. The gear lever still has to be tapped up and down to swap cogs, though, and E-Clutch significantly reduces the ‘shift-shock’ of swapping ratios - making for a smoother ride. E-Clutch is seen as a bridge technology that Honda hopes will help open up the door of motorcycling to more riders, including those stepping up from a twist-and-go scooter.
E-Clutch is just one of a number of non-standard gearbox options on the market, with Yamaha’s Y-AMT, BMW’s Automated Shift Assistant, and KTM’s AMT (Automated Manual Transmission) being the others that have been revealed. Even Ducati is exploring the technology, with patents revealed last month showing how the system will work.
Aside from the E-Clutch technology, the rest of the specs of both the CL250 and Rebel 250 E-Clutch models are thought to be the same as their manual clutch siblings. One area where they will differ is the weight, with E-Clutch adding around 2kg to the bike’s kerb weight.
You may also like to read out Honda CB650R E-Clutch review.
More information on how the Honda E-Clutch system works can be found here.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
