Honda CB350 lands in Japan with GB350 name – will we also get it?

THE classically-styled Honda CB350 H’Ness has been pretty big news in Indian since its launch at the tail end of last year. Aimed at stealing sales from motorcycle giant Royal Enfield, the CB350 is a modern take on the classic bike, with a base model and sportier RS now prowling Indian streets.

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And for pretty much as long as the bike has been around, rumours have been circulating that the model could be finding its way into other global markets. These rumours were confirmed in March when a Honda Indian insider confirmed that talks were ongoing to export the bikes further afield.

Now the little Honda has found its way out of the Indian market, as the bike is being sold in Honda’s homeland under the GB350 moniker.

The bike is being retailed for 268,000 yen, or just under £2,000. While that is a minuscule price to pay for such a handsome and well-equipped machine – TFT, riding modes, TC, and connectivity, it’s hard to imagine a UK version appearing with such a low premium attached to it.

With the change of name for the Japanese market, the GB tag brings back memories of another classically-styled café racer from years gone by, the GB500. That was a 500cc single-cylinder motorcycle, produced from 1989 to 1990. The bike was never available as an official UK model though, with only grey imported machines finding their way to the UK. The small production numbers and limited bikes brought to the UK make that machine a bit of a unicorn of the two-wheeled world. An EU and UK-bound CB350 could be a GB500 for the masses!