CBF600N review

You’d have thought Honda had the motorcycle market covered, naked and semi-faired models included. But they still managed to identify a problem with Hornets in northern Europe. The Italians love ‘em and buy more of ‘em than any other bike, but the Germans aren’t so sure.

Honda say novices of all ages, non-enthusiasts, born-agains and (groan) women, all dream of a decent capacity bike that looks the part in the eyes of their peers, without emptying their bank accounts or frightening the living daylights out of them at the twist of a wrist. So to bridge the gap, Honda set out to create just that – an easy to ride and affordable bike with style. And has it succeeded? Well, judging by our first ride in southern Spain, ‘Oh Yes’.

Affordable is the CBF’s middle name, so many parts are Hornet sourced to keep costs low. But the bike’s styling owes more to the VFR800: sleek, angular shapes, similar pillion grab rails and headlamp shape, although disappointingly, only one side lights up on dip.

Sadly, the CBF does not get the luxury of the VFR’s underseat exhaust, or even the Hornet’s high level jobbies for that matter. What it does get is an all-new four-into-two-into-one system with a not-too-large oval silencer, which allows the bike to meet Euro 2 regulations. Honda claim to always be at the fore where legislation is concerned, even putting the snatchy on/off nature of its fuel-injected VFR800 down to meeting strict future emissions laws. But rest assured, there’s no snatchiness in the CBF’s carburetted motor – the same inline four that drives the Hornet. Instead, power delivery is smoother than a James Bond chat-up line, right from the moment you let out the light clutch and the bike moves forward without the rider twisting the grip. It’s a bit like the idle is set high, except it isn’t and it makes low-speed throttle control a walk in the park.

From here on, throttle response is constant and predictable, without a hint of powerband kicking in. Even the most cack-handed of throttle jockeys will glide seamlessly in and out of corners, with simply not enough power for a highside. The flat delivery also makes the engine feel laboured in the last 3000rpm, taking an age to reach the redline. But when you finally do, the limiter cuts in gently, reminding you to hit the gearbox with its easy clutchless upshifts. Just as well really, since according to Honda, its target customer can’t be too bothered with clutches and gear changes. So a peaky engine was out of the question then…

The Hornet inherited its engine from the sporty CBR600F, but with smaller carbs to boost mid-range at the expense of top end. Now, the same engine has once again been adapted, this time to the CBF’s target rider who Honda tell us would benefit from even more low-down punch. Hence, they say, it got new cams, a lower compression ratio and retarded ignition, all to make it more efficient at low speeds.

But ride it and you barely notice this increase in torque, and it certainly doesn’t compensate for the 22bhp loss. Honda engineers later confirmed that the power drop (and softer delivery) is purely because the target customers don’t want the extra horses: a claimed 76bhp delivered gently and predictably is safe, while 100bhp is scary…

The slight increase in get-up-and-go can probably be accounted for by the gearing, which is lower than the Hornet’s. Just as everything’s going swell, you hit 7000rpm where there’s a vague high frequency buzzing through all your contact points, which could become intrusive at a steady 85mph. That’s probably enough to make your bum go numb after half an hour of motorway riding. Still, you could be stopping often enough to get someone to rub it, as despite Honda’s claims of improved fuel consumption to reduce running costs, it’s only eight per cent better than the Hornet’s, which at around 35mpg is pretty poor.

Good news is, the airflow over the mini fairing is very smooth, and on the semi-faired bike the screen height can also be adjusted – another big word in the CBF’s vocabulary. Indeed, to make sure riders are perfectly at home on their machine, Honda made the bars and seat height adjustable (see above top).

Needless to say, the CBF’s chassis, with its Hornet-adapted frame, compliments the easy-to-ride package. The bike feels lighter than its 197kg dry weight (202kg ABS) and handling is responsive. It peels effortlessly into bends and feels secure on long sweepers; a slightly longer wheelbase than the Hornet’s stops it from being flighty, while the soft suspension feels exceptionally good for a budget bike. Even when you grab a handful of front brake, the forks don’t plunge to the asphalt… Ah, brakes.

If you’re nervous on the stoppers, you’re going to love the optional ABS system that will set you back £300 extra. The twin-piston front and single-piston rear calipers are easy to modulate; but if you do lock the wheels, you really feel the ABS kick in as the tyres skid and regain traction in rapid succession.

You’d have thought Honda had the motorcycle market covered, naked and semi-faired models included. But they still managed to identify a problem with Hornets in northern Europe. The Italians love ‘em and buy more of ‘em than any other bike, but the Germans aren’t so sure.

Honda say novices of all ages, non-enthusiasts, born-agains and (groan) women, all dream of a decent capacity bike that looks the part in the eyes of their peers, without emptying their bank accounts or frightening the living daylights out of them at the twist of a wrist. So to bridge the gap, Honda set out to create just that – an easy to ride and affordable bike with style. And has it succeeded? Well, judging by our first ride in southern Spain, ‘Oh Yes’.

Affordable is the CBF’s middle name, so many parts are Hornet sourced to keep costs low. But the bike’s styling owes more to the VFR800: sleek, angular shapes, similar pillion grab rails and headlamp shape, although disappointingly, only one side lights up on dip.

Sadly, the CBF does not get the luxury of the VFR’s underseat exhaust, or even the Hornet’s high level jobbies for that matter. What it does get is an all-new four-into-two-into-one system with a not-too-large oval silencer, which allows the bike to meet Euro 2 regulations. Honda claim to always be at the fore where legislation is concerned, even putting the snatchy on/off nature of its fuel-injected VFR800 down to meeting strict future emissions laws. But rest assured, there’s no snatchiness in the CBF’s carburetted motor – the same inline four that drives the Hornet. Instead, power delivery is smoother than a James Bond chat-up line, right from the moment you let out the light clutch and the bike moves forward without the rider twisting the grip. It’s a bit like the idle is set high, except it isn’t and it makes low-speed throttle control a walk in the park.

From here on, throttle response is constant and predictable, without a hint of powerband kicking in. Even the most cack-handed of throttle jockeys will glide seamlessly in and out of corners, with simply not enough power for a highside. The flat delivery also makes the engine feel laboured in the last 3000rpm, taking an age to reach the redline. But when you finally do, the limiter cuts in gently, reminding you to hit the gearbox with its easy clutchless upshifts. Just as well really, since according to Honda, its target customer can’t be too bothered with clutches and gear changes. So a peaky engine was out of the question then…

The Hornet inherited its engine from the sporty CBR600F, but with smaller carbs to boost mid-range at the expense of top end. Now, the same engine has once again been adapted, this time to the CBF’s target rider who Honda tell us would benefit from even more low-down punch. Hence, they say, it got new cams, a lower compression ratio and retarded ignition, all to make it more efficient at low speeds.

But ride it and you barely notice this increase in torque, and it certainly doesn’t compensate for the 22bhp loss. Honda engineers later confirmed that the power drop (and softer delivery) is purely because the target customers don’t want the extra horses: a claimed 76bhp delivered gently and predictably is safe, while 100bhp is scary…

The slight increase in get-up-and-go can probably be accounted for by the gearing, which is lower than the Hornet’s. Just as everything’s going swell, you hit 7000rpm where there’s a vague high frequency buzzing through all your contact points, which could become intrusive at a steady 85mph. That’s probably enough to make your bum go numb after half an hour of motorway riding. Still, you could be stopping often enough to get someone to rub it, as despite Honda’s claims of improved fuel consumption to reduce running costs, it’s only eight per cent better than the Hornet’s, which at around 35mpg is pretty poor.

Good news is, the airflow over the mini fairing is very smooth, and on the semi-faired bike the screen height can also be adjusted – another big word in the CBF’s vocabulary. Indeed, to make sure riders are perfectly at home on their machine, Honda made the bars and seat height adjustable (see above top).

Needless to say, the CBF’s chassis, with its Hornet-adapted frame, compliments the easy-to-ride package. The bike feels lighter than its 197kg dry weight (202kg ABS) and handling is responsive. It peels effortlessly into bends and feels secure on long sweepers; a slightly longer wheelbase than the Hornet’s stops it from being flighty, while the soft suspension feels exceptionally good for a budget bike. Even when you grab a handful of front brake, the forks don’t plunge to the asphalt… Ah, brakes.

If you’re nervous on the stoppers, you’re going to love the optional ABS system that will set you back £300 extra. The twin-piston front and single-piston rear calipers are easy to modulate; but if you do lock the wheels, you really feel the ABS kick in as the tyres skid and regain traction in rapid succession.