CBR500R (2013 - 2016) review
The next generation's first sportsbike? A2-licence-compliant sporty model offers beginner thrills
EVER since Honda, that most sensible of manufacturers, announced their new family of 500s, that most sensible of classes, in November, the interwebs have been buzzing about the 2013 CBR500R. Which goes to show that there are a lot of people out there who get excited by sensible stuff.
Moral of the story, and truer than ever in the current economy, is that it's not always 150bhp and third-gear wheelspin that gets the juices flowing, but simply answering yes to the questions 'Can I see myself owning that good-looking bike? And can I afford it?'
As you know from reading our 2013 Honda CB500F review, the CBR500R is the sporty sibling in Big Red's new family, flanking the naked F and the adventure-styled CB500X. (Actually, because the three bikes are mechanically identical, it's the same child, who wears football kit one day, a school uniform the next, and beach wear another day.)
EVER since Honda, that most sensible of manufacturers, announced their new family of 500s, that most sensible of classes, in November, the interwebs have been buzzing about the 2013 CBR500R. Which goes to show that there are a lot of people out there who get excited by sensible stuff.
Moral of the story, and truer than ever in the current economy, is that it's not always 150bhp and third-gear wheelspin that gets the juices flowing, but simply answering yes to the questions 'Can I see myself owning that good-looking bike? And can I afford it?'
As you know from reading our 2013 Honda CB500F review, the CBR500R is the sporty sibling in Big Red's new family, flanking the naked F and the adventure-styled CB500X. (Actually, because the three bikes are mechanically identical, it's the same child, who wears football kit one day, a school uniform the next, and beach wear another day.)
