Honda RCV road bike coming to Milan show

Reports in Japan say near-mythical bike is finally real

JAPANESE reports are suggesting that Honda’s long-awaited RCV-derived road bike will finally appear at EICMA in Milan at the start of November.

Honda has been completely tight-lipped about its plans for new 2015 models to be shown in Milan, which could be taken as an indication that there’s something special planned. Now some Japanese magazines, in particular Young Machine, are saying that the GP-derived road bike will be the star of the show, where it will line up against Kawasaki’s road-going, supercharged H2 and Yamaha’s new 200bhp-plus R1.

Honda will also have its new 1000cc, parallel twin powered Africa Twin adventure bike at the show.

According to Young Machine, the road-going RCV will be called the RC213V-S – not the catchiest of titles, but one that leaves no doubt about the bike’s championship-winning heritage. Boxes to tick include a 200bhp-plus, 1000cc V4 engine, ridiculously high-spec suspension and electronics and a price tag that will put it well into supercar/house territory.