REPORTS have surfaced on French motorcycle site Motostation.com that a ‘very reliable source’ said that Honda is working on a version of the popular touring motorcycle.
The report goes on to claim that the basis for the machine will be the 998cc liquid-cooled, 8-valve motor from the CRF1000 Africa Twin. In my mind, it’s an ideal unit for a comfortable touring machine, with a shade under 100hp and 72ft-lb of torque, add to that the smoothness of the Honda DCT system and you have probably one of the best thousand CC tourers on the market.
And there is a good reason this bike would be one of the best thousand cc tourers out there – and that’s because there aren’t any others. Most of the mainstream manufacturers have blurred the line between touring and adventure bike, making basically the same machine but in two variants – one either spoked wheels and knobblies, the other with cast wheels and road tyres. Triumph no longer make a straight-up touring machine, favouring the ADV end of the market with its Tiger offerings. And Kawasaki too doesn’t have a vanilla option for the long-distance rider, it’s either brain-out-bonkers with the H2 SX SE or long-legged with the Versys 1000. Even Honda’s own model line-up is devoid of a machine that fits the bill, only having ADV, sports-touring or hyper-touring (see Honda Goldwing) options. This does leave a rather large hole in the market for what most would describe as a ‘proper’ touring motorcycle.
The only other question is what would they call it? The Deauville name is unlikely to adorn the new machine, there too many google hits that refer to the machine as a Dullville, which is unfair as the original was one of the best mid-weight mile-munchers you could get. Then chances are it’ll go down in history as the NT1000 or possible give a nod to it’s bigger sibling and go down the Silverwing route, a name that harks back to maxi-scooters and also the CX500 related 650cc tourer.
The final piece to the touring puzzle is that Motostation confirms that if the machine goes ahead it will feature a shaft drive mated to the silky smooth yet torquey motor. So, DCT gearbox, plenty of grunt, no chain maintenance and mini-Goldwing looks? Where do I sign!
*Picture from MotoStation.com
