Two new middleweight Hondas have landed this week, but the Honda CBR400R and NX400 are only in Japan, at least for now.
Both use the same 399cc parallel twin-cylinder engine with a maximum power output of 46bhp with 28lb ft of torque, which, if either were in Europe, would stick them straight in the A2 class.
But, they aren’t in Europe, because instead, we have the Honda CBR500R and Honda NX500 which were unveiled in their 2024 forms at last year’s EICMA show. The basic reason for this disparity in middleweight displacements from Honda between its domestic market and Europe is that in Japan, you have to be over 18 to ride a bike displacing more than 400 cubic centimetres, whereas anyone 16 years old and over can obtain a licence to ride anything up to 400cc.
It means that the CBR400R and NX400 are essentially the same as the CBR500R and NX500 we get over here, but the 500s have 31lb ft, three more than the Japanese 400s.
In terms of cycle parts, both 400s seem to use the same Nissin brakes and Showa suspension as the European 500s, and they’re built around the same diamond-type frame.
The styling is the same, too, with the CBR400R gaining the aerodynamic side pods the CBR500R brought for 2024, and the NX400 following the same Honda XL750 Transalp-inspired visual path of the NX500.
When it comes to price, your average Japanese 17-year-old two-wheel enthusiast is going to have to fork out 863,500 Yen for the Honda CBR400R, and 891,000 Yen for the NX400, which equate, respectively, to around £4,500 and £4,700. For comparison, the CBR500R costs £6,699 in the UK, and the NX500 comes in at £6,799.
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