Honda's Fireblade goes naked

published 26 September 2008

Honda has finally caught on to something European bike manufacturers have been doing for donkey's years, says Emma Franklin in Ride. It has made a "naked" sportsbike. What that means is you take your top-flight sportsbike in Honda's case, its highly respected CB1000R Fireblade. Then you strip off the fairing, retune the engine, and create a whole new bike better suited for the road, and with refinement replaced with "giggles and grins". It's hardly the most practical of bikes you'll run out of petrol after just 90 miles, for example but "it has a sportsbike's soul", with a commanding riding position, smooth engine, and phenomenal brakes.

It offers strong performance too, says Motorcycle News. Its 130bhp "is plenty", but what really impresses is "the torque and the way the power is delivered". It's not quite as raw as the Triumph Speed Triple, say, but "that makes it easier to ride". It's also superb value, undercutting all its rivals by some margin, and is a better bike in nearly every respect.

And let's not forget, you're getting a Honda the Sony of motorcycles, says Superbike. It is well put together, perfectly proportioned and neatly designed. It also does what Honda does best provides a bike that is "so, so easy to live with". And, unlike some of its predecessors, this model "has some character about it" too.