Test ride : Honda CB1000R. 2021 model.

[Mr. Dazzle]

I wonder how much of the 'lacking' in the power is just down to it being more composed that your current bike. I.e. its pulling harder and going faster it just doesn't feel that way its less dramatic?

I suppose the difference between "feels faster" and "is faster" is less critical on the road.

[Couchy]

My bro has had one from new last year, loves it. As with most Hondas they are very easy to ride very fast. People often mistake that for lack of character when what they really mean is lack of faults. Still haven’t ridden one yet but may jump on bro’s one for a spin

[weeksy]

I wonder how much of the 'lacking' in the power is just down to it being more composed that your current bike. I.e. its pulling harder and going faster it just doesn't feel that way its less dramatic?

I suppose the difference between "feels faster" and "is faster" is less critical on the road.

Well it's 145bph and I saw some bigish numbers, it ain't slow. However if you're sitting at 50mph in 4th and waiting for an overtake, the triple in the XSR seems far more responsive than the Honda, the Honda is making it more at the top end of the range rather than the low to mid, so you're needing to sit at a higher rpm and lower gear on the Honda to have the same surge of power for the overtake. I'm sure it's something you get used to, rather than it being a problem. But is quite IL4 I think.

[Mr. Dazzle]

Presumably its a gearing thing, the CB makes a fair chunk torque more lower down in the rev range.

Just get that QS doing its thing and you'll be fine.

[weeksy]

Presumably its a gearing thing, the CB makes a fair chunk torque more lower down in the rev range.

Just get that QS doing its thing and you'll be fine.

The down blipper I admit is quite nice, but I can add one to mine for not crazy money

[weeksy]

https://www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-rev ... 000r/2018/

All this adds up to an inline four-cylinder motor that’s calm and refined at low revs, but packed with midrange grunt and a fruity top end. The electronic throttle never surges or stutters and for anyone who’s ridden a big inline four, the seamless power delivery will be instantly familiar. Granted it doesn’t have the character of a twin, triple or crossplane crank four

Bike weight 212kg

Heavy then!

Steering is ultra light and accurate at all speeds The standard suspension is set for a plush ride, but gets floaty when you push hard and pegs stay nicely away from tarmac at full lean.

Maybe I do know a bit about bikes after all

[Taipan]

Too modern looking for me, but I always really liked its predecessor, well except for the funny headlight. I used to park next to one and the guy kept doing things to it, new screen, end can, tail tidy etc.I really took a shine to it, but in reality they have too much BHP for me anyway. The guy who owned it reckoned it was pretty economical and had over 60k on it too!

Wanders off to eBay with an enquiring mind...

[Couchy]

Too modern looking for me, but I always really liked its predecessor, well except for the funny headlight. I used to park next to one and the guy kept doing things to it, new screen, end can, tail tidy etc.I really took a shine to it, but in reality they have too much BHP for me anyway. The guy who owned it reckoned it was pretty economical and had over 60k on it too!

Wanders off to eBay with an enquiring mind...

The original one was only 100 ish hp

[Dodgy69]

Ugly as sin...wtf do these new bikes have the hideous number plate hanger thing. 1st mod , get rid of number plate hanger thing. 2nd exhaust, 3rd rest of bike. The new gsxs is 10x

[Yorick]

I wonder how much of the 'lacking' in the power is just down to it being more composed that your current bike. I.e. its pulling harder and going faster it just doesn't feel that way its less dramatic?

I suppose the difference between "feels faster" and "is faster" is less critical on the road.

Well it's 145bph and I saw some bigish numbers, it ain't slow. However if you're sitting at 50mph in 4th and waiting for an overtake, the triple in the XSR seems far more responsive than the Honda, the Honda is making it more at the top end of the range rather than the low to mid, so you're needing to sit at a higher rpm and lower gear on the Honda to have the same surge of power for the overtake. I'm sure it's something you get used to, rather than it being a problem. But is quite IL4 I think.

Only Honda can make 145 gee gees dull.

[Mr. Dazzle]

The rearmost bodywork has to be behind the back of the rear wheel AFAIK, but they also want to have short racey looking seat units. Hence the stupid plate hanger.

[weeksy]

I wonder how much of the 'lacking' in the power is just down to it being more composed that your current bike. I.e. its pulling harder and going faster it just doesn't feel that way its less dramatic?

I suppose the difference between "feels faster" and "is faster" is less critical on the road.

Well it's 145bph and I saw some bigish numbers, it ain't slow. However if you're sitting at 50mph in 4th and waiting for an overtake, the triple in the XSR seems far more responsive than the Honda, the Honda is making it more at the top end of the range rather than the low to mid, so you're needing to sit at a higher rpm and lower gear on the Honda to have the same surge of power for the overtake. I'm sure it's something you get used to, rather than it being a problem. But is quite IL4 I think.

Only Honda can make 145 gee gees dull.

I wonder if an exhaust would give it a bit more feeling, part of the fun on the XSR is the lovely exhaust note.

As you know, I'm not exactly an IL4 fanboi much preferring an Twin, or indeed now, a triple.

I just think it'd benefit from a different torque curve.

[Mr. Dazzle]

Sounds like you need an electric bike with a tunable torque curve and augmented sound

[weeksy]

Sounds like you need an electric bike with a tunable torque curve and augmented sound

Ummm no, that's exactly what I don't want or need.

[Yorick]

Well it's 145bph and I saw some bigish numbers, it ain't slow. However if you're sitting at 50mph in 4th and waiting for an overtake, the triple in the XSR seems far more responsive than the Honda, the Honda is making it more at the top end of the range rather than the low to mid, so you're needing to sit at a higher rpm and lower gear on the Honda to have the same surge of power for the overtake. I'm sure it's something you get used to, rather than it being a problem. But is quite IL4 I think.

Only Honda can make 145 gee gees dull.

I wonder if an exhaust would give it a bit more feeling, part of the fun on the XSR is the lovely exhaust note.

As you know, I'm not exactly an IL4 fanboi much preferring an Twin, or indeed now, a triple.

I just think it'd benefit from a different torque curve.

The torque curve on mine is bonkers. Makes me grin even after all these years.

[Dodgy69]

It's a personal choice I suppose. My IL4 naked 1000cc prefered order would be,

Suzuki
Kawasaki
Yamaha
Honda.

[weeksy]

It seems like a natural progression to me considering your last few bikes and it's probably the right bike for you to move onto until you feel the itch to make another step change. I can see you buying this, really getting into the IL4 and the superior handling,

The obvious alternative would be to throw a couple of grand at suspension for the XSR, but you'd have to ask yourself if it's a bike that you want to spend that sort of money on knowing you probably won't get it back.

The handling is only one aspect of the bike, one aspect of the ownership...I'm not sitting here this morning waiting for the dealer to open anyway.

I talked with Crust last night about the XSR and i don't actually know if you can or could get the XSR to be that plush, I'm sure it's in some way possible, but maybe (probably) it's more than just the shock for example. You can get a higher level Nitron for £800. But when thinking in detail, the bars on the Honda seem further away and a different height, so i'm wondering if that plays a factor in the handling too (again, probably). So how would we get around that, answer i dunno. The bars feel lower, but also the whole front end feels lower, maybe shorter forks.... is that playing a factor in it's handling, is it down to the footrest position too, giving a bit more in the way of leverage.

The simple answer of course is that you probably can't make bike 1 feel like bike 2, irrespective of what bike 1 and 2 actually are, you can't make one into the other.... without it being the other

Whilst that handling is exceptional, the engine simply isn't.... well, not to me anyway. It's nice, it's smooth, it's easy... but it's not fun, it's not whooping in your helmet with smirks and grins and that has to be a factor and for me is one of the biggest factors, if not the biggest factor in owning a bike. I like and have for many years liked bikes that give me that, although sometimes in different ways, e.g the 690 ktm and the XSR, very different but both very fun.

[KungFooBob]

Big Question...

CB1000R or MT-10?

[weeksy]

Big Question...

CB1000R or MT-10?

It's been forever since i rode Trickys MT-10 and as you know, we forget how bikes handle, ride etc.. So that would be a toughie to answer there. If i were to go into the big-boys camp though then the MT-10 i think ticks at least as many boxes as the Honda, but deffo ticks the engine box more than the Honda ever could.
But i don't recall being this astounded by the handling of the MT-10 despite the fact i loved it.

I know you're all (not all lol) sitting there now thinking the XSR900 days are numbered, but the odds are it's really not. I still love the thing and it makes me smile each and every time i ride it... if a used higher level shock comes up you may see that being thrown into the mix on the back end... but that seems fairly unlikely.

[Taipan]

With an Akra and tail tidy etc, its a very nice looking bike in my eyes!