Honda CBR650F review, test ride

The CBR650F comes with a button-started, four-stroke, 648.7cc, in-line four cylinder engine. It’s one of the few in-line four cyl. bikes in the class, and offers the inimitable, addictive sound and character those familiar with such multi-cylinder ‘in-lines’ seldom switch from. The latest Honda engine is liquid-cooled, with fuel-injection and puts out 85.3 bhp at 11,000rpm, with peak torque 6.4kgm twisting through the crankshaft at 8,000rpm. As you’d expect, the CBR 650F is a silken smooth performer, that delivers seamless, step-free acceleration when thrashed and you quick-shift up through the gears, accompanied by a soft, yet potent sounding exhaust scream.

The Honda readily revs to around 11,000rpm, and blasts through a broad powerband with ample grunt available from anywhere over 4,000rpm. The CBR 650F comes with a six-speed gearbox, allied to a smooth working, perfectly sprung clutch, that isn’t too heavy to operate in urban Indian conditions.

Performance is scintillating on this refined new Honda, with genuine 200kph plus speeds coming up effortlessly when roads allowed, and the CBR 650F not falling as far behind the full size litre-class superbike brigade as you might expect. The CBR 650F zipped from 0-100kph in an impressive 4.23 seconds during our acceleration tests, smashing past 160kph in 9.59secs and still accelerating relentlessly as it cleaved through 200kph in 19.47s. That’s enough power to cut your teeth on before graduating to the bigger league bikes today available in India.

The CBR 650F comes with a steel spar frame, supported by an alloy swingarm. 17 inch rims are standard front and rear. The new Honda’s riding position is spot on for this class of bike, sporty, yet without an overly aggressive lean-in to the bars, allowing regular use of the bike, plus the occasional long distance touring outing. In terms of dimensions, the new CBR is more compact than a Kawasaki Ninja 650. It isn’t however light, weighing 215kg, and you sometimes can feel its mass while riding the bike, when tipping the CBR 650F into corners, or as you switch directions when following the right lines through the twisties.

Suspending the motorcycle are 41mm telescopic forks in front, not upside downs, and a monoshock at the rear. Hauling the CBR 650F down when braking are powerful, twin 320mm petal rotor front disc brakes, plus a 240mm single petal disc at rear, ABS enabled, and working brilliantly, with just the right bite and feel. The new Honda comes with two tyres optional, Dunlop or Metzeler. Our test bike came shod with Dunlops, which offered fair traction and left us with no reason to complain.