Before the age of CBRs, GSX-Rs, ZX-Rs, and YZF-Rs, bikes like the CB1000R were considered the superbikes of the day. With minimal bodywork and upright handlebars, standard bikes like this didn’t have a category – they could do it all. Over the years, that formula has mutated into the genre-specific motorcycles we see today. Honda is aiming to bring back that classic style of the CB750 into a form fit for the 21st century.
Where else should we start, then, but the engine. Based on the 2007 CBR1000RR 998cc motor (before the current generation), Honda refrains from calling the repurposed mill detuned, but instead calls it “retuned” for “loads of right-now power.” Whatever you want to call it, the “old” Honda superbike engine from just a few years ago now pumps out a modest 107 horsepower and 63.6 ft.-lb. of torque, according to the Superflow dyno at Gene Thomason Racing.
Retuned as it might be, the mill has plenty of power to get you out of the tightest situations. Or, if you’re like me, it has enough grunt to allow the rider to leave it in sixth gear and never touch the shift lever again at speeds above 20 mph. Speaking of gearing, the CB1K shifts with precise clicks each time you call for a gear. This is a feat we’re used to in many of Honda’s sport and sporty-type bikes.
Unlike Honda’s sportbikes, or any sportbike for that matter, the cockpit of the CB1K is noticeably neutral and unusually narrow, especially considering there’s a liter-class engine underneath you. Seat height is a reasonable 32.5 inches. The reach to the gold-anodized, tapered handlebars feels natural, while the footpegs are seemingly directly underneath the seat, which itself is fairly well cushioned. All told, the rider triangle harkens back to that of the CB750 of yore. Its narrow stature, however, “almost feels motard-like” as our own Pete Brissette put it. (motorcycle.com)
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