03/08/2025

theSunday Special XIV ON SUNDAY AUG 3, 2025

Suspension is adjustable.

Braking power is phenomenal.

High-revving four cylinder engines.

The sound of the inline-four engine is intoxicating.

0 User1 and User2 modes allow the rider to tailor Adjustable Power and Engine Braking. 0 Four-level Honda Selectable Torque Control (HSTC) and Wheelie Control boost traction and stability across conditions. 0 211kg curb weight. RIDING THE BEAST Pre-Ride: Our first impression of the new bike, engine rumbling at idle with its heat washing over, will get your pulse rac ing. We have ridden the CB1000R several years ago but it did not have the same effect, for some reason. The new bike has a sharper front end, bulbous fuel tank, and sharp tail. The gold rims and forks offset the stealth fighter-like matte black bodywork, resulting in a luxuri ous look, like that of 70s race bikes and race cars. Speaking about the front end, we have had comments that it is similar or even identical to the Kawasaki Z1000 and Ducati Streetfighter. What we can say is it looked so very different in the flesh. We always begin our initial test rides with familiarising ourselves with the bikes’ controls and settings, to avoid getting con fused and distracted while riding. The 5-inch TFT panel is the same as the one on the NSS250 scooter we just dropped off, and it was a welcome sight, given its sharp and vivid colour display. Every icon, number, and graph is easily discernible and digested. Toggling through the data and features is done via “joystick” on the left handlebar. So, we paired our Bluetooth devices by adding another bike in the Honda RoadSync App, customised our display settings, set the riding and quick shifter modes through the TFT screen. The CB1000 does not only use the same TFT screen, its software is also identical as the NSS250’s. We feel that this is a good thing because it makes it easy to configure all the Honda motorcycles in your garage. First ride: Throwing a leg over the bike had us discovering its low seat height. Yes, it looks tall in pictures but we could place both feet on the ground securely. Honda listed the seat height at just 810mm, while most open-class naked motorcycles feature seat heights in the 830mm region. Helping with that was the bike’s thin “waist” where the seat met the fuel tank. The profile at the front of the tank was wide, thinned down in the middle, then the passenger’s seat widened out again, giving the motorcycle the profile of a hornet when

Three clicks off the TTX36’s rebound damping solved it. From here on, no bump could upset our chosen cornering line. The brakes are also awesome. They pro vide amazing stopping power along with a superb feel at the lever. When push came to shove, we used that feedback to trail brake into corners which surprised several super sport riders. Adding to the visceral feel of the bike was the RC exhaust valve which beings to open at 5,700rpm. Riding the bike below that point, we hear the growling exhaust note. From 5,700rpm and above, the exhaust note became a howl. However, do keep in mind that 5,700rpm in sixth gear had the bike running at over 130kph. It suddenly dawned upon us how easily we could contradict ourselves. This tester had said to himself that riding a slower bike or scooter was relaxing, and questioned who needs a powerful bike, only to giggle in his helmet like a schoolgirl when the Honda CB1000 SP blew everyone away. When they said power corrupts, it really does. CONCLUSION The 2025 Honda CB1000 SP reminded us that a powerful, but controllable motor cycle is always fun to ride. It is this kind of motorcycle that makes you want to go out and just ride and ride. Of course, it is not perfect due to the abrupt throttle response in some riding modes but we overcame that after a first few minutes. But it is precisely this kind of character that imbues the bike with the two distinct personalities of a (sassy) pussycat and a tiger, depending on your preference and mood. Also, upshifting with the quickshifter is not as smooth in the first three gears despite us playing around with different rpms, modes, and settings. But so what? We still shift gears manually on every motorcycle (not scooters, of course!) anyway. SPECIFICATIONS Engine: 1000cc, liquid-cooled, four-cylin der Power: 155hp @ 11,000rpm Torque: 107Nm @ 9,000 rpm Transmission: 6-speed manual Fuel capacity: 17-litres Curb weight: 211kg We like: Power, smooth engine, good looks. We don’t like: Difficult to ride slow.

The engine is shared with other Honda models but is tuned differently for the CB1000 SP.

Malaysian roads can muster: Fast sweepers on the highway, tight and bumpy corners on the way up and down. We switched to Sport mode before leav ing the BHP Gombak petrol station. The engine sounded like it was burning rocket fuel now – louder, rawer, more visceral – even before we got moving. Pulling out of the station’s forecourt and onto the highway had our arms stretched straight as the engine gave a mighty kick, so much so that the handlebar became light and started to waggle. We were grateful that the Honda Selectable Torque Control (HSTC) package includes Wheelie Control and could hear the engine dragging a little like the clutch being slipped. Otherwise, we would have probably pulled a crossed up wheelie. Also thankfully, the bike’s suspension and chassis are up to the task, despite look ing basic. On the highway, the bike’s sharp steering had it hitting every point we pointed it at without hesitation or drama. We could change our line through cor ners despite being leaned way over without the chassis and tyres tying itself up in knots. Bumps on the highway felt non-existent. The only difficulty was trying to hang on due to the wind blast at elevated speeds. Up the mountain road, we charged into corners regardless of radius or camber and let the engine’s torque carry us out to the next one. However, the suspension, especially the rear shock felt stiffer when faced with the bigger bumps and potholes.

viewed from the top. We started out in Standard ride mode and the bike made it vividly clear that it was tuned for aggression. Slipping out the clutch in first gear and opening the throttle slightly was enough to have the bike roaring down the road. It was enjoyable to blow away absolutely everyone else when taking off from the traf fic lights, along with the exhaust that was surprisingly loud for a stock unit. Daily riding: As much as we loved that low and mid-RPM torque, which made it feel a lot more like a triple rather than a tra ditional inline-four, it was apparent that the engine was very eager to go. Trying to split lanes at low speeds and in Standard mode had the bike lunging for ward as soon as the throttle was cracked open, while rolling off ever so slightly resulted in strong engine braking. We tried to lower engine braking further in the User1 and User2 (personalised) modes to no avail. In the end, we resorted to using the clutch a lot more. We soon discovered that the best mode to navigate through heavy traffic was in Rain mode. Switching to this mode had the engine calm down aurally, and the throttle response and engine braking became very smooth. But do not get us wrong, the CB1000 is still a huge pleasure to ride and ride quickly in urban surroundings, given that we have so many highway on and off ramps! The Mountain: The “Mountain” is our regular test route as it offers everything