Staff Blog: Daily smiles from CBR500R

My only fear with Honda’s CBR500R was whether it would be a little too tame and that I’d get bored with it all-too quickly.

Just over a month and 1000 miles in I can categorically state that I’m still loving the little twin and it’s delivering plenty of smiles on a daily basis.

I have previously owned a Yamaha Fazer 600 and simply loved it for its do-it-all ability. It was comfy, plenty fast enough (for me) and was just as happy blasting to the south of france as it was around Brands Hatch on a track day.

And I suspected the CBR500 would be a similar type of all-rounder with a bit less oomph. And that’s how it’s turning out.

But it’s fast enough. You can get three figures on the speedo (at a test track, of course)  – if it’s downhill and you’re well tucked in, but it impresses in other ways to be honest.

It’s fuel economy is settling down at just under 60mpg and it’s incredibly stable for a small bike. It’s also happy bumbling around town or swinging through back-lane bends.

The only gripe so far is a bent sidestand arm after I tried to ‘settle’ the bike down on a grass bank.

It’s early days, of course, and it remains to be seen how the Thai-built machine copes over the coming months.But the bike has done all I’ve asked of it really well… such as:

• Brands and back in a day – 200 miles in comfort
• Daily 30-mile commute – back lanes have never been so much fun
• Improving fuel economy. Steady riding sees nearly 70mpg

Next, I’m going to look at some better tyres and may consider pepping up the exhaust. For now – all is good and I definitely feel like I made the right choice.

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