HONDA CB1000R (2018 - on) Review

The engine is excellent and really takes off at 7k rpm and up. Nevertheless, it is a pussycat in town, especially in Rain mode. It's really easy to switch modes on the go and I've learned to do this a lot depending on riding conditions. Not ideal as a commuter as you get very mucky in rain, and there's no weather protection. So long m-way rides are wearing with the constant wind blast and with no cruise control. It's more for blatting B-roads (which is mostly what I bought it for). As Neevesy says, the seat is comfy until it isn't - usually after 1.5-2 hours. Best of all, this is the only bike I've never dropped (so far!), despite its being a smidge too tall for my perfectly formed legs.

Tried and tested Fireblade RR7 engine. Bomb-proof reliable, super smooth, really powerful over 7k rpm, and it has some 'character', thanks to Honda's tweaking of the power and torque delivery from the original Fireblade version. The only thing that slows this bike down is the rider's tolerance of wind resistance (mine's getting lower as I get older).

Never had an issue with the bike in the 2.5 years I've owned it. Surfaces seem to be standing up to the wear and tear after 18k miles riding in all weathers and all seasons.

Even the 'expensive' 16k-mile service came in at sub £400 so this is not an expensive bike to own.

Love its looks. It looks like a hooligan with its short perky tail, squashed nose and low tank. I've customised it a bit - Evotech rad guard, ASV levers, Oberon bar-end mirrors, paint protection film, Nitron R1 shock, Leo Vince carbon end-can, R&G tail tidy. I replaced the OE tyres immediately after purchase and put Michelin Road 5 on. Sold the OE ones on Ebay. No brainer. Don't understand why Honda put such poor OE tyres on their bikes - it must affect the handling on test rides and put some potential buyers off.

Handling is sharp and spot on - some say rear shock is poor - I don't get it myself. It works better if you push on through the corners...this seems to get the bike settled as it tracks a line with real precision. Give it a good chance before rushing off for a Hagon or Nitro after market...the OE is probably as good as most riders require . The front big piston showas are really good. My 4 stars is down to only one thing as the brakes are superb - progressive with great feel and very undemanding - NO, it's the seat!! - It chews my arse after about an hour an a half something rotten. I have a VFR and that seat I can be on all day

Lovely thing. Great midrange now Big H have remapped the power curve, and loves the revs. All the best features of an in line 4. I don't get any vibes through my bars. Smooth response from the ride by wire. Fast enough for anyone quite frankly, especially when you combine the sprightly performance with the pin sharp handling. For road riding, especially urban, you can comfortably run with all comers!

Beautifully engineered. Rimless tank, silky quickshifter and auto blipper, elegant single sided swing arm, crafted alloy wheels, aluminium not plastic body parts, etched engine casings, classy tapered tube handle bar, forged pistons, more mid range grunt, superb brakes. No corrosion (but only done low miles). Never failed.

Don't yet know, but Honda build, and made in Japan. Ex Fireblade engine has been around for years with millions of test miles under its pistons so most problems will have been sorted. Also, the Fireblade engine welcomes 'hard revs' so there will difficulty in over doing it on this engine

Auto blipper and quick shifter a work of art. Some say they get a 'fal;se neutral' with the quick shifter between 1st and 2nd - well I was always told not to use the QS between 1 and 2. The OE Bridgestones mine came with are absolutely fine. Trust them...combined with the bikes handling they are good - wet or dry

You might great some corrosion under the plastic panel at the front of the tank, remove the plastic and spray with acf50 right off the bat. If you have a tracker, get a trickle charger

only done 5000 odd miles in two years due to lockdown, so will see.

OEM tyres are rubbish, swapped mine for Road 5's from purchase, had no issues.

A bit firm but very secure. Brakes are excellent. The seat is pretty hard and I'm glad to get off it after 100 miles. There is some space to shift about though. There is some high frequency vibration on the right bar which I hope may reduce over time (or maybe I'll get used to it).

Cracking engine. Honda bombproof and it loves to rev.

Top quality. Nothing has gone wrong and I don't expect it to.

The list price is high, but I got a cracking deal.

Heated grips and the quick shifter are great. I've added an Arrow exhaust, which saves lots of weights and is much smaller - showing off the single sided wheel. Cruise control would be useful (so you can get your right hand away from the vibration occasionally).

Bike is perfect for summer blasts on B roads (but then, which bike isn't?). It's comfy enough for most riding. It's not a long distance tourer - I usually need to fill up at c140 miles and am always glad of the break. I never take a pillion. Fit decent tyres from new and sell the OE crap on Ebay. Also, replace the shock with something better.

Creamy inline four that's got loads of grunt and flexibility. It's a bloody fast bike so the fact that it's a naked bike means that wind resistance keeps me out of jail.

Great build quality. No corrosion so far after 2.5 years and 18k miles. No breakdowns and no part has failed.

Even the 16k valve service wasn't that bad. Service manager told me that they hardly ever need to touch the valves on these bikes. Nothing goes wrong between services. So although the upfront price may look rich versus the rivals, it soon becomes obvious that it's money well spent. Bomb-proof reliability is priceless - especially when you're planning a continental trip.

Favourite features - probably the riding modes, the quickshifter, the brakes. I favour Michelin Road 5 or their predecessors but imagine almost anything will be better than what it comes with as standard.

Pillion ???? I’d have the seat cowl off and I’ve told no one but nearest and dearest that there’s a pillion seat.

Quickshifter needs a little improvement between 1st and 2nd.

Only had first service so far.

The abs was called into action recently (smidsey at a junction) and worked well although I had thankfully started to slow down when I saw the car racing to the junction, I can ride a good two hours before needing a break and/or petrol, the riding position means you are not leaning on your wrists all day, seat it quite adequate. I do need to get the suspension set up for me as it is a bit too bouncy

No matter what hear you are in it pulls, I love 2nd and 3rd gear and the acceleration for the faster rides but you could quite easily leave it in 5th or 6th, I also like the engine braking especially in 2nd gear on twisties.

Not had any problems at all

Just paid £73 for annual service at Kent motorcycles. The bike feels like it is in sports mode after the service even though the setting is in standard, very pleased. Decent rear tyre will cost £180 and £120 for the front

I would have expected heated grips on a new U.K. bike and self cancelling indicators, I have fitted a Givi rear rack but it spoilt the lines but unfortunately I need it, I also fitting a puig light smoke screen that looks good and really helps with wind pressure once you get over 80, and have just fitted Michelin pilot 5's as I am an all year round rider

on the road the bike is amazing, im 14 stone and the suspension is far from harsh and gives good feeling braking in and accelerating out of corners.

this underpowered naked honda? acceleration is where you need it on the road to think about overtaking is to overtake, standard mode smooth through all the gears.

realy too soon to tell, but secondhand bike picked up in excellent condition. no problem with the paint finish as some seem to have, slight niggle the seat cowl is so high the previous owner and myself are scratching it getting on and off.

again too soon to tell

dealer fitted new tyres (after only 1800miles ) and also have the aftermarket slip on, so all good.

The suspension Honda have set a few notches off dead soft, so a lot of people are replacing rear shocks, this appears to mainly be larger riders, i have had my suspension set up and its much more planted and useable! The brakes appear sharp and give plenty of stopping power!

Despite the CAT being in place i find the power more than enough and midrange is good fun,the front wheel often pops up and skips about under acceleration and with the right rider will wheelie no problem.

i have given the bike the rating i have due to the many issues the bike has shown over the months,not just from myself but from the many owners worldwide who voiced these views on owners groups. 1st example the riders seat appears to have rips in, this im told is how they are produced and the stitching is incomplete leaving you with "gaps" either side of the rear where it bolts on. secondly in my case is the rust forming around the welds, this appears on the top of the tank where the shrouds bolt in and on the back of the tank where the front seat sits and also at the front inside of the tank, the paint finish even though im assured by honda is an adequate finish considering the euro friendly paint/clearcoat is shocking, after being aware the paint was soft i avoided contact where possible but after light buffing/cleaning and a little polish it is left looking like i have used wire wool on it and the rainbow looking micro scratches show through big time.I have had my tank and seat replaced under warranty ,the new tank is scratched beyond belief and the rust i am in no doubt will appear again..Other owners suffer condensation in the display to the point they have had them replaced,failing peeling paint around the sump bolt is another issue, so in short Honda have really dropped the ball on finish!

Has to be the quickshifter/blipper,i owned a 2017 fireblade prior which i added this too and it was a delight, and the heated grips on the plus model work well for what they are!

The strong suit of this bike are the brakes and (with a few turns toward hard on the rear-damper) the suspension.

Could be stronger - especially in the middle of the rev-range you feel a torque-plunge that really goes on your nerves. Sixth gear uphill around 6 - 7000 rpm it nearly stagnates. I have installed a Shark Track Raw Slip-on exhaust with claims to bring 4 additional hp. I wreck my brain why they did not use the SC59 engine as basis - so much more expensive?

The core-virtues of Honda are still well made - very smooth engine and everything seems well crafted and engineered. But... all the other japanese producers excel in this catagories as well for years.

As Honda seems not to be able to sell its huge stock, you can get them at a bargain, far under listprice. With 998 ccm you are in any case in the 749 to 999 ccm-range - due to a bit lower horsepower it is a few Euros cheaper than my previous GSX-S. The fuel-economy is on average - I neet 5,66 l to 100 kilometers on very low-rev-pace. I was used to 5 l straight with the Suzi and a bit more punch through the rev-range.

First thing you need to install is something against the wind as soon as you go over urban-riding, onto country roads or tours. I was pondering a long time what will not worsen the looks of the already not so sharp front with the round headlight and reduce wind-pressure. I chose the Puig 3133F eventually. The traction-control is very different to the GSX-S - I was used to have power on full and traction on highest (safest) setting. Worked perfectly on the GSX - you never had the feeling you are hindered but super safe and fast. The same setting on the CB frustates you as it brutally slowes you down - somehow unnecessarily overzealous. Strangely when going uphill fast through corners in high gear it also brings you down although the wheel are most likely not to spin... somehow as the lean-angle and corner speed sets off the traction control. Then I went down to two bars in the User-mode - same. Then I went down to only one bar left for traction-control. Now it is not as intrusive as to slow you down but I am a bit anxious what happens when I accelerate fully and lose grip... how fast it will engage and prevent a crash. I tested this setting on a gravel parking-area - it does work at least there. ABS is excellent front and rear.