What do you call a scooter with 750cc? A Honda Elysium

The litre-class scooter can’t be far away. This is the closest so far, a 750cc flat-four-powered brute with the kind of grunt scooter riders can only usually dream about… and a roof.

The Honda Elysium is only a Tokyo Show concept bike at the moment, but with rival firm Suzuki already giving us a 650cc scooter, there’s no reason to think the 750 Honda won’t be coming soon.

It has a hydraulically-controlled continuously-variable design greabox, which combines the practicality of a normal scooter with the control of a manual box. You can simply switch between normal manual operation and full automatic.

The roof folds down at the touch of a button, sliding away into the rear section to make it look much more like a conventional scooter.

In true concept bike style, the Elysium has satellite navigation and a pair of rear-view cameras which bring up a picture of what’s going on behind you in a pair of screens positioned to look like mirrors.

Honda also claims there’s a special type of headlight to increase visibility and, of course you get a stereo and other kit you’d normally find on a big tourer.

But if you can look past the toys, you’ll find a realistic bike with the power and comfort of a real tourer and the ease of use of a scooter. It’s too big to nip through town traffic but its laid-back riding position, roof and luxuries mean it could be the future for long-distance riding.