Performance motorcycles are, for the most part, high-maintenance vehicles. They tend to get pretty hot in traffic, and generally are not the most practical motorcycles. Naturally, there are always some exceptions to the rule. Naked bikes in particular offer us a way to have our high-performance cake and eat it. While there is still an element of risk attached to purchasing a more exotic hyper-naked, that is not expressly necessary. The big four Japanese manufacturers all offer a bike in this space, with each bike offering a different balance between performance and handling.
A Couple Of Value-Packed Options
If you are in the market for a reliable performer, you can’t really go wrong with the Yamaha MT-09 SP. We call out the SP model in particular because the uprated rear suspension transforms what is already a fun motorcycle into a proper canyon carver. If you want more emphasis on the performance side, then the powerful Suzuki GSX-S1000 will be a better bet. It has the best chassis out of all the Japanese bikes competing in this space, and doesn’t expressly need a fancy Swedish rear shock. The bike in question does, but it is a little newer and a fair bit cheaper than either of these bikes.
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The Honda CB1000 Hornet SP Doesn’t Demand Constant Attention
MSRP: $10,999
One of the most important motorcycles in Honda’s history has to be the original CB750. The Japanese brand rather effectively captured lightning in a bottle with that particular motorcycle, offering reliable performance on a budget. The CB1000 Hornet SP is essentially a modern version of that old bike. It really is a UJM for the modern rider that offers incredible bang for the buck, but also everyday rideability and reliability.
Honda CB750: The Universal Japanese Motorcycle (UJM)
The CB750 was Genesis for the Universal Japanese Motorcycle, setting a new precedent upon arrival
The CB1000 Hornet SP Has A Reworked Superbike Engine
Power: 129 horsepower
The 2017 Fireblade is still around, currently being sold as the CBR1000RR. It offers breathtaking performance with 189 horsepower and a lightweight chassis; it is a genuine superbike that can take the fight to any modern liter bike. The CB1000 gets its beating heart, but in an effort to extract a little more midrange performance out of the lump, the overall horsepower figure dropped to 155 horsepower for the European model. Then it dropped to 129 horsepower for the US version, thanks to noise restrictions.
An Inline-Four Tuned For The Street
The 60-horsepower drop might seem a little disappointing at first, but we suspect that a test ride will dispel that line of thinking. With its street tune, pretty much all the torque is still on offer throughout vast swathes of the rev range. Out in the real world, where overall horsepower counts for little and speed limits exist, this is a desirable characteristic. Most of the power is still available under real-world riding conditions. You won’t get to win any spec sheet wars, but the size of your grin after each ride won’t change. In the superbike tune, this engine has proven to be metronomically reliable, so it stands to reason that in this more mild state of tune, it might well outlast us all. Just like the original CB750 outlasted its first owners.
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The CB1000 Hornet SP Has A Fancy Rear Shock
For most models with “SP” in their name, track performance is usually the aim of the game. In the case of the Hornet SP, that Öhlins TTX36 rear shock is there to offer riders more compliance in the suspension, more adjustability, and to essentially compensate for what is an otherwise budget-friendly chassis. It is for good reason that manufacturers moved away from simplistic steel chassis like this for high-performance applications, and that is because the chassis turns into spaghetti on a track. While on a canyon road, some experienced riders will also find its limitations… they won’t exactly be doing the speed limit once those limitations are fully explored. Out in the real world, where speed limits generally curb enthusiasm, the fancy Swedish shock will do enough to keep everything in check.
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Motorcycle suspension systems have come a long way since the pre-war days of coil-sprung druid and leaf spring forks.
Budget-Friendly, Not Beginner Friendly
Honda may have cut costs with the chassis, but the Hornet SP comes equipped with all the necessary modern features. Traction control, ABS, a TFT dash, and a quickshifter are all present and accounted for. The overall package on offer here is desperately hard to beat, you get everything – including a genuine superbike engine – for under $11k. This kind of pricing will almost certainly tempt novice riders into buying something they are not equipped to ride. Pushing this bike on a canyon road and exploring its limits will be a blast for more experienced riders, but in the wrong hands, that will just be dangerous.
This is something that happened all too often back in the early 00s, when liter bikes were both relatively inexpensive and tremendously powerful. Those bikes didn’t even have modern safety nets, but even so, no modern rider aid can compensate for 129 horsepower getting put down mid-corner. While manufacturers have wised up to this, and we have no doubt that customers will get pointed towards a beginner-friendly CB300R, potentially turning away a buyer is a difficult thing to do.
To the right buyer, this is just a great deal. Not long ago, we thought the days of accessible performance were over. Somehow it is Honda – not some random Chinese manufacturer – that has wound back the clock on an old, simple concept, offering more experienced riders an amazing performance bike that won’t break the bank, and won’t need constant attention.
Source: Honda Powersports