Honda CB 1000 Big One Super Four
Honda CB 1000 Big One Super Four
.An attempt, a few years ago, tolure the ageing and lapsed motorcyclist back on to two wheels, many of themotorbike manufacturers adopted what is known as the Retro look.
Time was when all superbikes weregas-guzzling monsters unadorned by acres of fibreglass bodywork. A superbikewas a machine with a very powerful engine, two wheels and a seat. Theyrequired nerves of steel and a will of iron to tame, and they had a brutishappeal almost totally absent from most modern superbikes . . except forthe retro ones.
The retro superbikes are designedto appeal to those who are old enough to remember unfaired muscle-bikes thefirst time round - those who rode bikes in the '70s and who aren't nowlimber enough to squeeze themselves aboard a state-of-the-art race-replica.The born-again biker is the target market for these bikes, and one of thebest examples of these retro machines is the Honda CB1000.
Using a de-tuned engine from aHonda CBR1000F, the CB1000 harks back to the days of the CB1100 and theCB900. The water-cooled, double overhead cam, 16-valve, in-line fourcylinder engine is a far cry from the air-cooled eight-valve engines of the'70s, but it is the focal point of this superbike. Pumping out lOObhp at8500rpm the CB1000 has a top speed of around 140mph.
.I the USA muscle-bikes such asYamaha's V-Max have proved to be very popular, combining brute power with anupright and unfaired riding position. The retro bike is a similar animal,offering old-fashioned good looks with straight-line acceleration that isthe envy of the sportscar world.
In Japan the CB1000 is called theCB1000 Big One, and with good reason - this is one BIG motorcycle.Weighing in at 5201bs dry, with a seat height of 31.5ins, and with awheelbase of 60.6ins, the CB1000 is a massive machine. It's not in the
same league as bikes such as theGold Wing or the Harley tourers, but compared to modern sportsbikes theCB1000 is massive. Anyone without a 32-inch inside leg measurement and theupper body strength of Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to have troublemanoeuvring this machine at walking pace.
But once you get it moving, theCB1000 doesn't feel quite as ponderous as you might think. The accelerationis awesome, rattling off standing-quarters in the 11-second bracket andlaying 50-yard strips of rubber on the road behind if you give it all it'sgot. And even through the turns the Honda's steel cradle frame andtraditional suspension (non-adjustable 43mm telescopic forks at the frontand a pair of Showa shocks adjustable for preload only at the rear) keep thebike handling well. The CB1000 isn't going to win many races, but itactually handles considerably better than you'd expect from a bike thatweighs this much and comes with a relatively low-tech chassis andsuspension.
But the real appeal of the CB1000is its brutish but linear power delivery and its traditional good looks. Itis the essence of the retro look, and that look seems to be here to stay.