By using advanced engine technology, Honda has created a simple and very fuel-efficient package for the common rider.
There comes a time in every industry when a company realizes that it’s time to shake things up, and Honda is no stranger to being the shaker. They did it in 1958 with the Super Cub (producing well over 60 million units for more than 160 countries), and again in 1969 with the CB750, a bike that set the performance standard of the day and brought motorcycling into the modern era. The innovative company forged ahead and later released such milestones as the Gold Wing, the six-cylinder CBX, the V4 VFR750, and more recently, the VFR1200 with DCT (Dual Clutch Transmission) automatic. Then, in 2011, Honda released the CBR250R, a bike that was designed from the ground up for the world market, and in the process, they claimed 27 new patents. The CBR250R was a bike that Honda called a “game changer.”
One year later, Honda feels it is ready to shake up the industry yet again with another innovative release. Starting with a blank piece of paper, Honda set out to design a fun but practical motorcycle that may once again set the standard of motorcycling for the future. The NC700 (NC stands for New Concept) is designed as an all-round motorcycle, not only ideal for commuting into the city, but also competent for a weekend, or longer, ride on twisty country roads at any pace, aggressive or easy.
Through broad market research across Europe, the engineers at Honda realized that 90% of motorcycle usage was below 140 km/h and 80% of riders spent most of their time under 6000 rpm. So why not design a bike with that in mind? With plenty of high-performance motorcycles in Honda’s roster, the NC700 is a bike designed for real life, everyday riding in a world market. That means it has to be user friendly to an extremely varied group of riders.
A top-heavy bike can be very intimidating to a new rider, and is immediately noticeable to a seasoned two-wheel veteran. Top-heavy this bike is not. I instantly noticed the extremely low centre of gravity as I lifted the bike off of the side stand. Even tilting the bike over at an excessive angle while stopped caused no concern that it would go too far. To aid in its low centre of gravity, the parallel-twin has been rotated 62 degrees forward to keep the engine mass very low in the bike’s steel frame, and with the fuel tank under the seat, almost all of the bike’s weight resides under the rider. To give you an idea of how low it is, with the bodywork and seat removed, the overall look is reminiscent of a trials bike.
Barcelona, Spain, was the site of the press’s introduction to the new NC700S, a naked-style streetbike, and the NC700X, a pseudo adventure-style bike. As in most bustling European cities, Barcelona’s downtown core is very congested with small cars and (in some cases) even smaller streets, making two-wheel travel extremely inviting; scooters and motorcycles are almost as common as pedestrians. The NC700’s low centre of gravity was most evident while slowly filtering between cars to the front of stopped city traffic, or edging onto a sidewalk, through pedestrians, to park the bike. The bike displays excellent balance while riding at a snail’s pace, making the bike’s claimed curb weight of 215 kg (473 lb.) for the S model (add three kg for the X) seem insignificant, and similar to a bike half its weight.
Once out of the city, I soon realized that the 6500 rpm redline creeps up quickly, and I initially thought the engine could use a few thousand more rpm. The engine uses a 270-degree crankshaft that gives a certain feel and sound at lower rpm, but overall, the engine is smooth and quiet in the upper reaches of the rev range. So smooth, in fact, that I found myself bouncing off the rev limiter a few times while passing cars until I became accustomed to the characteristics of this mid-sized, under-square engine.
At a claimed 51 horsepower, twisting the throttle won’t rip your arms out of the sockets, but rather, the long stroke of the crankshaft is designed to deliver torque in the low- and mid-range rpm, making for a much more user friendly and predictable engine. After my first few meetings with the rev limiter, I never hit it again, and quite frankly, I soon realized that the engine didn’t need to rev that high. Even later in the day, while carving tightly twisted roads in the mountainous region northwest of Barcelona, I never needed high revs to accelerate out of the corners. Throttle response was quick and the fuel injection flawless.
While many of today’s motorcycles seem quite advanced, technologically speaking, they lag behind the current crop of automobiles in many ways. For instance, take engine efficiencies. New cars are regulated to stringent Euro-5 emission specifications, but motorcycles only have to conform to the Euro-3 standard; new motorcycles don’t have to meet the Euro-5 standard until 2015. The design team’s mandate was to create an efficient, modern engine with a goal of a 40% increase in fuel efficiency over conventional motorcycle engines, while keeping the fun that only a motorcycle can deliver. The NC700S and X hit the streets running, as they already meet the Euro-5 standard – that’s half of the Euro-3 emissions spec – and with that comes unheard-of fuel mileage for motorcycles of this size.
Damian James, motorcycle and ATV product planner for Honda Canada, has been testing the NC700’s fuel economy during daily, real-life riding and commuting scenarios and, while the engine only had 600 km on the clock and was not quite broken in yet, he claims to have averaged 3.8 L/100 km (74.7 mpg). That is about the same fuel economy Honda claims for the CBR250R (although we found the CBR250R got 3.0 L/100 km or 90 mpg, Nov. 2011 issue) and is an amazing 56% better than Honda’s current CBF600. Using James’s figures as a reference, combined with the bike’s 14.1 litre fuel tank, the calculated range should be around 370 km until empty. That is a pretty impressive range, considering that it would only take a little over $18 to fill from bone dry based on average cost per litre from across the country.
To meet such demanding requirements, eight new patents were generated during the design of the new 670 cc, liquid-cooled, SOHC, four-valve-per-cylinder, parallel-twin engine. Design efficiencies, such as incorporating the exhaust manifold inside the head where the super-heated gases exit the exhaust valves, not only save weight and bulk by eliminating multiple header pipes, but also leave room for the catalytic converter to be mounted immediately outside of the cylinder head. This offers many benefits, which include making the catalytic converter more efficient, keeping the remainder of the exhaust system clean and simple, and helping to keep the weight distribution low and forward.
Manufacturing a 270-degree crankshaft has traditionally been an expensive process, since it involves press-fitting two heavy crank halves together. Honda has devised a way to forge the crank as a 360-degree crank, and while the metal is still pliable, they rotate half of the crank 90 degrees, thereby making a stronger and lighter one-piece unit.
Because this bike is designed for the world market, Honda strove to keep many components simple, such as the patented steel frame. If, in the future, it needs repairs in not-so-advanced parts of the world, this can be done using basic welding skills. And if you are one for doing your own basic maintenance, fluid drains and oil filter are easily accessible, and you’ll like the fact that the valves are easy to access and use simple nut-and-bolt adjusters. It doesn’t get any easier than that.
Everything about the NC700 driveline is designed for fuel efficiency and convenience. The transmission gears are tall, and when combined with the linear curve of the low- to mid-range engine torque, there’s less need for downshifting to keep the engine in the power band, as it will accelerate well from as low as 2000–2500 rpm. The taller gearing and low rpm also aids in fuel economy.
Clutch action is surprisingly light; the six-speed transmission shifted easily with just a light snick, and finding neutral was never a problem. Power is delivered to the lightweight, cast-aluminum rear wheel and 160/60ZR-17 tire via O-ring sealed chain. While Europe gets the DCT automatic, there are no plans to bring it to North America in the foreseeable future in the NC models.
In another exercise of manufacturing efficiency, economy and environmental consciousness, the rear brake rotor is punched out from the centre of the front rotor, reducing waste. As a result, the single, front, 320 mm wave rotor is large, providing exceptional one- or two-finger stopping power using standard braking components. The three-piston front caliper and single-piston rear caliper are tied together with Honda’s Combined Braking System with ABS. In fact, neither model is available without these safety features.
Both the S and X models are virtually the same, except for a handful of components – suspension being one of them. Both models use 41 mm forks, but the X’s are longer and offer 153.5 mm (6 in.) of travel as opposed the S model’s 120 mm (4.7 in.) of movement. The single rear shock and Pro-link swingarm gives up 150 mm (5.9 in.) travel on the X, while the S’s rear suspension has the same travel as its front end.
All of the tarmac during our riding experience was smooth and didn’t offer the same type of suspension workout as our roads, but both models did stay composed while aggressively carving corners. I know this isn’t a common occurrence here in North America, but for what it’s worth, both bikes easily handled the drop while riding them off of a sidewalk curb (motorcycles and scooters generally park on sidewalks in Barcelona).
Seating position varies slightly between the two models. The S has a very slight forward lean and a more compact riding position for my 180 cm (5 ft. 11 in.) frame, whereas the X has a taller seating position, thanks to the 830 mm (32.7 in.) seat height (the S’s seat is 40 mm lower) and slightly taller handlebar. The front of the seat is tapered, making it easy for me with my 81 cm (32 in.) inseam to firmly plant my feet on the ground at a stop, even on the X. The footpegs on both models are positioned below the seat to ensure a straight lower back, and the seats are acceptable for many hours of comfortable riding.
The S has a lower windscreen, which delivers the windblast around chest level when on the highway. By comparison, the X’s taller windscreen gathers the oncoming air and displaces it around the neck area, which does result in some helmet buffeting, but not enough to be annoying. The X’s windscreen can be adjusted about 3.5 cm higher by removing four screws, rotating a mounting bracket and reinstalling the screws. There is, however, a larger optional windscreen available.
The instrument cluster is easy to read, with all warning lights above an LCD, which displays a sweep tach and digital speedo flanked by a fuel gauge on the right and time of day and mileage on the left. The trip and reset buttons are oversized and easy to operate, even while wearing bulky, cold-weather gloves.
One of the main conveniences of the NC700 is the more-than-ample storage right in front of the rider. With the fuel tank below the seat and the engine tilted forward, the area traditionally reserved for a fuel tank or air box becomes 21 litres of lockable, weatherproof storage. The storage compartment will hold a full-face helmet, but is also extremely handy for storing items like a rain suit, cold-weather gloves and many other sundry items you may need to access regularly in your travels. This is the amount of storage you would expect under the seat of a scooter, not a motorcycle. For additional storage, panniers and a top box will be available for both models as optional equipment.
On-bike storage is accessed conveniently by using the ignition key in a separate lock just ahead of the storage area for the X, and below the storage area on the left side of the bike for the S model. Turning the key the other way unlocks the rear seat, allowing access to the fuel filler cap. While capable, it’s unlikely the NC700 will become a long-distance beast of burden, but if it were, and the rear seat is piled up with gear, adding fuel would require its removal.
Unfortunately, the S is only available in Seal Silver Metallic with Thunder Yellow accents, while the X has a solitary colour palette of Darkness Black Metallic. Not that there is anything wrong with those colours, but they don’t offer much variety.
While the NC700s are 2012 model-year motorcycles, they will miss half of the year, as they are not expected in showrooms until July. Model pricing hadn’t yet been determined at press time, but speculation by Honda staffers suggests that both models will run around the $9,000 range with the X being slightly more expensive, which seems like a very good value for such a competent motorcycle.
Both of the NC700 models would make a strong choice either for the beginner entering the sport or for a rider moving up in size, but it would also be suitable for the experienced rider who wants to downsize or commute, as it makes a perfect city runabout. The NC700 is a fun, daily performer with multi-purpose riding in mind. Considering the asking price and the money saved in fuel costs, it might really shake things up in more ways than all-around efficiency.
