MotorBikes: Honda being Japanese, it's natural for us to think that anything we meet here, half a world away, bearing its name is entirely the creation of those in the Land of the Rising Sun. Not so in the case of the CBF 500.
This is, in fact, the creation of Honda's research and development design studios in Germany. This is a European bike for European conditions.
The CBF, around for 10 years, has been significantly re-styled. As the Irish importer admits, it's not a machine it has pushed very much. We wonder why not.
With many makes there is a yawning gap between 125cc or 250cc machines and the 600/650cc level. Not everyone wants large, high-performance machines with higher insurance and running costs. A 500cc machine, once the benchmark big bike, is big enough and powerful enough to do everything most people need, especially in these days of near-universal speed limits.
The CBF 500 is a "naked" machine, a style which seems to be getting more popular these days. With its 770mm low seat height and slender profile, people of shorter stature will recognise its virtues. Yet this 6ft tester didn't find it at all small or cramped.
It's a well-designed, well thought out machine - in a way one of Honda's best kept secrets. There is nothing too radical here, nothing too highly strung. It has a comfortable, orthodox seating position and is a good, solid, fast and reliable all-rounder.
The twin VP carburettor aspirated parallel twin eight-valve OHC engine with its 180° crank and gear-driven balance shaft is tuned to give good low to mid-range torque. It delivers 56bhp at 9,000rpm. With a weight of 183kg this equates to a very respectable 306bhp per tonne. Torque output is 35ft lbs at 7,500rpm.
This engine meets the EORO-2 emissions criteria and is capable of a top speed of about 125mph. The valve adjustment interval has been increased to 24,000kms.
The engine is slung from a mono-backbone frame similar to that in the Honda Hornet. It has high-performance suspension, 41mm front forks and dual HMDS dampers at the rear.
For the first time for a bike in this class it is fitted with radial tyres. The wheels are cast six-spoke alloy.
The pillion seat is generously comfortable and there are tubular grab rails. It has the same halogen headlight as the Hornet with a similar dual-pod, comprehensive instrument layout.
On the road the engine delivers smooth, linear power with negligible vibration right across the rev range. The gear change is typical Honda - as near faultless as you can hope for. Ratios in the six-speed box seem perfectly matched for the bike's weight and performance.
Brakes, though not in the cutting-edge, hyper-sports class, proved well up to the machine's performance. They never gave a moment's anxiety. There is also an ABS model, though the version we tested was the standard non-ABS one.
A well-behaved, well-balanced bike in traffic and slow riding conditions on the open road, the CBF 500 really comes alive on twisty sections of road. It delights in corners and feels at least the equal of larger, more powerful and sophisticated sports machines. It was as totally at home being ridden fast through the bends as it was on the motorway.
For those who don't want to spend vast sums, this machine will please. It's well-designed and is happy doing the daily commuting grind - but a revelation when put though its paces on a weekend spin.
The only criticism we could make applies to all naked machines when ridden in wintry conditions - the lack of weather protection. If you buy a naked machine you must expect that, but today's much-improved riding gear overcomes much of that disadvantage.
Honda's CBF 500 is a very good all-rounder that deserves to be better known. Priced at €6,999 and with relatively low insurance, it's good value for money.
TECH SPEC:
ENGINE: 499cc eight-valve OHC parallel-twin, 180° crank, gear-driven balance shaft, twin 34mm VP carbs; 56bhp at 9,000rpm; 35 ft lbs at 7,500rpm; six-speed gearbox, chain drive
FRAME: Mono-backbone; front - 41mm forks, 296mm, two-piston disk; rear - twin HMDS dampers, 240mm single-piston disk; six-spoke alloy wheels; radial tyres
DIMENSIONS: Seat height 770mm; wheelbase 1,481mm; tank 19 litres include 3.5 litre reserve; weight 183kg; turning radius 2.8m.
PRICE: 6,999