Honda Introduces New 400cc Engine for CB and CBR 500 Series for Asia

Honda Motor Company, the world's largest two wheeler manufacturer, is all set to solidify their domination in the Asian continent. For that the consortium has recently introduced a new 400 cc engine. The new engine is specially developed for the Asian motorcycle enthusiasts who care both performance and economy simultaneously. The disclosure was taken place in the homeland of Honda, Japan.



The new 400 cc engine is not an extreme novel engine, but a tuned down version of 500 cc liquid-cooled parallel-twin which powering Honda's lately released machines, the CBR500R, the CB500F and the CB500X. So the new engine is proposed to have its saddle in the upcoming 500 cc trio (CBR500R, CB500F and CB500X) of Honda in the Asian markets. Moreover, it is expected to spit 35-40 bhp power. Earlier, the Italian premium motorcycle manufacturer, Ducati committed the same measurement for the Monster 795 to meet the satisfaction of Asian customers. It was that Monster 795 that debuted in India last year and it resulted in big success too.



"We approached power characteristics and configuration with emphasis on precise linear acceleration and deceleration, as well as responsive control in full-body manoeuvres like braking and entering and corner exit acceleration. We discussed and developed an engine with the aim of making it please the majority of our domestic customers while meeting the demands of the developed countries, we focused on the characteristics of the most frequently used low and moderate RPM ranges to make it easy to handle for an entry-level user, and set the maximum RPM at 9,500. We chose a straight two-cylinder water-cooled engine to match these engine characteristics. In order to improve intake performance up to 9,500 RPM, we researched the optimum valve size, and used a bore stroke of 67 mm by 56.6 mm," said Yoshiki Nagahashi, Head of development for the new engine at the Honda Motorcycle R&D Centre, while unveiling the new 400 cc engine.



Additionally, the replacement of currently mated 500 cc liquid-cooled parallel-twin engine with the newly introduced 400 cc engine will result a reasonable cut down in pricing as well. At present, the 500 cc trio starts at $5,499 (approximately Rs.2.92 lakh) in the US markets. Making it much cheaper than its rivals, Honda is pushing out an extremely affordable sport-machine to the Asian markets. The innovative 400 cc engine would be a great challenge for KTM Duke 390, Kawasaki Ninja 250R and 300R, and Hyosung GT250R. The refreshed CB 500 series is supposed to launch in India this year itself. It is also rumoured that Yamaha is also working on 400 cc engine for the India.