Honda to participate in the 2013 Dakar Rally

July 2, 2012 - Honda has announced its intention to participate as a works team in the motorcycle class in the Dakar Rally to be held in January 2013 in South America, travelling north to south through Peru, Chile and Argentina. Honda competed nine times in the motorcycle class in the forerunner of the present Dakar Rally, the Paris-Dakar Rally, from 1981 through to 1989, and was a winner five times during that period. Honda's return to Dakar Rally next year will be the first in 24 years since 1989.

The Honda team, to be called Team HRC, will include Portuguese rider Helder Rodrigues, who took third place in the 2012 Dakar Rally, and Brazilian Felipe Zanol, who brings a wealth of experience in motocross and enduro race events, as well as Sam Sunderland (United Kingdom) and Javier Pizzolito (Argentina). They will ride a prototype machine developed and produced by the Motorcycle R&D Center at Honda R&D. The prototype machine is based on the CRF450X, the popular worldwide enduro racing model that combines ease of handling with superior competitive strength. Kit parts designed for use on the standard CRF450X model have also been developed and will be made available to a limited number of teams.

Tetsuo Suzuki, President, Honda Racing Corporation, commented “The Dakar requires competitors to cover several hundred kilometers per day for more than two weeks. It needs a totally different type of vehicle from events such as motocross, trials and road races. Honda has put a great deal of effort into designing and building a powerful and winning machine. We are aiming for the championship from this first year.”

[SRC: HONDA]

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2012 Montreal Motorcycle Show: Honda

 

Second stop: Honda

There were 2 new models I wanted to see at the Honda booth, unfortunately the CrossTourer was not there and hopefully will be available in Canada next year. 

First, the CRF250L.  A small displacement engine does not necessarily means a small bike, that’s what I noticed while looking at the CRF250L.  I could not sit on the bike to see if it was confortable as it was strangely surrounded by a small barrier, perhaps because it is a 2013 model?   I searched for a while to see where the oil filter was located  and I even asked a representative, but it was impossible to find (useful to know for those who like to make some maintenance!)  Meanwhile, I noticed that this bike is pretty well built.  Everything looks nice and tight.  No doubt in my mind, this bike will sell like hot cakes as long as the price is reasonable.

Second, the NC700.  This funny looking bird (one has to get used to its beak, but still not ugly) reminds me of my Versys, not look wise but in its form: a crossover.  Like the Versys, the NC700 most likely hides some off road capabilities that could surprise when dual sport tires are installed (Avon Distantia as an example or even TKC80 now that Continental makes them in 120/70-17 front size). 

Advantages of crossover bikes are:

• highly competent on the asphalt (and on highways contrary to a dual sport bike),
• can  take a passenger anytime,
• usually an interesting autonomy (but in case of the NC700 it seems Honda took some gas tank volume to accommodate a trunk just in front of the seat, enough room for a gas can!),
• generally many accessories are available; and
• still those bike are fully capable to follow most dual sport motorcycles on a gravel road.

I was able to try the seat this time.  The saddle comfort was apparently correct.  Don’t take my words for granted, there is nothing like a 40 miles ride to be 100% sure on this topic, but to me the seat seemed comfier than my own motorcycle.  I don’t know if this bike will sell because of its particular aspects, but I’m convinced that those who will buy it won’t be disappointed.

As I was in the area, I had a sneak peak at the big bore dual sport from Honda, the XR650L. Once sitting on it, I was barely tiptoeing.  At 5’9” I am not that short!  It seems to me that this bike would be quite interesting for more aggressive off-road dual sport adventure ride if it would be more accessible to “normal” people.  

Next stop, Ducati. ciao!

dsaventurequebec

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Crosstourer 2012 (en)

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Crosstourer 2012

A new 2012 adventure bike from Honda.

Honda enters the big adventure bike market in 2012 with the Crosstourer. Actually dominated by the BMW 1200GS, this bike category is getting crowded with the Yamaha's Super Tenere, Ducati's MultiStrada, Triumph's Explorer, KTM's Adventure and others.

Aesthetically speaking, the Crosstourer is in general, a success. However, the front fender that recalls BMW GS style gives a bizarre allure when seen from a  certain angle (Ducati's Multistrada suffers the same annoying aesthetic detail.) The following picture gives an example of that.

Crosstourer 2012 with accessories

I am a little disappointed that there is no skid plate on this second picture. Moreover, it seems the Crosstourer has skipped some weightwatcher sessions: I don't know how its 605 lbs (275 kg) could negatively affect some adventure rides I made this year.  It seems in most cases this bike could pass without an issue, but in some other cases (some sections of the 6th Concession or Beaches Lake rides) the weight surplus would have been difficult to manage. In my opinion, more technical trails will need to be avoided, making me think Honda's offroad pretentions are not very high for the Crosstourer.

The new Crosstourer is an interesting attempt from Honda to enter the big adventure bike market. Unfortunately, this bike misses offroad potential so it will be less attractive to dual sport adventure riders. It will be interesting to watch Youtube next year (2012) to see which road types Crosstourer owners will be willing to try.

Some aspects to verify:

• weight, probably too heavy for certain road types (level 2);
• accessories, is there a skid plate available? (yes, see update below);
• valve adjustment cycle (ideally around 16000 miles or 25000 km);
• autonomy, at least 180 miles (300 km);
• oil filter positioning;
• comfort.

Update February 6, 2012

I made some research and found a picture with a skid plate.

ciao

dsaventurequebec

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Honda CRF 250L 2012 (en)

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Honda had the good idea to use the CBR250R engine to offer an improved small displacement dual-sport  motorcycle compared to the CRF 230L.


The CRF 250L will soon be presented to the "Tokyo Motor Show".  With this new bike, Honda offers a serious competitor to the Yamaha WR250R and the KLX 250S by Kawasaki.


Of course, the CRF 250L will not break any speed record on the highway but the origin of the engine indicates that it should cope reasonably well. Certainly, this bike will be very easy to maneuver in trails because of its lightness. 


To my humble opinion, the CRF 250L is looking pretty good.  A particularly attractive version with decals and flashy paint is published on visordown.com .

There is little doubt that the CRF 250L will be reliable (Honda = Japanese reliability) and it will make its owner happy for a long time as long as he does not expect too much from the on road capacity of this small bike and he is not a sumo wrestler .

I would be curious to try the CRF 250L in trails I traveled so far more particularly in the rocky section from the Beaches Lake ride  to test its agility.  But I dread the long highway sections that I often had to overcome to go on the trails since wind protection and power on this type of bike is too limited.


To verify:

• behavior on the highway (over 60 mph / 100 km/h);
• range of at least 180 miles / 300 km (certainly economic, but what about tank capacity?)
• valve adjustment cycle (15000 miles / 25000 km on the CBR250R, excellent. But adjustment required after the first 600 miles / 1000 km?)
• availability of accessories? Choice of luggage? Heated grips?
• positioning of the oil filter;
• comfort of the saddle (still comfortable after 30 miles / 40 km?)
• weight (probably around 270 pounds / 121 kg, no complaints).

ciao

dsaventurequebec

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