According to a report in British weekly MCN, Honda has canceled production of its planned successor to the CBR1100XX. The report sites sources close to the Honda factory, who said that prototypes of the new 1100 just weren’t good enough – the definition of ‘good enough’ being that it surpassed the model it replaces by enough of a margin that current owners would want to immediately purchase the new bike.
So where is Honda headed in the hyper-touring category? Compared to Suzuki and Kawasaki, Honda has never put as much of a focus on pure horsepower, at least in this category – the original 1100XX seemed to focus more on the overall package, with comfort and rideability being key points.
So we doubt Honda will try to re-engineer the 1100XX to compete with Kawasaki’s ZX-14 in outright acceleration, especially with the prospect of a new, significantly faster Hayabusa on the horizon. If anything, Honda may direct their engineers to take another crack at designing an improved all-around hyper-tourer that surpasses the current bike in every way. Absent the cachet of a class-topping horsepower output, a new 1100XX could gain media and consumer attention by using a unique powerplant – if a new bike is indeed put into production, we wouldn’t be surprised to see a V-4 or V-6 powerplant providing the motivation.
