Photoshoot of the Week: June 22nd-28th 2020 – Franzii & Honda CBR650F

Introduced back in 2014 as a more comfortable and amiable alternative to the racetrack-oriented CBR600RR, the global market Honda CBR650F has basically flown under the radar in the US for the most part. The Honda’s handling manners were very user-friendly, with neutral steering characteristics and good stability in most situations. The CBR650F was not intended to be a scalpel-sharp supersport bike, so overall handling is several notches slower, with steering requiring more effort than a front-line 600. The term “nimble” isn’t in this Honda’s playbook, but the payoff is that it remains unflustered over the nastiest pavement imperfections, with the suspension doing an admirable job of absorbing the vast majority of bumps.
For the latest CBR600F, 2018 version, “revised intake funnels and updated exhaust enhance power output and provide a raucous exhaust growl”, while “revised transmission-gear ratios provide an improved acceleration feel”. It was “tuned especially for strong acceleration from a standing start and strong midrange roll-on throttle response for real-world street-riding performance”.
The 2018 Honda CBR650F doesn’t look radically different from the prevous models. The fairing was mildly reworked and the CBR650F gets new graphics, and is available in two new colours, called Millenium Red and Matte Gunpowder Metallic Black (the colour of our test bike). The biggest noticeable change was the all-new LED headlamp, LED taillamp and bronze-coloured engine crankcases.
The 2018 Honda CBR650F carried forward the same 649 cc, in-line four cylinder engine, and with the tune-ups to meet the latest emission regulations, power and torque have marginally decreased over the outgoing model, now putting out over 85 bhp at 11,000 rpm and 60.5 Nm of peak torque at 8,500 rpm. It still felt familiar as the outgoing models, but what is immediately apparent is the improvement in the sound, thanks to the new intake and exhaust flow management. The air intake funnels are shorter and four-into-one exhaust employed a dual-pass internal structure as well as a larger final exit aperture. And the difference was noticeable, not just in the sound, but the mid-range feels stronger and punchier than before.
The comfortable ergonomics and superb ride quality and stability made it an excellent mile-muncher, and it returned consistently good fuel economy, if you were not overtly enthusiastic with the use of the throttle hand. Gentle use returned over 19 kmpl in our test runs, and even with spirited riding, the CBR650F’s fuel consumption never fell below 17 kmpl. On the flipside, the engine might have been smooth at low revs, but the mid-range (which bikers use mostly), did feel ever so slightly buzzy, which magically seems to disappear when you hit the powerband, which kicks in quite high, north of 7,000 revs.
For someone upgrading to their first sportbike, the 2018 Honda CBR650F definitely was (and still is) a very good option. It’s street friendly, has comfortable ergonomics and is absolutely brilliant on the highway and even if it’s a really fast and powerful bike, new riders can also appreciate its easygoing and unintimidating nature, and more importantly, its pocket friendly maintenance costs.