Is a four-cylinder Honda CBR400R Four sportbike on the way?
For us old timers, there were several four-cylinder small capacity four-cylinder four-strokes back in the 80s and 90s in the market. They included the Honda CB250, Honda CBR400, Honda CB400 Four VTEC and VTEC II, Honda VFR400 NC30 (the RC30 lookalike!), and of course the Kawasaki ZXR250 with the signature “washing machine hoses.” Then, the manufacturers switched to singles and twins, most likely for ease of maintenance and lower upkeep costs.
More recently, Kawasaki sprung a surprise by releasing the Ninja ZX-25R, followed by the Ninja ZX-4R four-cylinder sportbikes
Is Honda, the world’s largest motorcycle maker going to let their rival in green run amok in the two segments? Of course not!
Truth is, Honda and Kawasaki both have 400cc four-cylinder models in the Japanese market, but Kawasaki took the step to launch theirs to the world market.
The Honda CBR400R in Japan has an engine derived from the two-cylinder CBR500R, which is available in Malaysia, too. However, its bore is reduced fro 66.8mm to 56.6mm, while leaving the stroke at 67mm. Doing so lowers the engine’s capacity from 471cc (twin) to 399cc (four).
As for Honda’s entry, Motorcycle.com said that they have sighted the company’s patent application in the U.S. marked as “Honda CBR400R Four.” While the patent documents may not necessarily translate to a final product, it does show that the company is somewhat interested in that segment.
Who would not want an affordable howling four-cylinder, right?
