Mini - Review
My
current sports/tourer, the Suzuki GSX-1250FA motorcycle is great
to ride and it cuts through the wind and rain on the motorway like a knife
through butter but it lacks that 'full on' sports handling on the twisty
roads, especially as
it weighs in at a hefty 257kg with a basic suspension system. My bike
delivers 108Nm peak torque at 3,700rpm so it is a very fast motorcycle,
especially if you drop her into 2nd gear at around 30mph and let her
loose.
The
2016 Honda Fireblade SP ABS weighs in
at 210kg and is a fantastic looking bike, especially in tri-colour with
gold wheel rims.
The other day (8th April 2016)
I had the opportunity to take out the Fireblade SP for a test ride which
was totally awesome except for a couple of wrinkles.
The seating position on the Fireblade was ideal for a super sports bike
with my knees forced upwards and tucked in against the tank sides but it
would have been nice if it had a couple of Tech Spec SS Snakeskins
fitted to the tank sides to stop my knees from slipping forward during
heavy braking. The brakes were fierce with massive stopping power at
high speeds using a couple of fingers slightly pulling on
the front brake lever.
The handling and cornering grip of the Fireblade was par excellence and
the throttle control and engine braking proved faultless although the
acceleration only became 'full on' alive at around 5,000 revs when I felt
that 'sudden' massive surge as the bike rocketed forward. However, the throttle
control when moving off proved a serious problem for me in comparison to
my own motorcycle. I was told by the Honda Rep' that the throttle of the Fireblade was
standard cable for the first small section of use and the main part
thereafter was electronic. Well, I just could not get the hang of it, I must have
stalled the bike about 5 or 6 times during the test ride because every time I
'slowly' moved off, I was struggling to get the feel from the throttle due to
that unresponsive cable section. Anyway, by the end of the test ride, I was starting to get the
hang of it.
During the winter and in preparation for test riding sports motorcycles,
I have been exercising to strengthen my back muscles, especially the
lower back. The Fireblade was the first super sports
motorcycle that I have ever ridden and it proved interesting. The stock seat
was very comfortable and even after 40 minutes on all sorts of road, my
rear did not feel sore in the slightest. My lower back was fine but
in-between my shoulder blades was starting to hurt and my wrists were
sore. I admit I was fairly tense riding the Fireblade as that £1,000
insurance excess for accidental damage was at the back of my mind and
when heavy braking my knees could not get a grip of the tank, so my
wrists, arms and shoulders took most of the G forces.
The excellent handling of the Fireblade cannot be overstated because
even without traction control the tyres (dry road test) stuck
like glue. At one point, I entered a corner at around 60mph and suddenly
saw potholes and gravel on most of my half of the road. I immediately
moved over to hug the centre line whilst maintaining my speed and the bike went round the corner on my
side of the line like it was on rails. The Fireblade was easy to flick
around which brought a huge smile to my face but I could see how the
bike could encourage you to become too confident.
If you open the throttle, the Fireblade SP exhaust has that gorgeous
roar which rises to a crescendo when passing vehicles, especially on
country roads. It is not over the top but no matter how fast you go in
those higher revs, the exhaust note keeps up with you. When cruising in
lower revs in higher gearing, the exhaust note is relatively quiet and
certainly does not spoil a gentle cruise through the countryside. The Fireblade is delivering it's peak torque of 114Nm at 10,500rpm but it is
still able to cruise along in 6th gear at relatively slow speeds. I
expected the Fireblade to be 'low gear hungry' due to the torque peak
but this was not the case and boy the sheer joy when you drop down the
gears and open her up beyond 5,000 rpm.
The build of the Fireblade is in a different league to many of the
motorcycles I have ridden so that renowned Honda build quality is well
founded.
The controls are well placed as you would expect and the instrument
panel and the manual gear shifting was effortless, up and down the box
at all speeds and acceleration.
I honestly cannot fault the Fireblade SP and although it may be slightly
below the performance of the new and emerging super sports motorcycles,
I cannot see why you would require any more performance on public roads.
The 2016 Honda Fireblade SP ABS motorcycle costs a hefty £14,499.00
vat inclusive in the UK and I would shell out some extra cash for slide
'crash' protection which could take the overall cost to nearer
£15,000.
I still have a few super sports motorcycles to test but the new 2016
Fireblade SP will prove hard to beat.
It is extremely unlikely (in my old age) that I will be purchasing the the Fireblade for racing on the track. However for those who might, Honda make a bold statement - "The new CBR1000RR Fireblade SP takes the Total Control philosophy and re-engineers it for the track. By adding Öhlins front and rear suspension, Brembo mono-block front brakes, a single seat unit and unique Tricolour livery it creates an exclusive machine focused purely on cutting lap times – nothing else".