Why doesn't Honda make a sweet naked?

[Eldercanuck]

I must admit, that after 3 Hondas (1981 CM400T, 1984 VF750R, 2001 CBR600F4i), what attracted me the most to the '05 S3 was:

It was naked.
It was powerful.
It was sweet-looking.
It was British.

Despite the fact that Honda can't fulfill the last point, why can't the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer make a bike that hits the other three? Yes, they've got the Hornet/CB919, but it is totally bland-looking IMHO. Being a fan of naked bikes in general, it'd be cool to see Big Red drop an RC51 engine (minus the twin side-mounted rads, of course) into a frame that looks a bit like this:

Honda VTR250 Naked

Yes, I'm aware that the trellis frame design on this little VTR250 is bit of a Ducati rip-off, but I imagine that something that looked Ducati-ish but with Honda mechanicals and selling for a lot less would sell like hot flapjacks and maple syrup on a cool Canadian morning.

What're your thoughts? Why is Honda essentially absent from the part of the market where the Speed Triple is kicking a$$?

[bkrbil]

Honda has attempted to sell naked bikes in the U.S., and presently offers two (The 919 and 599 or Hornet as it's called in Europe) but hasn't had much luck. Admittedly, the styling and horsepower leave a bit to be desired, but they sell them with no problem in Europe, as well as the CB1000. It's just a market they haven't had the right product for yet.

[L4TUA]

Honda builds good lawn mowers and thats it.

[Eldercanuck]

On 2006-05-30 15:52, L4TUA wrote:
Honda builds good lawn mowers and thats it.

Hey - what's wrong with 6.5 hp in a bike with a pull start? :-D

[R100Pilot]

Yeah. Lotsa cool stuff available in Europe that we never see here. Like the new Kawasaki. We get this:



The rest o' the word gets this too:



Vastly cooler if ya ask me (but of course, they didn't).

Guess they figure we're all squids here.

[cyclerider105]

I agree! It is weird that Honda can't get it right! I've had a 599 and I currently own the 919. They are both great bikes, but look like *****. The new S3 looks awesome! Perhaps the Honda design team needs to be FIRED!

[redwhiteblue]

I think just about everyone has a nice naked, except Honda. If this was Honda website I would care, but it's not and I DON'T CARE! :kck:

[ This message was edited by: redwhiteblue on 2006-05-30 18:52 ]

[AaUuuuGaa]

On 2006-05-30 15:52, L4TUA wrote:
Honda builds good lawn mowers and thats it.

Maybe. But their snow-blowers SUCK! My wife talked me into one instead of a Simplicity. I've cussed her out everytime I've had to use that piece-of-sh!t Honda snow-blower. :evil:

[TripleTrouble]

if Yamaha made an equally as cool bike, id trade the Triple in a heartbeat. The FZ's just arent 'cool' enough, but I am way partial to Yamaha. I guarentee we wouldn't have alot of this piddly***** that plagues these bikes.

Chris

[kuhlka]

Just get a CBR1000RR, strip off the fairing, and Voila! Really fast, lightweight, and naked.