The Honda Neo Sports Café 650 concept was unveiled
at the Paris Motorshow after the introduction of the CB1000R and CB250R as part
of the Neo Sports Café line-up. The Neo Sports Café family made its debut at EICMA 2017 and was introduced
in Malaysia in June this year.
In naming the range Neo Sports Café, the bikes
feature post-modern twists on the café racer theme. Replacing the previous
CB1000R, the styling was a bigger departure. The pointy headlamp made way to a
massive round headlight with a distinctive circle LED. There is also a wide
radiator in front of the engine. The new bike’s silhouette are rounder and
softer for a retro feel.
Now here comes the 650. From the looks of the four
swooping exhaust downpipes and the cylinder block that’s tilted 60o forward,
the engine has to be from the CB650F we tested not long ago. The twin silencers
look aggressive, too.
The headlamp has been replaced with a round unit and
the cowls flanking the fuel tank have been removed. The result is a
dramatic-looking bike – even better-looking than the 1000cc model, in our
books. Is Honda hinting on replacing the CB650F? The
introduction of the production model should debut at EICMA in November.
