Is no Western icon safe from China’s industrious auto brands? Last week we heard that Porsche’s reign as maker of the fastest four-door to the lap the Nurburgring had been brutally ended by Xiaomi’s SU7, and now we get news that Great Wall Motors is taking aim at the Honda Goldwing with its new Souo S2000. No, the first bike from GWM’s fledgling motorcycle brand doesn’t have a screaming 2.0-liter VTEC motor. It has a 2.0-liter flat-eight that, by no coincidence, has more size and cylinders than the 1.8-liter flat-six slung between the Goldwing’s wheels, and its dual-clutch transmission has eight ratios to the Goldie’s seven.
And they’re not the only S2000 figures
that make the equivalent Honda numbers look small. The Souo’s 1,810
mm wheelbase is 115 mm longer and a curb weight of 461
kg means there are 78 kg to haul off the floor if you’re
ever unlucky enough to drop it.
The 210 km/h tourer comes in
three versions: S2000ST is the base model, the more luxurious S2000GL adds a
big rear seat and luggage boxes, and the S2000 Founder Edition is GL glammed-up
with matte black and gold coloring. A 12.3-inch digital instrument panel, rear
parking sensors, heated seats, and the ability to accept over-air updates are
standard, says China-based industry analyst Tycho de Feijter.
Souo has a range of combustion and
electric bikes planned, and most should cost less than the S2000, which is
reportedly priced from 218,800-288,800 yuan (US$ 31-41,000) in its home country
depending on spec. A Honda Goldwing Tour with the optional DCT starts at just
under US$ 26k in the US. Finding the money to buy an S2000 isn’t the only
challenge prospective owners face. They also have to find somewhere to ride it
because motorcycles aren’t allowed on many Chinese roads.
