New Honda CB500 Hornet Review: 2024's Best A2 Naked?

[@jimgordon3468]

Listen, the Honda 500cc line is amazing. I had a 2014 cb 500 F. I am 6Ft 3 225lbs. That bike hauled me around with zero issues. In fact it absolutely ripped. It was made for the back twisty roads. So anything Honda makes with that 500cc engine is perfect. Ps. You meet the nicest people on a Honda.

[@davidphillips7255]

I'm six-four and 70 years old and I find my 500F perfectly comfortable; not cramped at all. So I guess that makes me a freak. I first tried an SV650 and I found the 500F much more rider friendly for a taller rider.

[@chrisbracken7889]

Reliable engine, light weight & grate fuel range. Perfect fun commuter bike !

[@Iamwhatiam76]

It’s not lightweight but the tuning is for low end and fuel efficiency

[@Bob-ts2tu]

@@Iamwhatiam76 i'd sort of disagree with the weight statement. 188kg aint bad for a 500cc bike, and compared to the old mans nostalgia favourite a RE350 at 195kg stacks up pretty well with more than double the horsepower. I think the 750hornet at 190kg is pretty good too, but IMHO the thing is that when rolling, weight isn't that important if the handling is good anyway, and these bikes are. GL

[@mrmark8603]

Always great to hear from Honda UK.

[@xTheITx]

Weight makes a massive difference when breaking though. On my CB300R (146kg), I was destroying every bike when it came to the stopping distance test

[@HosuyakawaYazuki-]

MT-07 is lighter, well...Triple 765 is lighter too, oh wait...all KTMs as well. This is ugly looking piece of s... . Have to agree, probably very reliable though. You want fun bike....take Svartpilen 401.

[@Steve-motorcycles]

If I was in the market for an A2 friendly bike, this is the top pick. Its right on the limit of power to weight ratio and that engine is so entertaining

[@jwemyss66]

Bought mine 4 weeks ago and its a brilliant wee bike , highly recommend as i totally love it

[@Bob-ts2tu]

thanks for the overview. I spent a while deciding on either this, the CB500F it's replacing, or the CB750 hornet, and decided on the 750 because for not much more money you get so much more of a bike, especially if you can get a sports pack thrown in foc like i did, so didn't want to wish id bought it 6 months down the line or think i was missing out, but you can't go far wrong with any of them, everyone i know with any of the 471cc engine models (or the 750 come to think of it) loves them, and hard to find a negative review anywhere, but then again honda know a thing or two about building a bike for a market. GL

[@grtbgf]

You made a correct decision. There is a big chance you would soon have wished you'd bought a bigger engine.

[@jessbailey6718]

Did they fix the water pump issue? Nice review brother on a sweet bike, love it and the big tank!

[@rogerkay8603]

Had a test ride yesterday and put a deposit down immediately after. Just need to sell my VStrom now.

[@Dushyant933]

If this bike comes to India via CKD and the pricing is well placed, it will sell more for sure.

[@arindamsarkar9166]

True

[@astikmeher6929]

Honda will never price any big bike well in India. I might go a little lower than the nx500 around 5.5l.

[@arindamsarkar9166]

@@astikmeher6929 they focus on Activa 🙂

[@shivamarya5225]

Kawaskai Z500 is a much better bike than this. Its much much lighter but still more roomy gets color tft, and looks way better imo

[@chrisdadigger1018]

At 45mph my 2022 500f can get 110 mpg. It will go down the road on almost no throttle. It actually gets better mileage than the 250. If your 140 to 160lbs this bike will be sprung perfect for you and you can push that little 500 surprisingly hard.

[@daveladdie3614]

I'm a bit out of touch with bikes now but wasn't the original Hornet a 600cc in line 4 cylinder, I had a CB 500 back in the early 2000s that I used for courier work in London and it was brilliant for that.

[@Bob-ts2tu]

yes it was originally 4 cylinder. i think the new hornet's (500/750) are 2 cylinder because they are better at slower speeds with the torque, and it would be pretty pointless of honda to make another 4 cylinder bike with similar displacement because the CB650R fills that gap. GL

[@adam346]

I keep hearing "It's more fun to ride a slow bike fast than a fast bike slow" and yet I keep hearing "70hp is not enough, you want 100+hp if you plan on doing XYZ with it". I have ridden like 3 bikes and all of them have had 60hp or less and I don't, in any way, feel like they lack power.

[@aljoabsin6694]

I completely agree with you on this one. 47Hp and 43Nm of torque is enough for a normal riding enjoyment. For urban use, short cafe trips and even long trips, that power is enough

[@saravanakarthik3043]

Plz do a comparo video with Kawasaki Z500 SE...

[@bcab7955]

This headlight, pulled from the NX500 looks better than the 750 Hornet.

[@urbanstrencan]

Would love to see NeoCafe variant with this engine on this platform 😊

[@jeffturner2102]

I had a CB500 20years ago, it was perfect seat height! At 5ft 6in this HORNET would be perfect seat hight for me!!! Love the scenery can anyone tell me were this is?????

[@aunoates6617]

Cheddar Gorge, Somerset. 😎

[@jeffturner2102]

​@@aunoates6617Many thanks for your Answer /quick reply 😊

[@josearqco]

And for a 5ft 9in guy, what do You think? It's a bit small?

[@jeffturner2102]

@@josearqco Hi Jose, I think the bike would be ok for you at 5ft 9in!!

[@astrostrotch]

Great review. The only problem it has is the 750 is only 1k more in the UK.

[@hectorshouse7348]

The Horner?

[@ehlyver4906]

i drove scooters and small motorcycles for years (150cc) now i'm into the market looking for a new more powerful bike, will you recommend this? or do i need to start with a less powerful one?

[@MRo55i74]

Nice bike but hate that headlight

[@rizkykrnptr]

i agree, the previous CB500 have a better headlight, i also like the gold showa that the previous generation have, it's a shame they didn't even putting it on the new generation

[@Bob-ts2tu]

a lot of people say that about headlight's, but personally i don't even notice or worry about 'em as long as they do the job. GL

[@SudeepC1973]

Ah the Honda 500❤ fill up once a week! Get to use the entire bike I bet.

[@martinhughes9769]

Good looking bike

[@paulfowler6665]

Ive had my Hornet 750 for a year now and still love it. I bought it partly because it was the cheapest in its class at £6999 but this seems too expensive. Its half the BHP it needs to be cheaper and unlike the 750 this is not a new machine just an updated one.

[@NoName-c4y7h]

My 471cc is @ 66k miles on my Rebel 500. Hoping to get 100,000 miles for fun

[@greybeard3759]

What's that jacket you're wearing please?

[@Draecko]

Why don't they offset the 180 crank with unequal headers? Makes for an easy win on the sound experience without compromising the engine tech...

[@WazirAziz-g1h]

I see a custom project brewing, so much potential.

[@Tryingmybestsince1999]

The problem here in Spain is that for only 1000 euros more you have the hornet 750 which has double the HP and can be driven with A2 license if limited...

[@malcolmpatton9314]

Yeah this bikes headlight is an improvement on the 750 model.

[@juanbenitodelcastillo7942]

The 750 needs that headlight and a 180 wheel on the rear to be perfect.

[@ElCoco1984]

@@juanbenitodelcastillo7942 plus a huge suspension improvement

[@CalaTec]

I bought the CB500F last year, and while I love the new LCD screen that I wished mine had, when it comes to design, I like mine better.

[@Hazardous975]

Why Honda started calling their twin naked bikes hornets and not the CB650 inlines is weird. The CB500 has been around for years and now they call it a hornet 🤨

[@MotoRiderTube]

Very idiotic indeed

[@Steve-motorcycles]

Does it really matter 🤔 they’re still called CB500. / CB750 there just used the name Hornet with it. Silly but it is what it is. I guess it may sell one or 2 more bikes.

[@davetaylor4741]

Don't mind that. Very practical bike.

[@slyfox186]

How's this compare to the Triumph speed 400, similar mpg. I need to book a test ride.

[@michaelcoffey6735]

I think that since a lot of people who are using this as a daily commuter that Honda should consider adding DCT to it? I would buy one.

[@athiannedesirejeanhugues2023]

Pretty interesting. Can be my next purchase.

[@danieledao1396]

Is it comfy for a rider tall 1,85 m (6 foot)? Do you recommend this bike for a new rider (I've rode only a vespa 125 cc in my kife), the power will be enough or you will need more in short time?

[@astro61362]

I'm with Monika. I was rooting for the bird too!

[@justtrappin-vii-7207]

Which preload is the best for 100kg rider?

[@neilanderson2374]

Better than the speed 400?

[@martinrea8548]

112 mph is the top speed.

[@zuhair6661]

Looks like a good entry level bike.

[@fingerhorn4]

Why is it "entry level"? It will out accelerate 90% of cars on the road.

[@charliebaker3389]

17.1 litre tank plus 70 mpg how far can you go ?

[@georgekrpan3181]

Shoulda' given it the Neo Sports Cafe treatment.

[@martinrea8548]

Or a retro look, that would be nice.

[@georgekrpan3181]

@@martinrea8548 Cheers!

[@maxflight777]

*Who wishes this was still a straight four ?*

[@specialized500]

It never was a four . The 650 is a four .

[@grtbgf]

Those who dont know it was never inline 4. This bike exists of 2013. You are probably thinking of the old hornets 600 and 900.

[@wendellnovais]

@@grtbgf The CB500 is much older than that,the first generation that came out over 50 years ago was in fact a 4 cylinder. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_CB500_Four

[@shivamarya5225]

What the hell are these people even saying CB500 is older than most people here and it was a 4 cylinder when it launched

[@maxflight777]

@@wendellnovais Thank you for the link .. Brickbats to those fools who didn’t even know there was ever a straight four !

[@fingerhorn4]

Could be a perfect bike if Honda throw in a decent screen, hand guards and at least some optional soft luggage as a much cheaper way to tour compared with the over-heavy and over-powered Triumph and BMW adventure bikes which are quite unnecessarily over the top. They would also be a viable alternative to the equivalent Triumphs and Enfields with this kind of deal. But of course they won't as they want to create three distinct albeit artificial markets between "street", "adventure" and "retro" in order to maximise profits.

[@scottamolinari]

Does it have throttle-by-wire and quick-shifter option?

[@wendellnovais]

No,the only small motorcyles with throttle-by-wire and quick shifter are the Ninja ZX4 and KTM 390 Duke.

[@kurtinfl]

What jacket is this?

[@astrofeeder777]

petition to make hornets available in the US

[@bulthaosen1169]

Surprisingly looks good considering its honda. Well the headlight is subjective though. Some will like it some wont. It does look semi neo retro so its better than 750.

[@Oscar240z]

CB500 HornER?

[@torbinzix1]

I heard that terrible annunciation too...😅

[@lawler4461]

This or a MT07?

[@DavidSenna57]

What a machine 💗💗💗💗💗

[@RapRapKun]

270 crank is the new thing, sad its not.

[@mogden2803]

Got my CFMOTO 450NK a couple of weeks ago. 270 degree crank, sounds great, even with the standard pipe.

[@TheOverlordOfProcrastination]

The display is lacking in drama? Wtf?...

[@gigi9467]

Bro u need to start adding inch measurements for us americans..

[@ronlysons6750]

I've just bought one of these and I am delighted with it. However, I wouldn’t say the gearbox is nice. I'm finding mine is a bit clunky, especially going into first and up the box from 1st to 3rd, going down the gears is fine with rev matching. Like you said though, it goes round corners really well.

[@wereoursouls3472]

I have the same issue with my 2022 cbr500r. Only downside to the bike.

[@yellowtoblerone]

Why would anyone get this over a svart or vit I have no idea

[@martinrea8548]

Reliability and parts, perhaps?

[@MotoRiderTube]

There they are at it again, watering down iconic names just for short term gains. Shareholders applaud, the future of the company be damned!

[@arrowrod]

Just how many Hornets will sell in UK? 500? Amusingly the 919 Hornet didn't sell in the U.S. I still have one. No 750 Hornet for the U.S. Hooner?

[@ChrisBOMtoATL]

Wait till the Tuono 457 lands on the UK shore. Honda still might be reliable but they have lost the art to make exciting motorcycles.

[@esports_player1]

Nice bike bro btw first!

[@nickclarkuk]

I like all the new Honda’s on the spec sheets but none of them look good . Whoever is in charge of styling, please Honda, replace them .

[@BikingChap]

I was seriously impressed when I tried a ‘22 CB500X. The suspension (similar to this) was good, especially for the price, and the engine is a gem, much more enjoyable than the spec might suggest. My biggest issue is size. Being a talker older guy, I’m finding the ‘adventure’ bikes a bit too tall and these ‘road’ variant just too compact. Choices choices.

[@dimi.r24]

why is it so heavy?

[@borky1987]

It's quite light compared to other bikes

[@FranFyrhart]

Looks is a huge part when I pick my bikes but this generation of Honda's visual updates have been a big flop for me. I don't know why they didn't bring the neo retro styling of the CB1000/CB650 down the range. I really liked the understated, gentlemanly, high quality finish of those bikes and to see the Hornet 1000 in EICMA and now this. Honda's styling department has been disappointing.

[@exothermal.sprocket]

I know Honda wouldn't give a flying poo about what United States market wants, so they'll only find another way to keep this low-revving, dull, 471cc engine around for another 20 years. But if Honda really wanted to provide something truly interesting to the US market, they'd be making a 90° V-twin at a true 500cc with 12.5:1 compression, a 12,000 rpm redline, and stick it into a chassis that provides good bones for modifying (USD forks, radial brakes, linked monoshock suspension, alloy frame, very good cooling system) for racing and otherwise. It would be like the resurrection of the 1999 SV650 (or 1988-1992 Honda Hawk 647cc 52° Vtwin) but in a 500cc class that EVERYONE seems to have neglected since the passing of the old Ninja 500R.

[@motosnape]

I don't like this design language. I think it's similar to the Kawasaki Z's that have been around forever, so it's not cutting edge, either. I think that one of their best looking nakeds of recent times is the neo-retro CB1000R, but you don't see that many of them. So, I guess that not that many agree with me.

[@gigacatkun]

So we're really calling a 500cc bike small engine bike!

[@hectorshouse7348]

Yes…it’s got that silly…motorbike engines the size of many cars these days…weird

[@gigacatkun]

@@hectorshouse7348 Yes. Even bigger than cars. We have 600cc cars here. There might be a small truck with that 600cc engine. 150+ cc bikes are considered higher cc bikes and people do long travels with them. Even as long as 1000km tours. These bikes are used for a long time some even upto 20 years. They may cross 250000km of odo.

[@mrmoon1482]

People who think 47hp isn’t enough, don’t realise that they don’t even use more than 35Hp on the roads,

[@nayanmandal4012]

Beter then ns 400 ☝️☝️

[@JDeezle21]

Z500 SE

[@hmishin843]

I for one, despise these TFT electronic thingies, especially the bar strip tachometer, yikes.

[@shivamarya5225]

I would take Z500 over this anyday, it's way lighter and much more fun

[@tonybarton3746]

Not just great for us shortys but for us wrinklies whose hips have gone after 52 years of riding 😊👍👍

[@farmoboy83]

First they pick the cb500, upgrade the engine for 800cc and call it a hornet and now, even the cb500 is a hornet 500?!?! It would make more sense to name the hornet as cb750 and keep cb500 as it is...

[@divyanshtiwari3547]

Its a such a nice bike performance wise but it looks kind of ugly to me especially the headlamp. Maybe I'll go with CBR 500r which is way better looking than this.

[@qtcbbb]

Kawasaki Z500 and cfmoto nk450 are better than this bike

[@nicomonkeyboy]

Just price... the _point_ is redundant

[@gothickah0]

Love the build quality but hard pass on the design. Its dated and boring.

[@Bob-ts2tu]

so's my missus, but she's still a keeper 😀

[@mrmark8603]

@@Bob-ts2tu That's not what she says.

[@Jipeskripes]

Imagine itu Wright less then 160 kg

[@nc30guy]

Another sullied bike moniker the Hornet was named so because of it's buzzy 4 cylinder engine...30 years ago people called the cb500 dull and boring it weighed no more than this and made 52hp this is not exactly progress

[@shivamarya5225]

Z500 is lighter, nimbler, cheaper and much better looking imo

[@ElCoco1984]

No. Plus worse tyres, bad headlight, worse brakes and suspension and mpg.

[@shivamarya5225]

@@ElCoco1984 It's headlight is good, kawasaki is the only manufacturer that still cares more about headlight throw than making them as thin as possible for designers like with other brands. Tyres you're gonna change after sometime anyway, its mpg is the same, but its lighter so its more nimble

[@domi9577]

Outclassed in every way by the new Triumph 400s

[@sportstermissions]

Ah, another PRAYING MANTIS designed motorcycle out of Japan...😐

[@G-Man01]

You have a... REAL DISTINCTIVE...way of talking. I don't know that ... a riders HEIGHT REALLY MATTERS. Since other reviewers have been... OVER 6 FEET TALL. Also heard the .... NX500... is a little ... BLAND.

[@ShurikGi]

bullocks... instead of downsize the new 750 engine .... eeehhh...

[@Bob-ts2tu]

you make an excellent point here. the ergonomics between the 500 and 750 are similar, you can get the 750 A2 restricted if you want, the 750 has a much better display and features, an optional quickshifter if that's your bag and the 750 has a better fun factor with it's epic accelleration if you want it. both bikes are also pretty much the same weight. you do pay an extra grand for the 750, and insurance will be a bit more, but when i weighed everything up it made more sense, and i don't regret that decision at all. GL

[@ShurikGi]

@@Bob-ts2tu you are right, but there is a but combined with hole in some countries... in mine the 750 version costs 50% more than 500... on top of that it has 21 front that not everyone cup of tea in urban environment... it feels like fresher option for Honda to move to newer platform of the engine...

[@Antimortem]

👍

[@ram64man]

honda go back to the indicator above the horn not below, its the worst design easly mistaken setup that needs still to be fixed

[@GhettoSuguru]

Boring engine . Ugly design . Pass . Bring back the retro single headlight look

[@gfenno]

Agreed

[@MrStr8den]

I have heard that when every manufacturer has copied the KTM style headlights, KTM are going to introduce a revolutionary round headlight😅

[@gdvadventours5512]

Yep a round headlight like the cb650r or that of rebel 500 will make it better

[@Greddi]

Round headlight is in contention for the most boring front end design. People that only have taste for these design, already have options.

[@MrStr8den]

My comment got removed, maybe it was it bit too tongue in cheek for the boring few??!!

[@rickythoughts1257]

I don't like the way it sounds

[@mrmark8603]

That is uuuugly!

[@vazilin4ik]

KEK even a beer bottle iszed cheapish moto shits on gaysla(its the word tesla but how elon wanted to call it originaly) when we conside range

[@abdullahbinmasood99]

I would rather have a cfmoto 450 NK.

[@mogden2803]

That's what I bought. Looks great, sounds great, same power and lighter.

[@GameOn82]

Probably a really good bike, but ugly and boring so no thank you!

[@Vikrum_]

Looks boring and uninspiring

[@KalNation]

Then don't watch the video nor buy the motorcycle. Goodness

[@Vikrum_]

Yes, we like Honda Activa 😎🇮🇳

[@stevenbatley8666]

Flat as a pancake!

[@ricardini9560]

This design is already saturated and will be dated very soon(if already isn't). This screams 2010's. A neo sport's cafe look would be much more timeless and on pair with the original hornet.

[@jeysonc]

hornet = trash design

[@sirluncha_lot4342]

It looks pretty ugly

[@santhoshk8890]

stop putting a2 /EU / etc in your titles .......

[@No0ne31]

Boring bike