How many modern retro motorcycles are still being offered today?

[Guth_imp]

I haven't been keeping close tabs on the modern retro motorcycle market lately so I'm not exactly sure what else is even available these days. Please note that I'm not referring to "retro styled" bikes or heavily retro influenced bikes. Besides the CB1100, what other motorcycles are still being offered new today that feature the following:

- single headlight up front
- analog gauges
- air-cooled engine
- relatively flat seat that can accommodate two people
- wheel sizes larger than the ubiquitous 17" configuration both fore and aft
- a pair of twin shocks in the back

 

[LongRanger_imp]

Moto Guzzi V7iii, for one. Triumph T100 and T120. Royal Enfield 650. I'm sure there are others.

Oops, the Triumphs are liquid-cooled, but they have fins and look air-cooled.

 

[Guth_imp]

Yeah, for me Triumph leapt from (perhaps from the top) the retro heap to the ranks of the "retro styled" when they jumped the air-cooled ship. I'd now compare them more with the likes of new Z900RS, etc..

Does Yamaha still make the SR400?

 

[SportsterDoc]

The latest model Sportster Roadster is close to Guth's requirements:
The two up seat is not flat although the tach is analogue, the speedo is digital.

Front tire is 19, rear is 18
76 ft lbs @ 3750 RPM, but it is hefty at 571# wet, which may be why it is only rated 48 MPG (and premium fuel required), but good lean angles for cornering, ~31 degrees, left and right.

I considered one, but the $11,649 price is a bit steep and the drag bar setup was not at all comfortable. When I first sat on the CB1100 (no test ride), it felt like I had already been riding it for a long time.

The Moto Guzzi V7 (whether II or III) is a nice machine. Got more attention than most bikes I have owned. A bit light on HP, but it will cruise 85+ and did fine in Las Vegas summer heat. Passing at 8,000' elevation up a 6%+ grade needed some forethought. Cold natured fueling was disappointing.

My 2012 Triumph Bonneville had 16" wheels (cornered great) but otherwise fit all of Guth's requirements. The 865cc motor was a jewel. But, the change to liquid cooling was a disappointment to me...as well as no options to the Moto Guzzi/Triumph/Ducati, etc. dealer in south Las Vegas.

1847 miles on the clock, as of today's ride.

Yeah, for me Triumph leapt from (perhaps from the top) the retro heap to the ranks of the "retro styled" when they jumped the air-cooled ship. I'd now compare them more with the likes of new Z900RS, etc..

Does Yamaha still make the SR400?

When I last looked, this month.
Not much HP: 24 @ 6400 RPM, 21 ft lbs @ 5,500 and 384 pounds weight

 

[Guth_imp]

Hmm, maybe the question should simply be how many air-cooled options remain amongst today's current motorcycle offerings?

 

[SportsterDoc]

Hmm, maybe the question should simply be how many air-cooled options remain amongst today's current motorcycle offerings?

Including dual sports?

 

[Guth_imp]

I was thinking street-specific. But I suppose there are probably some guys that buy dual sports and rarely if ever get them off of the street.

 

[Ulvetanna_imp]

Hmm, maybe the question should simply be how many air-cooled options remain amongst today's current motorcycle offerings?

Royal Enfield Interceptor, air-cooled twin, about 47 HP/444 lbs., 18" wheels front/rear. All new design. 2018 model.

This one is also on my list of possibilities next year.

 

[pdedse]

Hmm, maybe the question should simply be how many air-cooled options remain amongst today's current motorcycle offerings?

Royal Enfield Interceptor, air-cooled twin, about 47 HP/444 lbs., 18" wheels front/rear. All new design. 2018 model.

This one is also on my list of possibilities next year.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre.

 

[Guth_imp]

Man, the most impressive thing about that Royal Enfield might just be the tank badge.

 

[jedd_imp]

Does this 2018 count as a retro?
It's air cooled too

 

[Ulvetanna_imp]

Hmm, maybe the question should simply be how many air-cooled options remain amongst today's current motorcycle offerings?

Royal Enfield Interceptor, air-cooled twin, about 47 HP/444 lbs., 18" wheels front/rear. All new design. 2018 model.

This one is also on my list of possibilities next year.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre. They're gonna sell a metric boatload of these. I already know one fellow whose put the sporty version on his list for 2018. It just has all the right ingredients. Power, weight, looks are all right where they need to be. And air-cooled, but a huge oil cooler.

Price is right, too.

Take a look at this video; it explains the development of the all-new twin. 270-degree crank, too.

This is really just what we need to introduce new folks to riding and also provide a big with an instant "cool" factor to traditional riders.

It's a much smaller bike than the CB1100 but it's right up there on the list for me.

Does this 2018 count as a retro?
It's air cooled too

I would love to see this thing in production. I'd buy one and put it next to my Wolf Classic 150 in the garage.

Hey, I just remembered. That Wolf Classic fits the retro bill perfectly. Air-cooled, 18" front wheel, 17" rear, kick start with a real carburetor. And only $3K.

 

[Guth_imp]

Does this 2018 count as a retro?
It's air cooled too

Hey jedd, while I wouldn't consider that to be a motorcycle, it's certainly appealing enough! What's the story on this one?

(Reminds me a lot of the little yellow Z50 that I very first started out on — awesome!)

 

[LongRanger_imp]

That's too cool. Front disk, inverted forks, mags... Wonder if that's a clutch lever or another brake lever?

I had a blue '70 Z-50 MiniTrail in my living room before I bought the CB-50R. Neat little bike, and it sold for big bucks on eBay. 3 speed with centrifugal clutch if I recall. Looked and ran great.

 

[DaSwami_imp]

Suzuki TU250X, Yamaha SR400

 

[emptysea]

I am of the belief that the 2017 and subsequent CB1100s are NOT 'retro' motorcycles. I feel that Honda built the 2010-2015 CBs as retro bikes and then came out with the 2017 as an evolutionary exercise -- As if they said "OK, we built a pretty cool power plant; now let's see how it works on a more modern framework". If my theory is correct, future years might have even more sophisticated suspension and possibly different, more performance oriented, gearing along with different wheel/tire sizes. This seems to be what BMW did with their R9t -- started with a bike that bore at least some resemblance to an older bike and then evolved it to what it is today.

All of this is just my opinion and could be totally incorrect. I don't think Honda is available for comment.

 

[Guth_imp]

I personally still consider the 2017 EX to be a true retro motorcycle. But it is no doubt evolutionary as well. Over in another thread on this forum I was noting some similarities between the Honda CB1100 and the Honda S2000 sports car. Those similarities have a lot to do with why I am so attracted to both the CB1100 and the S2000. Both of these vehicles are a result of Honda celebrating it's own heritage. When the S2000 first debuted in 1999 (a model year 2000 car), it represented the purest form of Honda's vision of what a sports car should be at that point in time while still celebrating it's own past "S car" heritage. Over the years (the car was offered for ten years) Honda modified the car based on the public's input. Here in the States that resulted in the 1st generation of the cars (the AP1, produced until 2003) and the 2nd generation of the car (the AP2, produced from 2004 -2009) There is a saying amongst some S2000 fans that goes: the AP2 is a better car, but the AP1 is a better S2000. I totally understand the basis of this saying.

That's kind of how I look at the evolution of the CB1100 and how I feel about these bikes as the model has evolved. Just like the original CB1100, the 2017 EX still definitely represents a celebration of the original "CB bikes" in my mind. The 2017 EX might be the best motorcycle of the bunch, but I consider the original model that Honda released back in 2010 to be the better CB1100. The original was more true to what Honda wanted to do with the bike and more of "it's own bike". Honda then proceeded to evolve the bike to appease the public and added things like the 6th gear, fancier instrumentation, dual pipes and matching side covers. In 2017 they took it a step further with the spoked wheels (I'm glad that they brought the small silver side covers back so that you could see more of the frame.) I still think of the latest generation of the bike to very much be a CB1100. It just doesn't represent quite as much "CB1100ness" as the original did. But that's just the nature of any vehicle that sticks around long enough to "evolve".

However, just as I view all S2000s to be special, so do I consider all CB1100s the same way. And while the CB1100 has quite a bit in common with the rest of Honda's motorcycle offerings, it still manages to be one of the most unique bikes that Honda has offered in many years. That's really pretty cool in my book. And while there might not be that many other bikes out there that I think of as truly retro, I'm glad that the CB1100 is not the only one.

 

[nhawk7504_imp]

Hmm, maybe the question should simply be how many air-cooled options remain amongst today's current motorcycle offerings?

Royal Enfield Interceptor, air-cooled twin, about 47 HP/444 lbs., 18" wheels front/rear. All new design. 2018 model.

This one is also on my list of possibilities next year.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre. They're gonna sell a metric boatload of these. I already know one fellow whose put the sporty version on his list for 2018. It just has all the right ingredients. Power, weight, looks are all right where they need to be. And air-cooled, but a huge oil cooler.

Price is right, too.

Take a look at this video; it explains the development of the all-new twin. 270-degree crank, too.

This is really just what we need to introduce new folks to riding and also provide a big with an instant "cool" factor to traditional riders.

It's a much smaller bike than the CB1100 but it's right up there on the list for me.

Does this 2018 count as a retro?
It's air cooled too

I would love to see this thing in production. I'd buy one and put it next to my Wolf Classic 150 in the garage.

Hey, I just remembered. That Wolf Classic fits the retro bill perfectly. Air-cooled, 18" front wheel, 17" rear, kick start with a real carburetor. And only $3K.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre. They're gonna sell a metric boatload of these. I already know one fellow whose put the sporty version on his list for 2018. It just has all the right ingredients. Power, weight, looks are all right where they need to be. And air-cooled, but a huge oil cooler.

Price is right, too.

Take a look at this video; it explains the development of the all-new twin. 270-degree crank, too.

This is really just what we need to introduce new folks to riding and also provide a big with an instant "cool" factor to traditional riders.

It's a much smaller bike than the CB1100 but it's right up there on the list for me.

Does this 2018 count as a retro?
It's air cooled too

I would love to see this thing in production. I'd buy one and put it next to my Wolf Classic 150 in the garage.

Hey, I just remembered. That Wolf Classic fits the retro bill perfectly. Air-cooled, 18" front wheel, 17" rear, kick start with a real carburetor. And only $3K.

Suzuki TU250X, Yamaha SR400

I rode the Sym Wolf. I was looking for the flush lever. Awful. So low tech it felt dangerous.

 

[Ulvetanna_imp]

Hmm, maybe the question should simply be how many air-cooled options remain amongst today's current motorcycle offerings?

Royal Enfield Interceptor, air-cooled twin, about 47 HP/444 lbs., 18" wheels front/rear. All new design. 2018 model.

This one is also on my list of possibilities next year.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre. They're gonna sell a metric boatload of these. I already know one fellow whose put the sporty version on his list for 2018. It just has all the right ingredients. Power, weight, looks are all right where they need to be. And air-cooled, but a huge oil cooler.

Price is right, too.

Take a look at this video; it explains the development of the all-new twin. 270-degree crank, too.

This is really just what we need to introduce new folks to riding and also provide a big with an instant "cool" factor to traditional riders.

It's a much smaller bike than the CB1100 but it's right up there on the list for me.

Does this 2018 count as a retro?
It's air cooled too

I would love to see this thing in production. I'd buy one and put it next to my Wolf Classic 150 in the garage.

Hey, I just remembered. That Wolf Classic fits the retro bill perfectly. Air-cooled, 18" front wheel, 17" rear, kick start with a real carburetor. And only $3K.

I have my eye on that as well. Nice looking bike. Wish I had $$ and room for 3-4 of the "retro-classic" genre. They're gonna sell a metric boatload of these. I already know one fellow whose put the sporty version on his list for 2018. It just has all the right ingredients. Power, weight, looks are all right where they need to be. And air-cooled, but a huge oil cooler.

Price is right, too.

Take a look at this video; it explains the development of the all-new twin. 270-degree crank, too.

This is really just what we need to introduce new folks to riding and also provide a big with an instant "cool" factor to traditional riders.

It's a much smaller bike than the CB1100 but it's right up there on the list for me.

Does this 2018 count as a retro?
It's air cooled too

I would love to see this thing in production. I'd buy one and put it next to my Wolf Classic 150 in the garage.

Hey, I just remembered. That Wolf Classic fits the retro bill perfectly. Air-cooled, 18" front wheel, 17" rear, kick start with a real carburetor. And only $3K.

Suzuki TU250X, Yamaha SR400

I rode the Sym Wolf. I was looking for the flush lever. Awful. So low tech it felt dangerous.

Interesting. It's based on the venerable Honda CB125, in fact, it's a better, updated version built under license.

There are hundreds of thousands of these doing rough service all over the world. Many are mules, being ridden three-and four-up with baggage.

It's a tough, well-built, reliable motorcycle. But it does take a special touch to ride.

I wouldn't think it would seem all that unusual to we Yankees, since most of us started riding on just such motorcycles.

Anyway, I heard somewhere "You meet the nicest people on a Honda". I wonder what those Hondas were like when that ad campaign was running.

More to the point, I wonder what people were like back then...

Here's another option, the new Norton.

Never seen one, probably don't exist. But nice-looking.

Seems to be lacking a flush lever.

 

[Guth_imp]

I totally forgot about the modern Norton Commando project. I have no idea if those are currently being produced.

I still can't get over the Honda Monkey concept. Reminds me so much of the bike that I started out on. Somewhere I believe that either my brother or my mom has a picture hanging around of that machine. If I ever find it I'll post it up here. In the meantime this is the closest image of a similar Mini-Trail that I could find. (It's one of the biggest reasons why I love the tank badge so much on the CB1100!)