A few years ago, I had the opportunity to ride the Honda CB750 Hornet, a streetfighter in category, design style and performance. After a week with the CB750, it did feel more suited to city runs, so when I heard that its “big brother”, the CB1000 Hornet SP, was available to ride, I jumped at the opportunity to live with it for a couple of days. With the extended thunderstorms in Joburg, I was a little anxious that I wouldn’t be able to ride it extensively, but, in this instance, the motorcycle gods were good to me.
I started with a couple of runs up the road to my “cigar home” and to Bike Kings and Moto Mate to look at gear; I am in need of a new summer riding jacket — my leather Berik is a literal sauna when the sun actually comes out. Nevertheless, the CB1000 navigates the city streets with ease, urging you to twist the throttle just a little bit more, and more, and more. While I was restrained, the CB1000 is both agile and powerful; I found myself looking for even the smallest gaps between traffic to power through.
Impatient for the weekend and a longer run through my usual backroads between Magaliesberg, Hartbeespoort and Fourways/Diepsloot, I hopped onto Joburg’s N1 South highway and rode the loop around the city, cutting back before the Golden Highway and onto the M1 North, ending back up where I started around Fourways. Forty-five minutes of pure riding bliss delivered by the CB1000 Hornet’s 999cc liquid-cooled, DHC inline four-cylinder engine, which is derived from Honda’s CBR1000RR Fireblade engine. This engine was the first to have throttle-by-wire (TBW), which allowed for different riding modes, power levels and Honda’s Selectable Torque Control.
The CB1000 SB Hornet puts out 115.6kW of power and 107Nm of torque. It has fully adjustable Showa 41mm inverted front forks with Brembo Stylema front callipers and floating 310mm discs while, on the rear, there is an Öhlins shock and Nissin calliper and a 240mm disc. The tyres are Dunlop Roadsport 2, 120/70-17 in front and 180/55-17 in the rear.
The CB1000 SB I was riding had the Italian manufacturer SC-Project’s exhaust and, cliched as it may be, sounded like an aggressive version of the drone of hornets as I cruised the highway. This, in my mind, accentuated the minimalistic yet aggressive styling of the CB1000 overall, its dual projector LED headlight and streamlined LED taillight sitting beneath a pointed, hornet sting-like tail. The motorcycle comes in only one colour — Matt Ballistic Black Metallic — with gold on the rims, the forks and accents on the body.
There are five riding modes — Standard, Sport, Rain and two customisable User modes — for adjusting power, traction control and engine braking. Fortunately, I didn’t have to use Rain mode and switched between Standard and Sport, though, to be honest, Standard delivered enough power for most of my time in the saddle.
On the winding roads between Fourways and Harties as well as the Magalies Meander, I easily switched to Sport mode, and the acceleration and top speed were noticeable without being overwhelming.
The up-down quick shifter was smooth on the highway and the open road, though I didn’t use it too much, with gear changing being easy and comfortable, aided by the assist and slipper clutch.
The 5″ TFT instrument panel provides all that you may need, and switching between display and riding modes is also seamless using buttons on the handlebar, even while riding.
I really enjoyed my time with the CB1000 SB Hornet. It is a prodigious streetfighter that gives you all you need in a motorcycle, whether commuting or taking time for yourself on the open road.
