Call it the rumor the refuses to quit. I say this because there has been some form of “Honda V4 Superbike Coming Soon” speculation in the mix for about as long as I can remember.
Mind you, this is something that has been in the ether well before Asphalt & Rubber took form, and news of a Honda V4 superbike seems to pop-up just about every year, usually fuel by some “inside source” at Honda being quoted by a European magazine.
So, it seemed that the debut of the Honda RC213V-S would finally satiate this desire for a proper V4 liter-bike, but the disappoint of the “new” Honda CBR1000RR re-ignited the interest in there being a worthy successor of the Honda RC45.
Since then, there have been rumors and promises of a more affordable version of the Honda RC213V-S offered on the alter of moto-journalism, usually by the same offending sources. If only we could will this story to be true.
Cropping up yet again, this bout of the V4 rumor finds its beginnings in Japan now, with the popular Japanese publication Young Machine, tipping the idea.
The news was of course latched onto by the European press (it was even posted on the World Superbike homepage), which has been fanning the V4 flames for the better part of the past decade, surely making a mint off the amount of news pulp they have sold in the progress.
To date, I have yet to see reasonable proof that Honda plans to add to its superbike lineup with a V4 model – if anything, Big Red has given every indication that it doesn’t want to dump anymore resources in sport bike motorcycles.
Abandoning its supersport model, and simply updating its nearly decade-old superbike model, Honda’s focus seems to be elsewhere in the industry. But, others will point to patent filings and hearsay as evidence that such a machine is on its way.
Nevertheless, the rumors churn on…and maybe that’s how it should be. After all, the idea of Honda V4 superbike is certainly compelling, what red-blooded spot bike enthusiast wouldn’t want to see Honda building bikes in the same vein as the RC30, RC40, and RC45?
Especially now that Ducati is getting into the V4 superbike game, there is this notion that the Italian marque has treaded into a realm that Honda deems sacred…or so goes the telling in Young Machine’s report.
While everyone would surely want to see such a model replace the Honda CBR1000RR, and vie for the top billing in the superbike category, the reality is that a V4 superbike from Honda would probably be best fit into the lineup as a homologation special. This means limited numbers, and expensive price tags.
Once again, we will patiently wait to see if this rumor becomes true. If history teaches us anything though, it is that we shouldn’t hold our breath.
Source: Young Machine
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