Apparently there’s an ancient Japanese proverb: if you have enough dust you can make a mountain. That certainly seems to be the case with the last of Honda’s trio of 471cc middleweights, the CB500X. Y’see, there’s been enough small changes to this bike, that all add up into making it a proper mid-sized adventure tourer.
The Thai factory built X shares exactly the same, LAMS friendly 471cc, water-cooled parallel twin engine with its two CBR-R and CB-F siblings, plus the same 35mm diamond steel frame and chassis.
However, the X gets a little more special treatment, as it receives a manually adjustable (by 40mm) screen, which the other bikes don’t have, a 10mm longer wheelbase, and a 25mm higher seat than its siblings. It also gets an expected higher 170mm ground clearance.
At 196kg claimed kerb weight the X is two kilos heavier than the CBR-R and four kilos heavier than the CB-F, although this isn’t noticeable.
The X also gets a more touring appropriate 1.6 litres extracapacity, thanks to a larger 17.3 litre tank, which Honda says is good for a 490km trip.
Looks wise, it’s hard to escape the fact the CB500X looks virtually identical to its much bigger V4 Crosstourer brother – the mini-me styling was deliberate, but not a bad thing as it makes the X look beefier than its 471cc suggests.
Out on the snaking roads around Manresa in the Spanish Catalan country, the wide, unbraced, fairly spindly handlebars, and the 20mm longer travel suspension lets you hurl the X comfortably into corners. It also soaks up the bumps well on the standard settings.
The more upright riding position is the most relaxed out of the three 500s, and the X’s overall larger dimensions make it a decent choice for taller, larger riders, while the reasonable 810mm seat height still makes the bike accessible for shorter riders too.
Looking at the amber coloured dash, it would be nice to have a gear indicator, but to be fair, through a 20-minute set of camber heaving corners – leaving the pliable motor in third – it was bend swinging well.
Sometimes it would’ve helped to knock it down a gear powering out of the hairer bends but the smooth motor pulled fairly cleanly without too much judder or clutch slipping needed.
The parallel twin performs best between 3500 and 5000rpm, delivering that nice mid-torque bulge that’s just so easy yet rewarding to ride – it’s got a linear delivery, with a slick, clean six-speed box.
The X also has one degree more rake and 6mm more trail than its siblings, which translates to a more reassuring, stable handling feel. Out of the three, the X feels the most substantial yet compact at the same time.
All in all, the new CB500X should offer a broad cross-section of riders a genuine, middleweight adventure-touring machine without the hefty big bore price tag.
ENGINE
Configuration Parallel-twin
Cylinder head DDOHC, four values per cylinder
Capacity 471cc
Bore/Stroke 67x66.8mm
Compression ratio 10:7:1
Cooling Liquid
Fuelling EFL, 2 X 34mm throttle bodies
Power 35kW @ 8500rpm (claimed)
Torque 43Nm @ 5000rpm (claimed)
TRANSMISSION
Type Six-speed
Clutch Wet
Final Drive Chain
CHASIS
Frame material Steel
Frame layout Diamond
Rake 26.5”
Trail 108mm
SUSPENSION
Front: 41 mm fork, non-adjustable, 139mm travel
Rear: Monoshock, preload adjustable 119mm travel
WHEELS/TYRES
Wheels Multi-spoke, cast alloy
Front: 17 x 3.5 Rear: 17 x 4.5
Tyres Pirelli Scorpion Trails
Front: 120/70ZR17
Rear: 160/60ZR17
BRAKES
Front: 320mm disc, two-piston caliper
Rear: 240mm disc, single-piston caliper
Control: ABS
DIMENSIONS
Weight 196kg (kerb, claimed)
Seat height 810mm
Max width Not given
Max height Not given
Wheelbase 1420mm
Fuel capacity 17.3L
PERFORMANCE
Fuel consumption Not given
Top speed 185km/h (set)
PRO
Decent tank range
Easy on the wallet
Feel like a proper big bike
CON
No gear indicator display
Crosstourer copycat styling
No handlebar brace
