‘May you live in interesting times’ – Is how the ancient Chinese curse goes. On reflection, the times we are living in are ‘interesting’ to say the least! Let’s talk SA in particular. Our economy is groaning, our infrastructure is crumbling, fuel is stupidly expensive, the Rand is first world currencies bitch, and our future asks more questions than it gives answers. For many, this requires a rethink in terms of what bike is parked in the garage. As a child of the ’70s, I recall a time when almost all bikes were affordable for anyone if bikes were a priority in your life. A 750 Honda cost R1,995, and I bought my BMW R100RS for the princely sum of R4,700. I was selling Hondas for a living, yet could buy the most expensive BMW that money could buy in 1977. Well, that ship has most certainly sailed.
A BMW R 1300 GS Adventure will set you back a cool R411,200, and that is the starting price! Yeah, I get inflation and all of that, but how many of us have the money for almost half a bar set aside for our motorcycle? So, is adventure motorcycling doomed? Fortunately, not. We are currently experiencing a boom in the middle to lightweight adventure bike sector. Many consider top-of-the-range Adventure bikes as a bridge too far. Too heavy, and dripping with more tech than you can shake a stick at, the wonderful simplicity of motorcycling is buried under a heavy heap of electronic and mechanical complexity. So, what Honda options are out there for the average motorcyclist with an adventurous spirit?
Enter the Honda NX500. This is the latest iteration of the long-serving CB500X. The CB500X has, in typical Honda fashion, evolved significantly over the years. In 2013, the CB500X was the ‘adventure’ styled offering in a trio of 500s, the other two being the faired CBR500R and the CB500R roadster. With its comfortable ergos and better weather protection, it gained an avid following. The engine, chassis and wheels were common to all three bikes.
This remained so up to 2019, where a clear distinction happened with the X going further down the ‘adventure path with the fitting of a 19” front wheel and slightly longer wheel travel on the conventional front forks. This advanced even more in 2022 with the conventional forks being replaced by USD Showa SFF-BP units with 150 mm of travel. The rear monoshock is preload adjustable with 135 mm of travel. The NX wheels have gone on a slight diet, resulting in the NX being 1 kg lighter than the CB, at 198 kg, ready to roll.
The engine has remained virtually unchanged since 2013. As the Yanks say, ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’. It is a fuel-injected 471 cc DOHC 4-valve parallel twin with a 180-degree firing order, married to a sweet-shifting 6-speed gearbox and, in typical Honda fashion, a feathery light clutch. Power is 47 hp @ 8,600 rpm and 43 Nm of torque @ 6,500 rpm, a lot of which is available from 2,500 rpm. It has garnered a formidable reputation for reliability over the years. It is smooth and pleasantly powered with a primary counterbalancer keeping vibes at bay. Only at extremely high revs do you notice any vibration. At typical highway speeds, the NX hums along smoothly.
The biggest changes between the NX and the CB are cosmetic. Honda claims to have remapped the NX for more low and midrange grunt. To be frank, my seat-of-the-pants dyno cannot detect a difference. Not that the NX suffers in that department anyway. There is always decent urge available. Spend a day on the NX and you find yourself asking why you need more bike. Sure, there is the speed thing. Litre-plus bikes are capable of decent speed, but that is not really their reason for being. The all-round comfort and relaxed ergos of adventure bikes, with their dirt road ability thrown in, simply give you more bang for your buck.
The price of the speed is weight, which is ever present, even when wheeling the behemoth out of your garage. The horsepower and weight corrupt off-road ability severely for the average rider. They have to use electronics to try and harness the excess power, bringing even more complexity. Sadly, we do not all have the ability of a Chris Birch or Pol Tarrés. If your riding and touring is done one-up, then you would probably find a lighter, less intimidating bike more enjoyable.
The NX suspension is firm yet yielding, allowing you to traverse uneven terrain and feel in control. The backroad ability of the NX will allow you to strafe corners with the best of them. It flatters any ability that you have. The comfort levels are high. The rider triangle is relaxed, and the seat is firm but supportive. The big change from the CB is the 5” TFT dash with phone connectivity, which gives you all the vitals displayed clearly in all light, and accessed via an intuitive backlit toggle switch on the left handlebar switch cube. A huge improvement over the CB’s LCD display, which was iffy at best. Why no self-cancelling indicators, Honda? They should be mandatory on all motorcycles.
Cosmetically, the NX looks sharper and slimmer, more in line with the Honda Adventure family. I liked the slightly more rugged look of the CB, but the NX is a handsome beastie for sure! Another addition is traction control, which I think is totally superfluous on a bike with the linear and gentle power delivery of the NX. I would rather have had a centre stand as standard. The Nissin callipers and ABS-equipped twin front discs allied to the single rear discs give the NX serious stopping power. The NX is a credible jack of all trades. It will whisk you off to work, negotiating traffic effortlessly, then strafe your favourite twisties and travel across continents reliably without fuss or bother. All this will come with seriously good fuel economy. The 17,5 litre tank will easily carry you over 400 km before needing topping up, travelling at highway pace.
This is the middle\lightweight equivalent of the ubiquitous GS. Maybe not the best at any one thing, but a really competent all-rounder with no bad habits. Ally that to Honda’s reliability and low running costs, and you have a compelling argument that less is in fact more. It can do damn near everything that you would sensibly want from an adventure bike unless you habitually travel two up with your significant other, have a raging ego, or if you overdo the pies.
For the rest of us, this is the thinking man’s adventure option. All of its considerable skills come at a third of the price of a heavyweight adventure bike. R128,699 buys you an incredibly competent bike, leaving you with plenty for handguards, bash plate and off-road pegs for those who dig more gravel travel. Consider that Honda’s own Transalp 750, admittedly with significantly more go, will cost you an extra R92,000 at its normal retail price, and it emphasises what incredible value the NX is.
In the real world, traffic and road conditions no longer allow for extended high-speed travel. The best parts of South Africa are seen from byways and gravel roads for which the NX is perfectly suited. If I think of the roads we travelled on our Sidetracked with Honda jaunt through the Tankwa Karoo and Cedarberg, the NX would have coped admirably and probably been a lot more fun in places. I love trips where I dance to my own drumbeat, riding briskly in places and smelling the roses in others. Honda’s NX 500 is an extremely viable option for opening up a whole new world of road and gravel travel adventure. Go and ride one and see for yourself.
Honda NX500:
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