Honda CB400 Super Four E-ClutchA refreshing, much-needed spin on a timeless concept, or something else?If you're familiar with my writing by now, then you know I have a special place in my heart for naked bikes. Why is that? I've been thinking about the best way to answer that question, and as far as I can tell, the biggest motivating factor to me is that there's no place for uncertain or bad design choices to hide. Sportbikes and scooters, they have all kinds of bodywork covering them up. While the design teams on those machines undoubtedly spend time thinking about packaging, overall vehicle weight, handling, and so on, aesthetic concerns aren't the primary driver when it comes to working out where to put everything. And if you've ever taken the bodywork off of a two-wheeler that has a ton of it, that fact usually shows through, loud and clear. If you're the one working on the bike and you're lucky, the packaging was at least done in such a way as to enable you reasonable access to regular maintenance items. Fingers crossed.AdvertisementAdvertisementTwo of the bikes I love and which currently live in my garage right now, a 1990 Honda Hawk GT 650 and a 2013 Triumph Street Triple R, both want you to know exactly what they are. The engineers behind them chose to hide nothing; it's all on display for both the rider and the world to see. And in both cases, I think it's pretty glorious. It also doesn't hurt that they both sound amazing, of course; but that's certainly not a quality that's strictly limited to naked bikes.And so, that's the lens through which I view the new Honda CB400 Super Four E-Clutch. Well, that and the fact that I had the chance to get to know Honda's E-Clutch system up close and personal on a Rebel 300 E-Clutch earlier this year. At the time, I couldn't help but recall the Rebel 250 with a standard clutch that I first learned to ride on years ago in my first-ever MSF class. Even then, I knew I wasn't particularly drawn to cruisers; even then, it was primarily naked bikes that spoke to my soul.Honda CB400 Super Four E-Clutch and CBR400R Four E-ClutchHonda CB400 Super Four E-ClutchHonda CB400 Super Four E-ClutchHonda CB400 Super Four E-ClutchAdvertisementAdvertisementHonda CB400 Super Four E-ClutchThe Number FourChill Workshop Vibes Abound In This 1994 Honda CB400 Super Four Restoration2022 Honda CB400 Super Four And Bol d'Or Final Editions Released In JapanI have to say, living in 2026 and seeing some of the fantastic naked bikes in the 400-ish cc class that OEMs are putting out now, it's definitely speaking to something in me. I've remarked more than once in recent time that this or that 400 is something I wish was around when I was first learning to ride. And although it seems unlikely that the new CB400 Super Four E-Clutch is something I'll be riding anytime soon, as it's primarily destined for release in Japan and elsewhere in Asia, I have to say that at least visually and theoretically, it's something I find very much up my street. Something I'd gladly try if I had the chance.There's something compelling about those four beautiful header pipes and how they bend so gracefully down to the collector, before the entire exhaust system sweeps back up into that shiny, chrome end can. It certainly doesn't hurt that it's basically doing a mini-me impression of a CB1000 F, of course; only in an approachable, non-intimidating form that just about anyone can ride.Why should 1000cc riders get to have all the fun, anyway?AdvertisementAdvertisementThe question isn't whether I like it, though; as mentioned above, I'm not the intended audience for this bike. The real question is, how compelling will riders in the Asian markets where Honda intends to release this bike find it? Concessions to modernity include ensuring that it meets modern emissions standards, and it also naturally is throttle-by-wire and has the aforementioned E-Clutch system, as well. So, it captures classic styling cues stretching back over half a century of Honda industrial motorcycle design, and refracts them through a modern lens. You get clay design to work out how best to execute a steel tank (not a nylon tank, or a nylon tank cover). You also get practical analysis that even if you have an incredibly powerful motorcycle (as many on the market are today), most everyday riders don't tend to use all that power, according to Honda assistant chief engineer Takuro Nakamura. I know it's only anecdotal evidence, but in my years of commuting experience, I've found this to be pretty true. I think the more power you have on your everyday living-bike, the less happy you're likely to find yourself when you're stuck in traffic.How much power do you actually want or need? Enough, clearly; not having enough can put you in a more dangerous situation than you'd probably prefer. The word "enough" will mean different things to different riders, so I'll continue to be annoyingly vague and say "enough to get yourself out of trouble, and not so much that you'll be the one causing trouble."And that's where modern bikes in this category seem to fit the bill pretty well, in my experience. So although I haven't ridden the new CB400 Super Four, I've ridden plenty of other bikes in this category in recent time. It's a pretty strong class right now, and it's nice to see riders have so many options that are both nice to look at, and seem like solidly built, compelling machines. AdvertisementAdvertisementWill the combination of Honda-ness, design, and E-Clutch be a special enough package to turn riders on to that CB life in the mid-2020s? We'll have to see how it's received as it rolls out in different markets.
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