CBR500R, No Love?
 

So I was at the Honda dealership yesterday and I was looking at the new bikes. And I just kinda wanted to get some more experienced input on some thoughts I had.

So Currently I'm on the '02 F4i and really have no plans to change that anytime soon, but I just wanted to see what the "current version" of my bike would be right now.

But I kind of feel there is no "direct descendant" to my bike. The two closest are the CBR600RR and then the CBR500R. Of course there are threads upon threads here about the 600RR, but not much talk about the 500R. Is it because it's new, or it's just not good?

My feelings from what I have seen and read are: (assume following thoughts are compared to my current bike)

600RR - More "Track" than mine. More leaned forward position, doesn't seem conducive for possible hour long highway commuting like I do now. Otherwise I really like the way it looks honestly. Just worried about regular use for just around town, or possibly for longer rides, maybe even riding with a passenger (not for the long rides ;) ). My F4i seems to balance all of these pretty well and is still very sporty.

500R - Great looking bike actually, specially for the low $$. And the gas mileage... they are talking 71 MPG... sounds nice for the commuting aspect. But how much power would be lost going from the F4i to this. Not just HP numbers, I of course can subtract, but has anyone ridden both and got a "seat of your pants" feel? I read reviews that it's "torquey" so it still has some good pull to it. But I was curious of someone who might have ridden both back to back. Where are the most noticeable differences?

Just looking for some real life experience from people I consider to be "good sources" for honest bike answers. Just to be clear, I'm not interested in topping out any bike I own, or any sort of "racing". But I do like the feel of a good fat power band when I want it :)

Any input is welcome!

Might try sending raylee a pm. He works at a Honda dealership. So he prolly has some good insight

I actually stopped at a Honda dealership near my house on the way home today to ask some more questions. I have talked to the guy there a few times in the past and know that he used to own an F4i like mine. He pretty much confirmed what I felt... no direct descendant really. The RR is close but definitley more "track" like I figured and the 500 is noticeably less power.

I say of the two I would personally lean towards the RR... it just looks so damn bad ass! ;)

He did show me the CB1000R which was definitley interesting, but not my style.

He made a good point... that after the F4i there weren't alot of "multi purpose" Honda sport bikes... bikes that were good at the track, but still pretty comfortable to ride daily for a commute.

Either way I'm still happy with my F4i so all is well in the world at this point ;) He did say one last interesting thing... that in Europe there are still new F4i's being sold? Does anyone know if that's true?

one of the recent mag reviews gave the 500 low ratings on the excitement-ometer -- said it was not to be confused with a sport bike, but is designed to target the european A2 learner markets.

I took one around the lot. I was pleasantly surprised. It has good pep and you can wind out first gear to just around where you feel like you're doing something a bit naughty so off the line it's pretty nice. The powerband is wide and flat but not as brutal as a V-twin which makes it very manageable.

If it's a choice between an f4i and a cbr500r, I'd say keep the f4i, you're gonna miss that inline 4 rush. I've ridden a regular f4 and felt that was a "funner" bike than the 500. Unfortunately, my f4i had a 60 tooth rear sprocket so it's hard to make a personal comparison. The f4i feels soft to me, but the 500 even more so. All that being said, new is new, there's no feeling like that tight fresh out of the oven feeling of a new bike.

The 500 would need some work to make it sportier, but it does just kind of fall into turns and it's got an ultra-light feeling to it which would lead me to believe it would be crazy nimble if you wanted to rail on it through some switch back... although a bit undersprung. If I was to choose a commuter/learner bike, the 500 would be it, but I'd opt for the naked 500f version.

BTW, if you can't get yourself excited on any bike, you're doing it wrong.

haha, that would make a good sig line.

You beat me too it! I was going to congradulate raylee on a great quote! And definitely say a "Thank You" Raylee for your descriptive review, well written! Gave me a good feel for the bike. :) Thanks!

i am going to follow this thread, as I am in a similar situation. i used to own an f4i, and have been bouncing between the 600RR and 500R as my next bike. if i get around to giving either of them a shot, i will contribute my thoughts as well :)

I own the bikes in my sig and just rode the 500R this weekend in the mountains for work.

The 500 series is not nearly as powerful as a 600. The 500 is a touch faster than the CBR250R but makes more sense because it is faster and can get good MPG around the highway.

My average MPG after doing 75mph+ on the freeway, going up and down the mountain at peg-dragging pace, and then commuting to the office today produced 52.5 MPG. It's soft-sprung and it's really not to be compared with a sport bike.

It's comfy, but definitely small. I would prefer the CB500F I think. I could see myself shelling out the 6K out the door price for only using it as a commuter. around town you can easily get upper 60's in MPG if you're riding it sensibly.

EDIT: Forgot to mention my buddy was riding with me who owns a CBR250R with full exhaust, suspension work, sticky tires and rear sets. Under acceleration, I'm barely faster than him. His bike weighs around 320lbs with 27hp and I'm at 430lbs with 47hp. Suspension was the biggest thing holding me back.