Manufacturer Honda Successor Honda CB650F Engine 599 cc (36.6 cu in) | Production 1998–2013 Class Standard | |
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Also called Honda Hornet (Europe and Brazil)
Honda 599 (United States) | ||
The Honda CB600F (known as the Hornet in Europe and Brazil and 599 in the U.S.) is a standard motorcycle manufactured by Honda. It is powered by a 599 cc (36.6 cu in) liquid-cooled inline-four engine, originally a detuned version of that in the Honda CBR600 sport bike, which currently produces around 102 bhp (76 kW). The 'Hornet' name was not taken to North America as AMC had trademarked the name with the AMC Hornet.The Hornet comes in models:160, 250, 600 & 900.
History
The Honda CB600F Hornet was introduced for Europe in 1998, although a 250 cc version has existed as a home-market only version since 1994. The bike has a six-speed transmission. Its suspension consists of a front telescopic fork and a rear single shock. Its brakes are dual-disc, twin piston in the front and single-disc, single pot in the rear. It was given the 16 in (410 mm) diameter front wheel and 17 in (430 mm), 180 section rear wheel setup from the Fireblade.
As a sport-oriented motorcycle that provides an upright riding position, it is considered a standard or "naked bike".
In 2000 Honda updated the Hornet, changing the 16 in (410 mm) front wheel for a 17 in (430 mm) to help corner stability and increasing the strength of the brake pass-over system on the front, making the brakes stronger. However, Honda did not increase the size of the fuel tank. A faired version, the CB600FS, was also introduced in 2000.
In 2003 Honda gave the CB600F version a make-over, with a larger fuel tank (17 L or 3.7 imp gal or 4.5 US gal as opposed to the former 16 L or 3.5 imp gal or 4.2 US gal), and 'sharper' styling. The CB600S faired version was discontinued.
In 2005 the instrument cluster was modernised, and more importantly, it was fitted with inverted front forks, to improve road-holding and cornering stability.
Honda took the Hornet to the United States and Canadian market for the 2004 and 2006 model years. It was called the 599.
The highly revised CB600F model came out in April 2007. The engine of the new motorcycle is a detuned version of the engine available in the 2007 CBR600RR giving a maximum output power of approximately 102 bhp (76 kW).
In 2011, the model got a facelift. The headlight assembly was changed and the instrument cluster uses LCD display. This bike shared many of the same components – swingarm, fork, frame, engine – as the Honda CBR600F that was reintroduced in 2011.
In 2014 the model received a major update and got a displacement increase of 49 cc, the new model is called CB650F.