Honda CB 900F Bol D'or

With a superbly set-up It is said that racing improves the breed and that frame, the CB900FZ has famous saying could be used as an epithet for the remarkably good handling CB900FZ Honda, or Bol D'Or as it is known on the characteristics. Continent. If its specification seems a little familiar, that can be put down to its racing parentage, namely the one-litre Honda wonders that have been cleaning up in endurance racing for the past few years.

The 900's evolution is not just a simple matter of racer turned road-burner, however, and in fact goes back to the time when Honda were looking for a new sports flagship. With vast funds available for research and development of new models, the R & D department was given a free rein to develop whatever model they thought fit. Under the watchful eye of Soichiro Irimajiri, renowned for his racing bikes of the 1960s and for his hand in the company's Formula One car projects, two bikes were developed. Both machines were of one-litre capacity, both had approximately the same performance and both used lots of knowhow from the endurance racing project. The only difference between the two models was the number of cylinders they had. One was a conventional four and the other was a six. The six became the CBX and was a shade quicker than the four, sounded different and, most importantly, looked different.

Honda, however, had other plans for the one-litre four. It was marketed as the CB900FZ with engine size reduced to 902cc, but only Europe was afforded the pleasure of sampling this model while the United States market had to be content with the similarly styled 750FZ.

The CB900FZ follows the style of the later versions of the 750, but its engine has more in common with the six-cylinder CBX. They share the same 64-5 mm bore, although the 900 naturally has a longer stroke to compensate for having fewer cylinders. Its stroke is actually 69 mm, which makes the unit undersquare, quite a rarity on a modern motor cycle engine. With a compression ratio of 8-8:1 the 900 produces a staggering 95 bhp at 9000 rpm and this no doubt is due to the motor's efficient breathing by way of four 32 mm carburettors, and four valves per cylinder, operated by twin overhead camshafts.

The rest of the mix in the CB900FZ package is quite straightforward with a wet-multi-plate clutch, five-speed gearbox, chain drive, twin downtube duplex frame, conventional swinging arm suspensions, triple discs and alloy wheels. What the specification doesn't say is that the bike has one of the best set-up chassis available on any bike from the Orient and is far superior to the Irimajiri-inspired racing-type diamond spine frame of the CBX. In handling, the CB900FZ is a revelation and it is only at the far end of the speed scale that its manners are anything less than superb. It feels just like an Italian superbike, and that really is high praise indeed.

The CB900FZ is a shatteringly fast motor cycle. It has a top speed of almost 130mph and the roads

on which that sort of speed is attainable are few and far between. Just as impressive is the 900's quarter-mile time of 12.3 seconds, putting it on a par with Kawasaki's KZ1000 and Suzuki's GS1000, both machines sporting engines larger than that of the Honda. In spite of its rocket-like performance the CB900FZ is a highly refined machine with silky smooth manners and the feel of a true thoroughbred. It is true that the CB900FZ is slightly slower than its big brother the CBX but it has two assets the big six-cylinder machine lacks. For one thing the CB900FZ is surprisingly economical,

returning a fuel consumption figure of 40 miles in the gallon. Secondly the 900's handling is definitely superior to the that of the CBX's which makes it a real winner. With cornering power in reserve right up until the bike grounds on each side. Braking is excellent and there is enough power in the engine to keep the whole plot speeding through sharp corners or fast sweepers.

It may seem that in Europe, especially in the top league with the 900 and the CBX, Honda have saturated the market and their models must inevitably overlap. It is not until one has ridden both bikes that the differences are obvious and noteworthy. Unless ridden full bore, there is little to choose. When such realms are reached the CB900FZ has a fine chassis that puts it above the CBX, while the CBX has an engine that is second to none in motor cycling. As that other saying explains: you pays your money and takes your choice...