Using the Honda Insurgent 1100 DCT!

It was a cool Friday morning, I used to be giving our 2001 Honda Helix a significant tune up and oil change and wanted to select up a brand new spark plug plus order just a few different components so I ran over to my native vendor Era 3 Powersports in Florence S.C. and that’s once I first noticed the brand new Honda Insurgent 1100 in actual house.

Late final 12 months Honda introduced that they had been going to be promoting an 1100cc Insurgent cruiser and I’ve began watching it with curiosity and instantly determined that if I obtained the possibility to I used to be going to trip one. It seems that my pals over at G3 had one in inventory, higher but it was the DCT mannequin. So I took a seat on it and the senior proprietor Don came visiting and held it up for me to place my ft up on the pegs and see how I match on it. For me the match was superb, with my 29” inseam my knees had been proper at a 90 diploma angle and nestled as much as the tank in an excellent location. Once I talked about that I’ve been eager to trip one he knowledgeable me that he had this one arrange for demo rides and I instantly jumped on the likelihood to take it out.

I’ve ridden a number of of the previous Hondamatic bikes of the late 70’s and early 80’s and loved them rather a lot, after all on that day, once I went to the vendor, I used to be getting components for my 250cc scooter that has a CVT transmission so not like lots of people I’ve no downside with the considered driving a motorbike with an computerized transmission. Honda’s twin clutch transmission has been out for some time now and has confirmed to be a dependable system that works properly within the NCT700, Goldwing and Africa Twin bikes. In contrast to a CVT which makes use of a belt sliding between variable pulleys to infinitely regulate pace the DCT is an precise gearbox with the shifting managed by an ECU that really learns your driving model and adapts to it.

Let’s discuss concerning the motorbike and the driving expertise for a bit. For a cruiser the styling of the present Rebels is unconventional, Honda selected to plot their very own path with parallel twin engines and fashionable industrial styling. The 1100cc parallel twin engine is a lot better than any v-twin powerplant by way of energy per cc and smoothness. Plus it’s completely different, some won’t prefer it however I desire my Japanese cruisers to be distinctly Japanese and the entire newer Rebels match the invoice. The blacked out styling is distinctively completely different from the everyday shiny cruiser model, however is certainly fashionable and modern.

Like each fashionable gas injected motorbike the engine fires proper up and settles into a pleasant muted idle. The rhythm of the exhaust notice isn’t a lumpy idle like a v-twin however a gentle staccato beat. It’s somewhat quiet however not too quiet. The engine revs shortly and eagerly in a means no old style v-twin like my Shadow ACE 1100 can match. There are selectable trip modes however for my check I simply left it in customary, my objective was to expertise the motorbike not the electronics. I do just like the manufacturing unit cruise management a function usually discovered solely on 900 pound luxurious touring bikes. With a complete weight of 505 U.S. kilos totally fueled for the DCT mannequin, (barely much less for the guide transmission model), the Insurgent 1100 is a pleasantly mild weight motorbike to have such options.

Lifting it up off the kickstand the primary impression is that Insurgent 1100 feels a lot lighter than 500 kilos. The handlebars are similar to the previous superbike bars all of us used to placed on our bikes again within the eighties, you lean ahead just a bit bit to achieve them, which is a brilliant cozy place for me. I thumbed the button to place it in drive and made a few laps of the parking zone to see how the preliminary acceleration and braking felt earlier than heading out on the street. It’s a little bit of a bizarre sensation sitting on a motorbike and never having a clutch deal with. You possibly can manually shift utilizing push buttons on the left handlebar however I intentionally didn’t do this. The buttons are there if you wish to play with them however very similar to the paddle shifters in my spouse’s automobile I believe most individuals will play with them a time or two after which by no means contact them once more.

Pulling out onto the street and cruising felt nice, type of like driving an previous CB400F however with a decrease seat and triple the horsepower. Some check riders could not have preferred it however below acceleration the DCT all the time picked the precise shift factors for me. Whereas I didn’t do any efficiency testing as soon as I obtained away from city I did whack the throttle laborious for a fast run from 35 to 70 mph and the gearbox responded precisely prefer it ought to have. The entrance finish felt mild and it accelerated laborious. Now I perceive why it has digital wheelie management, the Insurgent 1100 engine is that good. Many have criticized the truth that it misplaced just a few horses in comparison with the Africa Twin that this engine was derived from, however in the true world you’ll by no means discover the distinction.

I didn’t get to any actual twisty roads only a few metropolis avenue corners and a few good two lane sweepers however that was sufficient to inform me that the Insurgent 1100 dealt with a lot better than some other cruiser that I’ve ridden together with the 2017 Guzzi V9 that I lately offered. A very good rider on a Insurgent will spank a median rider on a sport-bike with no downside. I really like my classic bikes however I’ve to confess these fashionable machines are actually marvelous and I’ll have to present shopping for one other new one some severe thought.

You may suppose {that a} bike with such a low seat peak of 27 and ½ inches can be a tough trip however on this case you’d be fallacious. The Insurgent 1100 and I rode by just a few intersections with some critically rippled pavement and horrible patchwork and the trip felt simply high quality. One of many issues that has turned me off of recent bikes is that the brand new ones I’ve bought all the time appeared to want both a substitute seat and/or shocks to be comfy. This one has good suspension together with Showa rear shocks with piggyback reservoirs that work very properly simply as they’re.

Braking is sweet, the ABS system works unobtrusively and offers nice stopping means. Which will probably be reassuring for these occasions when the DCT system doesn’t downshift while you suppose it ought to, on up-shifts I all the time felt that the DCT shifted on the proper time and held the precise gear for the precise size of time to match what I used to be attempting to do. A few times the downshift didn’t happen once I needed it to however after we obtained used to one another, issues smoothed out. Try to be conscious of this little quirk however don’t let it cease you from shopping for a Honda with a twin clutch transmission in order for you one, when you get used to it, all the things turns into seamless.

While you consider a Honda Insurgent you most likely consider the lovable little 250 newbie bikes that had been a staple of driving faculties in all places for many years. These had been lastly outmoded by the present era of 300 and 500 Rebels that the Insurgent 1100 is descended from. But the Insurgent 1100 isn’t actually a freshmen bike. With it’s mild weight and low seat peak it could possibly be, however the energy and dealing with it has are greater than sufficient to maintain an skilled rider glad. That is the utmost Insurgent for the rider whose ability has outgrown the smaller Rebels however not their inseam. It’s a severe motorbike for severe riders who simply occur to have outgrown the smaller Rebels or who desire a cruiser model trip however not one other large, heavy and gradual chrome plated v-twin motorbike.

If I purchased a Insurgent 1100, which is a definite risk, it might get the touring equipment and passenger lodging earlier than it left the vendor. The very first thing I’d do is take it out for a pleasant 2-300 mile trip simply to get used to it. The following factor I’d do can be to strap it to my work desk, take just a few measurements after which fireplace up the Solidworks CAD software program and design some cool one in every of a form customized components for it.

The Honda Insurgent 1100 is a type of uncommon bikes that I can unconditionally advocate to everybody who’s comfy sitting on it, at my 5’-10” peak, it’s a nice match for me, rides properly, handles nice, has loads of energy and better of all is out there with Honda’s twin clutch transmission in order for you it.

Whether or not you go for the 6 pace guide or the DCT computerized the Honda Insurgent 1100 is a superb actual world motorbike for actual motorcyclists.