GB350 Touches Down in Japan
After all this chatter and multiple (probably 10) news posts regarding India’s wildly successful H’Ness CB350, Japan finally gets its turn… Except this model will be named the GB350 instead.
Honda has made some very minor changes to the bike to make it more appealing to the Japanese market. Although the GB is very similar to India’s H’Ness, there are still some minimal changes that make this bike the GB. The GB350 will come in a standard model in addition to the ‘S’ version. Both versions will come complete with LED lighting all around and a hybrid gauge system that utilizes both analog and digital clusters.
The GB350 brothers will retain the same powerplant found in the CB350 from India. The 348cc thumper is paired to a five-speed transmission to produce a total of 20 horsepower. Traction control and ABS are available to tame this little beast as well.
Although our American readers might be disappointed to see Japan get this bike without any updates on whether NA markets will be seeing this vehicle, there is still hope. Honda likes to release bikes in Japan before debuting them in the American market, so hopefully, this Japanese release of the GB350 means a brighter future for American riders seeking the perfect low-displacement Honda commuter.
The standard GB350 will be priced at 550,000 Yen ($4,960 USD), while the S will bump the price to 594,000 Yen ($5,357 USD) and will hit Japanese showroom floors on April 22nd, 2021.
20HP? The 1960+’s CB350s put out at least 30HP, and my wife’s CBR250RA makes at least 25HP, with 6 gears. In Enfield country (India) this level of performance appears acceptable, even desirable, but there must be doubts that this model will do well in Europe or North America… or maybe that’s the point. The EU/NA markets are saturated and stagnating as fewer and fewer post-boomers join the sport, and safety/emission regulations increase cost and lower performance.
Living in Japan, I think this model will do very very well here. The Yamaha SR400 (a easy to use, retro-styled, air-cooled thumper) has been a perennial best seller here, but I believe 2021 is its last year of production. The GB350 will fill that void in the market, and to my mind won’t have any current market rivals here with similar specs. Plenty of people want an easy to use city commuter that looks cool, and despite it’s lack of power, it completely capable of keeping up on any highway/freeway in Japan. Just my opinoin, but I don’t see this making sense in North America where 5 grand can get you so much more performance and most riders who commute also want something that gets their blood boiling on a twisty road on the weekends.
In the US this bike would have to sell at a lower price then other, more capable machines like the Husky Svartpilan ($5300) or the Duke 390 ($5800). The price of the RE Meteor sounds about right at $4300, very similar bike also made in India. BTW the Rebel 300 sells for $4600, so somewhere around there. At that price I would definitely consider it. With a few mods it would make a very cool little scrambler.
The HP is low, yes, but you get the power much sooner and don’t need to ride it up in a high RPM powerband so 5 gears should be fine. This bike is not about speed, it’s about coolness and economy. With the super high mpg, low price and low maintenance from the low compression, air cooled single – this would be one of the cheapest vehicles to run on the road.
100 times cooler than a 300cc scooter!
Come on give the little Honda a chance… Not everyone wants a sport bike. If the price is right , and they import to the U.S.
I think it will be a winner!