CLASSICS
H
WORDS AND PHOTOS:
Rhys Jones
HONDA CB900F
appy 40th birthday Honda. Which of
course sounds like a sweeping, and
inaccurate statement when referring
to a company founded by Soichiro Honda in
1947, which became one of the most successful
automotive and motorcycle companies in
the world. I’ll be more specific; the Honda
CB900F was produced in 1979. Throughout
the 1970s Honda was noticeably absent
from the Grand Prix circus, but the company
didn’t withdraw from racing all together.
It simply applied its expertise to another
class of competition, winning seven of eight
European Endurance Championship events
in 1976, also the prestigious 24-hour Bol-Or.
Apart from never losing touch with the
prestige that comes from racing, Honda was
acutely aware that on the road it was under
Ron Haslam World Formula 1 TT winner
severe pressure from the highly successful
Kawasaki Z1000, and Suzuki GS1000. The ground
breaking CB750 had been overtaken by the
big DOHC fours, and a road-going superbike
was required. The response from Honda was
swift, and the CB900F was born. The advertising
that accompanied the new arrival said, ‘a
thundering super sports bike with devastating
performance and unwavering stamina that will
be setting the pace for many years to come’.
The CB900F was originally designed for
European consumption. When the bike
eventually hit the showrooms State-side it
made more of an impression than it ever
did in Europe, despite the design having
been crafted specifically for the European
marketplace. This was due to a startling ride,
and race win, by a certain 19-year-old Freddie