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Honda CB 1000 Hornet SP in review (Baujahr 2025)

157 hp naked bike rocket for less than 12,000 euros

04.03.2025

Photos: Motorradtest.de

The Honda CB 1000 Hornet is the third Hornet after the 750 and 500 to round off this naked bike model series. But is 157 hp really enough? Haha. 120 hp would have been enough, but with the modified Fireblade engine, the big Hornet becomes a real grenade. Volker and Dietmar went for a spin.

Make the trestle glow on asphalt?

Let's start with the surprise par excellence: The new Hornet 1000 SP costs only 11,500 euros, the standard Hornet even only 9,700 euros (without overpass). The competition has to dress pretty warmly. Only the Kawasaki Z900 can keep up, all other competitors of this collar size are sometimes noticeably more expensive.

Color selection of the standard Hornet: red, white, gray. We would take the red one.

Anyone who thinks that you can only get lean food in view of the price is mistaken. By the way, the CB 1000 Hornet SP is produced in Japan - amazing! Both the Standard and the SP look sharp and leave no doubt from a distance about who should make room here.

The additional price for the SP of 1,800 euros provides the following additional equipment:

- QuickShifter series
- 5 hp and 3 Nn more torque
- Öhlins TTX 36 shock absorber (instead of Showa)
- Brembo Stylema front brakes (instead of Nissin)
- Gold anodized fork and rims
- Elegant paint finish "Matt Ballistic Black Metallic"

No color selection for the SP. We would take the black one. Oh no.

Dimensions and seat test

The CB 1000 Hornet is a streetfighter of the purest water. You notice this at the latest when you get on it: Wide handlebars, footrests offset to the rear and up, front wheel-oriented seating with a sporty forward inclination. The knee angle of Dietmar with his long legs was already quite sharp, but that didn't annoy me during the test drive. The passenger comfort is ... well, let's leave that.

At least there is a pillion seat, so you can take someone with you, but he should not have great demands. And don't be surprised that the knees are suddenly between the ears because of the high-mounted pillion footrests. It doesn't matter, who wants to drive with this device in pairs at all? Well then.

Sitzprobe Honda CB 1000 Hornet SP

That's what it's like to sit on the Honda Hornet 1000 & SP.

360 degree tour around the Honda CB 1000 Hornet SP

Technology of the Hornet 1000 SP

The cockpit of the new Hornet consists of a 5-inch TFT color display, which Honda currently likes to install in many models. It is very easy to read, has three different views and navigation can also be placed on the display via the Honda RoadSync app.

The operation is mostly via an illuminated D-pad switch and turns out to be very simple. An on-board computer provides information about consumption, remaining range, trip meter, etc., and in the settings you can configure your two user driving modes, among other things. There are three adjustable bars for power (engine mapping), engine braking and traction control. In addition, there are the three standard driving modes Rain, Street and Sport.

The equipment also includes a USB port and wheelie control. Not on board are cruise control, lean angle sensors (cornering ABS), keyless ignition and automatic turn signal reset. Okay, the price has to come from somewhere.

The lighting comes completely in LED technology including the turn signals. As usual with Honda, there is also an "ESS" emergency stop system, which reduces the possibility of a rear-end collision by automatically and quickly flashing the indicators. The front headlights for low beam and high beam are each doubled. It looks very chic and the Hornet also offers a very sporty appearance from the rear. We like it very much!

Bulky rear silencer with 98 dbA. Already laughed more. Sounds good though!

This is how it drives

We don't like the look of the exhaust so much. Clear case for the Zweimarkt! The standard bag, on the other hand, sounds really good. Especially at higher revs, the machine screams with joy so wonderfully that you like to turn the handle for that reason alone.

On the road, the CB 1000 Hornet SP then shows what it's made of. She is agile, light-footed and yet stable and predictable. The rideability is really excellent and should not pose any problems even for beginners. Of course, it's not an entry-level bike because of its performance. It takes a bit of discipline not to be constantly at the limit - that's how much fun it is to make the asphalt glow with the Hornet.

4-cylinder in-line engine from the 2017 Fireblade. Well, already with some modifications and with Euro5+.

Engine

This is primarily due to the engine, which cheers upwards until the rind cracks. The SP's 157 hp feels like even more. If you want, you can be catapulted wildly forward, but the Hornet can also be catapulted leisurely. The four-cylinder is lamb-like, if you want that. Gondola through the village at 40 in 6th gear is no problem at all: The engine doesn't around, the chain doesn't beat and accelerating from low revs is absolutely smooth.

Although it is a Fireblade engine that actually only feels comfortable from 6,000 rpm upwards, this is already the case with the Hornet from 4,000 rpm. There is a strong blow in the back again at about 7,000 rpm, but as I said, the inline four already has enough oomph at the bottom. Wat'n Wunder with a torque of 107 Nm...

Braking

Just as quickly as it goes forward, you can bring the load to a stop again. This is ensured by Brembo Stylema Monoshock 4-piston fixed calipers on two 310 rotors. At the rear, a Nissin 1-piston brake caliper is at work. The brake line is excellent and a surprise at this price. The standard Hornet brakes both front and rear with Nissin, which should be completely sufficient, but we haven't tested it. So: Positive and negative acceleration with the new Hornet "very good".

Only the SP comes with Brembo Stylemas and radial Brembo brake pump.

What else did we notice during our test drive?

Well, above all, we didn't want to return the machine at all. The QuickShifter is very soft at the top and bottom and almost jerk-free. If you want to shift gears or are considering the standard Hornet without QuickShifter, you can look forward to a smooth and precise transmission. In general, everything about this bike works really well, as is typical for Honda. Of course, there is no wind protection on a naked bike, but there is no turbulence on the helmet either.

The view to the rear is also okay if arms and shoulders are also "in the picture" - but that doesn't bother because the rear-view mirrors are big enough. Volker complained a little about the fact that the kneischluss was not so 100% great for him, because the tank seemed a little too wide to him in the corresponding places. But Dietmar had no problems with that, probably depends on the leg length.

Warranty, Service and Competitors

The warranty for the Hornet is 3 years, and service is due every 12,000 kilometers. There are plenty of competitors in the naked bikes with 125 hp and more: Kawasaki Z900, BMW S 1000 R, Ducati Streetfighter V2, Suzuki GSX-S 1000 and KTM 990 Duke come to mind spontaneously. However, with the exception of the Kawa, these are significantly more expensive than the Honda.

Result

The new Hornet SP is a great and affordable motorcycle. It is fast, easy to ride, looks good and is reasonably equipped. We really liked the ease of use. It's a shame that Honda has dispensed with cornering ABS with so much power. Nevertheless, the Hornet is a real fun grenade that you don't really want to get off of. Driving performance, brakes, sound - everything at a high level, which, by the way, should be the same with the even cheaper standard Hornet. And then all this for less than 10,000 euros !!

The test machine was provided to us by motofun . motofun is a large Honda dealer in Kaltenkirchen near Hamburg. Anyone who would like to test drive the new SP is welcome here. Or would you prefer the 750 Hornet? Or a Gold Wing or Africa Twin? Anyway, motofun has everything there, so it's worth a visit.

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