Honda Cl-100 And Sl-100
HONDA CL-100 AND SL-100
CYCLE WORLD IMPRESSION
The CL is For The Innocuous Trail Ride. The SL Is For Those Who Wish To Go Berserk.
PRESENTED WITH a pair of Honda 100s, we were prepared for the usual trail riding fun one usually associates with dual purpose machines of this size and origin. Innocuous fun. With one machine, the CL-100, our prejudice was justified. It’s just what Honda claims it to be. Gentle, reliable, adaptable, undistinguished in any of its roles, but applicable to all.
The SL-100, on the other hand, was an absolute zonk. We had a hint of what this machine—sort of a baby brother to the SL-350—was all about, when we saw it whistling quietly down the powerline descent at the Berkshire Two-Day Trial. Its owner garnered no gold, silver or bronze medallions that weekend. But the fact that this modest trail bike with lights had made it well through the second day of a tough Eastern endurance run offered us a revelation that hit home like a thunderclap. Honda was finally taking care of business!
After a few hesitant passes around Saddleback’s motocross circuit with the SL, the revelation was complete. We were berserking it. The little boondocker wasn’t perfect, but you can ride it in the rough stuff in a manner which can only be described as wild abandon, slamming it over hoop-de-doos as fast as it will go, or forcing it down a chattering descent with the confidence that you will still be on two wheels when you get to the hairpin at the bottom.
Our SL-100 came equipped from the distributor with a 3.00-21 front knobby, which provides curious contrast in size to the 3.25-17 tire at the rear. A 19-in. wheel at front is standard, but the 21-incher improves things so considerably that American Honda is trying to get the factory to install them instead of the 19s.
CL-100
SL-100
Honda
HONDA
The 3.00-21 at the front serves to increase the already good ground clearance from 7.7 in. to just a shade under 9 in. More important, and of greater benefit to the banzai-oriented trail pilot, the bigger wheel throws the weight distribution rearward, and slightly increases trail, which improves straightline stability and control in rough conditions. Steering becomes more precise and somewhat “slower” with the larger wheel, imparting a sense of security and confidence to the rider.
Rear damping is the only fly in the ointment. Handling is the SL-lOO’s forte, but the lack of proper rebound damping made the rear shock absorbers less than ideal. This malady plagues most of the smaller Japanese bikes. An improvement is certainly within the engineering capability of Honda, or any other óf the Japanese concerns, so we’d hope to see one soon. —>
Detailing is as we have come to expect from Honda. From the rubbermounted taillight to the raised front fender, everything fits as it should. Welds are excellent, paintwork, wellapplied and chrome, lustrous. The exhaust pipe is painted black for more rapid heat dissipation and partially for effect. An approved spark arrestor is built into the muffler, which is remarkably quiet.
The cylinder is inclined forward 15 degrees and a one-quart capacity oil sump is cast into the engine. Claimed power output is astonishing (11.5 bhp at 11,000 rpm!), but the engine pulls happily from a much lower figure. Mechanical silence for a four-cycle is superb with only a slight whine from the timing chain and a muffled, watchlike ticking from the valve mechanism.
Five well-chosen ratios are featured in the gearbox with Honda’s traditionally positive shifting action.
We liked the SL’s front forks, which are patterned after the world-famous Ceriani units. With 5.6 in. of travel, they were difficult to bottom out and had excellent rebound damping: Rubber
slider wipers keep the fork tubes clean and prevent the entry of dirt into the oil seals.
The CL-100 is less happy out in the boondocks than its brother, but is somewhat better equipped for road use with street pattern tires and turn signals. The exhaust pipe is upswept with efficient heat shields for both rider and passenger and is chrome plated.
The frame is also less well suited to rough going as the engine unit serves as the lower member; the SL-100’s engine is housed in a double cradle frame which serves to protect the engine from rocks and logs. Front fork travel is also less than the SL-100, but is more than adequate for road riding.
Both these lightweights follow the popular dual purpose theme and are legal for road operation. They feature excellent electrical equipment, wellplaced controls, low fuel consumption and silent operation.
Of course, the same features are good ones on both machines. Easy starting, lack of vibration and good, predictable handling make these two machines a real pleasure to ride. Both bikes are equipped with washable foam air cleaner elements which work well where dust is encountered.
The seats are wide and comfortable in traditional Honda fashion and passenger footrests are mounted on the CL-100.
Weighing in at a shade over 200 lb., both CL and SL are light enough to be easily handled by the younger set, but have none of the “mini-bikishness” often associated with small displacement trail/street machines. These are real motorcycles! [Ö]
