Honda Nr 750

HONDA NR 750

The start of a sportbike revolution?

WHAT WE KNOW:

1 The bike you see here is the NR750, a racing Honda with the most radical engine in all of motorcycling: a 750cc, oval-piston, eight-valve-per-cylinder, four-stroke V-Four.

2 Honda entered the NR750 in the prototype class at the Le Mans 24-hour endurance race in April. Mechanical problems kept it from finishing, but it ran as high as second during the race. Its riders included a French motorcycle journalist, a Japanese motorcycle journalist, and an Australian endurance racer.

3 Honda claims the NR750 makes over 150 horsepower; one Honda engineer has told us it has the capability of easily pumping out 200 horsepower if it were tuned as highly as the NR500 four-stroke GP bike that debuted oval-piston technology in the late Seventies.

4 European Honda officials were so anxious for the NR750 to get exposure in an American motorcycle magazine that they called our man in Europe, Alan Cathcart, and requested that he ride the NR750 after the Le Mans race. This is a complete role-reversal, for Cathcart usually has to pursue Honda for rides on exotic racebikes.

5 Honda officials mentioned to Cathcart that they hoped to see the NR750 homologated for U. S. Superbike racing in 1988.

WHAT WE THINK IT ALL MEANS:

It could be that the NR750 is a flag fluttering on Honda’s flagpole, and that Honda is now busy counting salutes. Or it could be a teaser, to prepare everyone for something radical coming down the production pipeline. The last time Honda did something like this was with the CX500 Turbo, when just six months separated the prototype tease from the showroom consummation.

We think Honda will display an NR750 streetbike at the Tokyo Motor Show this November. It will be very closely based on the racebike pictured here, essentially sharing the engine design, if not the chassis. It will have a redline near 15,000 rpm; it will make near 135 horsepower, all while meeting U.S. emissions laws. At least 1000 examples will be built to ensure that it is legal for Superbike racing both in the U.S. and in Europe. These machines will be expensive, certainly costing more than $6000, perhaps much more.

Because we believe the NR750 racer is a preview of a production machine, probably the 1988-model 750 Interceptor, we’re taking this opportunity to look at the whys, the wherefores and the history of Honda’s oval-piston technology. We’re also pleased to bring you the very first published riding impression of the machine that may have taken the single greatest leap forward in motorcycle engine performance the world has ever seen.