Honda CBR600RR 2021
The wave of rumors about the new Honda CBR600RR is growing, and Japanese sources are vying with each other about a device in the style of the CBR1000RR-R, which will be announced later this year. Vague rumors about the new Honda CBR600RR have been circulating for some time now, but the recently received news seems to be quite credible.
2021 Honda CBR600RR
According to people in the know, the 2021 Honda CBR600RR will be an update rather than an all-new model, and will focus on design and electronics to breathe new life into the existing design rather than starting from scratch. According to our Japanese tipster, this update may be the last for the Honda CBR600RR, as it becomes increasingly difficult to make 600cc inline-fours at a reasonable price due to increasingly stringent environmental regulations.
Design by Fireblade
The key visual change for the 2021 Honda CBR600RR will be a new hood, repeating the developments on the CBR1000RR-R superbike. This means we can expect downforce-producing aerodynamic aids and smaller headlights flanking the centrally located inertial boost intake. However, the smaller CBR will be easily recognizable by its distinctive exhaust exiting under the seat. The frame and rear suspension of the model were created specifically for this exhaust tract layout, and judging by the fact that no significant mechanical updates are expected, it is unlikely that the exhaust tract will be changed in any way.
Updated electronics
Despite the mechanical similarities, the next generation Honda CBR600RR will be distinguished significantly by its on-board electronics package. A new inertia sensing device will be at the heart of these changes, incorporating traction control and lean-sensing ABS, bringing the CBR600RR to the level expected of the latest sportbikes. In terms of performance, the 2021 model will produce approximately 115 hp, that is, at the level of the current model, despite environmental improvements that will extend the life of the model.
Honda CBR600RR (2021) and CBR600RR Race Base - Specifications and Details
So, on August 21, Honda Motor Co., or rather, Honda Racing Corporation, officially presented the new mid-size sportbike Honda CBR600RR of the 2021 model, and immediately upset everyone with the phrase “only for the Japanese market.” But then making a remark: the motorcycle can still be bought, but in the Race Only version.
MOTOGONKI.RU, September 2, 2021 — Dorna Sports has not yet been able to reach an agreement with the manufacturers on expanding the FIM Supersbike World Championship Regulations for the Supersport class. It was expected that negotiations with new potential participants in the World Championship, including BMW Motorrad, would lead to the announcement of the expansion of the SSP technical regulations with a new engine form factor - we are talking about 2-cylinder engines with a capacity of up to 850 cc. Dorna's goal was to encourage a couple of companies that already have similar engines (and even finished motorcycles) in their arsenal to create sports versions and enter the championship.
The crisis in the 600 cc category is obvious due to the inability to produce a competitive supersport that simultaneously satisfies the requirements of the market and Euro 5. Production models are increasingly pure street cars, and peak power figures are reduced for the sake of environmental friendliness. At the same time, the homologation list of the World Supersport World Championship includes Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki, MV Agusta, and Triumph - the same number of manufacturers as in MotoGP, for example. In World Superbike there are a little more of them - Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki, MV Agusta, BMW and Aprilia. BMW and Aprilia want to involve them in WSS.
But all this is a project, and until it is implemented, the Japanese “Big Four” will churn out in-line “six hundred” cars, changing them little by little so as not to lose homologation. The obvious outcome of Dorna's negotiations with the factories prompted Honda to release this new product. The announcement of the new CBR600RR first excited the Internet, and then upset it.
Honda CBR600RR (2021)
Honda Motor Co. officially announced the winding down of the CBR600RR development program in 2021, leaving the production of spare parts and a limited number of motorcycles exclusively for sports - on pre-order of professional teams.
The announcement of the all-new 2021 Honda CBR600RR was a surprise to everyone: an all-new motorcycle? What is going to be there? Design, appearance - cladding with winglets, like the CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP - everyone has already seen it. New engine? What electronics? Like the Fireblade, with 6-axis inertial IMU, all kinds of controls and so on?
So, here's what we know - Honda has officially announced
Only 1,000 motorcycles will be produced and will receive road homologation, but only in Japan. It is now simply impossible to obtain homologation for Europe and the USA for this motorcycle, and in Japan the standards are different. Accordingly, no one plans to produce “left-hand drive” spare parts for upgrades - it will be impossible to undergo maintenance due to right-hand drive optics, mirrors, a limited dashboard, etc. There won't even be an English manual.
The recommended retail price at Japanese dealerships, including 10% VAT, is 1,606,000 yen, which equals $15,120 at today's exchange rate.
What hasn't changed much
The model received the Honda code 2BL-PC40. Its design has been completely changed - externally. Curb weight (in the version homologated for Japan) - 194 kg. Seat height is 820 mm, wheelbase is 1375 mm.
Honda CBR600RR (2021)
The engine, however, is absolutely the same in terms of performance characteristics: 599 cc, 4-cylinder, in-line, with cylinders 67 x 42.5 mm, with a compression level of 12.2. The declared power of the unit is 121 hp. at 14000 rpm. and 65 Nm at 11,500 rpm.
What's Really New on the 2021 CBR600RR
The power/torque balance is shifted to the upper range by revolution. Thanks to the use of new materials, it was possible to increase the peak to 14000 without losing stability and reliability. Mainly the materials have changed. The design of some elements remains the same.
The diameter of the intake manifold has been increased, the diameters of the intake and exhaust ports have been increased, and the exhaust system as a whole has become lighter due to a reduction in the wall thickness of the pipes and a lighter muffler can. Also, the design of the cooling system, in particular, the channels of the engine water jacket, has been changed.
Honda CBR600RR (2021): Fireblade-like color control panel
And yet, yes, the 2021 Honda CBR600RR received a new IMU, and one based on the inertial platform HSTC and ABS. Like the new CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP, the 600 corners smarter, responding to wheel drift depending on lean and position.
The key change is a full contactless throttle with acceleration sensor. By converting the CBR600RR to a contactless TBW throttle grip, the company has implemented in the model all the developments previously used in the Fireblade: multi-level traction control - HSTC, selectable engine response (Power Mode), Wheelie Control, Mitigation Control (rear wheel lift control during hard braking - one from ABS functions), finally, multi-level engine braking SEB (Selectable Engine Brake). Accordingly, the motorcycle received a full-color control panel display, like the Fireblade.
Chassis Honda CBR600RR (2021)
A slipper clutch with an assist function like the Fireblade is also included as standard.
The two-way Quickshifter is only available as an option at 26,950 yen, but is fully supported by plug'n'play electronics.
Bonus – Honda CBR600RR Race Base
But there will be another Honda CBR600RR - purely for racing, prepared for export to European countries, the UK and the USA by the HRC factory racing department - the Honda CBR600RR Race Base, similar to the Honda CBR1000RR-R Race Base.
The motorcycle goes into production on September 25 and will be available for pre-order in Europe and the US by November 2021.
In the HRC racing version, the motorcycle is equipped with a MecTronik control electronics unit, which has been adopted as standard in FIM World Supersport since 2021.
Honda CBR600RR (2021)
The bike will be supplied in the Race Only configuration; it will not include basic plastic (as for the Japanese street version), without mirrors, lighting equipment, or a stand. A different subframe without fasteners for the footrests and panels for the license plate. Modified fork, as well as other components of the rear shock absorber linkage (from a harder and lighter alloy). Thicker brake discs and reinforced brake line hoses are also included in the basic version. But the exhaust system and radiators are stock, like the road version.
Honda CBR600RR (2021): Fireblade-like color control panel
The key point of changes from HRC is the internals of the engine. The company does not disclose which Racing Only components will be installed in the engines immediately. It is expected that Honda's partners will refine them within the framework of the regulations of national and international championships.
Honda will distribute this bike through partner tuning companies in the UK and Europe, where they will still be available to order. But the representative offices of Honda Motor Co. European countries will not import these motorcycles and certify them separately. Therefore, the question of the official purchase of such a bike remains open.
The latest CBR600RR?
While these improvements have given the Honda CBR600RR a few extra years in a number of countries, they do not solve the main problem - the model's ability to return to the European market, since Honda was unable to squeeze the 2007 engine into the Euro 5 framework without significantly increasing the price of the motorcycle.
Euro 5 is especially difficult for small, high-performance engines to comply with without additional expensive technology. The current Honda CBR600RR along with the Suzuki GSX-R600 disappeared from the European market in 2021, having failed even to cope with Euro 4, leaving the Kawasaki ZX-6R and Yamaha YZF-R6 to compete with each other in the 600cc supersport class.
The cost of creating and launching production of a completely new Honda CBR600RR in compliance with current environmental requirements, against the backdrop of falling sales of such motorcycles, makes the development of another 600 unprofitable. Therefore, it is likely that the 2021 Honda CBR600RR may become the last model with this index.
MY MOTORCYCLE
And again sadness in the world of motorcycle news. This time for fans of one of the most iconic bikes, the Honda CBR600RR, Honda Motor Co. completed the development cycle of this motorcycle. and will be removed from the production line. Why? — the valiant Euro4 emissions standard played a role again. and also due to a shrinking market.
As confirmed by representatives of Honda's two largest European representative offices in France and Italy, the head office has observed a steady decline in demand in the market for civilian 600 cc sports motorcycles over the past few years. And with the introduction of the new Euro4 environmental regulation, which is mandatory for all manufacturers in the EU, the CBR600RR will completely lose its competitiveness in 2021. In order to modernize the motorcycle, the plant will have to undergo too serious restructuring of production and invest large amounts of money in updating the company's technical base. For this reason, it was decided to curtail the development of the model and sell warehouse balances on the market. The Honda CBR500R and CBR650F should take their place in the market, as was the case before the appearance of the CBR600RR.
According to a loophole in the new EU regulation, the Honda CBR600RR with Euro3 homologation will be sold in Europe, but in very limited quantities, that is, no more than 10% of the total number of motorcycles of the same model sold over the past 2 years. Thus, the model will remain available to a narrow circle of consumers, in particular in motorsports, at least until the end of 2018.
Honda CBR600RR is a cult model of a medium-sized spotbike, which was born in a civilian format (CBR600F, 85 hp) in 1987 and gradually increased to 110 hp. The CBR600RR itself was released in 2003 in the 118 hp version. Invariably, this motorcycle was built around a 599 cc 4-cylinder, 4-stroke inline engine. In 2013, Honda made the latest upgrade to the bike, updating the electronics, adding traction control and Cornering ABS and installing a Showa BPF fork, as well as changing the appearance of the fascias. Since then, the motorcycle has not changed in any way.
At the same time, the Honda CBR600RR is one of the most successful sports bikes in the 600 cc class. in the World Supersport World Championship. He has been involved in the series since 2002 and has helped drivers take 7 championship titles, including winning Mike Van der Mark's WSS in 2014 with the official Ten Kate Honda Racing team.
Dutch Ten Kate Racing is the first to make significant progress in developing technology for the CBR600RR in the world. Competing in World Supersport and World Superbike, the team served as the unofficial R&D department of Honda Racing for 16 years. Today TKR is the official factory team of HRC and stores all the developments available to customers.
This hard work led the team and the Honda CBR600RR to dominate the WSS from 2002 to 2010, until Kawasaki and Yamaha got more serious about supporting their riders and teams in the World Championship.
Honda's first world title came in 2002 with Fabian Fauré driving a CBR600F. The following season, Chris Vermeulen became world champion, already on a CBR600RR, then Carl Muggeridge. Sebastia Charpentier became the Ten Kate Honda champion for two years in a row, in 2005 and 2006, then young Turk Kenan Sofuglu joined the team and won the title in 2007, giving the crown to his teammate Andrew Pitt in 2008, and then returning it in 2010. Van der Mark became champion in 2014. In 2021, Sofuğlu is again the leader of the championship, but the Turk has been riding for Kawasaki for several years, and Honda pilots are challenging the 2nd position.
It is impossible not to note the participation of the Honda CBR600RR in the World Moto Grand Prix Championship... MotoGP? No, of course not, but we are talking about Moto2.
When the series first launched in 2010, MotoGP general promoter Dorna Sports signed an exclusive agreement with Honda Motor Co. for the supply of CBR600RR engines to the championship. The rule of a single engine supplier was written specifically for Honda, so the championship itself should change dramatically in 2018, when Honda completely stops producing the model. Dorna Sports will have to either remove the restriction on the participation of other motor manufacturers or close the Moto2 category. This revolution has been talked about since 2014, when the first signals appeared about the possible closure of the CBR600RR program in Japan. KTM, Yamaha, Kawasaki, MV Agusta and other motorcycle manufacturers have expressed their desire to participate in Moto2 not only as observers. KTM even had to develop its own chassis to power the Honda CBR600RR in order to enter Moto2 in 2021 with the prospect of fielding a 100% Factory bike once the single motor rule is lifted and Honda loses its monopoly.
source www.motogonki.ru
