Thread: Honda CBF Stunner

The word space in this piece is restricted so I'll cut to the chase straight away. HMSI conducted VOC (Voice of customer) clinics across the country and the dipstick told them that they needed to launch a motorcycle targeted at the 18-24-year-old age bracket. The mobike of course had to provide them mobility at a low cost - sticker price to running cost. But most importantly, it had to have a premium sporty image, as above all it had to function as a chic-magnet' Hey, good lookin.

The Honda CBF Stunner then, apparently, drew its form from Honda's CBR super-bike series and thereby clearly shows fluid, and muscular sporty lines. I'm told the leaping wolf has also been the Honda designers' muse in drawing up the Stunner's silhouette. There's no gripe at all actually with anything in the Stunner's looks - she really is a stunnerl But if I have to find a fault, then the one area that I am not too happy with is the headlight design, which in my opinion, is not particularly modern looking, compared to the rest of the bike. It is not possible to say much about a vehicle's kinetic attributes after just a few laps around the company's own test-track. So that part will have to wait for a proper test later. But here are my first impressions.



The Stunner comes shod with tubeless tyres (wide ones at the back), on black matt-alloy wheels on all the models, so it feels well planted. The split-stepped seating arrangement (separate saddles for rider and pillion) is comfortable and it felt easy to handle from the word go. The ride felt well sorted out from the back while the front felt a little vague and pliant. I discovered later that the front tyre was under inflated, so I reserve my opinion on that for the moment.

The 125cc engine develops all of 11 bhp and the company claims a fuel average of 60kpl for the Stunner. Given that the power plant has its genesis in the Optimax engine of the Honda Shine (that gives around 60kpl), it should be good for at least 50kpl, despite the substantial tweaks to make it peppier. The five-speed transmission slots positively with the toe-operated lever and the company also claims a 0-60 figure of 5.2 see as opposed to the Shine's 5.3 see. The Stunner is a willing performer and smart-looker, and I feel that this bike could appeal to many, not just from the younger, but older age brackets as well.