HONDA CB600F HORNET (2007 - 2013) Review

Year: 2011

Engine very buzzy, leads to tingly fingers. Only real drawback for comfort.

Buying experience: Bought second hand from dealer, very well served. Bellevue Motorcycles.

Version: C-ABS

Year: 2009

Annual servicing cost: £120

Bought this bke as my first "big bike" after my 125. She had 47,500 but was owned by a motorcycle instructor and maintained by a Honda dealer. Had her for 2 years and covered nearly 10,000 miles both solo and two up. With routine maintenance nothing major needed working on (other than needing to replace the Reg/Rec). She came with heated grips, crash protection, rear hugger, aftermarket headers & exhaust. Gem of a bike and hope to have her for many years.

Buying experience: I bought privetly from my motorcycle instructor bout a month after my test. Brilliant man and still rely on him for maintenance support and troubleshooting if I need it.

Version: Cb600f7 ABS

Year: 2007

Annual servicing cost: £120

The bike rides like a dream. Has plenty of torque and power to keep me smiling when you blow other bikes off the road. A shift of the head has the bike smoothly moving into a corner and it handles like a dream. Power to weight ratio is quite substantial enough to have you at 70mph in a blink. I cannot fault the bike. 14years old and in showroom condition. I ride it with pride and a big grin on my face.

Buying experience: Bought privately for £3k about three and a half years ago.

Year: 2008

Annual servicing cost: £150

An all-new bike compared to the 1998-2006 Hornet, updated in every single area without losing anything that made the original as good as it was. Comfortable, fast, reliable, cheap and suited to riders of all sizes.

Year: 2010

Annual servicing cost: £130

Always brings a smile to my face enough power for the road cheap to run 😀

Buying experience: Honda dealer £4250 the bike only had 2350 miles on clock,payed asking price

Year: 2009

really easy to ride but the seat for the passenger can a bit hard on long rides

Buying experience: from a dealer in Kent, very good service

Year: 2009

I see a lot of riders leave reviews with this as their first bike. That’s great but I’m offering a different perspective as I’ve had 24 bikes and this is my 25th! And it’s absolutely great. A typical Honda in that it’s understated and nice to live with but if you can ride, it will keep up with almost anything. You’ll see plenty of instructors on these on track days, coming round the outside, knee down, calm as you like. obviously it’s a 600 four and you have to enjoy revving it, but beyond 8, it’s a feisty little thing. I have a bike with almost double the power but I doubt it’s much quicker until 100mph and on the road forget it. you really feel you can rag this thing to death, and it’s totally solid. My tyres are shot and I’ll invest in some roadtec 01s next. Some springs front and rear at some point would be a treat but stock are ok and I’m 90kg. Brakes are great. Ergonomics suit me perfectly and I’m comfy up to 75 for long periods. A quiet autobahn saw almost 140 mph and boy do you have to hang on, but it’s fun. overall, especially as a used buy, it’s 5* from me. My advice is go for latest with no kids and zero corrosion. Happy riding.

Buying experience: £4K for an 09 (ten years old!) but basically as new.

Version: 2007 fuel injected, non abs

Year: 2007

I bought this motorcycle after obtaining my full A license. My previous motorcycle was the MT03 660cc single. Compared to that bike, the hornet feels much smoother (IL4), but also the gear changes feel smoother. The Hornet is a great allrounder. I use it to commute and weekend fun. The profile of the engine is very slim so it is great for filtering. The power buildup starts around 6k rpm but once you go over 7, it really takes of. On the highway you do get blasted by the wind, but that is normal with a naked motorcycle. The hornet also handles great and inspires me to take my corners sharper and sharper, something I was not comfortable with on the MT03 (even though that motorcycle also handles very well, I just did not feel comfortable on it). I was afraid that the fuel consumption on this motorcycle would be high, but actually, it is always between 5,5 - 6,5 L/100 km (or around 47 mpg), which is very good! Also, the stock exhaust sounds good, but I will probably change it to a slip on anyway. Another mod I would like to do, is a different seat, as my behind does feel like a brick after 2 hours on the bike. I bought mine for 3300 euro (2930 GBP) with 15400 miles on the clock (non abs model)

Year: 2007

My first bike, not being the tallest and also a new rider I think this was the perfect bike for me. I think the narrow profile helps the seat feel lower, and after a couple of low speed drops it's light enough for me to pick it up again. Having ridden bigger bikes now I can appreciate how smooth and forgiving the Hornet is. Fuel economy is brilliant, I have a givi screen for a bit of extra wind protection, givi topbox, and heated grips. The only genuine fault I've found during my time with it is the vibration on the mirrors, which really impairs how well you can see. Anything else I'd like to change with this bike is purely personal preference - I'd like more wind protection, and my friends and I have a bit of a laugh about how incredibly quiet it sounds with the stock exhaust (is it on yet?) but again, these aren't faults with the Hornet, just personal preferences I've found over time.

Version: CB600FA8 ABS

Year: 2008

Annual servicing cost: £150

Excellent in all department. Good handling, great build quality, good design and colour. Decent city mileage with avg mpg between 52-56 mpg. If you want sports bike with less strain on wrists than go for this bike, you won't regret it. Go far the ABS 2009 up.

Buying experience: Bought it from a private ebay seller. decent price (£3000) for less than 8000 miles, good colour (Gold).

been riding over 25years. previous 4 bikes are ZX9R, CBR1000rr, Husky TE610 and a Ducati Monster S4R. This little Honda is great for me, I commute 24 miles each way through London, I love its riding position, size, flickability and MPG, its comfy and has everything you need to city commute. I have a screen fitted and used a tail large Givi tailpack. Only downside, and I mean only, is that its a bit too revvy, I dont need the high rpms when cruising and would prefer lower RPMs at speed (60mph is 5k rpm), other than that its fantastic. plenty powerful enough, spot on riding position, good headlight, not too loud, great looks, solid reliable performer. I'm getting 58mpg commute.

Bought "BUZZ" beginning 2011 after passing my Direct Access. I always knew this would be the bike I'd want to own one day after sitting on many bikes without even test riding them. My nearest Honda Dealer refused to let me test ride their DEMO as there policy was to refuse anyone who had just passed their licence. Venturing into the unknown not having roadtested any new big bikes and splashing a considerable amount of money was a dawnting afare. First impression sitting on a brand spanking knew CB600FA(ABS) in Pearl White on start-up for the very first time was like entering a marriage and not wanting to let go of this love afare. Originally not wanted ABS as Salesman told me they had none left so paid the extra for Combined-ABS version. I am so happy I did as a truck pulled out in front of me doing high speed on the freeway recenlty and jammed on the brakes without any loss of control! Wow I am happy to be alive! On riding in the engine for the first time was tough as you don't get the best oil from run in oil with all detergents thrown in. Patience was a virtue and the more oil changes I had done over time the more this engine performs as everything starts settling in. Done 8K miles on clock & this CBR engine rocks! Excellent overtaking at high speed. The torque is at high speed unlike the Triumph Speed 1050 triple(Rocking horse on steroids) which just wants to lift it's front wheel dangerously between 1st&2nd gear due to it's short wheel base. The Hornet is much more composed and well pleasing with it's race bread engine reving wright through 12-13K RPM with ease. Extremely well balanced when slowing down stopping at traffic lights due to its fantastic center of gravity design 'Made in Italy'. I have the upgraded syspension version and Ohlins rear fully adj. After 1 mth I have fine tuned the suspension to my liking. Brilliant! I've tested Speed Triple, Thunderbird & Tiger. I must say I have already made up my mind that I have finally made a lifetime purchase with this beauty who will take me to places. I have 'the power of dreams' The engine is a doddle to service. Gearbox is ultra smooth. No jumping out of gear nonsense. Power on tap straight from the word "GO!" Best I had was 58MPG and worst around 44mpg if you keep doing 90-100mph. The updated Hornet is out with sharper looking tail and no grab rail.... Go figure... Put a nice touring screen on this baby and who knows what the furture holds. Get your hands on one you won't be sorry. Italian made and designed. I'm glad Honda made that decision. Enough of my boasting. When you see me, pull over. Safe driving :))

I bought a '09 Hornet after having had a CBR600F (lovely bike, but low-ish bars hurt my wrists...) for a few years and I've never looked back; it is a fantastic bike. What I can't understand is that, apart from BIKE magazine, everyone in the press seems to think that it isn't very good. It never gets put into many tests despite being better than the bikes that are selected! Anyway, who cares I love my Hornet, so stuff the press....

I have an 07 ABS Hornet, which I bought a year old and have now had for 2 years. The bike is great, uses no oil at all, is light on the tyres, good on fuel, smooth, well built and safe. I think it is the best 600 you can buy. It has never let me down. The good points for me are the build quality, materials, engineering and safety. The entire bike is made of aluminium, stainless steel and plastic (with very few parts to rust). The bike still looks factory fresh, and there are no issues with any part of the finish. The CBS and ABS are great from a safety perspective, it must be one of the safest bikes about. The engineering is also top notch. Honda have put a lot of thought into the materials of the bike, for example the entire exhaust is 100% stainless steel, and the frame is aluminium. The engine is great, and very powerful for a 600. Don't forget that 600s are at power levels of 1000s+ of a decade ago, so you rarely need more power. Lastly, the seat and bars are very neutral, and easy on the wrists and shoulders, unlike the 600RR. There are several disadvantages of the bike as well, but they are mainly small faults, rather than actual issues, none of which would make me choose differently. One fault that becomes apparent after about a week of ownership is the fuelling between 3000-4000 rpm with a steady throttle... it is a bit hit and miss, and there is a characteristic rev-hunt that I think should be addressed. Also, the rebound on the rear shock is a tad harsh. There is a slight howl from the intake manifold at about 3000 rpm that is annoying. Lastly, there is a lack of low-end torque from all 600-4s, also displayed here, but the engine is sweet when you open it up. Other than that, I think the Hornet makes perfect sense. Not to costly, not too crazy, economical, superbly well built, safe, fun, won't let you down. Thoroughly recommended, but make sure you get the ABS version. A friend has a 2009 Aprilia, and the Honda build and finish is superior in all respects. Honda come top in reviews because they make bikes like this. If I never ride another bike, it would be no tragedy.

I have an abs equipped model with a hugger and seat cowl so I rated equipment higher than most

Mine is the 2009 model with new preload and rebound adjustability front and rear. Not cheap in Spain. Agile and great build quality. I recommend it.

Nice bike for urban riding. Perfect for new riders but as soon as you start to ride harder you will surely need an other bike.

I choose a honda hornet for my first big bike. As i didn't know what to expect it was interesting riding it for the first time. Once i passed my test, i found a 2nd hand 09 Hornet with 1600 miles (ABS) for £4100, in mint condition, not ridden in the wet etc. Its so easy to ride and this is what many people know it for. The power delivery is very smooth and its brilliant for a day trip. I sometimes use it for commuting and easily filter though the traffic. Its very hard to explain the + and -, until you actually ride it. 5*** !!!!

The MCN review is largely accurate. My experience of my 2007 ABS Hornet has been: Pros: * Brilliant high and low speed handling and chassis set up. Best naked I've ridden, ever. * Decent ~45mpg consumption even if you thrash the hell out of it. * Build and materials quality appears almost up to "old skool" Honda standards. Still perfect on my 2007. * ABS is non-intrusive, unlike old Honda ABS or the BMW systems. * Good value for money - under 100mph as fast as a supersport 600, no plastics to break, with cheap insurance. * Long seat cover, huge grab handles and no painted rear fairing means it's brilliant for bungeeing stuff on without the inevitable scuffed paint. Cons: * The shock is shit. Oversprung and lacking any compression damping, it pogos over the slightest bump, will lose any damping by ~10k miles and is not rebuildable. You then either suffer Fear or pay £3-400 for an aftermarket unit. * It's a 600 four. Needs downgearing at the sprockets if you're not a pipe-and-slippers rider. Blisteringly fast when wound up, but feels like the final drive is made of rubber bands - twist throttle and wait for the engine to catch up. Street Triple, by comparison, gives instant drive when you open the taps. * Pegs are low-ish and the bike tends to sit on its tail unless you jack up preload (which just makes the rear shock more harsh), or I guess unless you weigh 120 pounds or less. Although Honda manages to make this feel great to ride, your toes will hit the ground before your knee sliders you're over about a size 8. * Wind protection even by naked standards is poor (my Duke II was actually better...and it didn't even have a flyscreen), and the Honda option flyscreen looks good but doesn't do much to protect you. Puig, Givi and a bunch of others do higher aftermarket ones for £££. * Typical horrible Honda EFI jerkiness going from shut to open throttle which you have to ride around. Overall, a great A and B road do-anything bike. Not what I'd choose for urban commuters however - the power delivery and EFI issues are a PITA in town.

Owned my Hornet since aug'08 and ridden 7500 miles. I've been riding for nearly 4 years and this is my second Hornet. I ride all year, all weathers and this bike is great. Build quality is excellent, ride is agile, sporty and fun and great in town too. You have to push the brakes hard for the abs to cut in and it is a refined and sensitive system, complementing the whole package. Fuel consumption is 45 - 50 mpg (even hard riding), I have got 170 miles from a full tank, with some to spare but I usually fill up at 150 miles. The engine is a diamond with good torque throughout the rev range. The only 'fault' is the seat - a tad uncomfy after a couple of hours, but hey, either buy a bagster seat or take a break! Fantastic value and probably the best middleweight roadster out there!

Great bike, perfect for commuting, popping around town. Light and agile with a cracking engine

I picked up a snow white Hornet June 1st last year, since then i added 120km to its counter each day, except for when it is raining - which does not happen a lot, as i live in Southern Spain. I had a small color matching fairing and a rear hugger mounted to it - a matter of taste. In the white skin i have it, it is a true looker. The response i had with this bike is unlike anything i ever experienced. Passer by's just stopped and circled around it when it is parked in the street. Anyway, about the ride, after 8 months and 17000km on the clock i can say this: the new Hornet is truly a great ride. Comfortable, agile and swift in acceleration, no a lot of traffic has passed me by i have to say. The combined abs is superb on sudden straight stops and makes the bike drift sideways when braking heavy in sharp bends, but is always keeping the bike in perfect control. One thing that i have experienced a couple of times - and consider a downer just for happening - was the gearbox jumping out of gear between 5th and 6th gears, causing the engine to rev in the red zone. besides this i give this bike a five star rating.

Firstly you should know where I'm coming from: This is the first 'proper' bike I've tested in my search since passing my test just recently, and I come from a CBR125. I've got little to compare it with therefore though there may be those in similar situation who may appreciate my feedback so here goes: I gave it a good long ride, including Junc 23-17 and back! Really easy to ride, plenty of speed and great delivery, sounds fantastic, looks great I think. Delivery is smooth yet veeery aggressive if you want it to be. Steering is light at very low speed, I was able to do some very controlled manoevres easily in a quiet narrow street. (I tried to test everything.) My only complaints, which are important to me is Motorway riding. Of course, I've got nothing to compare it to, least of all other nakeds, but I got well blasted by the wind and could only cope with short bursts of high speed. However please note I wasn't wearing leathers and my lid is a Multitec pull-up. The other complaint is Mirrors. These seem ok when you're sitting on it in the shop but out on the road I couldn't see squat, and wasn't able to adjust them favourably. On the motorway at speed this is even more of a problem as you're leaning forward to cope with windrush and theyr're obviously not mounted on any frontal fairing. Take it or leave it, this is my review - discount it if you like re. my experience but don't get me wrong - I think it's an awesome bike!!!

I recently purchased a new Hornet after selling my 02 CBR 600 F-Sport. I do a lot of commuting and was after something practical, good-looking but still sporty enough to be exciting to ride. And the Hornet is all of these things and more. It's sooooooo easy to ride, it looks and sounds great, and the engine is fantastic. Decent amount of grunt low down where you need it, but with it being the CBR 600RR engine it has loads of top end power too. Im really, really pleased with it.

Got mine back in September, wrote a comment on the day I've purchased. Bike is really fun.Sometimes I enjoy just going to my garage and turning on just to hear the noise. Looks great, aggressive, easy to ride, fast,beautiful piece. Yeah it needs a flyscreen for motorway and the one from honda it is quite small and it doesn't look nice. As matter of fact can't find a nice one yet.Have 5000 miles so far, change the tires from the Bridgestone for a sweet pair of Michelin Pilot Power 2ct and I am loving it. and FYI, I always clock my mileages and I have been riding 150 miles in the city with one tank,and because the tank warning starts flashing at 120 miles I am always afraid of wait for longer before I stop.But when I top up my tank can't get more than 16/17 liters so I reckon I may be able to ride 160 with the 19 liters tank. :)

When I was looking for a new bike I spent ages looking for reviews from people who have actually owned and ridden the bike they were pimping, and to be honest good reviews are hard to find. So I decided that as soon as I could write a review that was useful, I would ……. So hear we go. Bought it back in Nov 07 Red / ABS, and have covered 5000 miles so far. My last bike was a Honda CBF 500 (we all have to start somewhere). I have had no problems with the bike at all (well it’s a Honda what else would you expect?). It’s good points are, as mentioned before it’s a Honda and it looks cool and I mean cool. It’s so easy to ride (easier than the old man bike I had before), I have never had the feeling it was going to bite me for making small mistakes. Its got a clock. It has a proper size fuel tank (19l). It’s narrow, so whipping through traffic on he A12 is actually a pleasure (BMW bike owners please pull in and let us pass). I have no idea what the fuel economy is like and with the way that I ride it at the moment I don’t want to, so sorry I can’t be of help on that point. It has just the right engine range that you need i.e. if you are commuting and need to get from A to B it will deliver all you need with good power output at low revs so you don’t have to change gear every 30 sec. Like wise if you are commuting, sat at traffic lights and a chav in a Honda civic R decides that he owns the road, with very little effort at all you can show him the true meaning of ‘power to weight ratio’ and still have room for as smug glance backwards. Oh did I mention that it sounds as cool as it looks when employing the ‘educating chav mode’. Combined ABS well what can I say wet / dry / icy, when you press on the brakes ….. the bike stops …. I don’t think that needs any more said about it except this, on two occasions this amazing invention has prevented me from a trip to the local A+E department, and being that this is Queens in Romford its not a bad thing. Bad points, the mirrors, as you have seen from other reviews you need to move your shoulders to use them. It needs the optional extra rear hugger to protect the underside from all the salt, grit and dirt on the road. So all in all this is a top bike with great reliability and all the performance you need for the commute and the weekend. Oh did I mention it looks and sounds cool. R

Just got my new Hornet 10 days ago and I am very very happy with it, sorry but no faults (maybe I am easily pleased?).

This is first proper bike and just getting used to it. Really can't fault it at all, would advise the ABS version for the weather we have, though I got a good deal on the non-abs version so went for it. Love the acceleration on the open road and its really nimble when in town, buy one- you won't regret it..and looks great to..

Hi all. Done 1500 miles on my new hornet now and it's been great so far. No problems (just the weather!) Increased rear preload 2 notches to take account of my weight (15st) and handling feels better to me. only complaint is struggling to get the mirrors in a nice position. Otherwise, brilliant. Have fun!

Just got my one, so can't go to fast. But the engine is so sweet and I am really enjoying.Looking forward to buy a fly screen once I have some spare cash.

It may be my first bike, so you can take this with a pinch of salt, but I love everything about this bike. The power, brakes and handling seem amazing and now the first service is out of the way the extra revs are astounding. I find this bike easy to ride both around country lanes and filtering through London and i've not had a single 'moment' where I felt the bike didn't like me. I bought this bike because I felt I could learn to ride properly on it and so far it feels like the best purchase I've ever made. PS If you get stuck behind me filtering on the A13, Sorry, but not for long

Bike is superb, road tested a lot of makes and models but had to have this one as soon as it felt right after covering only a number of miles on it. The handling is spot on and the engine is fantastic throughout the rev range. Honda have got this hornet bang on, excellent

just bought 2 for the bike tours the wife and me are doing the first few km on them to get to know them, i must say well impressed found the seat a bit hard on a long run,need more padding!,the wife said that was the only moan she had with it ,she loves the handling,and and the chimney!!it will suit the women and not so experienced, rider, but us pros will love it for its fun factor.!!

Well, I picked up the bike this morning and its awesome! Still have to ride it in, so I've kept it under 7000rmp. Maneuverable, sounds great and built damn well. I'll have to ride it some more to make sure I'm happy with ratings I've given it...and well get it up to speed, but I can't imagine my mind changing.