2024 Honda NX500 review | Honda’s CB500X gets a new name and some key upgrades

RIDE QUALITY: Good quality suspension gives the right balance between absorption and road feel – erring on the slightly firm. I've hit lots of poor surfaces, at all angles, and it's handled them with ease and composure – despite mild front-tyre tracking on parallel striations. The OEM tyres offer confidence in all weathers, but the rear seems to give a bit of a squirm under higher cornering loads (it's set on the second softest mark). The seating stance, for me at least, is very neutral with the right level of slightly-forward lean, complemented by the relaxed width of the handlebars (the new Transalp feels as though you're almost spreadeagled). There's no 'posture stress', despite the knees being bent a bit more than would be ideal. The seat itself is extremely comfortable and, even after 10 hours of riding, there's no back, wrist, knee or bum pain and I can still go again the following day. For me, doing a 400-mile day trip has been unheard of for the past few years, until now. Tis a testament to the ergonomics being just right. BRAKES: Pretty feeble rear brake, useful only for minor reduction in speeds or trail-braking. Would be nice if it linked to the front brakes. The front disks provide excellent feedback and progression, giving a good spectrum of available speed reduction rates. Their initial bite is quite low, whilst pulling harder induces more front-end diving – but still very controllable as you easily slide forward onto the tank. I would certainly be wary of an 'emergency snatch' at the lever. Overall, though, nothing to whinge about as both the suspension and brakes do what they're supposed to, and instill confidence. HANDLING: The NX doesn't respond particularly sharply or accurately if merely LEANING into corners. It requires a conscious push on the bars to get it right. Do this, and you can easily swing her from side-to-side. On numerous occasions, merely leaning has caused a noticeable understeer – which can be quite alarming on long, high-speed sweepers. On the fast twisties, the rapid left/right hauling of the bars can give the impression that you're not too far away from lifting the front wheel off the road – so be a bit wary. What WILL put a halt to your excesses, though, is the fact that you can get to the very edge of the rear tyre with absolutely no problems at all – even though you don't actually feel as though you've been pushing it. Tis not a negative compromise on the part of the NX, and I'm extremely happy with its capabilities, as I can use them to their potential with a consciously-applied level of input. As much as anything else, it keeps the speeds down to sensible levels – which is one of the reasons why I bought a smaller bike. Around town, she feels light, well-balanced and nimble, despite her near 200Kg (unlike the Forza).

Engine: It's a lively little engine that has instant throttle response – in fact, too much sensitivity in the lower gears. It becomes very snatchy around town, so you'll have to do a lot of clutch-feathering to keep it smooth (luckily the clutch action is ultra-light). Surprisingly strong engine-braking, even in top gear, allows you to minimise use of the brakes – very useful and useable on the open road. In town, however, it becomes a bit of a drama-queen if you rely on it in slow moving traffic, as it'll just bounce you all over the place unless you use absolutely minimal throttle. Unleashed on the open road, and kept between 4K-6K Rpm, she winds very smoothly with a wonderfully howling exhaust note through the final three gears. Much beyond 6K Rpm, though, and it really does sound as though it's being caned. In some ways, this howling acts as a natural guard against excessive speed, 'cos you're usually travelling a lot slower than it sounds or feels. GEARBOX: Comparatively speaking, I've had more false neutrals than any other bike – and I've even had the occasional gear-jam, usually between 2nd and 3rd. When warmed and at idle, it can sound a bit rattly, almost to the point you might think that internal things are a bit loose. Below 3K Rpm, it begins to labour, so you've really got to choose your gears wisely, especially in the 20-40Mph zones. Shifting the first three gears can vary from seamless to surprisingly clunky, and it almost seems random. The top three gears are, however, very silky. Overall, though, I consider the gearbox to be somewhat sloppy.

RELIABILITY: Having done almost 5,000 miles, on two different bikes, I haven't encountered any reliability issues. It's always started within a couple of seconds. BUILD QUALITY: When collecting the bike, I had to ride home on very wet roads. Became utterly caked in dirt – but no immediate sign of corrosion (unlike the Forza / SH125 / CB125F) – except on the weld joint on the phone carrier bar. Stupidly short front wheel mudguard just allows the whole front engine casings / oil filter / headers to be immediately splattered – yet no OEM mudguard extender offered; nuts! By the way – the entire back end of the bike (including the number plate) will become totally caked by the rear wheel – even in the most mildly damp / dirty conditions. I've never know a bike become so dirty, so easily.

I'm only having it dealer serviced in order to maintain the warranty. At £180 a pop, though, it's expensive for what they need to do - which are basic checks which any mildly-mechanically minded person can service.

INSTRUMENTS: The TFT is surprisingly nice to look at, and perfectly clear & readable in the strongest of sunshine – but the combinations of the data-sets it can simultaneously display doesn't quite match what you are perhaps led to believe. You can set up most of the standard data to display in the MAIN SCREEN (eg. Trip A / B, Mpg / Actual Consumption) but you still have to toggle through each one of them in order to actually display them; very easy when set up. However, some data, eg the engine temperature, cannot even be accessed whilst on the move – so you can't determine the normal range of temperatures during different riding environments. Unfortunately, there is no FUEL RANGE data either, and there is no AIR TEMPERATURE – which is a bit of a blunder as far as I'm concerned. As per usual, though, you'll decide what you want to see, set it up and then leave it alone. At least the data set-up process is very much like a hierarchical computer 'folder' menu, rather than the PITA two-button methods on older machines. Even changing the clock is an absolute doddle. The TFT is highly susceptible to scratching – so get a screen protector ASAP. A nice little touch is that you have the option 'A-Trip Auto Reset'. This occurs when you fill up with petrol which triggers more than two segments within the fuel gauge. There is also a gimmicky 'Gear-shift Point' which you can set to whatever Rpm. When the Rpm is reached, the tacho' flashes. However, if you're focussed on the road ahead, you won't even see the flashing – so it's not much use to anybody. The best 'shift point indicator' is the exhaust note or your sensitivity to a somewhat screechy engine. There is also a customisable 'countdown to service / oil change' setting. Again, primarily a gimmick – as most riders will be well aware of their mileage and the service intervals. LEFT-HAND BAR SWITCHES: Relative to the Forza's switchgear (as well as the new Transalp / old CB500X), the NX's is far superior. Substantially less cluttered, owing to the miniaturisation of the TFT's little toggle-switch to cycle through the various data sets – and it's far enough away so that you don't accidentally press it – but close enough to operate it (not that you should need to be faffing-around with it whilst blatting through the guntryside). Despite what they imply, it's only the toggle-switch which is backlit. Fortunately, they've restored the high/low beam switch to the front of the switchgear pod, and it's operated by the index finger, so there's a bit more feel even when wearing proper gloves. Still a bit frustrating, though, is that the 'Pass' switch forms part of the high/low lever – so there's still the possibility of a heavy-handed glove smacking the oncoming traffic with an accidental 'flash' when dipping. Equally as frustrating, is that the horn and indicator buttons remain in their transposed locations (relative to 'old school' switchgear); still just very, very wrong in my opinion. The horn button, though, has been made smaller and slightly more recessed (relative to the old CB500X) – so there's less chance of it getting in the way; but this also means you STILL can't just make an unthinking / instinctive stab at it in an emergency. Only once has the horn been required, but by the end of the 'thinking time / reaction process' (searching for and hitting the horn) it was too late to be of any use. HONDA, for goodness sake, please put them back in their original positions, otherwise your design department is going to get someone killed. As an aside; have you seen the new NT1100 switchgear? Utterly diabolical! LIGHTS: The main headlight gives a goodly display on low-beam – such that on an unlit A-road you could cruise comfortably at 50+mph. On high beam, you should manage to cruise easily at 60Mph – but just watch-out for that really annoying, accidental flash when switching down to low-beam. The lights, perhaps, aren't as good as expected, as all they really do is illuminate with a more silvery hue. On low beam, you'll still have no chance of avoiding anything should it suddenly appear in the road. WINDSCREEN & FAIRING: For me, at 6ft, the screen is just at the right height, giving good visibility over the top of it, serving a bit of helmet rattle (mainly due to the helmet itself) but essentially no buffeting other than a bit of billowing over the top of the shoulders. This becomes marginally more noticeable from 60Mph, but it doesn't become any worse, even at higher speeds. In saying that, however, you never really discover how good or bad the fairing is until you ride in the Winter. During the bug season, 99% of the flies were caught by the windscreen / fairing rather than my visor. Side and Centre-stands: The side-stand is very easy to deploy even whilst wearing my size 12 booties – and it goes far enough forward to ensure stability whilst still maintaining a relatively upright stance. The centre-stand is quite easy to deploy, but offers little convincing 'feel' when trying to ensure that it's balancing on both legs (prior to lifting) – so it could be easy to over-topple the bike away from you – so beware. ACCESSORIES: No taller OEM screen. Optional centre-stand; should be standard as far as I'm concerned. The usual, and very expensive, Honda racks and luggage. No OEM lower crash bars or front mudguard extender.12V socket and DRLs, plus silly little wheels decals that you'll never see because of the dirt.

Perfect ride, cannot fault this bike at all

You wouldn’t believe it was a parallel twin on times as it is so smooth

Build quality is top notch, everything feels solid and has a nice feel to it

£399 for three services via my Honda dealer, Bill Smiths Chester. Mpg is just fabulous, fill up and forget about it for at least 250-300 miles.

I bought the Adventure Pack at time of purchase and it includes everything I need. Added a 12v socket for powering phone etc and heated grips, centre stand. Stand out new feature is the lovely bright, easy to read (and understand) TFT screen. Turn by turn sat nav that actually works and fed direct to my helmet via Bluetooth. I am so pleased with this bike for the price, will take me up and down the country no problem at all.

Fantastic mpg. Easy 85 mpcg

Great all rounder. Nissin brakes & showa suspension. Feels at home on dual carriage ways as well as on back roads. Not tested off road but that’s not what I bought it for.

Proven bulletproof engine with great longevity. Plenty enough power for what I use it for.

No problems so far but it’s a new bike. Previous models are known for reliability.

£400 service plan offered for first 3 services from dealership. 17.5 litre tank offers a good range.

New colour TFT dash with Bluetooth connectivity for music, navigation, calls etc. Good range of accessories. No problems with the dunlops.