Honda's hard case: Rebel cruiser range grows with CMX1100T bagger model

Honda have added to their CMX1100 Rebel range with a new touring model complete with luggage and a subtle half fairing wrapped around the upright bars.

Called the CMX1100T (Touring), the new machine comes in ‘Gunmetal Black Metallic’ and uses the standard 1100 as a base – sharing the same diamond chassis, gentle 700mm seat height and Africa Twin-derived 1084cc 8v parallel twin engine.

Revealed during Honda’s press conference at the Eicma trade show, the new model uses a 270° crank for more of a V-twin mimicking grumble. A Euro5-friendly motor, it produces a modest 85.3bhp, with a 13.6-litre peanut fuel tank sloshing above the low riders’ seat.

Riding high in front of a single colour LCD dash is the new minimalist half fairing, which mounts to the conventional forks and wraps around the upright bars to deliver a slice of faux Americana and a profile similar to Harley-Davidson’s £19,995 Low Rider ST.

There’s no pricing for the CMX1100T, but it’s likely to be much cheaper than the 102bhp Harley – making that horsepower deficit much easier to swallow.

The front bodywork also includes a small flyscreen, with the whole unit wrapping around the front LED headlight.

Away from the front end, there’s also a set of hard panniers that come with hinged top lids and offer 35 litres of storage capacity.

There’s 16-litres to the right and 19-litres to the left, making up an additional 11-litres of holding space compared to the nylon accessory saddle bags available for the standard Rebel. The smaller bag allows for the accommodation of the twin-exit low slung exhaust.

Unsurprisingly, given the additional extras, the T weighs is noticeably heavier than the standard model. The base Rebel tips the scales at 223kg and climbs by 10kg with the addition of Honda’s Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT) system.

By contrast, the Tourer starts at 238kg and then jumps to 248kg – a lot of weight for a motor producing little more than 85bhp.

Helping to stop all that mass is a set of radially mounted monoblock four-piston calipers biting onto 330mm floating discs. There’s also a single piston caliper and 256mm disc at the rear, with two-channel ABS to help meet Euro regulations.