Is this the deal of 2026?

New bikes 2026

First ride: The Honda CB1000GT has a Blade motor, is ready to tour – and costs under £12k

By Justin Hayzelden Photography Honda

It’s fair to say the big H played a couple of blinders this time last year, launching both the GB350S and CB1000 Hornet SP to widespread acclaim. Both made the shortlist for our Bike of the Year, and as value for money both were tough to beat.

Twelve months on, Honda have been at it again. But rather than focusing on simplicity, they’ve gone all out on a fully loaded sports-tourer in the form of the CB1000GT. While the basic platform and engine have been pulled from the Hornet, the GT rolls out of the showroom with a host of electronic and ergonomic upgrades, and costs just £11,999.

Is it just a Hornet with a fairing?

Considering it’s only a couple of grand more than the £10,099 SP, you could be forgiven for making that assumption. But there’s so much more to the GT: electronic suspension, a six-axis IMU, and panniers with inner bags are standard kit, which, with the bodywork and an adjustable screen, make it even more bike for your buck. A stiffer, more substantial subframe provides the foundations for a proper pillion seat, and tweaks to the ECU have made throttle response less spiky at low revs.

LED lighting and Nissin brake calipers are carried over from the standard Hornet, but the GT gains cornering ABS.

Has all that affected the handling?

An Öhlins shock did wonders for keeping the flighty Hornet SP in check, but the GT’s electronic suspension is next level. Governed by Showa’s Electronically Equipped Ride Adjustment system (EERA) – which is fed information from the ECU, IMU and stroke speed sensors in the suspension – rebound and compression damping front and rear is continuously monitored and adjusted in real time. Four presets are linked to the mode of your choice – Standard, Sport, Tour or Rain– but the clever part is how the EERA reacts to sudden changes. The result is a plush, confident ride and a chassis consistently trimmed out for level flight. Electronically adjustable rear preload lets you cycle through its 24-step scale on the go, too.

What about comfort?

Honda have refined the riding position for all-day touring – and as far as this 5ft 11in pilot is concerned, it’s impressive. The Hornet’s forward-canted, sportsbike-thin seat foam has been binned in favour of a fatter, flatter pad that’s far more pleasing on the posterior, and as a result it’s marginally (16mm) taller. Footpegs are further forward, and the wide bars complete a near-perfect triangle of ergonomic bliss. The multi-position screen does enough to keep buffeting at bay, and cruise control and heated grips make light work of long distance, all-weather trips.

Turn-by-turn nav via the 5in TFT, too.

So it can tour – but is it exciting?

Oh yes. The 2017 Fireblade-derived engine, equipped with two-way quickshifter and slipper clutch, is visceral and engaging thanks partly to its performance and partly to the joyous wail. It’s been remapped for smoother throttle action at the bottom end (to the cost of a handful of bhp and a couple of lb·ft), but there’s no shortage of thrills when pouring on the revs in an enthusiastic fashion. Engine braking, power and traction control can all be adjusted individually, but the preset modes are distinct enough if you need to switch character.

Oil consumption may yet be a concern (it is notable on the Hornet) and despite an increase in trail and longer swingarm to enhance stability, we did experience a mild shimmy from the front end when nearing maximum speed (on a closed road).

SPECIFICATIONS

Bike verdict Quick, comfortable, capable, characterful and complete. Terrific value too. At £12k the CB1000GT is £3k less than a Kawasaki Ninja 1100SX SE Tourer and £2k under Yamaha’s Tracer 9 GT. It’s ticking all our boxes so far…

Bike rating 9/10

Husqvarna 701 Enduro / Supermoto

£10,499 | 693cc single | 78bhp

Now identical in spec and price to 2026 KTM 690 Enduro R and SMC R donors, the only reason to buy a Husqvarna instead is you prefer the colours or a tenuous Swedish connection. Either way, 2026 is a big overhaul for both. A Euro5+ revamp ups power and service intervals with numerous internal mods, and a stiffer frame and uprated suspension focus handling. New TFT dash, electronics, ABS options and sharper styling, too.

Indian Sport Scout RT

£15,855 | 1250cc V-twin | 105bhp

The new-for-2026 Sport Scout RT brings a very light touch of touring practicality to the cruising Sport Scout line-up (the US definition of ‘sport’ is very different to ours), adding hard panniers (totalling 37 litres) and a colour-coded nose cone to last year’s new 105bhp 1250cc SpeedPlus V-twin – although how far it’ll get on a 13-litre tank is moot. Meanwhile, the entry-level Sport Scout Sixty uses the smaller, 85bhp, 999cc SpeedPlus V-twin with mini-ape hangers for £12,655.

Italjet Dragster 459 Twin

£9000 (est) | 459cc parallel twin | 47bhp

Following the ‘urban superbike’ Dragster 700 Twin (Bike, December) – a bizarre MotoGP/scooter mash-up with a 68bhp QJMotor parallel twin, Akrapovic pipes, Marzocchi/Öhlins combo, Brembo brakes, wings – the Dragster 459 is the same platform with a smaller Italjet-built motor and a semi-auto gearbox (not a scooter CVT) with manual paddle shift. Spectacularly crackers. No UK Italjet importer at present, however.

Bike says…

The question you’re probably asking is: ‘Why?’ Sure, the Dragster 459 looks absolutely wild – but that’s the reason that bikes like this are so awesome. Excess and fun are sometimes way more important than practicality and sense. The world needs a touch of silliness like this. CS

Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R

£16,175 | 998cc inline four | tba bhp

Continuing a tradition of iterative upgrades, the 2026 ZX-10R goes big on new wings for more downforce, painted blue so we can’t miss ’em. The 10R’s ram-air duct is repositioned, steering geometry tweaked, and the motor has been tweaked to meet Euro5+ emissions standards – tweaks that may trim the old bike’s 200bhp and why Kawasaki haven’t quoted a new figure yet…

Bike says…

Aside from giving Garrett Gerloff wings and us a new dash, the ZX-10R hasn’t changed much. Shame Kawasaki didn’t give it a KTM 990 RC R-style riding position and more low-down grunt. MN

Kawasaki Z900RS

£11,675 | 948cc inline four | 114bhp

The popular retro-styled inline four gets Euro5+ treatment and bumped up 4bhp, with an IMU and ridebywire now adding cruise control, traction control, cornering ABS and quickshifter, plus a slightly longer exhaust – but no styling, chassis or ergonomic changes. SE (below) adds Öhlins shock and Brembos as before, for £13,125.

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