Honda rejoins the 400cc four-cylinder arena
A brace of upcoming 400cc four-cylinder Hondas took pride of place at the recent Osaka Motorcycle Show previewing the production CB400 Super Four and CBR400R Four models that are due to join the brand’s line-up in the very near future.
Officially branded ‘concepts’ the bikes are, in fact, destined for showrooms, and are nearly identical to the CB500 Super Four and CBR500R Four machines that were shown in China in late 2025.
The all-new inline-four engine is downsized from the Chinese-made machines’ 502cc to around 399cc to suit Japan’s regulations, which favour sub-400cc bikes, but other than that the only noticeable difference is the badging.
Like the 500s, the 400 fours feature a next-gen version of Honda’s E-Clutch system, packaged on the left of the engine instead of the right to make it more compact than the existing variants. However, there’s still a distinct lack of detailed information about the bikes, with no official claims for power, weight or other dimensions. What we do know is that they use a KYB upside-down fork, Nissin radial brakes and a 5-inch TFT dash with phone connectivity.
We know from Chinese approval documents that the 502cc versions make 52.8kW (71hp), with the Super Four weighing 188kg and the CBR500R Four coming in at 189kg, and that both versions get ABS from Honda’s tech subsidiary Astemo. Trademark filings for their names have appeared in several countries, suggesting they’ll be offered globally.
