What Made The Honda CBR1000F 'Hurricane' Motorcycle So Special

Honda has made a lot of special motorcycles over the years. Whether it's the fastest Honda motorcycles, the rarest Honda bikes, or the coolest looking Hondas of all time, there's a unique two-wheeled Honda that covers all the bases. And, of course, the best-selling motorcycle of all time, the Honda Cub.

With all the high-profile and popular Honda bikes out there, it might be easy to miss some of their unique bikes that aren't as well-known. Motorcycles that weren't sales juggernauts or icons at the racetrack are easy to overlook when you've got such an illustrious history. Bikes like the Honda CBR1000F — also known as the Hurricane — might not be as famous, but they're every bit as special.

Launched in the 1980s, Honda employed a marketing campaign for the Hurricane that was aimed directly at one of its chief rivals, the Kawasaki Ninja. In a commercial with epic 80s vibes, Honda used the Hurricane name to imply an imminent storm — one that the Kawasaki would be so afraid of that they'd hide underneath the floorboards. It might not have had Kawasaki shaking in their boots, but the Hurricane was certainly a force to be reckoned with.  

The first CBR motorcycles came to the United States in the 1980s, with the CBR600F and 1000F landing on U.S. shores in 1987 (a domestic Japanese model, the CBR400, was never officially imported). The CBR1000F replaced the V4 VF1000R, a bike that was having trouble competing with rival liter bikes from Kawasaki and Yamaha.

The CB1000F used a 998cc inline-four engine that was liquid-cooled and carbureted and made 132 horsepower, a big number for the 1980s. That was more power than anyone made with a 1,000-cc production bike at the time. Oh, and the top speed? It could go 164 miles per hour — the highest number from any production motorcycle thus far.

If the CBR1000F's mission was to outgun bikes from Suzuki, Kawasaki, and Yamaha, it accomplished that and more. The Hurricane was fast enough that the engine remained unchanged for its entire lifespan in the United States. Sure, there were minor styling updates and changes to the braking system, but the powertrain remained mostly untouched.

[Featured image by Levethene via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | CC BY-SA 4.0]

More than just a fast, powerful liter bike, the CBR1000F was comfortable. It had an excellent riding position — one of the virtues of the CBR family of bikes that would carry over for multiple generations. For such a quick bike, it held a reputation as an excellent sport-touring bike as a result.

The inline-four on the CBR1000F had a sensible 10,500 RPM redline, and it was still smooth and easy to ride — making it a balanced bike for an everyday commuter. The suspension was relatively forgiving, so it wasn't the sportiest of bikes, but it was a bike you could take on long trips, with riders and reviewers reporting that it was a joy to load up with gear and ride for 1,000 miles in a weekend.

When history looks back on the CBR1000F Hurricane, it's seen more as a long-legged sport-tourer than a nimble corner-carving machine, but there's no shame in that. It broke new ground in that it was the fastest bike on the market for a time, and it came in some pretty cool color schemes. The CBR1000F was only sold until 1996 in the United States (and until 1999 in the rest of the world), but it left an indelible mark on the motorcycle market and Honda's history in the bike world.

[Featured image by Totala via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | CC BY-SA 3.0]