EICMA show in Milan but it’s now given it a second airing at the Osaka Motorcycle Show sparking speculation that it could have a production future.
The Adventure Sport’s initial appearance was largely overshadowed by other new models at EICMA, but it’s been given pride of place on Honda’s Osaka stand along with the City Adventure concept bike – the NC750-derived adventure-scooter that has already been given a green light for production.
For something touted as a ‘concept’ the Adventure Sport is not as wild or wacky as you might expect. Instead it’s representative of the sort of updates that could be made to give the Africa Twin a more Dakar-style appeal, increasing its ability in the process.
Technically, it’s stock Africa Twin. An off-road-use-only Termignoni exhaust should add a few horses to the Africa Twin’s stable, while the massive aluminium belly pan – shaped to hark back to the first-generation Africa Twin and the NXR750 rally-raid bike that spawned it – adds a dose of visual toughness.
The suspension, wheels, brakes and chassis are all stock, although the frame is finished in bare aluminium rather than black. Most of the bodywork is standard as well, but the tail is reworked to add a flatter, off-road-style seat and new rear plastics that are reminiscent of the original Africa Twin. Engine-wise, the concept uses the stock DCT-gearbox version of the latest A-T’s parallel twin.
Whether the new concept will reach production is unknown at the moment, but given that Honda’s rivals – notably BMW with the R1200GS – often offer ‘adventure’ versions of their big trailies with a more rugged appeal than the base models, it would be no surprise to see Honda follow suit. The Adventure Sports Concept could be an ideal base for such a machine.
