The new 2013 Honda motorcycle lineup is actually quite interesting and the CB1100 almost makes you want to check your calendar, it’s more than a tip of the hat to the original CB750, it’s what it might have become if it had never gone away. Let’s see, upright seating position, naked style, steel tube chassis with twin rear shocks suspending 18 inch wheels, air cooled DOHC inline four cylinder engine, yep, a CB750 all grown up.

The engine is larger, 1140cc and it’s fuel injected plus the wheels are cast, not wire spokes, optional ABS and the exhaust is 4 into 1, so there are modern updates, but Honda, even on the pages of its website refers to the timeless design that harkens back to the CB750, it’s not by accident the bike hits so many hot buttons, you might wonder if they are they trying to get lightning to strike twice.

The CB750 was a big leap from what was available at the time, the 2013 CB1100 isn’t a leap, it’s a return to what made the original so appealing. I think there’s a lot to like and it forms the basis for a bike that can be ridden as is or modified in countless ways. Maybe we’re ready for a new standard, maybe lightning can strike twice, the Honda showrooms next March will tell us what you think.

Available in Candy Red. Price: $9,999; ABS $10,999.

Link: Honda CB1100