Honda Takes on the Hybrid Motorcycle

For a few years now, hybrids have been all the rage in the consumer car market. The Prius has been elevated to the status of an icon and Honda is now trying to catch up with its revived Honda Insight. But what about motorcycles, where Honda has been the unquestioned world leader for years?

The added weight and complexity has previously kept the word “hybrid” from squeezing in front of the word “motorcycle,” but now Honda thinks they’ve found a way to build and market hybrid motorcycles. According to the Mainichi Shinbun, Honda will begin releasing the hybrid motorcycles in the 2010s, which will be followed up by electric motorcycles in 2011.

Honda will be adapting the hybrid system it uses on its current cars to work with motorcycles of engine displacement between 200 and 1000cc. It would probably be too cumbersome to use on smaller bikes, but Honda hopes to increase fuel efficiency by about 50% with the hybrid bikes.

Now, the real question for all you bikers out there is this: would you ride one?

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