Honda NTV600 Revere - Between the Hedges

1989. I had had a spell of two or three years without owning a motorcycle and was desperate to get something back on the road. It was summer and all I had was a pushbike.

The Honda Revere caught my attention as it seemed to be a fitting replacement for the now discontinued CX500. I'd owned two CXs and enjoyed both of them. This looked like a bike I could use and enjoy too. I bought it new in June '89 for £3040.

This was a technically advanced and refined bike which ran beautifully. It was a great city bike as it could be flicked and snorted through backstreets with ease. Like its shafty forerunner, the CX500, it has now become a favourite with DRs. On the open road it went well enough, probably better than the CX, but at speed it tended to feel like it was really trying hard whereas the CX did it all in its stride. This might well have been a matter of perception more than reality, perhaps brought about by more urgent gearing or a different engine note.. I'm not sure. Anyhow on the few occasions when I was in a real hurry it did the job.

The 600cc 52° Vee Twin had overhead cams (the CX had pushrods) lifting not two or four - but three - valves per cylinder. The motor was set fore & aft Harley style which made the bike considerably narrower than the CX. The Revere was shaft driven through a single-sided swinging arm, a concept pioneered by BMW. It did not have the BMW "Paralever" style pivot though. This made for very easy wheel removal. Aesthetically it was a bit strange really. There were aspects of it which I think were just art for art's sake such as the speedo and rev-counter being different sizes and the prominent silver coloured frame which dominated - and I felt spoilt - the design.

For some reason which I cannot define, I never got attached to this bike in the way I had with both of my CXs. It provided more than adequate transport and met the need for which it had been chosen. It was well behaved, sure-footed and pleasant enough to ride but it was just rather bland, if not mundane. A motorcycle which was hard to fault but just didn't have the magic ingredient for me. I got bored with it within a year and realised that I was hankering after something with more adrenalin. I'd finished, for now at least, with sensible tourers.