Honda NX500

When the Honda NX500 was launched in the month of January 2024, it replaced the Honda CB500X in the Japanese manufacturer’s lineup. So, is the NX500 still the excellent all-rounder that the CB500X was? Let’s take a look: 

The Honda NX500 gets a rugged design language with a narrow LED headlight cowl that is well integrated with the fuel tank extensions. Compared to the CB500X, the NX500 looks a lot more off-road-ready with its tall windshield and overall tall stance. The build quality is excellent and the 3 colour schemes: Pearl Horizon White, Grand Prix Red, and Mat Gunpowder Black Metallic give the bike good road presence. 

The Honda NX500 gets a new 5-inch TFT instrument console with smartphone connectivity for turn-by-turn navigation and call and music control. The layout makes it quite easy to read all the displayed information. The backlit 4-way toggle switch on the left handlebar is quite helpful in navigating through the console’s menus. The separate button for turning the switchable traction control on and off is a welcome feature. 

With mid-set footpegs and wide handlebars, the ADV from Honda gets an upright riding position. As mentioned above, the bike feels quite light when you are on the move and as such, is easy to manoeuvre in city traffic and take U-turns as well. Despite the 830mm seat height, shorter riders can find the bike accessible as the middle portion of the seat is quite narrow. Talking about the seat, the padding could have been better for a much more comfortable riding experience while touring. The 180mm ground clearance enables the bike to easily tackle all sorts of road conditions and terrains. 

Powered by a 471cc, liquid-cooled, parallel-twin engine producing 47.5PS at 8500rpm and 43Nm at 6500rpm, the Honda NX500’s power delivery is very linear and feels very refined. It has a strong-mid grunt and is quite tractable as you can ride around at speeds of 40kmph in 5th gear. This makes riding the bike in the city or cruising on the highway a breeze. The low-end grunt is very good as well, making it quite apt for off-roading. Once you cross the 6500rpm mark, the motor becomes more lively and the acceleration more exciting, thus making the engine quite versatile to use. The 17.5-litre fuel tank gets a claimed fuel efficiency of 27.8kmpl, which means the ADV should be able to cover 450 kilometres on a full tank. 

The NX500’s suspension setup consists of 41mm Showa Big Piston inverted Fork and a monoshock. Despite having a kerb weight of 196kg, it feels quite light on the move and can be easily flicked into corners, which along with the powerful motor, makes riding on the mountain twisties quite a fun experience. On off-road surfaces, the bike remains planted and the suspension inspires confidence to ride through trails without breaking a sweat. The 296mm twin discs at the front and a 240mm rear disc brake setup provides great stopping power and the lever provides great feedback as well. If you are an experienced off-road rider, then the absence of switchable ABS might feel like a big miss to you.

The Honda NX500 is priced at Rs 5,90,000 (ex-showroom Delhi) and at first glance, rightly so, the hefty price tag might put you off from considering buying the bike. There are a few 400-500cc ADVs available in India at a more affordable price tag, like the Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 and the KTM 390 Adventure. But if the price tag doesn’t bother you, then the Honda NX500 is a very versatile motorcycle that has a refined parallel-twin engine and great handling capabilities.