350cc’s For $2.5k USD
The Honda H’Ness CB350 has done a fantastic job in its Indian market debut with great sales and plenty of happy customers. Typically, Honda has a knack for releasing their new rides in Japan first, but with the CB350 they took a different approach and looped-around backward. Honda has the CB350 ready for the Japanese market, but it will be under the name “GB350“.
With Japan finally seeing their official release of the new GB350, it raises the question; will Europe and North America ever see a release? With a slight rebrand of the motorcycle with the Japanese release, it seems like Honda is looking to appeal to a larger audience now that they have dropped the “H’Ness” name from the bike.
With the manufacturing process of this motorcycle being based in India, perhaps Honda can utilize that and start churning out even higher-volume production numbers and let this model thrive on a global market. The CB350 is the perfect beginner’s motorcycle, and given the price they currently sell for in Japan and India, would make a very strong contender for the best beginner motorcycle in the American market.
The GB350 is now available in Japan at a price of 268,000 yen ($2585 USD), which is about what I paid for my 50cc Honda Ruckus moped a few years back. If I had the option of a 350cc motorcycle back then for the same price, I would have hopped on the opportunity, so hopefully, NA and EU get a release in the near future.