The Touring Motorcycle That Secretly Makes A Perfect Daily Rider

Touring motorcycles are fantastic machines. They have incredible comfort, look amazing, and some have features that would make a private jet wish it had them. However, all that comfort and all-day space comes with a price. No, we aren’t talking about the purchase price, but to accommodate rider, pillion, and luggage in comfort on the highway, you usually need to have a physically large motorcycle. This is part of the appeal of a touring motorcycle, to be honest.

But all that size and weight that require reverse gear just to back them up in a parking lot also means that they’re terrible motorcycles to use in traffic. Then, what if you wanted just one tourer motorcycle for everything? You could choose between a small-ish motorcycle that is capable of touring, or you could get a tourer that is bearable in traffic. OR, you could get a touring motorcycle that secretly makes a perfect daily rider. Here it is.

The Honda NT1100 DCT Is The Touring Motorcycle That Secretly Makes A Perfect Daily Rider

The NT1100 is a full-size sport touring motorcycle designed like a crossover. That means an upright, roomy stance for the rider with all-day comfort. There is also enough space for a pillion to be comfortable for extended periods of time. There are a few unique things about the NT, though. It runs not just the Africa Twin’s driveline, but the chassis as well, which is unusual for a road-going bike at this level. Whatever the case, with its automatic gearbox, unstressed engine, and great handling at low speed, it’s the touring motorcycle that secretly makes a perfect daily rider.

Honda NT1100 DCT Price: $11,899

One of the most surprising things about the NT1100 is its price, which is under $12,000. That means it competes with midsize motorcycles for the most part. Combine this with the feature set (large touchscreen TFT, wireless Apple CarPlay) and the automatic gearbox, and it begins to look like a bargain. In typical Honda fashion, you get just the single variant and a single color as well – but you can accessorize it. This means that whatever features are available on it are standard, with no extra or hidden cost.

Honda NT1100 DCT Engine

The 100-horsepower output might be a turn-off for some, but what it does is make the NT unstressed and less likely to heat up on a hot day in traffic. It also means that you get a lot of torque across the rev range. That’s usable performance and better fuel efficiency gained while sacrificing a top speed figure. While we won’t deny that as enthusiasts, we love a fast motorcycle, but for a daily rider, we’ll take a reliable one over a temperamental one every day of the week. The NT1100 engine uses Honda’s Unicam SOHC head, which allows for a smaller cylinder head. A by-wire throttle offers access to three-level HSTC, three-level wheelie control, and five ride modes, including two user-configurable ones.

Honda NT1100 DCT Transmission And Final Drive

Honda’s famed dual clutch automatic transmission does duty here. This is a six-speed unit with the option of manual control via buttons on the handlebars. If you don’t want to shift gears yourself while riding aggressively, there is an ‘S’ mode that will do it for you. Even the S mode has three levels, with the shifts getting more aggressive in each level. A chain drives the rear wheel.

Honda NT1100 DCT Chassis

The NT1100’s chassis is an unusual choice for a road-based motorcycle. It is derived from the Africa Twin’s chassis, which is why it is a semi-double cradle frame. This sort of chassis usually adds weight compared to other road-going chassis types, but it also makes for a long-lasting motorcycle. Honda has used steel for the subframe for the extra strength required to carry the pillion and luggage, but the swingarm is made of aluminum.

The suspension is Showa-sourced, with SFF-BP front forks with preload adjustment, and the rear Pro-Link shock has a gas-charged damper and hydraulically adjustable preload. Travel is 5.9 inches at either end. The brakes have ABS as standard fitment, and the ABS isn’t switchable.

Honda NT1100 DCT Dimensions

The NT1100 is a full-size motorcycle, as its 88-inch length reveals. However, it isn’t much heavier than a regular full-size motorcycle at 547 pounds (wet). That’s commendable, as is the 32.3-inch seat height. The fuel tank is a massive 5-gallon one, which, coupled with the driveline’s efficiency, should give it incredible tank range.

Honda NT1100 DCT Features

As with everything else, the NT1100’s feature list is sensible. Of course, the 6.5-inch TFT display takes center stage. This is a touchscreen unit and has wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, Bluetooth, and navigation enabled from the factory. There is also a small, separate LCD readout at the bottom, just like the Africa Twin has, even though this is a road-going motorcycle.

The windscreen is manually adjustable to five different positions, with adjustment for not just height but also angle. You also get cruise control, heated grips, self-canceling indicators, a USB charging socket, and a center stand, all as standard.

Honda NT1100 DCT Competition

There are no real true competitors to the NT1100 DCT when it comes to its size, specs, and especially its price. We’ve made our job more difficult here because we’re going to limit ourselves to touring motorcycles. There is an obvious answer in the Honda Rebel 1100T DCT. It has the same engine and gearbox as the NT but a different state of tune and definitely a different attitude to traffic and touring. It is also too easy an answer, so we’ll have to opt for another competitor.

The BMW F 900 XR ($11,995) is available at almost the same price as the Honda, but it needs quite a few accessories to get to the NT’s level of features, which drives its price a little too high. Price is also the reason we’re discounting the $15,195 Triumph Tiger 900 GT. That leaves us with just the Yam. This doesn’t have the automatic gearbox, but it does have a similarly torquey engine, proven chassis, driveline, and a great feature set at its price. Plus, it’s a Yamaha, so you know it’s going to handle well. The only place where it can’t match the Honda is in pillion seat comfort, as it is physically a smaller motorcycle.

Honda NT1100 DCT Vs Yamaha Tracer 9

Source: Honda Powersports