The budget touring motorcycle that beats the big cruisers in terms of comfort

‘Touring motorcycle’ in this market usually means a huge cruiser motorcycle with a V-twin engine, hard luggage and a fairing. While this is great if you have a lot of money to spend on a bike that costs as much as a car, most people will opt for a more sensible purchase. There are two ways to do this: buy a large cruiser and make sure you get luggage and wind protection (these are usually available in the accessories section), or you can buy a cheap touring motorcycle.

Whatever you choose, it will be a compromise, as with most things in life. But sometimes a product comes along that doesn’t compromise as much as you might expect. The Rebel 1100T is such a product. It is a touring motorcycle, complete with hard luggage and wind protection. It is extremely well priced. And it has arguably a better seat triangle and features than most premium American cruisers.

The Honda Rebel 1100T is the budget touring motorcycle that beats the big cruisers in terms of comfort

The Rebel series of cruisers is Honda’s offering for anyone who wants the laid-back qualities of a cruiser, along with the strengths that every Honda has to offer. That means an ownership experience that’s low maintenance and highly reliable, and it helps that the Rebel series looks pretty good on its own. The Rebel 1100 is at the top of this range, and the T is the touring car, thanks to the hard luggage and wind protection. It has an extremely attractive price, a decent feature set and a very strong drivetrain combined with very good chassis and suspension. That’s why it’s the budget touring motorcycle that beats the big cruisers on comfort.

Honda Rebel 1100T Price: $10,899

The Rebel 1100T is extremely reasonably priced for a cruiser-style tourer with fairing and luggage. For reference, if you tried to get the Harley-Davidson equivalent, you’d easily pay twice as much. There are a few options in the Indian Scout range, but they don’t have Honda’s combination of large fairing and hard luggage.

You’ll still pay just under $14,000 for one of these. The Rebel 1100T is also Japan’s most affordable touring bike, with only Moto Morini’s touring bike undercutting it in price. You can get the Rebel 1100T with the dual-clutch automatic gearbox for $11,599.

Honda Rebel 1100T engine

The Rebel 1100T shares its engine with the Africa Twin and NT1100. This is a parallel twin layout with a 270 degree crankshaft. It doesn’t have the same state of tune as the others, preferring a ‘cruiser’ tuning with lower power and a much better torque spread. What that means for you and me is that this engine will continue to run forever. You get a by-wire throttle, riding modes, traction control, integrated wheelie control and cruise control.

Honda Rebel 1100T transmission and final drive

There are two transmission options for the Rebel 1100T. One of these is a standard six-speed manual transmission with assist and slip clutch. A quickshifter is not an option for the Rebel 1100T. The other, more interesting option is a six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. This is the same gearbox found on other Hondas, so you also have manual control via buttons on the steering wheel. Final drive is via a chain, which can be a deterrent for those looking for an interstate ride.

Honda Rebel 1100T chassis

The Rebel 1100T uses a modern steel diamond frame with the engine as the loaded part. This is a difficult setup to adjust, but if you’re buying a budget tourer it won’t be the focus anyway. Showa cartridge telescopic forks and dual rear piggyback shocks with adjustable spring preload shave the 18/16-inch alloy wheels. There’s only one 330mm front brake disc, but it has a proper four-piston radial monobloc caliper – a unique fitment for regular forks. At the rear, a 256mm disc is paired with a single-piston caliper. ABS is standard and cannot be switched.

Honda Rebel 1100T Dimensions

This is a full-size motorcycle, as evidenced by its 88-inch length and 33.5-inch wheelbase. One notable feature is the Unicam SOHC engine head, which allows Honda to run a four-valve configuration with a smaller head than a DOHC setup. This allows the Rebel 1100T to be lower overall.

The 27.9-inch seat height doesn’t really reflect that, but there is storage under the seat to explain that seat height. A 3.6 gallon fuel tank may seem small, but this is a very efficient engine, especially when paired with the automatic transmission. So there will be fewer fuel stops than you would expect. A ground clearance of 4.7 inches is good enough, and the wet weight of 528 pounds is very reasonable for its size.

Honda Rebel 1100T Features

The Rebel 1100T has a decent feature set. What sets it apart from the cruiser variant is the cockpit and hard luggage. The luggage can be opened from above, is lockable, weatherproof and has a storage space of 9.3 liters. If you want to take a pillion, you’ll need to add the optional pillion seat and footrests. Also on the options list are a larger windshield, better suited for highway driving, and more comfortable seats for both rider and passenger.

Honda Rebel 1100T Competition

The Rebel 1100T is very well positioned. There is no direct competition. For example, the Suzuki Boulevard C50T ($9,779) has a high windshield, but no wind protection for the hands, and no longer luggage as standard equipment. The more modern option would be from Indian: both the Sport Scout RT and the Super Scout can be used as light touring cars.

They also have the V-twin engine and a traditional downtube chassis, but the Super Scout has soft luggage, while the Sport Scout RT has no real wind protection. There’s also the fact that they both retail for $16,999, which leaves them out of the conversation.

The Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Classic LT ($10,599) has soft luggage, belt drive and an authentic V-twin engine. This is a proven product that will be just as reliable as the Rebel, but it looks much more conventional and doesn’t have the electronic support such as ABS and a TFT display.

Honda Rebel 1100T vs. Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Classic LT

Sources: Honda Powersports