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Motorcyclist first saw the Honda CMX250, or Rebel 250, in 1985 and observed that, “By targeting the bike to a young audience, Honda hopes to attract newcomers and expand the motorcycle market.” The affordable Rebel 250 certainly lived up to its expectation by drawing in a variety of riders and becoming a common sight in the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's certified rider-training courses.
Production has been on and off since it was first introduced, but it’s still part of Honda’s lineup even after 32 years and for 2017, Honda decided to give the old cruiser-style motorcycle and upgrade.
Their latest iteration of the classic Rebel comes in two flavours, the Rebel 300 is powered by a 286cc liquid-cooled single-cylinder four-stroke and the Rebel 500 a 471cc liquid-cooled parallel-twin four-stroke. Both are mated to a six-speed transmission and equipped with a sizeable 2.96 gallon fuel tank.
Like its predecessor, the 2017 Rebel is a motorcycle of mass-appeal; low seat height of 27.2 inches for a variety of riders, smooth accelerator, claimed fuel efficiency of 67-78 mpg, brakes with aggressive early bite and it’s a great bike for casual riding.
The 2017 Rebel 300 and 500 won’t be canyon carvers, but they’re perfect for new riders or those who are past their knee-dragging and wheelie having days. How do you think the new Rebel stacks up against its old school predecessor?