Tokyo Motor Show 2017: New Honda Goldwing breaks cover

The big daddy of touring motorcycles, the new Honda Goldwing has been finally revealed to the world at the 2017 Tokyo Motor Show. 

Honda wanted to make the new Goldwing leaner and more powerful without compromising on the luxury and comfort. To achieve that, the new Goldwing has got an all-new bodywork with a sleek design. The fairing is compact and looks aggressive. It offers better aerodynamics to improve the overall fuel efficiency by reducing the drag coefficient. In order to make the Goldwing lighter and more practical, the fuel tank capacity has come down to 21 litres from 25 litres. But Honda claims the overall range is the same, thanks to better aerodynamics and revised engine.  The 2018 Goldwing gets a smaller windscreen which can be electrically adjustable. The Japanese manufacturer has reduced the luggage capacity too as their research revealed that their customers mostly do two to three day tours. The headlamps and the turn indicators get LED units. 

Powering this 365kg motorcycle is a new 1833cc engine that gets a power output of 124bhp and 169Nm. This motor comes with two transmission options, six-speed manual and Honda’s proprietary DCT gearbox. The power is transferred to the rear wheel via a shaft drive. Honda has equipped this grand tourer with a ride-by-wire throttle, which is also seen in the Fireblade. To take care of various needs, the Goldwing is loaded with four riding modes, tour, sport, economy and rain. The selected mode will adjust the traction control settings, braking system and also the suspension damping. For city riding, there’s also the idling stop system which shuts the engine after three seconds of idling. The rider needs to twist the throttle to get the motor back in action. The DCT gearbox offers a ‘walking mode’ that allows the bike to crawl forward at 1.6kmph and 1kmph in reverse. The bike continues to get the reverse gear to make rider’s life easy. 

Honda has left no stone unturned to make the new Goldwing as luxurious as possible. There’s a new 7-inch TFT screen that displays plenty of ride and motorcycle information. Apart from basic functions, riding modes and even tyre pressure can be monitored through this screen. The music system is also new that is expected to improve the overall experience. In terms of connectivity, the new Goldwing gets Bluetooth and USB support. iPhone customers can connect to the tourer through Apple CarPlay. 

Honda will sell the new Goldwing in three variants, the GL1800 Gold Wing which is the base model, the Goldwing Tour and the Tour DCT which is equipped with an airbag. Honda hasn’t revealed the prices of this new tourer, but expect it to cost significantly more than the outgoing model. It will be the same story when Honda brings the 2018 Goldwing to India.