INTRODUCTION The flat handlebars were a trademark of the 400 Four desirable bikes to own when launched HIS was one of the m i ose who know their bikes. and is A masterpi Its engine is hi unfortunately ever bul A great machine So its no surprise the 400 Four is considered such a great machine. t was fast enough to break MI speci limit, and with a small rider on board it could hit the 100 mph mark, but battling against the windblast st road was not its thing oon a straight On a twisty road it was in its € slick gearbox. You'd be lucky to get over the ton on it bi of the best bikes Honda built for many a year, nt with quick acceler The 408cc air-cooled four was smooth, satisfying and ultra reliable by mid '70s standards To those who knew and loved their motorcycles, the 400 Four was considered a masterpiece of both engineering and design poureene i 0 GOH mee ct ROAD TEST How does it fare afterall these years RUNNING & RIDING ‘Owners tell us why they love their machines TECHNICAL Discovering the mechanical ‘workings of the 400 FourA CONE Dye COMING SEVEN yas after Honda’ seminal 704, the [oe seers steer mt as eicay Ssvance than might be sopra: Une Hondas ship fou alte lees adopted we snp abaton. The 400s Grane held a geneous 3.8 les of ol, which aso abated the hess difocd in employ chalnpimacy dv, ot Me Honda's extender CBX woul later tse ut ne the more Capen ger ve Ned to the 780. The han was of vend teeth." constuction and proved uel relabl uty fo tev! fe engine fom runing baat —counter docs Mend tom the agh ect ved on sown Sha, which was intr geared fo ie geatox ashe sen the 750 06 combat civen by a simple role han hah dog tnecente ft canksha tn many ways the Cie at Honda mulls Amst al previous overend crs Scag hae on expersive bevel or spur ears By cating the Sin and chen cain eam de rlale Hoda put win each of thei engines which ho previo seed impossibly exo inceowpes what the engine ced es peshapy mre siking tan the tres posse. Ceny dee was tl oly a sng carat where the Kaveh 21 and Hands own CBASOof 196) sea had wo. An thre mee fst valves et Spite deat thc that ond hd loner four valve heads ting thet acing heyday the Se cam art ive seizures sng you the C00 cam dive wan the et Honda te ade npc, the sper ese aster as conan tiny fer hgh aleags they were known tose up renwal causing unstable cam chain ale The vategn il emis simple exer arms one pra, wth ape ate by ghost an lacktanTheonshalt had no bearings bu an dey onthe meta of teens hen nother etre that nue lam scan bats nom commonplace gual dependable were he vale spi, which omumonly coped in 12,00pm tuned cing examples so cou comtorably hand te oasters 1000p e trae hc raf the hozontaly spt crankcase esd sh speed constant mh gearbox employing wo sha. The segue un oe sbowe the ait whist he Har shat elned dept he provision of ec st lay below the inate es wo» covets mule ala nig sng ve wos by conven ch tthe ear ub with contained sown rather van-ype ansmisdon sock bebe Thea te gees mont cbvious fear ws Ks ovr inane exhaust stern: By the ne the 409 came along, Honda Dad pentnsiy gt over the need bag about ts our cindy Tey had so dcovred at welign fousit-one seal be bal gute and more clicen than fou separ slenes sie ech cinder enoyed thee of sng, the ene Tal thr apparent complexiy, engines such ste C800 proved not only wonderfully eal In seve, ut ao supe ey ap down iting ofthe top cankas al evsed est aay fsa far ene fathom han any Eicipunn engine! Modern engines might bas igud cling and more camshafts, micoprcesors and values, but he Fowl pen ns changed supa ie a ay Pebdesaninene tae ho uoponar perenne Bore 8 ate a Mower ete Piecinis aat oe vane deo kabi CF 3018 Bamastone TRANSMISSION caer Pinay de Hi Chan ames cua vpn iaaare = ou pool tine a Final drive: chain Seat Height: 785mmwth a sng Fort ‘owt opto 190 ftbes under the engine Unlike the bigger 750, the 400 had a six-speed gearbox and a we, ultiplate clutchROAD TESTROAD TEST ESPITE the belt-andl-braces retention of a kick-start, the little Honda fires up dependably on the button. When cold, the engine Is sulky and stubborr but soon warms up to be as smooth and responsive as only Honda seemed ret delivery is also typically Honda, with the engine happy to trundle alor n In top gear - commonplace for mults, but still something of revelation in 1975, particularly for a middleweight machine fet power comes in at around 5,500 rpm, although there is no sharp powe band. This is because power overall is a'relatively modest 37 bhp. In still air the 400 cruises easily at 80 mph, but point it at a headwind, and it struggles. In such circumstances fifth gear is usually more effective than top. Acceleration is good without being starting: the quarter mile arrives in around 15 seconds, and needs full use of the engine’s revs. Peak power arrives at 8,500 rpm, although the red line sits 1,500 rpm higher and the tacho itself is calibrated to a dizzy 12,000 rpm. Confidence Whatever the revs, with four small cylinders the pe marred only by a mild vibr ant is silky smooth, jon period at around 5,00 averages 50 to 60 mpg, depending on how hard itis ridden ‘Compared to any comparable modern machine, the 400 Is physically very small Ridden conservatively, it is almost utterly viceless, going precisely where itis pointed with a commendable absence of effort oF fuss, Given more stick, the four begins to show a few shortcomings. The rear shocks are patently under-damped, allowing a mild weave through fast turns. Meanwhile the forks have a habit of topping out over bumps, giving a disconcerting vagueness to the steering. Yet even this can’t seriously upset the Honda's progress. Whether through lightness, or more likely a well thought-out steering geometry, it generally remains faisly untutfied ‘Manageable’ is the expression whi If the 400 has a Jekyll and Hyde side, it conc ddinary-looking single disc works well. But in wet conditions the combination of perhaps best sums it up, ns the brake Forks which top out over ‘bumps and vague such times you're grateful the rear brake is a simple but comparatively weatherproo! steering do little 0 single-leading-shoe drum. hinder the 400's progressROAD TEST It rediscovered a bit of attitude 9%RUNNING & RIDING RETIRED POSTMAN I want to look cool in front of the grand children’ Old can be cool too,RUNNING & RIDING LECTURER ‘This bike was ideal for me, I'm only 5'3"in my tights and yet I could easily touch the floor’es Co eye 2 TECHNICAL For almost the moment tt bit the streets, the 400four gatned a reputation for - ‘bandling and agility that was more Malian than Japanese ‘WAS nothing remarkable about this middleweight’s chassis, it's main virtues compared to the 750 was that it was some SOkg lighter and had to cope with substantially less, power. Even in the mid-Seventies the Japanese favoured engine specification at the expense of quality chassis components. It would not be until 1977 and the artival of Suzuki's GS7S0 that this would begin to change. The 400's frame was a mundane twin cradle, topped with a single spine member, all in mild steel tube. Front suspension was in the hands of conventional telescopic forks, whilst twin shock absorbers controlled the swing-arm rear end, The forks boasted no adjustment whatsoever {although some owners altered their pre-load and the level and viscosity of the damping oil), whilst the rear was adjustable only for spring pre-load. Hea Despite it’s reputation for lightness, the Honda was actually the Wiest machine in its class, no less than 35kg more than Morini's 350cc V-twin, With at least ‘equal power and far less inertia, all the rival two-strokes beat it on acceleration: Kawaski’s $3, Suzuki's GT380 and the RD400 Yamaha which would be launched the following year. Nor were the brakes any more exotic, although they performed as well as anything else in the class. A single disc brake adorned the front. Typical of Japanese discs of the time, this had a floating caliper with just a single piston, yet worked at least as well as any comparable unit — unless it’s wet Equally suspect in the rain were the 400’s Bridgestone tyres. The company has come a long way since, but in the Seventies many owners’ first task was to throw away the original equipment in favour of European rubber - Dunlop TT100s were popular, Aftermarket rear damper units were another popular modification, Nonetheless, the 400 possessed some virtues. As well as being relatively light, it was physically small and easy to boss around. It had few setious vices and generally went where it was pointed something which not every bike could claim. And, by the standards of the time, its cornering Clearance was excellent, especially on its ‘naked! left side