2013–2015 · Naked Bike · Buyer's Guide
Honda's Easiest Entry Into Fast
The CB500F is built around a 471 cc liquid-cooled parallel twin making 48 hp at 8,500 rpm and 32 lb-ft at 7,000 rpm, sent through a six-speed box and a chain. There is no traction control, no ride modes, nothing to switch or scroll through, and ABS was an option rather than standard fitment. Honda put the money into calibration instead. A 30.9 in seat, 423 lb wet and a 55.5 in wheelbase add up to a naked bike you can place exactly where you want it, at any speed you actually ride. In this class it is the rational pick that turns out to be genuinely likable.
It rides the way it ages, which is to say without drama. The riding position is upright, the steering is light, and the whole machine asks almost nothing of you before it starts working. That makes it a real everyday bike: commuting, back roads, long weekends, high mileage. Running costs stay low and the thing simply keeps starting. The honest caveat is the ceiling. 48 hp is plenty to have fun on a good road but leaves little in reserve two-up on the interstate, and the fork takes no adjustment at all. Only the rear shock offers preload.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 48 hp (35 kW) @ 8,500 rpm |
|---|---|
| Torque | 32 lb-ft (43 Nm) @ 7,000 rpm |
| Displacement | 471 cc |
| Engine | Parallel twin |
| Cooling | Liquid-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Final drive | Chain |
| Fork | Telescopic |
| Front brake | 320 mm |
| Front tire | 120/70-17 |
| Rear tire | 160/60-17 |
| Wheelbase | 55.5 in (1410 mm) |
| Seat height | 30.9 in (785 mm) |
| Wet weight | 423 lb (192 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 4.1 gal (15.7 L) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Safety
Two decades of listening adds up. What follows comes out of paddock conversations, club nights, owners catching me at bike shows, and the messages riders send me directly, year after year. On the CB500F the reports are unusually consistent: people talk about it less as an event and more as a machine that quietly gets on with the job.
Durability dominates the conversation. Owners describe riding well past 60,000 miles on nothing more than basic servicing, and the engine is the last thing they worry about. Confidence comes up almost as often: newer riders point to the neutral steering, the settled chassis and how easily they reach the ground, while more experienced owners say it still keeps them interested on a good road. Comfort is the third recurring note, with riders reporting that the relaxed cockpit holds up across a full day of commuting or light touring. Fuel stops come around rarely enough that owners raise it unprompted.
Two complaints recur. Push the pace and riders say the suspension runs short on damping, and the ride goes harsh over broken pavement. The brakes draw a similar verdict from owners: safe enough in normal use, but lacking bite and feel next to sportier machinery.
Fuel level sensor float arm recall
The float arm can detach, causing inaccurate fuel gauge readings and, in some cases, a short that blows the FI fuse, leading to an engine stall. A redesigned sensor was provided under NHTSA safety recall 15V-475 (Honda campaign JT1).
Where this Honda CB500F pulls ahead of — or falls behind — its rivals on the numbers, and the typical bike in its class on character.
Power
Torque
Displacement
Wet weight
Seat height
Forget spec-sheet bragging. Here's who the CB500F is actually built for.
Dragon-style roads pay you back for line choice, not horsepower. Light steering, a low seat and 423 lb make this a bike you can ride properly at legal speeds and actually learn from.
Made for Back of the Dragon · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
Angeles Crest is genuinely good fun on it, but 48 hp sets a hard ceiling once faster bikes start pulling uphill. Buy it for precision and cheap miles, not for pace.
Made for Angeles Crest Highway · Coronado Trail / US 191 · Highway 1 / Big Sur
It does the city part better than most: light, narrow, cheap to run. Skyline on a Sunday suits it too, though the spec sheet is plain and there is no screen or USB port to show off.
Made for Bay Area Ridge Roads · San Francisco / Bay Area · Skyline Boulevard / Alice's Restaurant
If this one isn't quite the fit, these are the bikes worth riding back-to-back against it.
Any price note compares both bikes at the same age — the youngest age both have on the used market — against this Honda CB500F. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
Successor · 2016–2018
Reliable Naked, Zero Fuss
Competitor · 2020–2022
Stable, Cheap, Surprisingly Solid
Competitor · 2019
Light, Nimble, Wrung Out
Competitor · 2017–2020
Stable Handler, Thin Wallet
Competitor · 2014–2017
Raw Twin, Weightless Handling
Roughly $2,600 pricier used than this bike at 11 yr
Same Platform · 2017–2019
The Bobber That Behaves