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2012–2013 · Sport Tourer · Buyer's Guide
The Frunk-First City Commuter
The NC700X is built around an idea most manufacturers never attempt: a 670 cc long-stroke parallel twin laid down low in the frame, with the fuel tank relocated under the pillion seat. That frees the usual tank space for a lockable compartment big enough to hold a full-face helmet. The 48 hp and 46 lb-ft arrive early and stay low, so the whole bike is tuned around usable torque rather than peak numbers. In a class that usually chases displacement and horsepower, this Honda makes its case on packaging, low weight, and genuine daily sense.
On the road it rides light and predictable, with a low center of gravity that hides its 481 lb wet and long travel that shrugs off broken city pavement. It ages the way Hondas tend to: reliable, cheap to run, undramatic. The honest caveat is the powerband. The motor peaks early and reaches its ceiling sooner than free-revving riders expect, and the long gearing makes that wall feel closer. This is a bike for commuters and relaxed tourers who value comfort and running costs over pace, not for anyone hunting hard backroad speed.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 48 hp (35 kW) @ 6,250 rpm |
|---|---|
| Torque | 46 lb-ft (62 Nm) @ 4,750 rpm |
| Displacement | 670 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 |
| Seat height | 32.7 in (830 mm) |
| Wet weight | 481 lb (218 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 3.7 gal (14.1 L) |
| Top speed | 115 mph (185 km/h) |
| Fuel economy | 62 mpg (US) |
Equipment check
Comfort
Safety
Swing a leg over and the neutral bars and roomy riding position settle you in immediately, no reach to learn, no lever that needs adjusting first. The clutch is light and clean, and the gearbox drops into every gate on the first attempt with that precise Japanese feel. The seat stays genuinely comfortable over a long stint, and the long suspension travel soaks up expansion joints and potholes before they reach your spine. The fairing does real work above 60 mph, pushing enough air off your chest to keep an afternoon on the highway relaxed. The brakes come up firm and easy to meter through the lever. And every time you park, the tank-top compartment swallows your full-face helmet, so you walk away hands free. It feels engineered to make ordinary days smoother.
My own 0–100 score for this bike against the class, area by area — the marker on each bar is the class average.
This chassis wins you over by being forgiving rather than precise. The long stroke of suspension at each end stops rough surfaces from deflecting the bike off line, and the setup errs toward reassurance, handing confidence to the rider early instead of rewarding fine inputs. The limit surfaces the moment you lean on it. Meet a fast bend laid over torn pavement and the Honda scrambles to keep everything settled, and it plainly signals that spirited backroad pace was never in its brief. Ride it inside those bounds and it stays planted and easy.
I trust this bike, and the trust starts with figures that stay honest. The economy I logged on test came in right around Honda's own claim, and back off the pace and that number stays realistically within reach. Straight arithmetic like that from a manufacturer isn't something you can count on, and it tells you plenty about how the machine will age. The one asterisk is build quality on close inspection. From a few steps back everything reads tidy; crouch down next to the swingarm, the fork bridges, and the shift lever and you find parts made to function rather than to impress.
Stopping power is the pleasant shock in this package. For what the bike costs and what it's meant to do, the front end hauls it down with more authority than I expected, and the feel at the lever lets you feed in pressure progressively instead of grabbing at it. ABS sits on the options sheet and is worth ticking. The larger-diameter wheels play their part as well, keeping the bike composed under a firm stop where a scooter's little rims would turn flighty.
What surprised me here is how much the seat and ride quality get right for a bike the spec sheet suggests should feel cheaper. There's real padding under me, and the long wheel travel swallows the potholes and expansion joints of everyday city riding before they ever reach my spine. The ergonomics land on the first outing: an easy reach to the bars, controls that fall naturally to hand, and wind protection that genuinely pays off once the speedo climbs. The clutch is feather-light with predictable take-up, and the transmission clicks into each gate cleanly, with no missed shifts to break the rhythm of a long day. The one honest catch involves a second rider. The pillion perch itself is fine, but keep two people at a steady road pace and the motor is working close to the edge of its ability, and that strain telegraphs straight to both seats.
Every day I rode it, the front storage earned its place. Where you'd normally find the fuel tank, there's instead a locking compartment deep enough to swallow a full-face lid, with the gas relocated out of the way beneath the rear seat. That meant I could run errands with a helmet stashed on board and nothing bolted to the bike. It's the kind of unglamorous, practical thinking that doesn't photograph well but genuinely changes how you live with a motorcycle.
Judge this Honda by real-world riding and it makes a strong argument. Below highway speeds, launching hard off the line, weaving through crawling traffic, dropping into a corner at a reasonable clip, it delivers honest satisfaction the raw figures would never lead you to expect. The low-revving personality that caps its top end is the very thing that makes it feel so right at everyday speeds. This is a bike built for where most of us actually ride, and at that pace it's genuinely rewarding.
Around town this parallel twin does precisely what a commuter needs. The pull sits concentrated low in the rev range and stays generous there, so I could leave it in a tall gear and still surge away from a light without dropping a cog. Ask for more up top and it runs out of room fast. The limiter interrupts before the engine builds any real drama, the genuinely useful spread of revs is narrow, and the long gearing sharpens that sense of hitting a wall. Riders raised on chasing a redline will need a few outings to recalibrate.
This section isn't my own test loop. It's built from years of listening to the people who actually live with this bike: threads I keep coming back to, paddock talk, owner conversations, and the notes riders send me straight to my inbox. Pull all of it together and the NC700X tells one consistent story. People lean on it hard, praise it warmly, and the few complaints keep landing in the same spots.
Two things come up more than anything else: how little this bike costs to run and how rarely it goes wrong. Riders consistently log standout fuel economy, around 62 mpg (3.8 L/100km), and describe a machine that piles on the miles with almost nothing failing. Close behind sits the front storage, a locking compartment deep enough to swallow a full-face helmet, which owners rate as genuinely useful on daily errands. Many also point to the strong low-rpm pull that makes crawling traffic easy, and a fair number say that for its weight it turns into corners more willingly than they expected, helped by how low the mass sits.
The complaints cluster just as tightly. The one raised most often is engine character: riders find the low-revving twin uninspiring once pushed, with a ceiling that arrives early and little to chase at the top. Not far behind is the suspension, which offers no damping adjustment front or rear and gives up compliance on rough roads. A smaller group, mostly taller riders, adds that the little screen leaves them exposed on a long highway stint.
Drive chain recall (2012 models)
Some drive chains may have improperly heat-treated outer plates, leading to potential fracture and loss of propulsion. Honda recalled 1,542 units in the US (campaign S54) for chain inspection and replacement.
Fuel gauge inaccuracy
Some owners report the fuel gauge showing two bars when the tank is actually empty, leading to unexpected fuel exhaustion. The cause is unclear and may require dealer diagnosis.
Starter magnetic switch recall (2013-2015 models)
A recall was issued for some 2013-2015 NC700/750 models due to insufficient waterproofing of the starter magnetic switch, which could cause corrosion and failure. If the 2013 NC700X is included, it may affect later production.
Where this Honda NC700X 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
Top speed
Seat height
Forget spec-sheet bragging. Here's who the NC700X is actually built for.
If your day links easy corners, scenery, and comfortable miles, this Honda has the comfort and cheap running costs to match. Ride it at a cruising pace, though: the modest power rewards relaxed touring over hard charging.
Made for Black Hills · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
The forgiving handling builds confidence fast, which makes it a friendly place to sharpen your lines. But short revs and a chassis that struggles on broken pavement mean it is a learning tool, not a canyon weapon.
Made for Back of the Dragon · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
Solo, the comfort and 62 mpg make big-mile days genuinely relaxed. Loaded two-up at highway speed, though, the engine runs near its limit, so this suits lighter touring more than fully packed coast-to-coast hauls.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road