2013–2017 · Tourer · Buyer's Guide
Six Cylinders, Stripped Clean
The F6B takes the 1832 cc liquid-cooled flat-six and wraps it in a bagger silhouette: short screen, hard bags, and a seat that sits just 29.1 inches off the road. The engine is the whole argument. 118 hp and 123 lb-ft arrive with the even, unhurried delivery only a six produces, fed through a 5-speed box and a shaft drive that asks nothing of you. On comfort it belongs squarely in the touring class, but it carries itself like a heavyweight cruiser, and Honda made no attempt to disguise that.
On the road it is a mile-eater first. The 66.6-inch wheelbase holds a line at highway speed with almost no input at the bars, and the low center of mass makes it more willing in a bend than 849 pounds has any right to be. This is a bike for riders who cover real distance and rate smoothness above everything else. The honest caveats: there is no cruise control and no adjustable screen, the front fork offers no adjustment at all, and any used example needs its brake recall history and its gearbox checked before money changes hands.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 118 hp (87 kW) |
|---|---|
| Torque | 123 lb-ft (167 Nm) |
| Displacement | 1832 cc |
| Engine | Flat-six (boxer) |
| Cooling | Liquid-cooled |
| Gearbox | 5-speed |
| Final drive | Shaft |
| Front brake | 296 mm |
| Front tire | 130/70-18 |
| Rear tire | 180/60-16 |
| Wheelbase | 66.6 in (1691 mm) |
| Seat height | 29.1 in (740 mm) |
| Wet weight | 849 lb (385 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 6.6 gal (25 L) |
| Fuel economy | 35 mpg (US) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Comfort
Safety
Thumb the starter and the six settles into a turbine hum you notice in the mirrors before you feel it anywhere else. Everything is calm. At 70 mph the bars, pegs and saddle stay still enough that you start registering small things instead: the click of a bag latch, a change in road surface, wind pressure across your shoulders where the short screen stops doing its job. The riding position is open and low, feet ahead of your hips, arms relaxed, your weight spread wide enough that the first hundred miles pass without a single shift in the seat. Parking-lot speeds want respect and a firm foot down. Above walking pace the mass leaves your wrists and stays gone. Night riding is easy too; the lights throw a long way down the road.
What follows is the community's voice, not mine. It comes from years of listening: club evenings, event paddocks, and the mail riders send me directly. On the F6B those reports line up unusually well. Broad agreement on what works, two sore points repeated almost word for word.
Ask an owner what they like and the answer starts with the six. They describe a motor with no buzz in it, strong from low revs, and an overtake that needs nothing but throttle. The low seat and open riding position get credit for keeping riders fresh on long days, with a passenger aboard as well. Many say it changes direction more easily than the weight suggests and stays settled once leaned over. Braking earns steady praise: the combined system with ABS is called strong and consistent.
Gearbox wear is what makes owners nervous. Reports point at two gears, second and fifth, turning noisy or losing their hold, more often on early production bikes. Riders who have paid for that repair describe a serious bill. The other grievance is noise: the little fixed screen throws disturbed air at helmet height, and fitting a taller one is common enough to count as routine.
Secondary master cylinder recall
Honda recalled 2012–2015 GL1800/B/BD models to replace the secondary master cylinder due to potential brake performance degradation. If not addressed, braking effectiveness may be reduced.
Premature transmission wear (2nd / 5th gear)
Several owners have experienced gear slippage, clunking, or noisy operation in second or fifth gear, typically after moderate to high mileage. Some cases required a transmission rebuild at considerable cost.
Where this Honda Goldwing F6B 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 Goldwing F6B is actually built for.
Your kind of miles exactly, as long as you plan around a 6.6-gallon tank and no cruise control. Two-up and loaded it stays flat and steady over Beartooth or Going-to-the-Sun.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road
You get the low, wide bagger stance and hard bags for the run. What you do not get is a big twin soundtrack; this one hums. If that sits fine with you, nothing here will let you down.
Made for A1A — Florida Atlantic Coast · Black Hills / Sturgis Rally Hub · Daytona Main Street / Bike Week
It handles better than 849 pounds should, and a fast Blue Ridge day is genuinely enjoyable. A full afternoon of tight switchbacks will still have you working hard for it.
Made for Back of the Dragon · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
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 Goldwing F6B. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
Competitor · 2014–2016
Factory Bagger, Connected Cockpit
Roughly $3,700 pricier used than this bike at 10 yr
Same Platform · 2012–2017
Six Cylinders, Zero Fatigue
Similar Character · 2014–2016
Smooth V4, Surprisingly Low
Roughly $3,700 cheaper used than this bike at 12 yr