2015 Honda NM4 Coming to US in June for $10,999

Dennis Chung
by Dennis Chung

This is no April Fool's gag ... We think.

Believe it or not, news sites hate April Fools Day. On any other day, it’s challenging enough to find and verify news from a variety of sources, but on this day, everyone seems to want to outdo one another with fake press releases and everything needs to be checked in triplicate to root out what’s real and what is a prank. Take American Honda‘s announcement today, April 1, that it would bring the new Honda NM4 to the U.S.

In three months’ time, no less.

Yes, we’re still trying to verify the news but on the surface it all seems legit. American Honda announced the NM4 along with an updated 2015 PCX150 scooter along with the returning CRF110F and CRF50F dirtbikes. But there are reasons to be skeptical about the news of the NM4.

Consider that the concept, pictured above without luggage, was only revealed less than two weeks ago as the NM4 Vultus. Judging by the comments in our initial post and on social media, the reaction was mixed, with many drawing comparisons to the PC800 and the DN-01.

“It’s great that sometimes we make a certain machine simply because we can and because we want to, not because we ‘should’,” said Keita Mikura, NM4 Vultus project leader, a comment that again makes us ask if this is for real.

Discuss this at our Honda Vultus Forum.

The NM4 shares the same engine as the NC series. Oddly, the U.S.-bound NM4 is equipped with the 670cc version of the parallel-Twin engine also seen on the NC700X and CTX700, while the original concept used the newer 745cc version introduced on the NC750X. As with the other models, the cylinders are canted 62 degrees forward, helping lower the NM4’s center of gravity. The engine is mated to Honda’s six-speed Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT), offering a manual shifting mode and a choice of sporty or commuter automatic shifting modes.

The all-digital display lights up in many different colors. By default, it lights white when in neutral, red for manual shifting mode, pink for the sporty automatic S mode and blue for the regular automatic D mode. If you don’t like those options, you can also customize the display to show up to 25 different colors instead.

The large, futuristic front fairing looks like it would offer good wind protection, especially with the incredibly low 25.6-inch seat height. The passenger seat can be set at three different angles, and can slide forward or backward into four different positions. For solo riding, the passenger seat also flips up to serve as a backrest.

For the U.S., Honda is offering the NM4 with two integrated saddlebags. Additional storage is available in two compartments built into the fairing.

Suspension consists of a 43mm fork and a Pro-Link single shock, both offering 3.9 inches of travel. The 18-inch front wheel is stopped by a two-piston caliper gripping a single 320mm disc. A single-piston caliper stops the 240mm disc on the 17-inch rear wheel which is clad in a thick 200mm tire. Anti-lock brakes are offered as standard.

Other features include a full LED lighting, turn signals integrated into the bags, rider floorboards and a 3.0-gallon fuel tank. Honda claims a curb weight of 562 pounds.

The 2015 Honda NM4 will arrive in showrooms in June in Metallic Black, carrying a $10,999 price tag.

Unless this actually turns out to be an April Fools gag.

[Source: Honda]

Dennis Chung
Dennis Chung

Dennis has been a part of the Motorcycle.com team since 2008, and through his tenure, has developed a firm grasp of industry trends, and a solid sense of what's to come. A bloodhound when it comes to tracking information on new motorcycles, if there's a new model on the horizon, you'll probably hear about it from him first.

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