Honda cafe racer

Honda has always been a popular choice for cafe racer builders, given the solid engineering and easy availability of parts. The CB series is especially common, from the smaller twins and 1970s inline-fours, to the mighty six-cylinder CBX.

Let’s not forget the CX500 though: the liquid cooled V-twin was a departure for the Honda engineering department, but has proven to be a godsend for builders smart enough to make the ugly frame look good.

The pinnacle is undoubtedly the classic CB750 cafe racer, using the original superbike as the donor.

But rising prices in the used market mean that more recent Honda cafe racer builds are just as likely to be based on bigger, newer motorcycles—like the CBX1100 or the recently discontinued CB1100.

Honda CB750 café racer by Minami Motorcycle

The Way of the Café: A 1978 Honda CB750 from Tokyo

2 MONTHS AGO / CUSTOM MOTORCYCLES

The exact definition of ‘café racer‘ is often debated, but it holds a special meaning for Kenji Heianzan, founder of the Japanese workshop Minami Motorcycle. “We pursue what we call the ‘Way of the Café,’” he tells us. “It’s a philosophy that values quiet confidence, balance, and street presence, without pretense.” Minami Motorcycle is a…

1976 Honda CB500F café racer by Caffeine Custom

The Bold Four: A 1976 Honda CB500F café racer from Brazil

5 MONTHS AGO / CUSTOM MOTORCYCLES

Based in Caxias do Sul, a town in Brazil’s hilly Serra Gaúcha region, Caffeine Custom is fast becoming a regular on these pages. They celebrated their tenth anniversary last year, and wanted to celebrate in style with a special custom build. The stars aligned when a customer approached them to create a slick Honda CB500F…

Honda CB350 café racer by Shawn Lin and Capo Moto

Just Right: An elegant Honda CB350 café racer from Taiwan

10 MONTHS AGO / Comments Off / CUSTOM MOTORCYCLES

By day, Shawn Lin creates concept art for the gaming industry—a space where fantasy and science fiction reign supreme. But the motorcycle he rides in the real world is cut from a different cloth. While Shawn’s designs are edgy and futuristic, his bike is a decidedly classic—and may we say elegant—Honda CB350 café racer. Shawn…

K-Speed strikes again with a menacing Honda Dax café racer

1 YEAR AGO / Comments Off / CUSTOM MOTORCYCLES

When the Honda Dax was brought back into production a couple of years ago, K-Speed wasted little time getting their grubby paws on it. The Thai powerhouse’s founder, the mysterious Mr Eak, had a 50 cc Dax as a teenager—and the workshop is particularly good at customizing small Hondas. So a K-Speed-customized Dax was inevitable.…