Honda has unveiled the all-new Honda Gold Wing, the Japanese two-wheeler giant's flagship touring motorcycle, at the 2017 Tokyo Motor Show. And according to Honda, the new Gold Wing is a completely new motorcycle from the ground up. So, there's a new engine, new chassis, new bodywork, and also gets a new, third generation of Honda's semi-automatic Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT). The engine now has four valves per cylinder and gets a new ride-by-wire throttle with the choice of four riding modes.
(2018 Honda Gold Wing)
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Visually, the new Gold Wing gets sharper lines, with a smaller front fairing, a smaller electrically adjustable windscreen, and reduced luggage carrying capacity. The top box is still big enough to easily hold two full-face helmets and together with the hard panniers, there's still 110 litres of storage space on the bike. The cockpit gets a brand new 7-inch full-colour TFT screen displaying all the infotainment, while other smaller bike details like tyre pressure, riding mode, etc. are displayed on several little screens on either side of the analogue clocks housing the speedo and the tachometer. The new Gold Wing is the world's first bike to get Apple CarPlay, something that was only the preserve of cars till now. There's keyless ignition, LED lighting on the headlights and indicators as well.
(2018 Honda Gold Wing)
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Mechanically, the engine's architecture remains the same, with a horizontally opposed flat six engine, but now it gets four valves per cylinder. The engine is also lighter and makes peak power of 124 bhp and maximum torque of 169 Nm kicking in at just 4500 rpm. The new Gold Wing also gets ride-by-wire throttle with a choice of four riding modes - Tour, Sport, Economy and Rain. The different riding modes alter power delivery as well as provide different traction control, suspension damping and braking.
(2018 Honda Gold Wing)
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The new Gold Wing also gets two new gearboxes, with a 6-speed manual that comes with a cam assist slipper clutch, and a 7-speed DCT. The Gold Wing's DCT gets a Manual mode, as well as Drive and Sport modes, just like the Africa Twin. Also new is an all-new chassis and a state-of-the-art electronically adjustable suspension system. The frame is lighter by 2 kg, and overall the new Gold Wing weighs 365 kg weight, while the previous Gold Wing weighed 413 kg. The new Gold Wing will be available in three variants - the base GL 1800 Gold Wing, the Gold Wing Tour, which has a removable top box, and the Tour DCT.
