Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin: Price, Top Speed, Weight, Specs & Reviews

The Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin looks like a true adventure bike that can traverse any terrain and weather conditions.

The design has been inspired by ‘Dakar bikes,’ long-distance motorcycles used in the prestigious Dakar rally. However, the machine isn’t just a replica of the rally bikes, but one of the originals.

Just a cursory glance at the bike is enough to give you confidence. The first thing that meets the eyes is the bike’s front portion, which provides a highly aggressive and bold look.

Its side indicators are also eye-catching. The front side indicators get fitted adjacent to the headlamp, while the rear side indicators are in between the rear number plate.

The headlight below the extended windscreen resembles a pair of hawkeyes—sharp, clear, and precise. Attached to it is a pair of indicators that does a great job indicating the turn the rider intends to take. So, it works like a charm both day and night.

The 24.5-litre fuel tank is the most imposing feature of the bike, and it’s one of the biggest in terms of its capacity and size. Guarding the tank is a pair of extended shrouds that give a sporty feel to the bike.

The bike is built on a strong steel semi-double cradle frame designed for flexibility and linked to Showa suspensions.

Regarding the seat design, the upswept saddle isn’t only striking to look at but provides comfort and a fantastic experience during long rides. The passenger seat gets stepped up for even distribution of pressure.

The bike rides on a 21-inch front wheel and an 18-inch rear wheel, which give it a ground clearance of 210 mm.

The bike is available in two colours:

• Pearl Glare White Tricolour
• Darkness Black Metallic

It comes in two variants:

• Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin DCT
• Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin Manual

The Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin has many interesting features that make the bike premium and extremely special in the adventure and touring space.

The adventure bike has six riding modes, Tour, Urban, Gravel, Off-Road, User 1, and User 2, enabling riders to select the most suitable mode per the road and traffic conditions.

Its TFT touchscreen display features a digital speedometer, tachometer, fuel warning indicator, fuel gauge, low oil, and low battery indicator.

The bike’s attractive and prominent LED headlamp gives brilliant light. Its taillamp is also extremely well-synced with the brakes and provides light when slowed down.

The bike has dual, radial-mount four-piston callipers fitted with 310 mm double disc brakes at the front and a 256 mm single disc brake at the rear with dual-channel ABS (Anti-Lock Braking System)

The bike’s suspension system incorporates a 43 mm Showa cartridge-type inverted telescopic forks at the front and a monoblock aluminium swing arm with pro link Showa gas-charged damper at the rear.

The Honda Selectable Torque Control (HSTC) identifies slip at the rear wheel and adjusts engine torque, reducing the rear-wheel slip. It optimises the torque by modulating the fuel injection.

Powering the Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin is a 1084.0 cc, dual-cylinder, four-valve, four-stroke, fuel-injected, liquid-cooled, BS6 engine. The powertrain gets equipped with a new throttle body, cylinder head, and ECU that gives just the right throttle control.

To enhance performance, the maximum power and torque get tuned into the parallel twin-cylinder engine. The mill can produce a maximum power of 98 bhp @ 7500 rpm and a peak torque of 103 Nm @ 6000 rpm.

Apart from being more environmentally friendly and fuel-efficient, the BS 6 powertrain is six per cent more powerful and seven per cent more torque than the previous BS 5 engine.

The potent engine can enable the bike to achieve a top speed of 190 km/hr. It does a great job in pick-up by sprinting from rest to 100 km/hr in just 3.5 seconds.

In terms of fuel efficiency, the engine gives a mileage of 20.4 km/l to 20.8 km/l, which is not bad considering its engine capacity, power and torque, and overall weight.

The bike comes in a six-speed gearbox, which has two variants DCT and manual. In the former, the transmission is taken care of by an automatic system.

The bike is built on a semi-double-cradle frame linked to a 43 mm Showa cartridge-type inverted telescopic forks at the front and a monoblock aluminium swing arm with pro link Showa gas-charged damper at the rear.

Taking care of the braking is a 310 mm double disc brake at the front and a 256 mm single disc brake at the rear with dual-channel ABS (Anti-Lock Braking System). A dual-channel anti-lock braking system assists the braking system by offering an extra safety net when the brakes are applied.