Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1504322
W hat has a nearly six-foot wheelbase, weighs just south of 1000 pounds, displaces about 2000cc, sold for $27,000, and, as we described it, has the looks of some sort of one-off movie machine that a comic-book character would roll up on to save the day? Why, the Honda Valkyrie Rune, of course. Remember the Rune? If you ever saw one up close and per - sonal, you probably would never forget it. It was Honda's fantasy, or concept, motorcycle that was actually brought to fruition, if for only a year and a half or so. Everyone loves a concept bike, but these unique and often "out- there" motorcycles rarely see the light of day. But this one did. The Rune celebrates its 20th birthday this year. It was intro - duced in 2003 as a 2004 model and was immediately snatched up by those who loved the Rune's beauty and could afford one, like, of course, Jay Leno, who owns the first Rune that came off the assembly line. The Cycle News staff got its hands on one (but unlike Mr. Leno, only to test) in mid-2003. We printed our review of the Rune in July of that year. The Rune was an unusual and un-Honda-like motorcycle that the traditionally conservative company spared no expense in building. Making a profit was not high up on Honda's list of goals with the Rune but designing and building the coolest and baddest cruiser ever, no matter the price, was at the top of their list. Each Rune was rumored to cost Honda about $100,000- $125,000 to produce, but MSRP was "just" $27,000. You do the math. Honda only planned to build about 1000 of them. The Rune was built around the latest- generation Gold Wing motor and styling influenced by the Valkyrie, Honda's new power cruiser back then. "We were looking to take the original Valkyrie to the next level," said American Honda's Ray Blank in our review of the Rune. "When it [the Valkyrie] was first introduced, this bike, which had been derived from the 1520cc Gold Wing, had a significant impact on the mo - torcycle market. The Valkyrie was the first genuine power cruiser, a custom-style motorcycle that had plenty of muscle, great handling, and long-distance touring abilities to go along with its good looks. It really expanded the notion of what a cruiser's functional capabilities could encompass, and in doing so, the Valkyrie built an unusually strong following. So, we wanted to extend this concept once again and take another cutting-edge motorcy - cle into uncharted territory, estab- lishing new direction that no other manufacturer had ever attempted. We wanted to set the bar higher than ever, erecting standards that no one else had yet imagined, while also exploding old limitations on what an original equipment manu - facturer could mass produce." Rune project leader Masanori Aoki said, "To be honest with you, I thought it would be impossible to mass-produce the product without changing the styling design. It was just too radical of a design. And yes, as an engineer I thought the process was com - pletely backward: We've never CNIIARCHIVES P126 BY KIT PALMER THE WONDERFUL RUNE