This Is The World's First Customer Honda RC213V-S Hyperbike

On December 21, John Brown, a motorcycle dealer from Manchester, received the ultimate two-wheeled Christmas present; a Honda RC213V-S. In fact, Brown is the first customer in the world to take delivery of the £150,000 (€180k, $196k) MotoGP-inspired replica.

The handover took place at Honda’s UK racing headquarters in Louth, the workshop where the company’s World Superbikes, British Superbikes and Isle of Man TT specials are prepared.

Commenting on his new machine Brown said:

“It is a truly amazing opportunity to own a piece of HRC racing history. As soon as it went on sale I registered my interest on the website, and when I received the call from Honda to say my order was accepted it was a very special day for me.”

When the RC213V-S was revealed earlier this year it was met with mixed reviews. As Tetsuo Suzuki (the Operating Officer of Honda Motorcycles) expressed during the handover, Honda wanted to create a bike which was as close to the MotoGP machine as possible, but this didn’t come without its difficulties.

The 90-degree 999cc V4 engine with its carbonfibre airbox, sand-cast aluminium crank cases and nickel-plated bores is pure MotoGP. However, in order to comply with various emission regulations the bike had to be restricted to 159bhp in the UK. The bike is incredibly light at only 170kg (the CBR1000RR SP weighs in at 199kg) so the restricted power isn’t as much of a problem as you might think. But then again, if you’re shelling out £132,000 for an exotic, it’s a little bit embarrassing that the bog standard £12,199 Fireblade has more power.

We can’t imagine that a lack of power will worry Mr Brown, as he already owns an RC30, VTR1000 SP1, SP2, CBR900RR Fireblade and VF1000F. However, if he does find the restrictions a problem he can always order the optional Sports Kit (ECU, free flowing exhaust and quickshifter), which has the effect of increasing power to a much more respectable 215bhp at 13,000rpm.

The bike went on sale on 13th July 2015 at an astronomical price of £150,000 (tax-inclusive). Surprisingly, they quickly sold out and more than 40 machines are thought to be coming to the UK. The remaining RC213V-S models will be presented to owners from the new year onwards and we truly can’t wait to see some of these machines out in the wild.