Weird Flex Wednesday - This Honda Africa Twin Clone Is The Ultimate Long-Distance Tourer

Interestingly, the engine it employs has Honda roots

The Honda Africa Twin is one of the most well-known names in the adventure bike space, and it has been so for almost three decades. So it’s obvious that it’ll attract a host of copycats. We have already shown you the Reiju Aventura 500 and how similar (or different) it is from the Honda CB500X, but this time, the imitation’s hit closer to home, with the Hengjian HJMoto HJ500-8. 

So at first glance it looks near-identical to the Honda Africa Twin, right down to the golden rims, scooped seat, twin headlights, and high-set exhaust. But look closer, and subtle differences, like the shape of the headlights and the sloping pillion seat, give it away. 

Its 471cc parallel-twin engine is based on that of the Honda CB500X, though built by Chinese bikemaker Loncin, and makes an identical 47.5PS and 43Nm. Moving to the hardware on offer, it has 21-inch front and 18-inch rear tubeless wire spoke wheels, just like the Africa Twin. It even gets a preload- and rebound-adjustable fork and monoshock, and the 220mm ground clearance and 880mm seat height scream ‘seasoned off-roader’. But the unremarkable 170mm suspension travel (both front and rear, less than the KTM 390 Adventure) means it can only handle a bit of rough roading, and nothing more.

Moving now to the features on offer, the 7-inch TFT shows the usual gamut of info like the speedo, odo, fuel gauge, and engine temperature, with a smaller screen below for the tell-tale lights. And though there’s no connectivity, the HJMoto HJ500-8 does one better with cameras both front and rear, which can even be transferred to an external storage via the USB port. However, the real trump card of the “China Twin” is its tanks’ capacity. Yes, plural, as the 20-litre unit located conventionally is supplemented by another 20-litre tank under the seat (like the top-spec Ducati Desert X), for a total capacity of 40 litres. Enough fuel for a Mumbai to Goa run, and back!

Now as is apparent, chances of the Hengjian HJ500-8 coming here are miniscule. Moreover, its closest relative, the CB500X, retails at a stupendous Rs 5.79 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). As it stands, then, those looking for a moderately proficient off-roader will be better off with the upcoming spoke-wheel variant of the KTM 390 Adventure.