CANTIL, Calif. — To be sincere, I by no means actually acquired the enchantment of side-by-sides. The one place I encountered them was whereas off-roading my 2003 TJ Jeep, which appeared compact and rugged sufficient, however is also a totally functioning street-legal automobile with air-con. Fortunately, Honda pressured me out of my bubble by giving me a spin in a 2021 Talon once we took a brand new Ridgeline (extra to return on that) to the corporate’s Mojave Desert proving grounds for testing. It was fortunate as a result of because it seems, this side-by-side is an absolute riot.
Launched in 2019, the Honda Talon is a comparatively new participant within the sport side-by-side class. It debuted with two variations — the nimble 1000X and the brawnier, wider-tracked 1000R. Although it was a latecomer, Honda shortly catapulted to the No. 2 spot in sport SxS gross sales. A part of that has to do with the truth that the lineup expanded to incorporate a four-seater (1000X-4) that may be had with or with out Fox Dwell Valve shocks. Now, for 2021, these shocks might be had on the two-seat fashions, bringing the variety of Talon fashions as much as six: 1000X, 1000R, 1000X-4 and the Fox Dwell Valve variations of every.
Furthermore, the Honda Talon has some critical racing cred. Not solely did it win the naturally aspirated SxS class in final yr’s Baja 1000, it got here in second general. And it did so with a inventory engine (with a tuned ECU and minus its emissions gear).
The Talon driving expertise doesn’t differ a lot from once we first examined it in 2019. A part of the SxS’s enchantment is that anybody who can drive a automobile can drive one intuitively (in contrast to, say, an ATV). There’s a steering wheel, gear selector, in addition to auto, manumatic, and sport driving modes. Even the Talon’s seats are automotive-grade and supply car-like consolation, albeit with simply hose-able upholstery.
The throttle’s a contact delicate, however it doesn’t take lengthy to get used to the rearing launches. The 104-horsepower 999cc inline-twin shared amongst all Talons burbles like a dual-sport because the 1,545-pound machine claws its means on top of things. One of many Talon’s sleeve aces is its six-speed dual-clutch automated, with paddle-shift handbook mode. The Talon’s greatest competitor, the Polaris RZR, makes use of a CVT. Because it does in automobiles, the DCT snaps into gear with immediacy, with not one of the rev-hanging or wheezing a CVT would evince.
Maybe the largest change since 2019 was final yr’s introduction of the aforementioned Fox live-valve semi-electronic shocks. Utilizing a Bosch management unit, the Fox-built dampers regulate charges each 20 milliseconds, holding the physique flatter by stiffening up the entrance on braking or the surface wheels whereas turning. They’re obtainable on any Talon mannequin for a $2,000 premium on four-seaters and $2,100 for two-seaters, which might appear steep. However the result’s fairly a bit extra command and confidence as you swing the rear out in a sandy, throttle managed drift. Quickly, you’re eagerly attempting to find unfastened floor bends, grit in your enamel be damned.
Watching the wheels articulate like squid arms over whoops and getting the tires off the bottom as you crest a slope, I see the enchantment now. It’s a Tasmanian satan on wheels, furiously scampering by the desert like a soldier of Immortan Joe. It’s no marvel side-by-sides have exploded in reputation — they ship barrels of enjoyable in a bare-bones bundle.
Nonetheless, the Talon begins at $20,000 for the 1000X and goes as much as $24,000 for the 1000-X4 Fox Dwell Valve. That is not precisely a bare-bones value, and that doesn’t embody the expense of getting your non-street-legal machine to a spot the place you may unleash the grins. You’d nonetheless want a truck, so the auto fanatic in me then wonders, “Why not simply use the truck?”
Thanks partly to the pandemic, although, enterprise is booming over at Honda Powersports as individuals pursue outside, socially distant actions. It actually is sensible. RV gross sales are robust for a similar causes. I’m in the end simply biased in direction of the automotive. After I consider Talon my mind nonetheless conjures up the picture of an Eagle-badged Mitsubishi Eclipse. That is most positively not a type of.
