It was a journey of discovery in more ways than one

Honda SA, since it became a wholly-owned subsidiary of the parent company in 2000, has tripled its market share and is now No.1 with Yamaha. It has a dealer network and a solid customer base for its volume sellers – quads, off-roaders and commercial machines.

Motorcycle division head Basil Forsmann told the media at the launch briefing that the company's planners felt the time was right to move into some of the specialist niches, starting with the recent launch of the Pan European tourer.

Now it has stepped on to Milwaukee turf with the VT750C cruiser.

Although its looks have more in common with the bigger Motor Company offerings it will compete directly with Harley-Davidson's 883 Sportster models and, at R72 200, it's a credible alternative.

Relax, Hog riders, this thing is far too civilised to be mistaken for a Harley; the 52° V-twin runs smoothly throughout its rev range, with an inoffensive burble from the dramatic-looking single tailpipe, and just enough power-thudding under acceleration to remind you that there is a real motorcycle under that sanitised exterior.

Honda claims an underwhelming 33.7kW at 5500rpm, with a more impressive 64.2Nm at 3000. It's difficult to quantify without a rev-counter but, if you give the Shadow a handful of throttle it will gather speed at first with deliberation and then, as it gets into the meat of the power band, with enthusiasm.

It has two VE-type carbs rather than fuel–injection and lacks the instant response of such systems – but also escapes their jerkiness at small throttle openings.

The launch bikes weren't run in so we didn't thrash them but mine went up to 140km/h with ease – at which point the difficulty of hanging on to the handlebars with my feet stretched out in front of me became a bigger factor than the engine's youth.

This unthreatening flow of not-very-urgent urge is fed through a typically nondescript Honda clutch and five-speed gearbox to a shaft drive.

Its shift action is commendably light and quick, if a little vocal at low revs; so light and quick, indeed, that before the end of the launch ride I was changing gears seamlessly in both directions without the clutch – which is quite an achievement with a shaftie.

Transient headshake

The chassis is almost as civilised; the front suspension can be made to dive sharply under braking but its damping rates are well chosen and it disposes of the Cape's bumpier backroads with aplomb.

The twin rear shocks are constrained by having only 90mm of travel; their action is marshmallow-soft for the first half of their travel and then stiffens up sharply.

The result is pillowy and ill-defined tracking, with a harsh and choppy action over bigger bumps and an occasional, transient headshake on long sweeps.

The brakes are basic, with a twin-piston floating calliper on a 296mm disc in front and a 180mm drum at the back, but they're adequate for the bike's performance, although I would be concerned about brake fade after prolonged hard riding – unlikely, I grant you (the hard riding, not the brake fade).

The bike's wheelbase is long at 1645mm and its steering is decidedly slow by sports bike standards, often requiring countersteering.

I constantly found myself correcting in mid-corner although in my case, because I'm used to countersteering, I had to pick up the bike more often than I ran it wide

Basic robustness

One of the scribes on the launch, an ex-racer with much experience of taut race-bike steering but very little of this less intense genre, found out the hard way as he ran wide on a long left and collided with a Toyota Tazz.

The car's right front suspension was almost detached by the impact; one of the bike's fork stanchions snapped off but further damage was limited to a few unimportant scratches, a striking tribute to the basic robustness of the tubular steel frame.

The rider got away with a scratch on his nose and, later, an impressive collection of bruises.

The rest of the bike is classically understated; there's a lot of chrome on the engine but less on the cycle parts.

The speedometer (the bike's only instrument) is on the top of the 14-litre fuel tank, rather too far from the rider's eyeline - but there's absolutely nothing ahead of the bars except the big chromed headlight shell.

The switchgear is typically Honda, solid and positive in action. It's cast alloy painted with clear lacquer – which looks great when it's new but really scabrous when it starts peeling after a few years of concentrated African sunlight.

At that point the logical move is to strip it and buff it to a soft glow that looks better than new but requires regular polishing.

The ignition switch is away from its normal position on the 'bars too, low down on the left; you have to look down to find it. It's a security lock with a transponder in the key that can't be hot-wired and won't respond to a copy – just don't lose your original keys.

Ploughshare seat

The seating position is comfortable by the standards of the class; the seat is low at 660mm and the centre of effort is even lower; once you've learned to aim it accurately there's very little effort involved in riding the VT750C.

Our only pillion was a petite and supple film production manager called Shé, who reported that she was quite comfortable on the small but well-upholstered pillion pad behind the big ploughshare-shaped pilots' station over the couple of hours of the launch ride.

It's likely to be unsuitable for all-day touring, however, especially if your passenger is of more generous dimensions.

Stylewise, the bike is a mix of Harley cues, notably the tank nacelle, generously finned cylinders (even though the bike is liquid-cooled) and cowhorn handlebars, with characteristic Indian features such as the deeply valanced mudguards and tombstone tail light.

Build quality is superb, a Honda trademark; everything is well tucked away and all the wiring held exactly in place with rather too many heavy-duty cable ties.

The Shadow is available on the world market in a number of metallic shades but will be coming to South Africa only in the colour that suits its laid-back, West Coast persona - basic black.

It's all about being cool, Forsmann said. No argument.