- 3 hours ago
Total Freedom: Auto clutch or manual, YOUR CHOICE.
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00:00Today we're at the bike shed in downtown Los Angeles getting our first ride on the new 2026 Honda Rebel
00:06300 e-clutch
00:07We're gonna do a tour of the greater Los Angeles region
00:10Hit some prime tour spots and see what this thing's like to ride in traffic in the canyons and on
00:15the freeway. Let's go
00:30Oh
00:43Okay, first ride
00:47On the 2026 Honda Rebel 300 e-clutch turn the key there
00:57Okay bikes on in neutral so first things first it's in neutral without the clutch we're simply straight into first
01:04There you go this thing. This is letting you know the systems working the screen light if you override it
01:10it
01:13It goes away so you still have to use the shift lever
01:17This isn't a bike that will shift for you, but you do not have to use the clutch at all.
01:21It's got a auto blip quick shifter
01:23So just seamless up-and-down shifts without the clutch. That's what they say
01:31Because I've been recently riding the Honda
01:35Dax 125 Dax
01:37And that's kind of what this reminds me of actually is almost like
01:39You know riding a little Honda mini moto where you still have to use the shift lever, but you don't
01:44have to use the clutch at all
01:46It'll be good to test this out in city traffic stop-and-go situations
01:56So if you're familiar with the rebel 300 this bike was introduced back in 2017
02:01It's had some updates since then, but the big news with this 2026 model is the addition of the e
02:08-clutch
02:09Other than that this bike is pretty much the same as last year's 2025 model
02:13they're available right now the 2026 rebel 300 e-clutch and
02:18And for 2026 model year the rebel 300 will only be available with the e-clutch
02:23But if you don't want to use it like an e-clutch, you don't have to so kind of best
02:28of both worlds
02:29Depending on what kind of customer you are they're available right now price is five thousand
02:34Three hundred and fifty dollars. I believe two colorways
02:37Honda's rebel 300 has always been an easy bike to ride. It's tailored for the beginner entry-level rider
02:44But there's still one major barrier of entry when it comes to the standard rebel 300 and that is a
02:50manual clutch
02:51So with the new rebel 300 e-clutch you can ride the 300 without the clutch completely
02:57Making it almost like an automatic you still have to operate the foot the shifter with your left foot
03:03But it also has a sort of bi-directional quick shifter
03:07So you can shift up and down completely without the clutch
03:10You can come to a stop in gear without the clutch and you can pull away from a stop in
03:14gear without the clutch
03:15So essentially you never have to use the clutch on the rebel 300 e-clutch use it for a minute
03:20Don't use it use it once never use it again. It's totally up to you
03:25But I think that's so great because this is it the new e-clutch system
03:28It doesn't restrict you from operating the clutch someone like me. I like I like using the clutch
03:33I like playing with the revs for the intended user of this motorcycle
03:36I think it's a great addition if you desire you can ride this bike
03:40Just like a manual six-speed traditional motorcycle
03:44And that's why I think there's only positives when it comes to the Honda e-clutch especially on this bike
03:48doesn't add much weight
03:49Doesn't really add to the price and it doesn't rob the manual
03:53Transmission clutch experience. This is the same engine in Honda CB 300 F which in the lightweight category is a
04:00very fun very playful
04:03Lightweight naked the power delivery is soft off bottom, but it has a nice little thump to it
04:07A little some cruiser character, but it's very easy to modulate very easy to ride. It's predictable
04:13It's linear and it uh, but it's got legs to get up to speed once you get out of the
04:18city
04:18It's bike leans into a corner so easily
04:21Okay, we're in fourth gear. You know, this is a lightweight sub 300 CC engine last time
04:28We had one on the dyno it made about 25 horsepower, maybe 17 or 18 pound feet of torque
04:33So so to get speed you got to wind it out a little bit, but it has the legs to
04:37uh to carry highway speed
04:39It's not particularly comfortable. I mean the engine is definitely working. It's spinning at a decent rate
04:44The vibrations increase a little bit, but this isn't a bike that is going to be
04:49Purchased for its long distance highway legs
04:54This is a bike that is going to do exactly what we did today
04:57It's going to get people into the sport get people on two wheels
05:00Be easy to ride and be a perfect affordable way to see the city get to work get to school
05:06and go
05:07Explore fun roads like this one and you can accessorize these things pretty
05:12Pretty extensively both with honda accessories, you know genuine honda accessories and in the aftermarket
05:18That's what honda's done with a lot of their motorcycles
05:20Whether it's the rebel line or their scl sort of scrambler even some of their groms and mini motos
05:25they know how much people like to personalize their vehicles and uh
05:30This is a sort of a blank canvas ready for
05:34You to make it just the way you like it
05:36That's what's so fun about these
05:38As I can imagine there's so many people that maybe grew up riding bicycles through the neighborhood and never transitioned
05:43into motorcycles
05:44I think this is going to be that bike for someone who's into the cruiser styling
05:49This is a bike that uh, you know
05:52Can really be a perfect stepping stone from an electric bicycle
05:56To a motorcycle if you feel confident on a bicycle. I think you could just jump on this
06:01And uh feel pretty at home just get used to twisting the throttle applying the brakes and working that shift
06:07lever
06:07I've noticed with this e-clutch is it actually works like a normal clutch
06:12Just it's automated by a computer and a motor and sensors
06:16But you can hear the way the clutch, you know matches with the engine
06:21And uh, I think that'll help newer riders kind of get that sensation
06:26So pulling away see there's no green light now
06:28It's on
06:29Pull it away as a manual and now we're riding it as an automatic
06:32So it's got a quick shifter
06:34Which does you know seamless up shifts and auto blip down shifts?
06:38So just like last year's rebel 300 you have the simple lcd display
06:43The three gallon peanut style fuel tank as you can see down here
06:48There's that that quick shifter mechanism
06:50So you can see i'm a five foot seven without shoes on
06:55And uh easily flat footing right now the seat height
06:5927.2 just over 27 inches so really low seat height it's got it's definitely a smaller package
07:06I think it for riders that get close to the
07:09Are closer to six foot you might find that this is a a little bit too tight
07:15But at a a five foot seven
07:18This is just compact enough to make me feel like i've really got control of the bike
07:23It's just a very playful cruiser
07:26From the the flick the handling it's light easy tip in
07:30The engine that is not intimidating, but it's playful get up into the revs
07:34It's fairly quick revving the quick shifter
07:36It makes it really fun without using the clutch and just having that quick shifter to just bang through gears
07:42It's really fun the uh the brakes have
07:45Good stopping power, but they're not overly sensitive
07:48It's uh, this is easy riding for sure on the rebel 300 e-clutch
07:53One of the major things is that this is a honda a honda products with a reputation for reliability and
07:58durability
07:59A lot of things going for this bike service intervals are spread out. You know, it's got good reliability
08:05Durability it's affordable to buy affordable to own this thing's going to start just about every time
08:10It's got good fuel economy fit and fitness is what you would expect from big red
08:15I really like this thing. I think for me
08:17I would go for something just a little bit bigger maybe the 500 or the 1100 as i'm a more
08:22experienced motorcycle rider
08:23But uh
08:24I can think of many people in my circle that would benefit from this rebel 300 e-clutch
08:31And you know nowadays with so many bikes having quick shifters and slipper assist clutch someone like me who gets
08:37to ride all types of new bikes
08:39I'm only using the clutch to pull away from a stop
08:41Maybe to shift into second gear and after that it's quick shifter up and down the rest of the time
08:46So honestly, that's how this feels with the clutch lever still being there
08:50And just naturally instinctively sometimes grabbing it or touching it or when turning around
08:55That's something I've noticed today is when doing when turning around in tight spots having
09:00Grown up and spent my whole life modulating a manual clutch lever
09:04And uh, it's actually
09:06Trickier for me to turn around without the clutch than to turn around with the clutch
09:10So I think that's important to a lot of riders that you know, you don't have you're not stuck with
09:16this
09:17Automatic transmission something like you know a dct where you know
09:21I mean you have paddle shifters, but you are not pulling in a clutch and you are not operating your
09:26left the shifter with your left foot
09:28This still provides that
09:30And you can still you could just ride it like a manual bike all the time
09:33You can't turn off the automatic system like you can on some of honda's other
09:38bikes with the e-clutch, but uh
09:40You can override it at any time other than the addition of the e-clutch to the honda rebel 300
09:46This is the same bike as last year. It's a 284 cc
09:51liquid cooled single the same engine used in honda cb 300f
09:55It's got a six-speed transmission slipper assist clutch tubular steel frame a 41 millimeter inverted fork with about five
10:02and a half inches of suspension travel
10:04Dual outboard shocks with I believe preload adjustment offering right around 3.7 inches of travel
10:11Ci just over 27 inches curb weight
10:143 360 or so
10:17The brakes up front you have a single disc you got 16 inch wheels front back very cruiser like single
10:23disc up front
10:23It's a lightweight you don't need two discs
10:25So it's got a 296 millimeter disc up front dual piston caliber abs standard at the back
10:31Don't quote me on it. I think it's 240 millimeters with a single piston caliper and
10:38abs come standard
10:40No other rider aids are present no traction control nothing like that
10:44Just standard abs
10:46Which is uh all you really need on something like this no switchable ride modes
10:50So yeah, with a whole lot of power and torque
10:54I don't think traction control is needed on a bike like this
10:56Of course, keep that in mind beginner riders if you do get this and you are taken out in the
11:02rain, especially one of the first times
11:03You're on it
11:04You're definitely going to want to make sure you are careful with it not that this has a bunch of
11:09explosive power, but
11:10You do not have traction control. So just know that you have abs anti-lock brakes
11:15Non-adjustable suspension you have preload up the rear
11:18I think I did find surprising about this bike and maybe
11:21It's just me not knowing enough about the rebel 300 is that it doesn't have passenger accommodations at least not
11:27as standard
11:27which
11:28Admittedly is probably appropriate on a bike like this like I know when I first started riding motorcycles
11:34I would not have been comfortable with anyone jumping on the back of my motorcycle
11:38So that totally makes sense. I am curious though
11:41If you can add it as an accessory or as an option switch gear
11:46This is very familiar if you've been on if you've been or seen any recent honda products and they're sort
11:52of middleweight and lightweight line
11:54Whether it's the very popular honda crf 300 l or some of their lighter weight bikes the
12:01The scl 500 scrambler. This is the switch gear that is on those bikes very familiar
12:08See what the corn ring is like
12:10Good corner clearance did not touch the pegs there
12:16Third fourth gear down to third oh that scared me it got the pegs there
12:23The suspension feels good going through those corners
12:27at that speed
12:30Come in
12:31Suspension feels nice
12:33Again a nice balance between
12:36Comfort and hold up you know it's support it has good support, but it doesn't have you know a super
12:41stiff
12:42You know feeling to it where it beats you up on these smaller bumps
12:45It's very well balanced. This whole motorcycle is very well balanced
12:49The engine is you know lively but
12:52Approachable and easy to manage
12:54The suspension is supple and comfortable but supportive
12:58The handling is
13:01Direct and fairly quick but not overly sensitive
13:05The seat height the weight everything like that it just it's very well balanced and it just has this
13:12Very easy to get along with nature
13:15We're just cruising you know that this pace is
13:17You know one side of the tire to the other this is just about perfect
13:27So touch the pegs down twice there it wasn't super easy to do it admittedly
13:32I was kind of trying to get it to to touch see just how far you have to lean the
13:36thing over
13:37And uh, yeah, you have to get pretty cranked over. I mean relative to a cruiser
13:41To uh to touch the pegs. I think it's it's not too limiting especially considering the uh
13:47The target demographic of this motorcycle final thoughts on the honda rebel 300 e clutch is it lives up to
13:54its claim of
13:55easy to ride approachable and
13:58accessible
13:59Less than 5500 bucks brand new
14:02It opens up
14:03Motorcycling and rebel cruisers to just about anyone now
14:07You don't have to know how to operate a manual clutch
14:10With the e-clutch you can be a brand new rider and still get along with this rebel 300
14:15The engine fun playful but easy to ride it's approachable and predictable
14:21Handling is light and flickable but still stable
14:24Suspension comfortable but supportive
14:26So that's going to wrap up this onboard review of the 2026 honda rebel 300 e-clutch
14:31Of course if you enjoyed the video hit the like button to comment subscribe
14:34Let me know what you think about this bike and the other ones in the class
14:37Thanks for watching. We'll see you in the next one
14:46See this arrows flashing that's telling you to downshift since we're at a dead stop in second gear
14:50We could roll away in second gear and this will feather the clutch and get you going
14:55But that down arrow and it's flashing lets you know you should do something drop it into first
15:01Now we're ready to roll
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