Nighthawk S

Honda introduced the Nighthawk S in 1984 as a distinctive middleweight standard with a sporting edge, aimed at riders who wanted upright comfort without giving up sharp handling or real-world performance. In the U.S. it was sold as the CB700SC Nighthawk S, a tariffic-avoidance version of Honda’s larger 750-class Nighthawk S for other markets. The motorcycle stood out in the lineup for blending old-school character with modern touches: an air-cooled inline-four, shaft drive, hydraulic valve lifters, and a clean, purposeful look that set it apart from more conventionally styled standards of the period. The Nighthawk S quickly earned a reputation for being smooth, reliable, and more agile than its size and shaft drive suggested, which made it popular with both everyday riders and enthusiasts. It also became associated with Honda’s mid-1980s strategy of building practical motorcycles that still had enough personality to appeal to riders looking for something a little different from the norm. Production ended after the 1986 model year, and the nameplate did not continue into a later revival under the same exact model identity.