Honda received its first Red Dot Design Award in 2020 for the CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP. Team Red followed up on that success by winning another Red Dot Design trophy with the 2021 Forza 750. Now, Honda keeps the streak going in 2022, with both the NT1100 sport-tourer and ADV350 scooter earning Red Dot Design Awards.
Prior to the 2022 NT1100 breaking cover in October, 2021, several speculative digital renders imagined the Africa Twin-based tourer with streamlined bodywork and slim-profile luggage. When Honda unveiled the new model, the brand balanced form and function, delivering a modern design that prioritizes both comfort and style.
The approach apparently paid off, with Honda’s adventure-adjacent design appealing to riders and critics alike. Designed by Maurizio Carbonara at Honda’s R&D center in Rome, Italy, the NT1100 benefitted from the team’s ‘proactive comfort’ philosophy. That method results in a sport-tourer that’s both sophisticated and rugged.
“We are pleased to receive a Red Dot Product Design Award in all Honda product ranges, Motorcycle, Automobile and Power Products for the first time,” stated Honda R&D and Design Center COO Toshinobu Minami. “We believe this is a result of realizing Honda’s desire to ‘serve people with technology, ideas and design through our products’, which has been a key principle since the company’s foundation. We will continue to take on challenges to deliver “surprises and excitement” to our customers.”
Honda takes a leaf out of the same adventure styling handbook for the ADV350. Inspired by the Red Dot Design Award-winning Forza 750, the mid-capacity scooter caters to a broad range of customers with its ‘New Urban Adventure’ aesthetics. The ADV350 may be the Forza 750 smaller sibling, but it offers improved ground clearance and increased suspension travel at both ends. The aggressive adventure styling also prepares the ADV350 to take on the mean streets.
Honda completed its Red Dot Design three-peat in 2022, but we can’t wait to see what Team Red dreams up before the 2023 award season.
