We've been hot on the trail of LiveWire's S4 Honcho, from the initial trademarking of the model name to speculating what we'd see at EICMA, and covering the juicy details of what the bike has to offer. The Honcho S4 comes in two variants, the Trail and Street, and the wait is finally over, at least for the Trail.
The LiveWire S4 Honcho Trail is just about to hit dealers across the US. With an MSRP of $4,999, the Trail is the cheapest way to get into the LiveWire brand, although prices of the manufacturer's bigger bikes seem to fall every few months. Even so, a current S2 Mulholland has an MSRP of $11,999, which is more than twice that of the S4 Honcho Trail. But what can riders expect for their money?
Based on the Honcho S4 Trail's specs, I'd say riders are looking at something that's more capable than a Honda Monkey 125 in terms of performance, but less capable in terms of range. The pair share 12-inch wheels, a seat height of around 30 inches, and an approachable nature in terms of power, but that's where the similarities end.
As expected from a LiveWire motorcycle, the S4 Honcho Trail is electric and uses a 3.48 kWh battery. This means the bike claims a fairly nippy 3-second 0-30 mph time, and tops out at 59 mph. So, it has a bit more pep than a comparable ICE mini bike, but its 53-mile claimed range can't hold a candle to the famously economical 125cc mini bike category. Although, it's worth noting that LiveWire claims the S4 Honcho could achieve a range of 73 miles if held at a constant 20 mph.
The thing is, although bikes like Honda's Grom seem like the obvious competitors, they're not.
The S4 Honcho Trail is an off-road-only model, meaning it's realistically going up against bikes like Kawasaki's KLX 230R, which is the same price, but far more capable. On the other hand, the S4 Honcho's peppy acceleration and 53-mile range should prove plenty for having fun and exploring large properties. The question is whether the market of folks who want an electric off-road machine is big enough to make the S4 Honcho Trail a success.
