We motorcyclists seem to be on a quest for the perfect clutch. At least that’s the lesson I’m gleaning from the spate of (semi) automatic gearboxes that have been unleashed these last few years. Quick shifters are as common as dirt now, Honda’s made quite a business of dual-clutch transmissions and BMW and KTM have both put forward their interpretation of what the modern motorcycle transmissions should be. Hell, even tiny, little MV Agusta has a Recluse-like centrifugal clutch. It’s like we’ve all collectively decided that we’re too lazy to pull in a clutch lever!

That said, there’s actually one more — Honda’s E-Clutch — that deserves more attention than it’s getting.

I recently sampled it on Honda’s latest CBR650R. Now, that bike is as far away from anything I want to test — mainly because my entire body rebels at testing anything with clip-ons and rearsets. But it did allow a few hours of rowing through the Honda’s now-even-more-slick-shifting six-speed gearbox and, if my short time aboard the CBR650 is any indication, Honda’s new computerized clutch system marks the arrival of the technology we motorcyclists have been looking for in our quest for the perfect (semi) automated gearbox.

Honda claims that the E-Clutch is the combination of the best traits of traditional quick shifters, DCT dual-clutch transmissions and automatic clutches. I say it’s more than the sum of those parts. Except for the fact that it can’t shift automatically — which a DCT can — it’s better than all three technologies in almost all regards. For one thing, it “quick shifts” better than a quick shifter. For another, manual gear-shifting is smoother than even the best of dual-clutched DCTs and, last but not least, its automatic clutch operation is way better than MV Agusta’s centrifugal version.

Mechanically, the system is fairly rudimentary. Attached to the right side of the CBR’s crankcase, the E-Clutch mechanism consists of two electric motors (one each for clutch engagement and disengaging) and a quick shifter-like shaft that not only changes the gears, but signals an impending gear shift. Like quick shifter systems and MV’s centrifugal clutches — but unlike Honda’s own DCTs — there remains a single, old-fashioned clutch, in this case cable-operated: at any point in time, the rider can take over management of the clutch from the computer and bang through the gears in the traditional way. 

The alternative is to let the E-Clutch system do all the work for you. From neutral, for instance, you can engage first without touching the lever on the lefthand handlebar. Ditto upshifting and downshifting the CBR’s six gears. Taking off from a standstill in first is fairly smooth, as is tiptoeing through a U-turn in a parking lot. In other words, it feels exactly like a standard gearbox except your left hand is out of a job.

What it can’t do is automatically shift gears like a DCT. That said, the E-Clutch’s semi-automatic gear changes are a sight smoother than any of Honda’s DCT-equipped bikes. And, as much as paddle-shifting is truly the most convenient way to shift an automotive DCT, the handlebar-mounted buttons used on Honda’s DCTs doesn’t feel nearly as natural. 

The most closely related technology is the common quick shifter. Both systems use the traditional motorcycle gearbox, cut the engine to allow easier shifting and unlike the DCT, the traditional gearshift lever remains the main actuator. Indeed, a number of reviewers have noted that, save for a quick shifter’s need to use the clutch to engage first gear, the performance of the two systems is much the same.

It’s not: the E-Clutch is better. Way better, in fact.

The most significant difference is that, while you can go up and down the gears using a traditional gearshifter, downshifts can get downright crunchy. Honda’s E-Clutch, meanwhile, is happy rowing up or down the gears.

The other way the E-Clutch is superior — and this is the feature that cemented this full-throated recommendation — is that, with a quick shifter, you essentially close the throttle and bang down the gears. It works, but it is hardly, as I said, a pleasant experience for the transmission. 

You can do the same with the E-Clutch but the real bonus of the Honda’s system is that you can take over the rev-matching part of the downshifting process yourself. Still leaving the clutch lever alone, you can blip the throttle right before banging down a gear and the E-Clutch will slip between gears so smoothly you’ll swear there’s a torque converter down there. In fact, within about five minutes of jumping on the CBR, I was cracking out downshifts more fluidly than I have ever managed on any fully mechanical system. As it turns out, the optimum shifting system — at least, my optimum shifting system — is a combination of human throttle manipulation and computerized clutch control. Who knew?

The downsides to E-Clutch are fairly minor. The first is that the system adds two kilograms to the 650R’s curb weight. Extra weight is never good, but that does compare well to the 10 kilos the DCT adds to the Africa Twin. The second is that manually using the clutch can feel a little weird. There’s virtually no resistance until the lever is at the end of its travel and then it comes in fairly abruptly. You can switch the E-Clutch system off so that the CBR650R’s transmission is then fully-manual, but that kinda defeats the purpose, doesn’t it? 

Despite those small foibles, I think that Honda’s E-Clutch is the system that best marries motorcyclists’ need for engagement while still offering some automation of the process. It works so well it might even convince me to buy a Honda were it to render an adventure touring model so equipped.