It was announced at the 2011 EICMA motorcycle show in Milan.

[3] The fuel injection mapping, camshaft, and valve timing have all been revised to produce lower power than the VFR1200F, claimed by Honda to be 95 kW (127 hp) versus 127 kW (170 hp), but the power output is focused at lower and middle engine speeds.

[3] The Crosstourer is equipped with either a conventional six-speed sequential manual transmission as fitted to most motorcycles, or a dual clutch transmission (DCT), which allows the rider to change gears manually without a clutch lever, or leave it to the gearbox to select the appropriate gear as an automatic transmission would.

[4][5][6] Like the VFR1200F, the Crosstourer uses a shaft final drive.

[7] The Crosstourer was launched to compete in the adventure-touring market with the BMW R1200GS, the Yamaha XT1200Z Super Ténéré, and the Triumph Tiger Explorer.