Honda has decided the four-stroke machine for the 2002 Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix (WGP) will be named RC211V. A decision has also been made that the engine will be a five-cylinder, V-type, the first of its type in the world to be developed for motorcycles.

The RC in RC211V indicates that this is a Honda four-stroke grand prix machine^*1. 211 indicates that this is the machine for the first year of the 21st century, and V at the end of the name has three meanings. The first meaning is derived from the cylinder layout, which is V type. The second meaning comes from the Roman letter for five, indicating the five cylinders. The third and final meaning is taken from the initial letter of the word victory.

What type of engine should be developed was examined in accordance with the revised Federation Internationale de Motorcyclisme (FIM)^*2 regulations for 2002, and a V-type five-cylinder engine was finally decided on. This engine was selected because it was believed that it would be able to satisfy the two requirements Honda has historically pursued; "Concentration of Mass" and "Reduction of projected areas"

The five cylinders, made up of the three front cylinders and the two rear cylinders, have round pistons and four valves each. This is a five-cylinder V-type, 20-valve engine.

For the intake system, PGM-FI (programmed fuel injection) has been adopted. The minimum weight as stipulated by the regulations for four- or five-cylinder engine machines of 145kg was realized.