Yep, put a deposit on a Tundra at Colchester Kawasaki , called back a couple of days later , cant get one till Feb '25 have one of the blues available in September '24, then even those are unavailable till Feb'25
We've already been given high horsepower, large displacement bikes, and 40 years worth of "big singles" that sound awful. The MT450 is the Ferrari of dirtbikes, because of how exotic that engine is. In a sea of "puttering" singles, the screaming 270 degree parallel twin on the MT450 sounds like a Ducati 916 race bike.
The review we have ALL been waiting for by the man with the Yellow helmet. A Good motorcycle doesn't need all the commercial hype to sell well, it will sell itself and that's exactly what this bike has done. On my wish list now!
Are these ever coming to the USA? I don't think I've seen a single person in North America (including Canada) that has did a review on the MT450? In the USA, they keep giving people super high power, large displacement bikes that no younger person can afford. The young people are universally riding small 600cc sportbikes, and nothing else.
I guess now, seeing the success of the 450mt (here in Greece it hit many records in preorders and there is quite the waiting list for it) many of the known "respected" companies will start coming up with flavors of their own: KTM 390 Adv all new for 2025 (more off road capable) Kawasaki Versys-X 500 (rumored) Aprilia Tuareg 457 (wishful thinking) And who knows what else. Thankfully CFMoto has set the bar high in value. Let's see what the others will do... As always great insight Nathan, Keep up the good work! Cheers from Greece
It deserves success if only because CF have listened to the "unicorn crowd" and given them all they asked for. It certainly sounds better than a CB500X twin. Send them a pie. Real world MPG will be good to know after these bikes have been broken in. Some of these Chinese bikes in the past have poor economy.....makes me wonder how they achieve their EU emission targets.
Yes, the CB is a standard 180° twin, but the CF moto is a 270° .. Looks and feels a bit like smaller version of Yamaha T7 tenere ... + tubeless +adjustable suspention
Bennets also tested it, and mentioned the bad vibration at about 65 mph. Would this be because it is was an abused demo? Same as the Enfield 452. Mine has none, but then its just me that has ridden it from brand new.
@@jerzywoking1699 I do wonder what is considered "bad vibes" today. Im still riding a 40 year old Honda single, vibes are part of the package. I expect i might find that same bike buttery smooth, depends what it is being compared to? Looking to do some test rides when i get back in the UK.
And not all vibes affect people the same way. My smooth NC750x always makes my right hand numb. But my really buzzy DRZ 400 doesn't. A funky thing. b@@skaraborgcraft
Classic Mr Millward! Brand new bike, virtually fresh out of the crate, first thing you do, bang it up the steepest, knarliest, rocky uphill trail you can find! And then through water filled gullies and overgrown single tracks. A modern day unicorn indeed, worthy of succeeding the likes of the DR650, DRZ400, Honda XR’s, KLR’s, and the Himalayan 411. This is the new baseline for the dual sport market. Time to step up Japan? Let’s hope so.
Currently waiting for delivery…..Made the risky decision from all the positive reviews. So glad you like it considering you have all the bikes I was considering too 😀
Ordinarily I am very against buying Chinese machines or products of any kind. However, when they are coming out with machines of the capability and quality of this type who can argue against buying such machines not least when the Japanese seem to have lost the plot and the European companies only want to build larger capacity machines or cheaper far less capable machines. It’s sad, to my mind, but kudos to CF moto.
The CF Moto is a great buy but the first gear is extremely short and at 130km you are close to the limiter. You should definitely swap the front 14 tooth sprocket for a 15 tooth sprocket. You don't lose any noticeable torque this way but you can reduce the rpm across all gears by around 7-8%.
Damn you Nathan! This review is gonna cost me 😂 Currently sitting on an old f650gs single which was all I could afford this year. Like you have said in the past, with uses bikes you buy someone else’s problems as well. But as a bike it is totally capable! So I’m gonna save up some money and take a really good look at this cfmoto 450, it might be the only thing I would want to replace my old pig with. 😄 For next year though (young kids also cost a lot of money) 💰 😅
Same Bike,Same thoughts.To be honest,the little GS is bulletproof.😊 I don't have any doubt,I can ride it still for years without any trouble.But the cfmoto is really good looking,and a good deal.Change the sprocket for lower revs,other tires,and for me ok. Money in piggy bank,or a nice bike in my garage,that is the question 😂
Great review and hats off to you for finding the elephant in the room. Why can't the big manufacturers make this. This could have been that KTM 490 they scrapped a few years back or it also could have been a Tenere T5 that everybody would want. I hope they sell a million of these things and leave the big manufacturers eating crow.
You nailed it with "Where is Japan, where is Europe in building this?" Riders have been screaming for a lighter twin adventure bike for years. Well I am not a fan of China's history being copy cats and making truly mind numbing shit quality products. But this is different. Quality is as good as other brands. It's fully featured with surprises like tubeless wheels and flippy mirrors. But what really makes this special is they built something that riders really wanted.
@@kepa504 I wouldn't mention KTM and quality in the same sentence. That the engine resembles the CP2 in many ways and doesn't rattle like a bucket of bolts suggests there is not much KTM in this bike.
This kind of bike makes me think of the hubris that the British bike industry had back in the sixties. The big manufacturers may want to take this kind of thing seriously, because history does have a tendency to repeat itself. Even in these comments you see people saying that they will only buy Japanese.....how long will that ring true though if bikes like these start becoming the norm? Look at how perceptions of Indian made bikes have changed in the past ten to fifteen years. Who would have thought that an Indian made bike would constantly be in the top ten best selling bikes in the UK (Interceptor)? I love hearing your thoughts on bikes Nathan - no bullshit as always. You don't see many RU-vid reviewers giving their true honest opinions because they either don't want to piss off their supply of free bikes, or they don't want to admit that the bike they bought has flaws. Keep it up mate.
Yes the established manufacturers have become complacent and now they are going to be crucified by the Chinese who have the hunger and ambition to do what it takes to provide buyers with what they actually want at a sensible price.
Yes I remember in the 70s sometime after the birds and the bees talk my dad told me about “Jap Crap” and how only the British make “real” motorbikes. Well he was right about the birds and the bees I guess!
The Chinese have been trying to gain a foothold in the EU market for at least 25 years. Enfield really made the effort in 2018 with the Himalayan, then the 650, and had two winning bikes. Then came the surge in sales with the 350's. They are going from strength to strength. CFMoto won't fail because of the company behind them. And don't forget their teams in Moto3 and Moto2-how much has that cost to get their name out there?
People whine that they will only buy Japanese or European, forgetting that their precious "Japanese" or "European" bikes are in fact mostly Chinese these days, at least at component level.
Today I sat (didn't test it, don't have a licence yet) on CF Moto MT450 and Honda NX500 and I was suprised that CF Moto felt better quality than a Honda. It just felt good, light, seat was comfortable and just the right hight, better equiped 4 year warranty and... 1800€ chaper! Let's be honest, if someone replaced the CF Moto logo with Yamaha or Honda, people would't know the difference. Definitaly my next bike!
Because they make plenty of money selling other types of bikes to other types of riders... it would very dull if every manufacturer made exactly the same thing.
The UK review many of us were waiting for. Not knocking the others but, so far, UK reviews have been very road biased. Will be interesting to see more on this bike on snotty, rutted UK "greenlanes". Not convinced at the term "unicorn" which seems to be so widely used in reference to this bike, I'd prefer "Jack of all trades (Master of none)" as whilst I'd accept this may well be the best compromise, but not the best in any individual department. I should imagine though, from what I've seen of your mixed uses, this could be the new bike of choice. The obvious comparison would be against the new RE450 though, personally, I'd like to hear your comparison with the Voge 300 Rally.
Looks awesome.. a 4 year warranty, 24k valve clearance and you can always lose a few more kg off it if weight is an issue for you... I think we're on to a winner mebbe.... Great review as per Nath...... ✊ Bbrrraaaaaapp.....
Don't forget 8 years breakdown recovery if you keep your bike serviced at a CFMOTO dealer. What's not to like. Saw the 450MT at the ABR festival yesterday. It has so many little touches on it that you don't notice initially. The screen can be adjusted on the move, with one hand. Shock can be lowered by 20mm for shorter riders. There is a plastic 'sprocket' piece on the swing arm. Several spocket teeth to hook the chain on when removing the rear wheel. It's a gorgeous bike. I like the grey and black, and will be putting a deposit down for the next batch to arrive in the UK, to sit alongside my 450NK.
Got burned on a CFmoto atv. Engine crank bearing failed in two weeks time (7hrs of operation time), dealership weaseled out of the warranty work. Parts were on back order for 19weeks. Paid in full. Finally got it back, took the dealership to court, got our money back plus some. I will never trust CFmoto or any dealership who carries their products. Hopefully for those who are getting this machine will have a better experience.
one bad experience from a company surely doesn't mean all their products are poorly built? Iv had 28 motorcycles over the yrs and not one of em were perfect,, a 2006 BMW 1200gs I had was a piece of shit to say the least worse bike iv ever owned, best bike was a Honda blackbird but broke down twice . I currently own a Cfmoto 800 mt it's not perfect but its waaaay better than a lot of the jap stuff iv own over the yrs .
It does look very tempting, I think my plan is to hold out until the new KTM 390 Adventure comes out next year. See how they stack up against each other and if any issues have appeared with the CF Moto by then.
@@alrhodes5011 is it officially launched over here yet? I didn't think there were more than a handful over here yet. I'm sure numbers will be much higher in a year's time, hopefully the price stays low though.
@@alrhodes5011 makes sense, I asked a couple of local CFMoto stockists about it recently and they just said they didn't have any in yet. I'll keep checking back with them as I'm interested to give it a try, see how it feels for me.
yes you can use the abs switch on the move... just press 3 seconds and then ease on the throttle... once you start rolling the throttle again... ABS is off
Problem with the gearing is, do you gear it for road or off-road. If you wanted both you’d need a six speed box with 3 low, 2 high and 1 directly in the middle, sort of a transition gear. It wound a smooth gearbox. Trials bikes years ago had 3 low and 2 high but the gap was an issue.
Hi Nathan, I bought the 450NK back in March, after a 40 odd year break from motorcycling. Throttle was really snatch to begin with and 1st gear mini roundabouts were a nightmare, kangaroo hopping around them. 😖 But as soon as I took all the free play out of the throttle it's like a different bike. 👍🏼 Absolutely love, and it sounds great.
Seems like this has done to the market what the original 700 Tenere dfid back when that came out. Hopefully this new CFMoto 450MT makes every other manufacturer sit up and rethink what the hell that they're doing. I bet KTM are kicking themselves for giving up on the 500 series of bikes that this engine was destined for, though. Only a win win for us, though!
You know it’s a good bike when Nathan really enjoys it! I’ve had my 800MT a month or so now and it’s brilliant. I want to do a bit more touring which is why I went for the 800MT but I can see why the 450MT is so popular, it looks cool as f*ck, especially in the white/pink/blue! You make a great point about other brands and countries keeping up, CF Moto seem to be leading the way in value for money. I test rode the transalp and preferred the 800MT touring, especially with the spec you get for the price. Hope customers enjoy the 450 as much as you did!
Seems to be working very hard & moving around a lot. Is the suspension set up right? Doesn't seem to be soaking up the bumps as it should. I think the damping is too hard. I'd be exhausted pretty quickly if I had to put up with that for too long. Seriously my Royal Enfield Meteor 350 could cope better with that on the stock tyres. It frequently goes off road. I think the Triumph Scrambler 400X would run rings round the 450 MT & you can get the Rally raid kit for it. I've ridden both the 450 MT & Triumph Scrmabler 400X & the Triumph would be my 1st choice for serious off road as it's lite-agile-smaller dimensions for tight situations & it had oodles of power from roll on. 450 MT sounds like it's drowning in fuel with little real pull at low to mid range, but the 450 MT would certainly have the presence on the open road. It's heavier than the Scrambler 400X which is 179 kg wet & the 450 MT is 192 kg wet. Yes it has a fancy TFT display which is useless as you can't interface your phone to it for google maps so how the hell are you going to find your way around the world. Everyone I see has a phone slapped on the handelbar for navigation which is a joke. Their's some sort of CIA secret about the T Box which supposedly gives you interfacing but nobody knows anything about it. Fuel economy is crap & to me the bike needs to go on a dyno & get the fueling properly mapped as compared to the triumph the performance is underwhelming. To me it's running too rich. Fuel/air mixture is critical to performance & this bike isn't set up right.
UK green lanes look super fun. I am going to sell my highly modified DR650, which I love, I have put so much time into it, and get the CF Moto450 MT(Ibex in USA), which is supposed to be arriving in November. Time to step up to the 21st century. I hope I don't regret moving on from the DR, but something tells me and that something is you and other reputable You Tubers, that this is a bike for me. I spoke to the dealership and I'm waiting for the sales rep to confirm when I can bring down my deposit. He said that California Air Resources Board(many complaints about this agency in the Cali) approval is awaiting and once that happens its a go.
You can leave this bike as it is, change the branding from CFMoto to Husqvarna, and raise the price 2.000 euro or dollars, and it would probably be treated by the mainstream motorcycle outlets as the best new launch in 2024 by far. But since it's a Chinese made bike, they must nitpick it to the extreme, if it was European they would be talking about the bike's "character" due to the snatchy throttle. This is going to be my next bike, sadly, it's 10.000 dollars here in Costa Rica, still cheaper than a Honda NX500, and half the money of a T7, because yes, a Yamaha T7 is over 21.000 dollars here.
Hi mate, I’m looking at one of these but as I live abroad I’ve got to squeeze it into my families back garden through a gate when I’m not using it for storage. know it’s a bit of an ask but do you know the width at the handlebars (presumably that’s the widest measurement). Cheers.
Brilliant first thoughts review Nathan. As you know, I rate the Himi 450 on the road, and have no intention of doing the muddy stuff (tried that on a CRF250L, and buggered myself up, but I am old 🙄😂), as I have said previously elsewhere, my only concern is the dealer network, as in they are few and far between. We did have one in Lancaster (5 miles from here), but they ceased trading last year. The nearest dealer to me now, is over 50 miles away. I really would like to try one on the road myself though, there are some fine motorcycles coming out of China. I have reviewed a couple, there’s nothing wrong with them, other than the inevitable depreciation, 🫣, but that can also be said for RE’s too. I look forward to your longer term review (btw, thanks for commenting on mine, much appreciated).
KTM have taken over as the UK importer. It looks like they are already expanding the dealer network by selling CFMoto through current KTM dealers such as Fowlers in Bristol.
sounds like they have nailed it and hopefully in a way I hope they have kicked the rest of the factories right up their jaded arses, they have all become complacent and CFmoto seem to be one of the new companies leading the way for better value and usability and pricing across their range but this seems to be the bike that may well break them into mainstream acceptance
This engine is exactly what the 450 himalyan should have been minus 15 kg's weight a 175 kg bike . That twin with the himalyan and the guerrilla body would have made a lot more sense than a low power single 450 . In fact a 40 bhp twin would be acceptable too.
I don't think the NX500 is in the same class, ability wise. I'm in love with the 450MT, but not available in Thailand. The only bike that can compete with this exists only in the minds of us Kawasaki fans who endlessly wait for Kawasaki to upgrade the versys300X to 450X using the new stroked version of the 399cc engine from the Z400/Ninja400 This 450MT really can do it all and they are easily customizable with wraps.
I've been keeping an eye on the middleweight adventure market for some time and things have really got interesting, especially with the Chinese bikes. Looks like this bike has all its competitors beat. The only one we've yet see is the Kove 800x, but it's looking very promising. The Chinese could end up cornering the market. Anyone know when the Kove is coming to Western markets?
Best thing is it’s a full size bike for $6500usd, closest comparable is ktm 390 adv which felt like a circus clown bike for me at 6’1”. 450 looks like same size as a tenere
Would you entertain test rides on this Nathan? Just thinking of buying in 2025 but it will otherwise be a blind purchase. Currently have a Honda NX500 and enjoy this but worried about taking this off road unless I replace the tyres, put a bash plate on and bars.
Do you think you'll get ykur hands on a kove 450 rally to review anytime soon? Or an AJP pr7? (Apologues if youve already reviewed them, i struggle to keeo track) But id live to see your opinion on those two single cylinders vs these paralel twins. And if you could ride them far with the vibration etc etc but they will be lighter. those two would br a great watch. Cheers 👍
I noticed you mounted by using the foot peg. Do you think the side stand is up to continued mounting via the foot peg? That's the way I have to get on my Himalayan 411. (26" inseam)
@Nathanthepostman, just in case you have not heard this - software updates for the bike can be done by the user - no need to visit dealer - aware reports of jerky/snatchy throttle on bike is much improved with the CFMOTO over the air update - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-lHWA3nOuGTg.html&lc=Ugz4uIJfHoGd-SCI7ft4AaABAg
Excellent review. As already mentioned, the big question is: will this bike be as reliable as expected? Only time will tell. I must admit that I am a bit sceptical about its potential durability and reliability, but I might be wrong.
I'll be extremely interested to see how reliable this bike turns out to be. The 4-year warranty suggests it will be. An acquaintance in Chiang Rai rode an early CFMoto from China to England with no issues, whatsoever. This MT certainly looks good. Cross-spoke wheels. Just noticed that. I like the adjustable screen. Suspension: my Buell XB12X came with foolproof instructions for setting for your weight, including bike clobber. Good video, Nathan. Nick
Depends what caveats they include in their warranty. Like insurance, you only know how good it is when you make a claim. Not just CFMoto, but all manafacturers
Really great video really love it praying for the 450 Mt to come to India cuz I've been waiting for this bike from 2023 November when it was introduced in EICMA ( first saw it in motobob's channel ) and fell in love with it I am really really hoping that the CFmoto will launch the 450 Mt and other 450 out here in India
Our local dealer where I live here in the States said they won’t be available until October sometime (maybe) and then he doesn’t know how many he will get. I guess we’re the last to get them but at least we’ll have imput from the rest of the world. Enjoy.
Thanks Nathan. I was wait for this review and I wasn’t disappointed……brilliant. Stock tyres are adequate on most bikes for roads, dry off-road and nothing super technical (wet chalk, mud, clay etc). Still a bit heavy but at that price you’re not going to get anything exotic and doing most things well is definitely a plus. If I was buying a do-all bike today, I’d very probably go with the CF. Might buy one anyway just for the hell of it. 😉😂
I've got nearly 5000km on mine now in New Zealand and have absolutely loved it. Previously on a T7 and a Toureg. I've done two big trips, 1 enduro race and many off road tracks. Only thing I've done to the bike is tyres, barkbusters and high seat (I'm 186cm). I love the low gearing but if I was riding back in the UK (or anywhere you can legally do over 100kph) would go a tooth bigger in the front for highway speeds. Snatchy throttle is resolved with an update. The abs and traction can be turned on and off on the move here. We get the unrestricted MT compared to EU Another thing is I can buy 2 MTs and a new helmet from the price of my old Toureg Oh and change the screen to the round rev cluster, it's way nicer and had more info on it
How does it compare to the T7, apart from the price difference? A point could be made that the T7 has a lot more power and weighs 'only' an extra 15kgs. I'd love to know if this bike carries its weight differently and how the handling feels different to the T7, in your opinion. I currently own a CRF300L, and I'm considering upgrading, but the weight puts me off a bit. Thanks!
Their other models don't seem to have sold well. They need to get a range of bikes out and quickly. When the 411 Himalayan came out it was in addition to RE's range of bikes, not the sole model.
Its good that the chinese are giving these other manufacturers a kick up the arse and and actually making bikes that fit the gap in the market. The Kove bikes are going to be a massive hit too.
@@kl9518 fool , they/brands are paying for those parts, not shamelessly stealing it. Cf literally copied the Tenere frame( even placed every part like air filter at same spot) and a design, in which other brands pour significant time and money to identify stress points and develop effectively.
The one thing the RE has over the MT 450 for me is less plastic to break when dropped. As of now I'll stick to my DR650 that I picked up used with a large tank and after market seat and wait a couple of years to see how these two bikes hold up.
I was more or less sold on one of these before I saw your review......struggling to find any bad comments about it apart from the snatchy throttle.... I best go and see how long I have to wait for one now!
I'm shocked that Tom Hardy, who is clearly in disguise, would review a new motorcycle. He seems like a retro motorcycle type of guy. Regarding, well done.
I’m sorry mate “ I know that Chinese bikes are getting very good “ after steeling all other manufacturers tech . But for me it’s about their human rights and that they want to take over the world ( if they decided to go war tomorrow insure NO ONE would be singing Chinese bike praises. Unfortunately they more Chinese stuff we buy the more it grows the war machine. Ride the Aprilla 660 weight is lighter, holds its weight down low ( 40 more HP ) low seat height and cruise control. And it will have WAY better resale value.
I think it’s all about priorities. The most obvious competitor is the NX500. The Honda weighs 7kg more, has 1 more bhp and cost about a grand more. I suspect the CFMoto is better setup out of the box for light off-road work where few NX500s will ever venture off tarmac but when there’s already talk of a twitchy throttle and needing to spend more on dialling the suspension in, I’m not sure why the CFMoto would tempt me over the proven and bombproof NX with its dealer in every large town support.
Got 1300 km on my in Poland. Live and ride in Indonesia, 150s and Rally 300, the big bike. I bought the MT for longer, "European/West" type of adv riding. The low gearing is a disappointing, at 125 kmh, the engine spins at 7000 (8500 red line). Already I stalled 15t up front, about 450 rpm drop. We have 2, the other is still at 14t. With 15t, the acceleration is less "fun" and now, on tight trails more clutch work is required. Engine has plenty of pull for taller 5th and 6th...... The on/off poor fueling is also a pain, especially in normal riding. I do lot more clutch work than I would like. Clean tune is required. Bash plate is paper thin. Rest is super cool, the bike looks good. It sounds good (almost too loud for this old man), it's comfortable and all the rest. We got two of them for the price of one of the others......
Great feedback paw. Agreed about that fueling. It does need that remap to take the edge of it but the rest of the bike seems to make up for it! Will try that 15 front when I get some more miles on it
It's a fairly full size bike so I think space wise it'll cope two up. How the engine goes with the weight I wouldn't know. Depends on pillion size and luggage
@@nathanthepostman cheers mate, shes light, but me and the luggage arent lol although i did loose weight on this tour 🙂 a lot of sweating 🙂 do you know a GVW?
Your joy is infectious. Top man. RE will be sorry they didn’t build another retro themed Himalayan with a bigger version of the Classic reborn engine. They couldn’t even keep the perceived weight down on the new bike. All hail the unicorn!
So this is the mother load of all the bikes out there to compare against.🤧🤔 There's some stiff competition, but what are the chances in 2024 the Chinese put out a bike to beat the band ? 🤔 You have captivated my attention.
it definitely is in a league of its own atm, it will take a long time before others will ride on the bandwagon especially the japanese brands or if they even consider it when they're so concerned about their other models cannibalizing sales of their higher end bikes hence they make them mediocre.
