[neil.jericho]

CFMoto isnt particularly a company that most of TBHP's enthusiasts will be familiar with. If we are being honest, there still is some of that 'Oh its a Chinese motorcycle company, ah' mindset that prevails in the Indian motorcycling community. What this ignores is the fact that CFMoto manufactures the KTM Duke 790 and the Adv 790. Additionally, CFMoto has also recently announced a joint venture with Yamaha in China.

Meanwhile, the company has been steadily launching very nice looking, feature packed and affordable motorcycles. Ive been tracking some ownership reviews in international forums and the feedback from owners has been fairly positive.

To me, one of the top launches at EICMA 2023 was the CFMoto 450 MT.

Here is what it has going for it
- Parallel twin engine
- 46 bhp@8,500 rpm
- 44 Nm@6250 rpm
- 21 inch front and 18 inch rear
- Adjustable KYB shock at the front
- 200 mm suspension travel at the front and rear
- 5 inch TFT screen with Over The Air (OTA) functionality
- Tubeless wheels
- Adjustable windscreen
- 175 kg dry weight!

This walkaround video from Peak Motorcycles provides a very nice closeup look of the 450MT, starting at the 3.28 mark. Do check out the other motorcycles on the CFMoto stand as well.

CFMoto EICMA Stand

[Funny]

I have been keeping an eye on CFMoto India for few months now, their Indian arm isn't doing too well I suppose, recently saw that they have put all of their Demo bikes for sale. There are multiple reasons including the lack of marketing, market sentiment towards Chinese origins, lack of dealers/service network etc. So I am not sure if they are shutting shop or they are bringing in the new models which are long overdue since the current India line-up of 300 and 650 models are at-least 2/3 years behind the updated line-ups in their home and other renown markets. They seem to have really good bikes which are well appreciated in all the developed markets they are sold in, just search for CFMoto on YouTube and all that you'd see is praises all around. Their bikes are VFM, feature rich, well built and derived from some known and reliable sources likes Kawasaki, KTM etc. I wish they succeed in India and bring in some of their more popular models to India like the 450MT at great prices for us consumers.

[ebonho]

https://www.advpulse.com/adv-news/cf...oGcb3XsmNKDpq4

Shared by my riding buddy in Sydney earlier today, coincidentally.

He just did a pretty epic ride to Nepal Mustang Valley on Royal Enfield Scram bikes. As part of the MAD TV crew.

Back on the CF Moto -

https://youtu.be/iG8E7LQXPjw?si=xgcQAjuCrdSr6P1C

Looks good. Very baby Dakar. Looks the part. Unlike the heavier NX500 with alloy wheels which is "only a redesigned fairing on the cb500x (the bike he currently rides)" per this same friend.

I personally have zero Oh Chinese Bike qualms. I'm a cyclist, and 90% of high end cycling hardware, from high end carbon frames to carbon wheels to drive trains are all Chinese made. For the world's top Italian, French, German, British, American and Japanese brands.

Cheers, Doc

[Red Liner]

So apparently the 450 engine on the CFMoto is a derivative of the now forgotten 490 cc platform from KTM.

I think CF moto have intentionally detuned it to 46 hp to qualify for A2 license norms.

[Axe77]

If one can get some comfort on their stable presence in India, this is indeed a brilliant offering at least from what the spec sheet suggests. I’d definitely be interested to see how this baby handles in real life, specially in the dirt.

Its got so many great things going for it - well specc’ed on essential accessories; palatable 178 kg weight (albeit dry); accessible seat height of 800 - 820 mm without compromising on necessary ground clearance; tubeless 21” spoke wheels (yayy!!); 270 deg crankshaft to get the sweetest sound package I hope; and finally looks smashingly good - definitely better looking than Team Orange, which arguably presents some of the most exciting competition in this broad segment.

Hope they launch it in India. It definitely merits due consideration at least. Thanks for sharing the report Neil - certainly got my attention to this - I had ignored some of the EICMA video feeds on this so far - would’ve missed this gem if not for this thread.

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

CFMoto isnt particularly a company that most of TBHP's enthusiasts will be familiar with. If we are being honest, there still is some of that 'Oh its a Chinese motorcycle company, ah' mindset that prevails in the Indian motorcycling community.

Slightly off-topic, but any idea if the Chinese too have a strong 'biking culture' like in India?

[Axe77]

Dang! Didn’t know this earlier but I read somewhere CF Moto has pretty much shut down in India. If that’s right - what a pity - this could have been quite a sweet addition to the whole 400 / 400+ CC class in India.

[Gypsian]

The ' Made in China ' tag attached to some motorcycles manufacturers in India has culminated into extinction of such brands from Indian shores. Irrespective of the country that they are made in, we must narrow down each product and review them instead of generalising them by quoting their nexus to China. Initially royal enfield too had quality issues, the BMW GSA was initially notorious for its unreliability (in the electronics context ). The Benelli is now doing good with excellent build quality, TRK 502being one such example ( though controversial ). Some journos create opinions which are far from truth.
Now coming to CF Moto, IMHO they are nipped in the bud by the Indian consumer, without even giving them a minute chance to prove themselves aggregated by their failure to market their products effectively. I've personally test driven one of their products and can vouch for their quality. Lets not forget the fact that we have accepted one plus, huawei, vivo etc open heartedly and like wise some of the Chinese tires have proved to outlast their Indian and European counterparts.
True China makes inferior goods too. But can we generalise and form macro opinion to all the made in china goods? How many in our country can afford Japanese and European products? While considering from an individual's point of view, good quality Chinese products carry the VFM proposition.
To conclude, irrespective of the country of origin, let us encourage well built products which are feasible to the Indian consumer and yes CF 450 MT is a missed opportunity and the wait for Honda CRF with exorbitant price tag continues akin to what happened with Kawasaki Versys 300.

[ebonho]

If hugely respected brands with massive racing pedigree like Yamaha and KTM saw something in this Chinese company to trust them to make their bikes, I see no reason to have any second thoughts about it.

More often than not, aside from the undeniable Indian skepticism against "China maal", it is more to do with the parent company and Indian partner getting the brand into India. Its pedigree. Its staying power. Its network. Its vision over the next 5 years (at least).

Indian consumers have often been burnt by brands coming in on the back of a new unknown entity, and then disappearing in a few years. Leaving the poor guys who went and bought the products high and dry in terms if service and spares and parts and warranty support.

THAT more than any jaundiced racial/jingoistic bias is the key reason why some of these promising unicorns fail and disappear forever from our shores.

Cheers, Doc

[Darkcloud]

Originally Posted by ebonho

THAT more than any jaundiced racial/jingoistic bias is the key reason why some of these promising unicorns fail and disappear forever from our shores.

Cheers, Doc

Very well put. I agree with you as I was very keen to pick up the Moto Morini XCape but what stopped me was the lack of a dealership in Mumbai and that they could pack their bags one fine day and leave India. The XCape despite being a good motorcycle and excellent value for money isn’t a success.

[neith]

With their new ADV range, 2024 is the year that CFMoto should have entered the Indian market.

I would love to see the new CFMoto and Kove adv lineup on our shores.

[k_ajay]

Found that the price for CFMoto 450 MT in China is revealed. It’s 31,580 Chinese Yuan for the bike. Converted to our currency it is approximately ₹ 3,63, 800.
Global unveiling is on 21 March, in Philippines. Official price reveal will then happen in China.

Source: https://chinamotorworld.com/cfmoto-4...e-philippines/

[MileCruncher]

Now that India - China relations are headed for sunnier days, I hope this 450MT comes to our shores. Based on most of the reviews, I understand it is a brilliant package and will give run for the money to ADV 390 and NX500.

Definitely doesn't stand chance against Himi 450 due to pricing and fan club strength.

Keeping fingers crossed!

[b16h22]

The first Indian reviews are dropping for the 450MT.

https://youtu.be/svO5Vk526Os?si=pYIFr5X445dDw1-v

Hopefully, they have solid long term strategies laid in place for our market. They have genuine potential to be market disrupters.

[MileCruncher]

Any idea if it is going to CBU or CKD and if CKD, who is the Indian partner? All the reviews seem to be taking place in Hyderabad.

I saw the Power Drift review by Varun Painter and the Bikewale review. Both had the same template, starting with exhaust note. Wondering if this was a template that was provided by the company.

Also very strange that the full reviews are out way before the bike has been launched.