CFMoto is tearing up the powersports landscape these days with one simple strategy: Build what people want. With that in mind, it’s most interesting to see two releases from the company at EICMA this week. The Chinese manufacturer has built a new 450 adventure bike, and also announced a new three-cylinder 675 engine.
CFMoto 450MT
First up, the new 450 adventure bike. Watch the promo below:
Now. You can fake speed with camera work, but not stability, and that bike looks surprisingly decent as it’s hooned around. The real test is always when Average Joe gets his hands on a stock machine, not some hotshot test jockey on a potentially fine-tuned factory bike. But, what’s there looks good.
This must be the same engine that CFMoto uses elsewhere in its 450 naked bike, sportbike and scrambler, none of which came to Canada for 2023. Presumably, that will change for 2024.
Actual info on this bike is scarce, despite its EICMA reveal. We presume it makes a little better than 45 hp, just like its other counterparts in the CFMoto lineup. It appears to have a 21-17 wheelset, and it appears that the crash bars are factory accessories, along with the luggage seen in various photos. Pricing would probably be in the $6-7k range in Canada. Stay tuned!
New three-cylinder 675
Looks like CFMoto is ready to tackle the three-cylinder market, in what’s possibly one of the most clever moves from a Chinese OEM yet. Remember when Triumph started making its play for sport/naked bike buyers in the 1990s, and realized it couldn’t compete with the Japanese on a toe-to-toe basis? The solution was to build three-cylinder machines with engines that didn’t fit into race categories, and therefore weren’t really compared to their 600 or 1000 counterparts.
Is that what CFMoto is doing here, by introducing a new three-cylinder 675? Maybe. If CFMoto is being truthful, it will be an impressive engine, making more than 100 hp and just under 50 lb-ft of torque. In other words, close to Triumph’s current triple 675.
Redline hits at 12,300 rpm, and CFMoto says it used plenty of forged aluminum to keep weight down to 55 kg. A slip/assist clutch comes standard.
What bike will it go into? Again, stay tuned, although we have seen a peek at the future with a new 675 SR sportbike revealed at Zhuzhou International Circuit recently. We expect a very aggressive push from CFMoto in coming months, and this engine will be a big part of that.
