A 450 enduro almost half the cost of existing models?
I rode this Chinese 450 recently!
A Canadian guy planned to import these until he ran into a major issue
that be a stumbling block for China getting into Western markets... more on that later.
It's a copy of the 2006 Honda CRF450X, an excellent bike in its day.
This cheap (illegal) Chinese clone has been rebranded and sold under various different names.
E.g. Asia Wing Backfire... Odes.
MXR.
And the Cristini all wheel drive bike used this engine.
Some say the Chinese can only copy, not invent their own models.
I disagree! Check out the Wang Chung.
So this copy of the Honda looks pretty good.
The finish isn't quite up there with Japanese and European bikes,
but it's still better than I expected.
They even anodized the triple clamps and hubs,
that has to be good for an extra five horsepower lol.
The engine is detuned from the original, they claim 43 horsepower which feels about right.
Personally I think this is a good thing, it makes it more of a souped up dual sport
instead of competing with modern 450 dirt bikes... good for low and mid-range power.
It sings along at high revs but just lacks that crazy punch of the typical 450.
The engine did bog with handfuls of throttle.
Apparently the Mikuni carburetor did this on the original 2006 Honda.
The Chinese copy is no exception.
Honda fixed it with an FCR carb, it's a pity the Chinese haven't done this.
The suspension?
It did the job but it felt mediocre,
what I expected from a cheap Chinese copy of 2006 suspension.
It's still better than a DRZ400, but way short of modern bikes.
One review said the fork internals are all steel which would explain the weight.
Not getting laid?
Running afoul of other riders?
Feeling cooped up?
Want to rule the roost?
Get ultra cocky with our new chicken floor side stand!
Claimed weight of105kg? What a joke!
But the Japanese and Europeans often lie about their specs.
Some claim 120kg which I suspect is way more accurate.
The brakes? The rear was okay.
The front was very mushy and weak.
The owner said he would fit genuine Nissen brakes as the Chinese copy was unacceptable.
I agree.
Years back there was a decent effort here in Australia to sell this bike under the Odes
name, with decent brakes, Olins suspension and I assume a pumper carb to stop bogging.
One of the magazines tested it in the Fink race - the fastest desert race in the world. Often
the fastest riders rebuild their engines at the halfway point as pinned throttles
in top gear tends to kill motors fast. So they dyno tested their cheap Chinese cloned
450 before the race and after. Plus they stripped the engine down to check wear.
They were impressed and felt the Chinese had done a good job with this engine despite
the issues mentioned. I am impressed with the potential of this bike's price.
It fits between boring heavy duel sports bikes like DRZs and the expensive enduros.
A good strong engine, the suspension is better than most dual sport bikes...
Overall the bike isn't too heavy. If they fit a pumper carb and proper front brake
then the major issues are gone. Sounding good? Well the Chinese shot themselves
in the foot! Remember our Canadian guy hoping to import them? He asked for proof
the factory owned the rights to copy Honda's design. The Chinese kept saying
"Yes! But we can't find the paperwork". This went on for months before they finally
admitted these are illegal copies, they did not own any rights to the designs.
So disappointing! The Chinese are gradually showing the sort of quality control needed
to make decent bikes... some more so than others. But clearly many factories won't
act ethically. Ripping others off and not playing by the rules will make it much
harder for the few Chinese companies trying to do the right thing. Sigh....