CFMOTO 450CL-C Cruiser Overview & Pricing

CFMOTO have just taken another swing at the established manufacturers, with the unveiling of the 450CL-C, which is a new beginner cruiser built around their 450 cc parallel-twin platform, with pricing here in Australia at $8790 ride-away, £5599 pounds in the UK and an MSRP of $5,699 in the US.
That is a LAMS machine in Australia obviously, and will fall into the A2 category in Europe, with a 30 kW performance figure demonstrating a bigger focus on torque than peak power.
As a point of reference CFMOTO seem to be pricing this new model to cut the Honda Rebel 500 and new Kawasaki Eliminator models off at the knees, likely taking it to Harley’s new X500 too. That’ll be the cat amongst the pigeons on pricing, with cruisers seeming to be a segment which often wasn’t as competitive as other bike types, with new entries often just closely price matching the existing offerings.
If you stick around till the end of the video I’ll do some quick comparisons with the competition too.
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Images and footage courtesy of CFMOTO.

[@erickonigsdorfer544]

Love the design! Can't wait for the 800cc version! CF Moto is getting very hard to ignore...

[@gdvadventours5512]

Hate cruisers in general but this one is the exemption...lightweight pleasing to the eye and has classic modern look...couldn't agree more if they make 800cc version of it I might close my eyes and forget it's made in China.

[@richardorosso7377]

@@gdvadventours5512 I suggest you don't close your eyes and accept that China is building quality these days, I would'nt be too put off by the smaller displacement either the 450 is a jewel of a motor and more than up to the task of enjoyable ride.

[@user-qm5tw3lw9g]

Indeed very good for China technology industry and staff, why to be concerned on that, most of our tech items are made in China. I consider the CLC in top no 1 for my first motorcycle and I am looking forward to seeing it and buying it, those they are concerned by a motorcycle made in China should do the same effort and creativity in their country and making such a nice product. Congratulations to CF Moto staff from Chris/Romania

[@user-sw2lv3zp6o]

I like this style of bike with the mid-pegs, Kris, but my favourite in the 450/500 category is the Kawasaki. CFMoto are the stand-out Chinese brand, though. Excellent review, as ever. Nick

[@MotoJournoKris]

Yep, CFMOTO are doing an exceptional job, they've got their work cut out for them though!

[@gdvadventours5512]

A proper Comparo between the Rebel vs Eliminator vs CL C should be next...hands down by looks alone the CF moto cl c is a clear winner.

[@MotoJournoKris]

It does look great!

[@bensondiabeatech470]

Waiting for the custom legends to clean up the rear fender, tempted to buy a spare rear fender and do a bit of tinkering. The only part of the bike i don't like is the rear fender it's too tall, too long. But I'm a bobber fan haha, basically riding the rear tire.

[@stevesanelli90]

Another ripping bike from CFMoto ⭐️

[@punchbuggyyellow7097]

The CFMOTO's a standout option, especially when you consider the price, but the Harley Davidson X500 is the pick of the crop in terms of the riding experience. The X500 is easy to ride & has a forgiving engine that will pull away even if you're in the wrong gear, which makes it perfect for the beginner. Plus the 360 degree engine has enough personality & torque to keep an experienced rider engaged. It's just a shame that they've slapped the HD tax on the price, unlike it's twin sister over at Benelli than slips in at under $10,000.

[@MotoJournoKris]

That 500 is great, definitely an underrated engine and I was impressed by the character, which is definitely going to be important. The Harley tax does push the bike almost up into the 650 range compared to the Super Meteor and Vulcan S though, which is a shame.

[@jorge.pires76]

Bela moto nas paisagens de Portugal❤

[@Bobby-wn5yr]

Quite interested in the mt version of this platform tbh.

[@MotoJournoKris]

Yea that 450MT does look amazing, much higher spec loadout than the price would suggest too.

[@dariomatic3182]

Nice rew,how tall are you, i am 184cm will i have problem with legs

[@stephanematis]

Feels like they are using the 450 MT engine spec. Smart. Oddly, I would have preferred a 17/17 wheel combo.

[@MotoJournoKris]

That'd make a lot of sense. Torque and mid-range will be more appreciated than peaky power.

[@suzyamerica4679]

Shame the rear doesn't have twin shocks .. those provide better stability when there's a lot of rear load on this kind of bike. Otherwise the phrase "long moment arms" is going to become familiar to you quickly.

[@JohnSmith-cn2im]

I'm digging this up in CANADA when it COMING HERE ..

[@JohnSmith-cn2im]

Just hope this bike can keep up speeds on Canada freeways man ..god I hope so !

[@MotoJournoKris]

What's your highway speeds? Shouldn't have an issue being a 450.

[@dimimaiden]

Any news about the low rider version of this?

[@MotoJournoKris]

Nothing that I've seen so far, it'd have to be a pretty exclusive special edition I'd guess.

[@TheINDIAN]

Don't you feel that royal Enfield should have built this engine instead of the single.

[@MotoJournoKris]

The single feels a bit more true to Royal Enfield, but I haven't tested it out in the new Himalayan yet, so hard to judge if we're missing out much against the 400-450 parallel twins.

[@TheINDIAN]

@@MotoJournoKris do try the 450 off road twin from cf moto and right after that the 450 Himalayan if you are interested . I do feel that royal enfield didn't think things through as a twin 450 would have made a lot more sense as they are going to build other platforms with that engine. And we have to wait for a century for another new engine. The Himalayan 450 is no light weight off road bike anyway. And the cf 450 Mt is the same weight as the Himalayan 450 so what is the point of a single. And in Europe cf 450 mt is the same price as the Himalayan .

[@user-qm5tw3lw9g]

I also like CF due to twin cylinder engine against the RE 450 classic with 1 cylinder. Having the money for just one affordable bike I’ll buy the CF Moto CLC. MT is great also. It’s just my opinion.

[@TheINDIAN]

@@user-qm5tw3lw9g the KTMs have done an amazing job with their singles . Another single 450 with only 40 bhp makes the market a bit off . A twin (270⁰ ,285⁰ or a 315⁰ crank) would make things interesting. And PPL can enjoy smooth thundering twin engines . If the engine was built well we could have a cross platform sharing to reduce prices.