Honda CRF450L Is The Off-road Motorcycle We’d Like To See In India

Honda has unveiled the all-new 2019 CRF450L, its latest road-legal trail-friendly machine for the overseas market. It is essentially a road-legal dual-purpose derivative of the mighty CRF450R motocross bike. However, Honda has extensively tinkered with the dual-purpose motorcycle to make it more usable on the road as well. This should make it an ideal companion on your expeditions for years to come.

Honda has borrowed the plastic bodywork straight from the CRF450R, but has included an all-LED lighting system. The fuel tank is made of titanium and its volume has been expanded from 6.3 litres to 7.6 litres. The fuel cap is lockable as well, for street usage. Honda has also modified the headstock to mount a steering lock and the aluminium swingarm has been injected with urethane to reduce noise.

Powering the 2019 Honda CRF450L is a Euro 4-compliant 449cc, single-cylinder, four-valve, Unicam engine with liquid cooling and fuel injection. While the powerplant’s fundamental architecture remains the same, the crank’s mass has been increased, resulting in 13 per cent more inertia (for an improved torque response). The valve timing has also been revised to give a broader, smoother spread of power and torque. Paired with a new 6-speed transmission (as opposed to the 5-speeder in the CRF450R), the engine puts out 25.01PS of power and 32Nm of torque. The presence of six cogs result in improved cruising characteristics of the motorcycle. The first major service is required after you’ve clocked a whopping 32,000 km! However, Honda recommends the air filter, oil and oil filter to be changed every 1,000km.

As far as underpinnings are concerned, Honda has used 49mm Showa steel-sprung USD forks – adjustable for preload plus compression damping. The rear gets a fully-adjustable Showa Pro-Link monoshock. Braking at the front is courtesy a 260mm wave-pattern disc (for effective heat dissipation) that is clamped with a two-piston caliper. The rear gets a 240mm wave-pattern disc and a single-piston caliper. The motorcycle rides on 21-inch front and 18-inch rear black-finished spoke wheels, shod with 80/100 and 120/80 section tyres respectively. The motorcycle can go over some of the most demanding terrains, thanks to the massive ground clearance of 315mm. It’s surprisingly light too, with a kerb weight of just 130.8kg! To put things into perspective, it weighs about 15kg lighter than the Honda CB Unicorn!

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In the US market, the 2019 Honda CRF450L is set to be launched in September 2018, at a tentative MSRP of $10,399 (around Rs 7.04 lakh). While our hearts crave for this motorcycle, the Honda CRF250L, already on sale in markets abroad, seems to be more apt for enthusiasts in our country. It costs literally half of the CRF450L, at $5,149 (approximately Rs 3.49 lakh), and has an equally exciting quarter-litre engine for your urban/rural escapades.