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  1. #1 CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
    Senior C-Moto Guru ZMC888's Avatar
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    I met I guy called 'Cowboy' today who let me have a quick spin on his NK650. He has some kind of friendship with CFMOTO, and is a semi-pro stunt rider for them, He and his friends make stunt videos, speak OK English and are likable guys, they hang about on http://www.moto8.com/. They said the bike is registrable in Shandong province for 1000RMB, and that they can source the bike for 30,000RMB, less than the advertized 37,000RMB.

    cfmoto-cb650nk-1.jpg

    First I had a look at the bike, a tangerine and white colored CF, looked a bit like a cross between a Kawasaki Ninja 650 or ER6 and a KTM Duke. After I started it I noticed was that the engine noise was very loud, not particularly from the pipe, but a massive clatter from the valves, pistons and cams. Although this must be normal operation. I was impressed when I sat on the bike all the levers hand and foot grips were in the right places, a nice city 'supermoto' style riding position just my style, no racer wannabe or cruiser couch, slightly more dynamic than a CBF500 with the hands and similar foot position. Finding first gear was easy, as the road was cold and dusty I put the machine in 2nd gear fairly early and took her through the power bands in 2nd. Well there is nothing missing from the machine here, she pulled up toward red line nicely and I had to back off early due to a few old women wobbling around on ancient ebikes on the wrong side of the road carrying vegetables. The brakes came in nicely and gave me the same capable stopping power that you'd expect on a Japanese middleweight street bike of this kind which is very impressive on a China bike.

    The bike is on first impressions nearly as good as a Japanese bike of the same kind, albeit slightly less refined. So now I'm split on one side I want to take the gamble. Just my kind of bike, a 650 twin with a regular riding position, ideal, and for a good price. A bike China and Chinese bikers can be proud of, yes it's openly a Kawasaki copy, but it proves China can make something a bit more than a potato carrier. If CFMOTO sell quite a few it helps the Chinese economy and makes bike bans and big bike bans less likely. On the other hand I worry about all those noisy internals. If I buy one will I be bombarded by niggles because the bike hasn't been R&D'd properly? Will the bike develop some problem that can't be fixed after a few years when I'm out of warranty? Would CFMOTO help me out?
    Last edited by ZMC888; 12-23-2011 at 10:37 AM.
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  2. #2 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
    Senior C-Moto Guru zhu's Avatar
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    possibly it is noisy because it has had the living snot caned out of it since it was a pup
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  3. #3 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
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    Quote Originally Posted by ZMC888 View Post
    Would CFMOTO help me out?
    G'Day,

    Make sure your not getting Jialing'ed...

    Saw a red / white one yesterday with a Shanghai "C" plate out in Minhang, not bad looking but smallish bike.
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  4. #4 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
    Senior C-Moto Guru ZMC888's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by zhu
    possibly it is noisy because it has had the living snot caned out of it since it was a pup
    Bike was brand new.

    Quote Originally Posted by TB-Racing
    Make sure your not getting Jialing'ed...
    Jialing have done quite a bit of damage to the China moto scene, will CFMOTO step up? I might leave of a purchase of this bike to 2013 if at all.

    Quote Originally Posted by TB-Racing
    not bad looking but smallish bike.
    Yeah it might be a bit small for the Shanghai F1 race circuit, but on a Chinese road with blind pig farmers a 650cc twin is more than enough. Or do you mean in dimensions? I reckon that the size is about right.
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  5. #5 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
    Senior C-Moto Guru euphonius's Avatar
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    The dimensions are definitely small, and I think the bike would not be well-suited to panniers and pillion. The pillion barely rates half a seat, so she better be tiny!

    As a solo ride for day trips, I think this bike would be a lot of fun.

    The risk of being Jialinged? Well, that's a mystery that reveals herself slowly! We owners of the 2009 and 2010 JH600 are only now finding out how little Jialing cares about bikes that are out of warranty. Those riding the JH600A, which is purported to have resolved the JH600 stalling problem, are all still under warranty and have too little mileage on them to expose them to Jialing's duplicity.

    Bikerdoc is most knowledgeable about CFMoto and their service record, and has given good reports. But he too has indicated that CFMoto are not averse to using their customers as R&D guinea pigs just as Jialing has done. In his case, at least, I think they recalled his big scoot and replaced a bunch of parts, which ranks them above bottomfeeder Jialing.

    cheers!
    jkp
    Shanghai
    2010 JH600 "Merkin Muffley" (in Shanghai)
    2000 KLR650 "Feezer Ablanalp" (in California)
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  6. #6 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
    Senior C-Moto Guru zhu's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ZMC888 View Post
    Bike was brand new..
    mate if its brand new and it sounds like a sack full of hammers

    why even consider it
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  7. #7 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
    Senior C-Moto Guru euphonius's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by euphonius View Post
    The dimensions are definitely small, and I think the bike would not be well-suited to panniers and pillion. The pillion barely rates half a seat, so she better be tiny!

    As a solo ride for day trips, I think this bike would be a lot of fun.

    ...
    If you'd like to see pix of this bike under a decent-sized European, I've parked some pictures here.

    In fact, apart from this new thread there are now at least three other threads about this bike, which is starting to be a bit confusing.

    CT 650NK Experience which is kind of mislabeled (That CT should be CF or ChunFeng or CFMoto)
    CFMOTO 650 Nice Pics
    CFMoto CF650 sport bike

    I guess there's no way to corral these together, but perhaps it would be nice to have one designated as a sticky, and have that be the main place for comment. Can these threads be combined somehow?

    cheers!
    jkp
    Shanghai
    2010 JH600 "Merkin Muffley" (in Shanghai)
    2000 KLR650 "Feezer Ablanalp" (in California)
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  8. #8 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
    Senior C-Moto Guru ZMC888's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by zhu
    mate if its brand new and it sounds like a sack full of hammers why even consider it
    It's noisy, but a sack full of hammers would be an exaggeration. Also that's normal operation. It pulls well as it should through all power-bands. If there was blue smoke, the oil stunk of petrol or there was oil pissing over the engine then that would be a giveaway that the engine was shit. Some engines can be noisier than others, that just the way the are. Doesn't mean they can't last or that it isn't rubbish.

    Anyway I ain't gonna buy it. This is because Chinese customer service sucks balls, and I swore I'd never buy a 100% Chinese bike again. I don't want to take a 30,000 RMB gamble on a Chinese bike.

    Quote Originally Posted by euphonius
    CT 650NK Experience which is kind of mislabeled (That CT should be CF or ChunFeng or CFMoto)
    CFMOTO 650 Nice Pics
    CFMoto CF650 sport bike

    I guess there's no way to corral these together, but perhaps it would be nice to have one designated as a sticky, and have that be the main place for comment. Can these threads be combined somehow?
    You might notice that my post was the only one to get the name of the bike correct.
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  9. #9 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
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    Quote Originally Posted by ZMC888 View Post

    Anyway I ain't gonna buy it. This is because Chinese customer service sucks balls, and I swore I'd never buy a 100% Chinese bike again. I don't want to take a 30,000 RMB gamble on a Chinese bike.
    This is my position on Chinese bikes right now too. Our options in this price range are fairly nonexistant though. Either you buy a grey market bike or risk getting "Jialinged" (tm TB-Racing) with a Chinese bike.

    Still hoping to hear some more opinions on this bike. Thinking that the touring version might have a better seating arrangement. As noted above the pillion seat on the current version is pretty awful.

    /edit - miscredited quote
    Last edited by Nuhaus; 12-24-2011 at 03:52 PM.
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  10. #10 Re: CFMoto NK650 Impressions 
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    Quote Originally Posted by ZMC888 View Post
    Or do you mean in dimensions? I reckon that the size is about right.
    G'Day,

    The bike is quite small (dimensions) and will not fit larger guys (6'4")...... saw two today going up HuQingPing highway with a large group of big bore Jap bikes.
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