Review: Stuff motoring
Reviewer: Paul Owen

AT A GLANCE
Engine: 649cc liquid-cooled DOHC 8-valve fuel-injected parallel twin; 51kW (69bhp) at 8500rpm; 62Nm at 7000rpm.
Transmission: Six-speed sequential gearbox, chain final drive.
Frame: Steel-tube trellis frame with triangular steel swingarm; 41mm unadjustable Kayaba telescopic front forks; Kayaba rear monoshock adjustable for spring preload.
Price: $9990.
Hot: Looks like it should cost $20,000; has most of the basics sorted; comes complete with integrated lockable panniers and fully enclosed fairing.
Not: Side stand is too short; pannier locks feel flimsy; touring loaded hurts sprinting ability; zero brand cachet; weak brakes.








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An aura of the robust simplicity of an AK-47 assault rifle surrounds the new 650TR tourer from Chinese bike-maker CFMoto.

It probably won't withstand years of neglect and still be an effective tool for repelling imperialist invaders, but you sense that it is built to cope with the rudimentary roads of rural China.

The solid construction of the frame and running gear is unique in these days of mass-sensitive motorcycle design. It's as if the creators of this cheap yet effective tourer had some isolated rutted track in Mongolia in mind as they wielded their crayons across the drawing board, instead of the usual smooth hot-mix bitumen surfaces of roads in Japan, the United States and Europe.

his means that nobody should expect the 650TR to conform to normal standards of motorcycle performance. The 220-kilogram mass of the bike is quite a lot for the 649cc parallel-twin engine to cope with. Fortunately, the liquid-cooled unit makes about 70 horsepower thanks to CF Moto's unashamed copying of Kawasaki's ER-series engine and it has a similarly willing and lively personality as its Japanese counterpart.

However, a sumo-sized bike was never Kawasaki's intended application for this engine and putting it to work in a fully dressed tourer is a bit like sentencing a slightly built student radical to years of hard labour in the coalmines.

Some of the perkiness of the original ER twin remains, nonetheless, and it eventually emerges from beneath a heavy layer of touring-bike robustness whenever the rev counter registers 6000rpm and beyond.
These are engine speeds that need to be kept in mind if you are seeking to spend as little time on the opposite side of the open road while overtaking slower traffic on the 650TR. The slightly agricultural shifts of the six-speed gearbox are therefore a necessary evil that must be endured before initiating the manoeuvre.

With sixth gear being almost as lively as an overdrive on a bike with such an imbalanced power-to-weight ratio, it's best to chop the gearbox down at least two ratios, if not three, before passing.
At 8500rpm, you'll find the 51 kilowatt peak power output of the CF Moto, at which point it's best to shift up a gear again, for revving the bike to the 11,000rpm redline only produces a lot more noise, vibration and harshness, but little appreciable progress.

Speaking of noise, the engine of the 650TR sounds great, with more aural appeal than the Kawasaki unit upon which it is based. There are, surprisingly, other charming aspects to the 650TR.
It has an originality that its 650NK street-bike sibling lacks, as no other bike maker currently makes a full dresser with a middleweight engine.

The execution of this unique concept isn't bad either. The requisite panniers are nicely integrated into the overall design, and there are things all bikes should now have, such as LED daytime running lights and strips of LED indicators that no other road user can surely fail to see.

The mirrors remain respectfully clear throughout the engine's rev range on the 650TR, and the high-rise handlebars benefit from rubber mounting.

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The switchgear layout and instrument legibility aren't the issues that they are for some more recognised brands. It has taken almost a century for some Italian motorcycle brands to get their head around some of the basics of bike building, yet CF Moto appears to have sorted most of these out in less than five years.

Wider demographic modelling would be helpful, for you have to be a certain size to feel comfortable on the 650TR. I'm of average size for a Caucasian, yet my knees came into annoying contact with the edges of the bike's fairing, and I only just got them tucked into the bike. Any Kiwi of above-average height will have to ride this bike with their knees splayed out into the wind and will feel equally cramped by the high positioning of the rider's footpegs.

The latter do help the CF Moto to achieve more sporty handling characteristics than most sports tourers, however, and the 650TR is an enjoyable bike to chuck around with its light and neutral steering.
Kayaba suspension and Cheng Shin rubber also enhance the bike's prowess on twisty roads.

The former might lack any adjustment up front and possess only the ability to tweak spring preload at the back, but it did feel well dialled in for a rider of my 75kg fully suited-up weight.

As for the tyres, scepticism soon gave way to nearly total trust as they handled everything that a storm-ravaged back road could throw at them. All that's missing is a bit more brake performance.
At $9990, you'll never buy more bike for your money, especially if you're willing to gamble on a newly minted brand from a Communist country with no Consumer Guarantees Act.

As for me, I'd rather track down a genuine second-hand Kawasaki ER, preferably the superbly comfortable Versys.

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