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The wait is over. The dual-purpose motorcycle you’ve been dreaming of for so long is here. The CRF450L excels both off-road and on and is built to go your distance.
The CRF450L mixes its competition-bred performance DNA with full road legality and reliability. And is a helmet-full of fun wherever you ride it.
The CRF450L looks like the CRF450R for a reason. It is a CRF450R. Same aluminium beam frame, 449cc Unicam engine and Showa suspension. We’ve turned it into a total trail machine with more bottom-end torque, a six-speed gearbox, full road legality and sharp LED lighting package. And it’s manufactured with the high-quality engineering Honda is famous for.
Browse through the advanced features of this extraordinary motorcycle.
Riding off-road throws up a wide variety of conditions. To make the CRF450L’s engine more usable–with strong, smooth torque to hunt out every last scrap of rear wheel traction–we gave it 13% more crank inertia plus revised valve timing. Because if you’re spinning a rear wheel you’re not going anywhere.
As a true dual-purpose motorcycle, the CRF450L is as likely to be found cutting through busy city streets as it is blasting along a rutted track; therefore its engine is fully silenced and passes all EURO4 noise and emissions regulations.
The CRF450R has a five-speed gearbox. We gave the CRF450L six-speeds to allow a wider spread of ratios and to make for easier use on on-road, and deliver a higher cruising speed.
The seventh-generation aluminium twin-spar frame used is identical to the CRF450R, with some detail changes; it’s a little wider, because the engine is with its six-speed gearbox and there’s a steering lock on the headstock.
Lighting. Often an afterthought on a dual-purpose machine. But not the CRF450L–all lighting is LED with the headlight punching out a sharp beam for night riding.
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The CRF450L’s electric-start, 449cc four-valve Unicam engine delivers a smooth spread of torque from low rpm up, helping the rear tyre hook up no matter the ground conditions. Developed in conjunction with the CRF450RX enduro machine it uniquely features a heavier crank mass and compression ratio of 12.0:1. The piston uses 3 rings for long-term durability and the ACG has been uprated to provide electrical power for the lights and maintain battery charge during lower-speed running.
Torque versus power
Away from the MX track too much peak power saps precious energy. On the trail torque that finds drive is what matters and the CRF450L makes a strong, fluid 32Nm balanced by power of 18kW, making life easy for its rider, not harder.
Strong all-round performance from the 449cc 4-valve Unicam engine.
The large-volume radiator also features an electric fan.
Real world service intervals
Honda is legendary for its engineering ability and high build quality. The CRF450L was designed from the outset to have an air/oil filter change every 1,000km, with a major overhaul only required at 32,000km intervals.
High-quality switchgear built to last.
A tuned rigidity balance between the CRF450L’s aluminium frame and swingarm provides strength, stability and also feel. The 49mm Showa USD fork and Pro-Link rear suspension are fully adjustable with spring and damping rates specifically revised for use on the trail. An 18-inch rear wheel–with cush drive to protect the gearbox and chain–opens up tyre choice while the 260mm wave-pattern front disc and twin-piston calliper, matched by a 140mm rear disc and single-piston calliper serve up sensitive, but powerful stopping ability.
Showa suspension front and rear with spring and damping rates specifically adjusted for trail use.
Images shown are not to European specification
The twin-spar aluminium frame is shared with the honed CRF450R MX1 machine.
