2017 Honda CRF450R launch review

Honda makes little secret of its ambitions with the 2017 CRF450R. Quite simply, it wants to return to the front of the pack.

With renewed competition from fellow Japanese heavyweights – not to mention the extremely well-received KTM 450 SX-F out of Europe – Honda reckons the new machine will, “achieve the holeshot without fail”.

Backing this statement are the biggest series of changes to Honda’s flagship motocrosser in eight years: a ground-up exercise which includes an 11 per cent increase in power, a lower centre of gravity, a slimmer body and a shorter wheelbase.

Honda has also introduced an electric start function for 2017 that will be fitted free of charge to the first shipment of deliveries – as an incentive to dealers who pre-ordered – but will be an optional charge thereafter.

The 2017 CRF450R is available in dealerships now, at a retail price of $12,198 ride away. That positions it squarely among other competitors in this set.

Bikesales attended the national media launch for the 2017 model at a stifling Raymond Terrace motocross track on the NSW Central Coast this week.

With Honda’s newly-devised Jay Foreman-led factory race team on hand, bikes are tailored to rider weights, running a 101mm sag and circa 25mm static sag.

The Honda looks and feels narrower than before even though there is no wholesale departure cosmetically from the 2016 model. But what the bike’s seemingly evolutionary design changes mask is a new titanium 6.3-litre fuel tank, narrower radiators, a shorter exhaust system (contributing to mass concentration) and a revised intake system in which the air box and engine ports have been re-positioned for a straight-through layout.

Throwing your leg over the machine, it is readily evident just how slim the 2017 model really is. It feels akin to a 250 in a static setting, with a flat but comfortable 960mm-high seat, well-thought-out ergonomics and easy placement of the 'pegs and levers.

With a freshly groomed Barleigh Ranch circuit at our disposal, it’s not long before we hit the track.

First, the engine. What a powerhouse.

Chief among the engine changes for 2017 are increased valve lift for improved accelerative performance, revisions of the intake and exhaust ports, changes in the valve and piston shapes for improved combustion efficiency, and a new scavenge pump system from the crankcase which creates less friction inside the engine and reduces pumping loss.

The resulting increase in compression ratio, from 12.5 to 13.5:1, ensures more power across the rev spectrum. Honda claims an 11 per cent improvement overall.

Incorporating Honda’s carryover UniCam design, the 449cc unit is smooth right off the bottom. To this tester, the old model’s lack of low-down urge has been usurped by a more responsive, free-revving character for ’17.

It resists typical low-speed jerkiness common among 450s, meaning you can carry a higher gear through slow corners and still pull away effortlessly. The only kink in its armour is a tendency to conk out under rear brake lock-up approaching corners – which is simply commonplace among these machines.

There is a smooth transition into middling and upper revs and the modulation and feel in throttle response is superb; not too reactive but never delayed.

The Honda misses out on the traction control feature fitted to the 2017 KTM 450 SX-F, with engineers instead improving the bike’s tractability physically: achieved by shifting mass towards the 19-inch Dunlop Geomax rear rubber, purportedly without affecting front wheel lift.

The trade-off has worked, as the CRF’s engine is tractable on all surfaces, making it easy to attune to its throttle sensibility.

At the top end of the dial the 450R shows no sign of waning as it approaches its rev limiter. The engine is smooth and willing in all scenarios, more so if you elect the most aggressive setting in its three-stage engine modes (standard and smooth modes also available).

The accompanying five-speed transmission offers an adequate and useable spread of ratios. The shift is quite mechanical but, paired with a light clutch take-up, the gearbox makes a formidable accompaniment across Barleigh Ranch’s imposing layout.

The engine is just the beginning of the 450’s improvements.

Elsewhere, Honda has scratched the predecessor's KYB PSF2 air fork system, reverting back to coil springs.

The 49mm Showa configuration is up 1mm, and feels tactile and progressive through the stroke, even during large downhill braking sections. We didn’t play around with clicker settings, but the standard set-up resists harsh bottom-outs while offering great damping through choppy braking bumps and under acceleration alike.

Further updates include a lighter swingarm, a newly located rear suspension, and a new extruded gusset construction of the subframe, with the lot housed within a lighter, sixth-generation aluminium twin-spar frame. A familiar Showa rear shock ekes no unwanted surprises, avoiding any side-stepping under acceleration and coping well under larger hits.

The geometry and suspension changes afford a truly communicative and easy-to-gel-with riding experience. The chassis, in particular, belies the 450’s size and weight (111kg), thanks to a predictable and fluid turn-in, excellent mid-corner poise and redeeming stability under power.

The CRF also brakes well for a 450. It tracks steady under heavy braking, with excellent front wheel traction that builds rider confidence.

Is the Honda a sure-fire way to get to the front of the pack, as Honda claims? Well, that depends on the pilot of course. But as modern 450s go, this has to be one of the most user-friendly yet deceptively quick options on the market.

Agile, powerful and communicative, Honda’s legendary motocrosser is back where it belongs.

SPECS: 2017 HONDA CRF450R
ENGINE
Type: Water-cooled single-cylinder
Capacity: 449cc
Starter: Kick
Fuel system: Electronic fuel injection

TRANSMISSION
Type: Five-speed
Clutch: Wet, multi-plate
Final drive: Chain

CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR
Frame: Aluminium twin tube
Front suspension: Showa 49mm inverted telescopic fork
Rear suspension: Showa monoshock
Front bakes: 260mm disc
Rear brake: 240mm disc
Tyres: 80/100-21 front, 110/80-19 rear

DIMENSIONS AND CAPACITIES
Claimed wet weight: 110.6kg
Wheelbase: 1482mm
Seat height: 960mm
Fuel capacity: 6.3 litres

OTHER STUFF
Price: $12,198 ride away
Bike supplied by: Honda Australia, www.motorcycles.honda.com.au
Warranty: N/A