Honda CRF450R 2025 Review

The 2025 Honda CRF450R has been beefed up and ironed-out to deliver precise power and better handling thanks to big upgrades in the frame, along with detailed changes to suspension and engine performance.

Just like we reported on the 2025 Honda CRF250R, the 450R has received the same upgrades, which brings both machines to the same standard.

This is not usual practice, with most manufacturers traditionally leading updated models with the 450cc category. Honda, however, listened to its high-performing factory team riders who just happen to be dominating both the 250cc and 450cc class. It's clear Honda’s intention is to lead the charge across both capacities.

Australian motocross superstars Hunter and Jett Lawrence have played big roles in the development of the 2025 Honda CRFs. The Lawrence boys have banked a handful of AMA Pro Motocross and Supercross titles in the past couple of years so it stands to reason that Honda would base its 2025 model development off the back of their winning ways.

Add some secret sauce from four-time MXGP champion and Team HRC star Tim Gajser, and Honda test rider Trey Canard, and you have a winning formula based off credentials that stand up against the competition.

Honda concentrated on increasing rigidity in the frame to eliminate flex so they could zero in on the suspension and ultimately improve the overall handling of the motorcycle. Honda began adding pieces to the frame to make it more rigid, which gave the bike a more planted feel. This included a new mounting position for the sub-frame.

Honda then set to work on the suspension by beefing up the lower fork triple clamp, the fork outer tubes and the front axle. The fork was treated to a new lighter spring, new oil, kit-inspired Bending Control Valves, and new seals. The shock has been updated to a new one-piece linkage, a new spring, new reservoir, new shaft and new oil seal. The shock is now far easier to remove and install with Honda claiming the new design has cut the job time in half. This is a bonus for anyone working on the bike. There is now no need to remove the sub-frame to access the shock.

The front brake has a new piston and seals and if you look at the caliper you can see it looks different with new machined accents.

The engine performance has been optimized thanks to a new header pipe design for what Honda claims is more controllable power in low-to-mid RPM. The air-box has been redesigned with a straighter pathway for airflow to the engine to improve throttle control and top-end power. The ECU mapping has been revised for smoother power delivery across the rev-range.

Wrapping all of these improvements up like a Christmas present is redesigned bodywork offering flat surfaces to enable freedom of movement on the bike while also offering a large contact point for gripping the bike. The new graphics are minimalistic, but they sure do look cool.

While it’s all good and well for legends like Trey Canard, Tim Gasjer, and the Lawrence bros. to suggest changes that they wanted in the CRF450R, it’s another thing for us normal humans to appreciate them. This is where the Honda engineers do their magic. Blending the feedback from the top-level with real-world characteristics is the motorcycle we end up with on the showroom floor.

The CRF450R test bikes presented to us at Ride Park in Victoria were brand new and yet to turn a wheel. The Team Honda Australia techs set my shock sag to 106mm and turned me loose on the track. I immediately felt I had plenty of usable power at my fingertips, and I felt comfortable aboard the big red rocket.

The track was immaculately prepared and ripped to provide plenty of fluffy roosting ammunition so I let the big dog eat where I could. I find the Ride Park track intimidating thanks to the huge booters that were spitting Aaron Tanti and Dylan Long into orbit. Honda ambassador and former Australian motocross champion Lee Hogan was carving laps and making it look easy as was Honda team rider Alex Larwood.

I cannot say whether the changes to the frame and the suspension are big improvements because I didn’t ride the previous model, but all reports from other test riders are in the positive. A quick search online for other test rides aboard this machine verify that the listed upgrades have been well executed. What I can say is the suspension is excellent with loads of scope to tune it to individual needs. And with the frame upgrades designed at providing stability and predictability you’d have to say Honda has nailed the brief.

What I love most about this bike is the engine performance and the massive amount of tuning scope you have to play with. The standard feature of this bike that is often overlooked is the mapping. The switch block on the left-side of the handlebars encompasses the kill switch, the Engine Mode Select Button (EMSB) and the Honda Selectable Torque Control (HSTC).

The EMSB has three maps to choose from. Mode 1 is standard. Mode 2 is smooth. Mode 3 is aggressive. I cycled through all three modes and holy hell does Mode 3 make this bike get up and boogie. I could understand Kyle Webster riding the bike in Mode 3 because it was awesome, but I’d only be selecting Mode 3 on the Finke Desert Race track. Mode 3 presents loads of power that just doesn’t end. I am old and out of riding condition and I found Mode 2 was best for me. This smooth map allowed me to be more aggressive with the throttle and remain in control.

The Honda Selectable Torque Control is a very useful tool that offered much more impact than I thought it would. You can ride with the HSTC turned off but if you turn it on you can choose from three different levels of torque control. When turned on, the HSTC monitors RPM spikes and responds by retarding the ignition to aid traction. Mode 1 intervenes slightly while Mode 3 intervenes quickly and assertively which is great for muddy or slippery conditions. Mode 2 lies somewhere between Mode 1 and 3.

With HSTC in Mode 3 and the ECU map in Mode 2, I had the 450R in the lowest or dullest power output and it was like riding a completely different bike. I was able to be much more aggressive with the throttle and more confident through turns. Imagine riding Echo Valley or Appin motocross tracks in the wet. This is where these features would excel.

I quizzed Lee Hogan about the HSTC and he admitted he never uses it. Hoges is old-school with plenty of ability and loads of experience and he explained his torque control is in his right wrist. It’s all about throttle application for Hoges and I understand that. But for a rider like me, who doesn’t ride every weekend maintaining bike fitness and feel, the HSTC is a great feature that I can see plenty of veteran class, C-grade and even B-grade class riders using to good effect. When you look at it and break it down, you have 12 different maps to choose from. That’s pretty cool.

The icing on the CRF450R engine performance cake is the HRC Launch Control that is operated by pressing the start button after the engine is running. This mode is optional but if you choose to select it, you have three launch control modes to choose from to assist your starts with Level 1 kicking in at 9,500RPM, Level 2 at 8,500RPM and Level 3 at 8,200RPM which would be best for slippery conditions and perhaps novice riders. It would be hard not to be in contention for a holeshot with this much assistance at the tips of your thumbs.

Honda has produced a 450cc motocross bike that’s capable of winning at the top level while remaining versatile enough for average riders. This might sound like a sales pitch, but the mapping features combined with the updated frame and suspension along with the strong and affective Nissin brakes and hydraulic clutch allows this bike to sell itself. The 2025 Honda CRF450R is a very nice machine.

The CRF450RWE (Works Edition) will be available at Australian Honda dealerships before the end of the year. The Works Edition 450R truly is equipped for serious racers who want a bike with all the good bits straight off the showroom floor.

The purpose-built Works Editon comes with a Yoshimura exhaust system, hand-polished cylinder ports and dedicated injection and ignition mapping to really make that 450 hammer. The fork outer tubes are Kashima-coated, and the inner tubes have a Titanium oxide coating. The 18mm shock shaft is also Titanium oxide-coated for superior performance. The 450RWE has a Hinson clutch basket and cover, a Twin Air filter, Throttle Jockey Team HRC graphics and seat cover, Matte Red cylinder head cover, DID DirtStar LT-X rims, black anodised axle holder, grey metallic-coated triple clamps and Renthal Kevlar grips.

The 2025 CRF450RWE is $17’799, which is $3,300 above the standard CRF450R price of $14,699. When you factor in what you get for the extra $3,300, it’s a mighty good deal for a bike that really is built for racing right off the showroom floor.

ENGINE
Engine type: Liquid-cooled four-stroke, SOHC, four-valve
Capacity: 449cc
Bore x stroke: 96 x 62.1
Compression ratio: 13.5:1
Fuel system: Electronic fuel-injection

TRANSMISSION
Type: 5-speed
Final drive: Chain

CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR
Frame Aluminium
Front suspension: 49mm Showa Telescopic fork with 310mm of travel
Rear suspension: Showa adjustable link-type with 310mm of travel
Front brake: Hydraulic single disc, 260mm
Rear brake: Hydraulic single disc, 240 mm
Front tyre: Dunlop Geomax MX33 80/100-21
Rear tyre: Dunlop Geomax MX33 120/80-19

DIMENSIONS
Claimed curb weight: 113kg
Overall length: 2,183mm
Overall width: 827mm
Overall height: 1,265mm
Seat height: 961mm
Wheelbase: 1,482mm
Ground Clearance: 333mm
Fuel tank capacity: 6.3-litre

OTHER STUFF
Price: $14,6990 plus dealer delivery
Colours: Red
Warranty: Bike supplied by: motorcycles.honda.com.au