Motorcycle industry stalwart Dale Schmidtchen has now been in the saddle of his 2019 CFMoto 650 MT ABS for 2500km, so it’s time for an update.

Dale, who has previously worked for CFMoto, gave his initial impressions in his review last month.

Dale‘s update:

First service came up at a pleasing 1500km, not 1000km or even 800km like many other bikes.

The service was performed by the selling dealer, Sunstate Motorcycles, Nerang, and it was also very pleasing at just $270.

I was lucky enough to throw a leg over a new Suzuki V-Strom 650 while waiting for the service. The V-Strom was fully run in and quite an impressive model in the same genre, but it highlighted the amazing value of the CFMoto at less than 2/3 of the price and with panniers included.

I bought the bike because I needed a machine capable of many types of riding, so it didn’t take long before I got the wheels dirty on some unpaved country back roads.

While it may climb every mountain and ford every stream, there are two main drawbacks.

First is the road-biased tyre tread. Second is the lack of high-speed damping from the rear shock on corrugated dirt inclines. It tends to skip the corrugations, losing power and traction.

It adds a bit to the challenge, but I am sure a little work in the suspension, tyre pressures and a rubber update should help a great deal.

Loosen up

My CFMoto has taken most of the first 1500km to loosen up the engine and front suspension.

The fork seals had a noticeable amount of stiction from new, which made modulating the front brakes on dirt roads harder than now the stiction has faded.

On one very fast creek crossing, the exhaust pipe did ground out once, but I doubt most people will ever find this.   

The headlight on low beam is good for everything up to 100km/h.

The LED running lights light up the immediate road well, filling in the usual dark area. However the headlight is really bright and does not alternate between high and low. The low stays on with high beam and does its best to dazzle everything in sight.

The chain and sprocket have shown minimal wear and has not required adjustment to date, which is exceptional.

I cannot comment on wet braking as yet, thanks to the current winter drought, but in the dry the brakes are more than adequate. I recently tested out the ABS on a straight dirt road and there is great feedback before it cuts in.

Fuel economy has been steady since day one and hasn’t improved much with running in.

On 95 RON fuel, the bike gets a respectable 4.3L/100km (23km/l or 65mpg), theoretically allowing for 400km range.

When the last fuel block has been flashing for some time, it takes about 13.5 litres from a claimed 18 litre tank, so reserve is quite generous.

Overall, I am still enjoying the bike immensely and hope to give you another update at around 8000km.

CFMoto 650 MT ABS tech specs

Price:	$7490 ride away
Engine:	649.3cc liquid-cooled, DOHC, 8-valve, parallel-twin four-stroke with 180-degree crankshaft, chain camshaft drive and single gear-driven counter balancer
Bore & Capacity:	83mm x 60mm
Compression Ratio:	11.3:1
Fuel System:	EFI with 2 x 38mm ITT throttle bodies and single injector per cylinder
Power:	41.5kW @ 9500rpm (LAMS restricted)
Torque:	62Nm @ 7000rpm
Gearbox:	6-speed with gear primary drive
Clutch:	Multiplate wet
Chassis:	Tubular steel diamond frame employing engine as fully-stressed member
Front Suspension:	USD fork (max travel 140mm)
Rear Suspension:	Extruded steel swingarm with tubular steel bracing, cantilever monoshock (max. travel 145mm)
Front Brake:	2 x 300mm steel discs with twin-piston calipers with Continental ABS system
Rear Brake:	1 x 240mm single disc with single-piston caliper with Continental ABS system
Front Wheel & Tyres:	120/70ZR17, 3.5 x 17 MT alloy
Rear Wheel & Tyres:	160/60ZR17, 4.5 x 17 MT alloy
Length x Width x Height:	2150 x 835 x 1332mm
Wheelbase:	1415mm
Seat:	840mm or optional 820mm
Clearance:	170mm
Turning circle:	5.4m
Fuel tank:	18L
Weight:	213kg
Max Payload:	150kg

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com