advrider Posted May 31, 2022 Share Posted May 31, 2022 Remember when the 1973 Honda CR250M Elsinore debuted? If so, we’ve come a long way in the past five decades, and Honda wants to celebrate that with its new 2023 CRF450R motocrosser. Of course, Honda would also like to win a lot of races with the new bike, and it’s developed the platform past the Bold New Graphics that we saw applied to many dirt bikes over the past couple of years (thanks for nothing, COVID-19/supply chain issues!). Here’s what Honda said it’s updated for 2023: The CRF450R’s technical updates include a narrower intake-port shape and longer intake funnel, revised cam profile and smaller throttle body diameter, resulting in smooth power delivery and increased torque, improving acceleration out of corners. The frame’s rigidity has been optimized by increasing material thickness in strategic locations and the use of steel engine mounts (replacing aluminum) helps improve front-end traction. A higher-rate shock spring and revised fork settings complement the rigidity-optimized frame without introducing harshness. To enhance strength and reduce noise, the muffler body is constructed from heat-treated aluminum, and a new inner-pipe design is used. Certainly nothing too earth-shattering, but again, it’s better than new paint and a sticker kit. Honda says those same improvements also carry over to the CRF450RWE (the premium “pimp my ride” version of the machine), as well as the CRF450RX (the closed-course cross-country bike, as raced by the SLR Honda and JCR Honda teams in the NGPC and WORCS competition). Photo: Honda Photo: Honda Photo: Honda But, if you’re really into Bold New Graphics, you can also buy the new CRF450R in 50th Anniversary Edition livery (pictured above), which costs an extra $300 USD over the base model’s $9,599 MSRP (sorry, hosers, we haven’t seen Canadian pricing yet). Honda says this version of the bike has “a livery reminiscent of the legendary ’80s CRs that ruled AMA Motocross and Supercross. Easily recognizable to fans of that era, this version features a blue seat cover, white number plates, gold rims, gold handlebar, gray-metallic triple clamp and special graphics.” Sounds totally rad. The standard CRF450R should be at US dealerships in July, and the 50th Anniversary Edition models should be in showrooms in September. Vezi sursa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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