Even though we know they're
carrying insulation weight, the
noise cancelation and rock de-
flection is more than welcomed.
We love six-speeds and thank
goodness Honda has one, now.
It allows us to get creative with
gearing for our local riding area
and still have legs to stretch on
the straights.
We have to give props to the
suspension again. It's a home
run from the factory.
IF IT WERE MINE
There are a few dual-sport must-
dos in my world that just have to
happen. And with the CRF450L,
these are still true.
First, I'd throw the stock mir-
rors away and buy functional
products from Doubletake Mir-
rors. They have an Enduro Mirror
that works great, an Adventure
Mirror that is more stable at
speed, and we just tested their
Trail Mirror and were incredibly
happy with the minimalist ap-
proach. Just go buy a mirror
from them.
Next, I'm buying an aftermar-
ket seat. Seat Concepts leads
the way in comfort seats in this
world and I've enjoyed owning
one on my personal bike for five
years. Even their stock-shaped,
competitive seats are more com-
fortable than any stock seat and
last a lot longer.
After that I'm going to fin-
ish Honda's job and put hand
guards on the bike. An off-road
bike without hand guards is like
an ice cream sundae without a
spoon. I'm going to have really
hard time not digging into both
with reckless abandon. And I will
thoroughly enjoy both. But my
hands are going to get messy
and I'll be slightly pissed off the
whole time. Not engineering a
simple, effective hand guard into
this bike is a big miss.
Finally, I'd search high and low
for a new air filter situation. You
have to take four bolts, with two
different sized tools, out of the
bike to get to the air filter. And
then you squeeze your hand into
a narrow airbox and unscrew
another winged bolt. Quick-ac-
cess to air filters is the industry
standard and this is far from that.
This could be a deal breaker
for those who often ride in dry,
dusty climates where frequent air
filter changes are a must.
VOL. 55 ISSUE 44 NOVEMBER 6, 2018 P93
The "L" still has a
slight "traditional"
dual-sport feel
on the trail, but
it's more than
capable when the
speeds pick up
and the terrain
gets tough.
