CFMoto has unveiled its biggest motorcycle here to date, the 800MT Touring. Like others from the brand this is big on spec and value.

KTM’s Chinese partner, CFMOTO, has released what is its most significant new motorcycle yet, the 800MT Touring that’s powered by KTM’s LC8c engine, i.e., a 799cc 70kW/79Nm parallel twin. While there are two members of the 800MT family, only the better specified Touring version is likely to be sold here. Folk will think the extra $1500 is well spent on items like heated seat and grips, a quickshifter, tyre pressure monitoring, a bash plate, centre stand, and steering damper. We’d say it’s just about worth that for the quickshifter alone.

This is only the second CFMoto machine we’ve ridden but the first was noteworthy. We rated the 700 CL-X Heritage the best sub$10k bike on the market and Bike of the Year 2021. Would the new range topper fare as well?

First to the machine itself. It’s almost the definition of the default modern touring bike, by which we mean an ADV with a modest degree of off-road ability (think gravel rather than dirt tracks) and optimized mainly for road work. Hence, a 19-inch front wheel shod with tyres that are tarmac oriented rather than for digging dirt. A bash plate is fitted to protect the engine and exhaust from rock damage and the like.

Other standard fit items include attachments for panniers, a 19-litre fuel tank, an adjustable touring screen, hand guards, crash bars, a luggage rack and fog lights to complement the LED headlight and daytime running light. The panniers themselves include a top box and paired hard luggage, the three items costing $2653 and offering 100L of storage in total. 

Fancy tech bits include a slipper clutch, one-touch cruise control, a seven-inch TFT screen, and an up and down quickshifter. There’s also a navigation function in the TFT screen with a complementary app.

Going its own way 

It’s not merely a KTM rebadge for CFMoto has devised its own styling, tubular steel frame, and sorted its own chassis settings. Suspension is by KYB rather than WP that KTM uses, while brakes are by J.Juan, a Spanish firm recently purchased by Italian brake specialist Brembo. Up front is a pair of 320mm discs, acted upon by radial-mount calipers sporting four pistons apiece. 

Suspension is fully adjustable. The front uses USD forks, 43mm, and travel is 160mm, the rear a fully adjustable monoshock with 150mm of compression on offer. 

Fully loaded

It’s reasonably sophisticated in an electronic sense too, particularly at its $14,490 price (it’s the same price in Australia so a bargain here!), with cornering ABS but no traction control oddly, ride-by-wire throttle, and two riding modes, Sport, and Rain.

So it is, as they say, fully loaded, TC aside. We spun the rear up on wet slick tarmac so care is needed in those situations; perhaps use Rain mode. But the small stuff isn’t overlooked with both USB and 12v charging outlets. 

Being an ADV there’s a bit more suspension travel for added comfort on iffy surfaces and extra ground clearance of 190mm so that results in an elevated seat height of 825mm. But the pew is plush, both for rider and pillion. Swinging a leg over takes a degree of dexterity so using the peg for a leg up can help those less able. Six footers can get their feet flat on the ground while sitting astride the bike. Even with a centre stand, it never touched down so ground clearance is good.

For the genre, this looks pretty cool, especially with the gold rims. The small adjustable screen keeps off much of the weather, at least in its highest setting, and has about 50mm of travel. You can adjust it on the move but not that easily, a pair of locking devices making things tricky. The up or down spring loaded alternative is a better design. There’s some wind noise off the top too, especially in its lowest setting.

Comfortable? My word yes, the rear mopping up and dispensing with all manner of roading woes. The front end is slightly firmer but being fully adjustable we quickly rectified that. Helping with riding ease is a cushy seat with just the right amount of firm foam beneath. And the MT has an easy-going riding triangle, the knees gripping the tank just so. The bars are on risers so no great stretch to the controls. You can rotate these back easily enough if desired.

Diet needed? 

The one real difference between this and other midsized ADVs, price aside, is weight; with a full tank this scales up at 240kg (claim 225kg) whereas the opposition is all around the 210kg mark. You can sense its weight when moving it around with the engine off but it’s not like an immovable object. Once underway this feels nicely balanced, and we were quickly doing feet-up turnarounds. A good sign, to my mind, aided by a decent steering lock. Despite having virtually no km on the odo and tyres unscrubbed, we were quickly into the cornering shots and it never gave any hint of losing grip while heeled over. 

It’s keen to corner too, tipping in with little bar provocation and holding a line nicely. We had genuine fun on this because of its well balanced ride and handling set-up and good weather protection. 

The main gripe? The right sided mirror is all but useless at 100km/h. Fortunately the left one remains a whole lot clearer, enough to see what’s going on behind. Go figure. Whatever, vibes aren’t intrusive.

Middleweight built for Kiwi conditions 

As to performance, you’d expect it to be similar to the Adventure 790, but out by a few tenths because of the extra weight. And that’s the case, getting to 100 in just a hair under 4sec. Compared with the litre-plus big dogs of the sector, it’s less than a second slower. That’s why we prefer the middleweight ADVs; they’re lighter but almost as quick as the 1200 monsters. Less expensive too, in this case literally half the price. 

The engine is really very similar to the 790’s, unhappy below about 2500rpm but pulling nicely by 3000 and building progressively from there, right through to almost 10,000rpm. At 100, it is relaxed on 4200rpm, 110 is 4700 and 120 equates to 5000rpm exactly. We measured fuel use at 4.2L/100km, mostly at open road speeds. With the 19L tank brimmed, the DTE monitor suggests 330km.

It has a sweet exhaust note, more burbly than many parallel twins. Fueling isn’t perfect – there’s occasional surging/jerking – but evidently a software fix is on the way for this, promising smoother progress. The indicator actuator is small, and not that positive so self-cancelling is sensible. Cruise is one-touch easy.

Another CFMoto ripper

Other things? The quickshifter is pretty good, given how new the bike was, easing back on the gas momentarily aiding the upshift. And the brakes are too, with a best emergency stop in the 39m bracket. The rear stopper is especially strong, a dual-piston unit, but there’s nothing much wrong with those up front either. 

Looking for a well equipped big tourer but don’t want to spend the earth? You may have just found it. This is the second CFMoto bike we’ve ridden that not only redefines sector value but is just a good thing period. If these are any indication, we imagine the LAMS 450 twin arriving before year end will be another sector-defining machine.