How We Tested

We always dip in our testing pool for the best guys. We have national pros, vet novices and Senior Pro pilots all with experience you wouldn't believe. We had shootout comparisons specifically at two tracks including a dedicated photo day at another. Racetown 395, a fast track in the high desert with big jumps and great dirt, got the first call. Up next was Piru MX, a tight, hard-packed track on a hillside and our photo day was at Milestone MX, an intermediate track ripped deep to develop ruts and sweet berms suitable for photo explosions. We also leaned on our impressions from the bikes' intro days, and the days and tracks between them and the shootout. The bikes ran new stock tires up through day one, and then we called Doug Shopinsky from Bridgestone to supply fresh 403/404 combos onto all the bikes for the additional days. Add in the Factory Effex preprinted number plate backgrounds and a few Dirt Rider and Texaco logos and we're good to go. Each bike began our test with approximately 15–20 hours of runtime save for the Suzuki, which showed up nearly late for the party with just 2 hours of break-in time on it.

Honda CRF450R

The 2009 Honda CRF450R is the most anticipated bike to hit motocross in…well, maybe ever. More so than the Kawasaki and Suzuki fuel-injected bikes, the Honda will surely be the marquee model depicting technological advancement and modern marvel. Hondas just sort of do that. With that said, it should be the clear-cut winner for 2009, right? As a bike with the most pressure to perform, the Honda will surely be held to the highest standard. Will it live up to expectations? That depends on your expectations.

Engine
  • Easily the most manageable FI motor in the class. The Honda power comes on strong, controlled and without snap or a violent hit.
  • There is power on demand and the Honda CRF450R is easily the most efficient bike in any given situation on motor alone. But it doesn't feel the fastest.
  • Its final-drive ratio and plentiful power have it killing top-speed numbers, and its strong bottom-end will get great starts.
  • Torque generation is redefined with the new CRF450R as its power continues to churn up traction whereas every other bike begs to be shifted or starts to spin out.
  • It falls second only to the potent Kawasaki KX450F in the midrange but is a power leader everywhere else in the field, even though it doesn't really feel like it.
  • The CRF450R has rekindled the starting procedure. If you take your time, get the kickstarter up to the top of the stroke and kick fast and smooth, it'll start every time. Don't touch the throttle, don't pussyfoot it, don't short kick it. Can you remember that in the heat of battle?
  • It stalls easier than past CRFs.
Chassis
  • The CRF450R is the lightest-feeling 450 ever produced. You will not find a more maneuverable, flick-happy full-size four-stroke. It's the most nimble big bike ever built, and can dance circles around the boats of the past and some of the present in this class.
  • Honda's mass centralization, while making a nimble bike, also has the rider feeling the effects of unsprung weight (wheels) more.
  • The new Honda chassis is built to be precise. You can corner sharper and harder than you think you can when riding this bike.• This bike is picking up where other models left off (ahem…KTM) with quick steering and aggressiveness.
  • High-speed stability is compromised for ultimate performance in the turns and a light feel at the pegs. Finding a setup to do both is difficult and Honda clearly focused on the sharper end of the stick using the damper to get away with murder.
  • The Honda Progressive Steering Damper can be used to tune the bike's feel from light and twitchy to heavier and more stable.
Suspension
  • It's a new world for Honda with Kayaba components. And, really, it's working out well.
  • Plush and controlled are the two words you will tell yourself when you ride this… that is, if your ride height setting is correct.
  • The bike is pretty much idiot-proof and doesn't really care what you do to the clickers. The KYB components' range of adjustment is much less than previous Showa parts. As strange as that sounds, it's true. Ride height is much more critical than clicker settings.
Why The Honda CRF450R Should Win
  • It has the best all-around motocross motor ever produced.
  • It's the Ferrari of motocross bikes.
  • Honda value and build quality. This first-year model is refined.
Why The Honda CRF450R Shouldn't Win
  • It stalls surprisingly easily and isn't brainless to start.
  • There is no snap or hit so the power, while plentiful, isn't “fast feeling.”
  • It will alienate riders who can't convert to fast-steering bikes.
  • It will get a lot better in the next two years.
  • Clutch pull is the heaviest of all.
This Is Your Bike If...
  • Honda quality rules your buying decision.
  • Torque-heavy power delivery that doesn't stop turns you on.
  • You're addicted to Red Bull.
  • You don't mind kicking.
2009 Honda CRF450R Settings
MSRP: $7599
Claimed Weight (tank full): 235 lb
Actual Weight (no gas): 227 lb
Actual Weight (tank full): 239 lb
Seat Height: 37.4 in.
Seat-To-Footpeg Distance: 20.9 in.
Footpeg Height: 16.5 in.
Fuel Capacity: 1.9 gal.
Suspension STK Int./Pro Beg./Nov.
Fork
Steering Damper: 21 13 Stk
Compression: 13 10-13 Stk
Rebound: 8 8-10 8-10
Shock
Low-Speed Compression: 13 13-14 Stk
Rebound: 15 Stk Stk
High-Speed Compression: (Turns out) 1.33 +1/8 turn in 1.33 to full out
Sag (mm): 105-108 106-108 106-108

Posted with permission from the February 2009 issue of Dirt Rider ® www.dirtrider.com. Copyright 2009, Source Interlink Media, Inc. All rights reserved. For more information about reprints from Dirt Rider, contact Wright's Reprints at 877-652-5295.

See 2009 CRF450R