HARDER, BETTER, FASTER, STRONGER?

CFMoto is after a piece of the supersport pie, revealing a host of performance focused upgrades for its 450SR.

Chinese firm CFMoto seems to be going from strength to strength. It’s been doing good business in the UK for years, but since it’s properly joined forces with the Pierer Group (who own KTM, Husqvarna and GasGas), things have certainly seemed to ramp up.

The latest bike to be added to its ever-expanding range is the 450SR S, which builds on the solid base of the standard 450SR and adds a host of trick bits to help make it look better and go faster. Sounds like a winner, right?

The 450SR S appears to be largely the same as the standard 450SR. There’s the same tubular steel frame and the same 449.5cc 270-degree parallel twin-cylinder motor, which kicks out the same (A2 licence legal) 46bhp. And there’s 29lb-ft of torque to play with, too.

But the differences are also pretty impressive. There’s some pretty striking aerodynamic wings up front; traction control and ABS as standard; a slipper clutch; a five-inch TFT display; and a USB charging port. Back to the chassis, and the S has a new sharp-looking single-sided swingarm. CFMoto has also confirmed that the front forks have been upgraded, though they appear to be the same damping-adjustable 37mm upside-down numbers as the base-model 450SR. The rear shock looks the same, too.

There is a larger 240mm rear disc for more stopping power, but the front retains its Brembo stopper and 320mm single disc set up.

All that combines to make it very slightly lighter, too, down 4kg to 175kg. It might not sound like much, but every gram helps when you’re chasing performance (and the competition).

Priced at £6499, it’s no budget option – and despite a solid track record and an ever-growing dealer network, CFMoto is going to have to work hard to convince potential punters to go for the S. Particularly when you consider that you could get a new Aprilia RS 457, Honda CBR500R or Kawasaki Ninja 500 for similar money.

Only time will tell.