With so many adventure bikes getting launched each year, it is pretty easy to overlook a few. Of all the motorcycle segments, it is by some margin the busiest, and the only segment that continues to see growth. The motorcycle industry as a whole is actually in something of a slump, but as exploring the wilderness continues to capture the imagination of so many, adventure bike sales remain strong.
As is the case with just about any industry that involves mass production, China has well and truly arrived at the party. In the past, Chinese motorcycles were laughed off thanks to their abysmal build quality and phoned-in designs. Over time, they have learned from their mistakes and are offering some compelling products, including this exciting middleweight ADV.
To give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from Kove USA. Whereas, the opinions are our own.
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The Kove 800X Rally Is The Sleeper Adventure Bike That Everyone’s Overlooking
MSRP: $12,999
Simply put, it isn’t actually all that cheap. In a nutshell, that is why it is still getting overlooked. The expectation of buying a Chinese bike is that it will undercut all the direct competition, and the 800X Rally simply doesn’t do that. It is cheap for what it is, though, and if you are willing to look beyond the initial sticker shock, what you will find might surprise you. Unfortunately, at the end of the market, it needs to contend with some established competitors.
The Yamaha Tenere 700 stands out as one of the first genuinely off-road capable, lightweight adventure bikes to hit the market. It is $2k cheaper than the Kove, but even the famously light Tenere is heavier. It also has 20 horsepower less than the Kove. That pretty much justifies the gulf in price, but no matter which way you slice it, the Yamaha is still going to be the safe option.
Another similarly priced alternative comes in the form of the Aprilia Tuareg 660. The Italian is actually still cheaper, but just like the Tenere, it is both less powerful and heavier. If you are willing to consider something a little more street oriented, then the other Chinese 800 should be on your radar. So far, the CFMoto Ibex 800 E has proven to be a competitive, feature-rich adventure-tourer, and is the cheapest of the lot.
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The 800X Rally Has A Powerful And Familiar Engine
Power: 95 Horsepower
Although nobody seems to want to admit it, the 800X Rally has a mighty familiar engine. It has the same bore and stroke, the same power output, and from the outside, it has the same architecture as the now infamous LC8c parallel-twin. If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it might just be a duck. Or in this case, a KTM.
An Imperfect Engine With A Checkered Past
From the moment KTM enlisted the help of CFMoto to build these engines, we all sort of knew what would happen next; we just didn’t think it would happen this quickly. By all accounts, these Chinese-made LC8c engines are actually more reliable than the cam-shredding Austrian counterparts.
They are far from perfect, though, and don’t benefit from the same attention to detail when it comes to fueling. The CFMoto 800s also have issues at low revs, but this is exacerbated by the fact that the Rally Pro version uses a cable throttle compared to the ride-by-wire setup on the other bikes (it was designed for ride-by-wire).
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The 800X Rally Is The Lightest Bike In Its Class
To achieve an almost unbelievable dry weight figure of 364 pounds, Kove made the decision to ditch just about every modern feature, including the ride-by-wire throttle. It is a truly bare-bones offering, and while it might have a TFT dash, that, along with switchable ABS, is about the only modern feature you will find on the 800X Rally.
In so many ways, this is actually quite refreshing. It takes the immensely powerful LC8c and plops it into a lightweight dirt-bike frame, with accompanying dirt-bike suspension – lifted from the 450 Rally – and what you get is a Baja-ready ADV. It is a fun concept, but there is a price to pay for something so dedicated.
The ADV Has Chinese Origins
One inescapable truth is the simple fact that to pull off building a full-on rally bike like this, for a price that is still palatable for consumers, is that the bike requires it to be made in China. While this is not necessarily a bad thing in terms of overall product quality, for many, there are ethical concerns surrounding just about anything made there.
As flawed as this logic may seem to some of us, it is a legitimate concern, but one that should not be limited to China. Most manufacturers either build factories or at least source certain parts made in the developing world, where labor costs are significantly cheaper. This is the simple reality of any big for-profit business.
The other, less esoteric issue is the simple fact that most people buy adventure bikes because of their versatility, and the 800X Rally is not a versatile motorcycle. It is very much a dedicated off-roader. It won’t be the most comfortable travel companion, and it will be somewhat infuriating to ride within the confines of a city with its stock fueling. A reflash may resolve that issue, but it certainly won’t make it more comfortable.