This Middleweight Delivers More Than Bikes Costing Twice As Much
A motorcycle’s price tag usually tells you what to expect. Want more cylinders, adjustable suspension, or a quickshifter? You’re going to pay more. The more you want, the further up the price ladder you have to climb. But there is a sweet spot right in the middle where things get interesting. Here, you can get a very usable amount of performance without having to pay flagship prices, along with enough equipment to make the bike feel properly premium without the price. Get that balance right, and you end up with a motorcycle that feels like it offers a lot more than its price tag suggests. Some new international players have gotten very good at finding that balance, and we’re talking about one such example here.
Middleweight Motorcycles Put Good Hardware Within Reach
“Mid” might be the internet’s favorite way of describing something that’s bland, unremarkable, or just plain lacking in pizzazz these days, but that’s hardly an appropriate definition for this midweight motorcycle class. Think about it. You could be moving on from your first bike and craving more every time you wring the throttle, wanting more power in reserve or the symphony that comes with adding another cylinder or two. You could also be a first-time buyer who wants something they won’t outgrow anytime soon, or a returning rider looking for plenty of punch without jumping straight into something intimidating.
The middleweight caters to all of these riders by sitting in a pretty useful sweet spot. There’s enough performance to make the most of real-world roads, wrapped in a package that can still be approachable, well-equipped, and genuinely desirable. And crucially, you get all of that without immediately stepping into flagship money. That’s a big reason the middleweight formula has been quite competitive, and why it works across practically every kind of motorcycle category.
Chinese Motorcycle Brands Push Good Value Even Further
A few years ago, mention a Chinese motorcycle and the usual reaction was pretty predictable: cheap, questionable quality, and a design that looked suspiciously familiar but you couldn’t quite place. That perception has shifted quite a bit in recent times. The conversation has moved from simply writing these bikes off to asking whether they’re actually good, and more importantly, what ownership will be like.
That change has been helped by Chinese manufacturers offering a frankly ridiculous amount of capability for the money, often undercutting established rivals while bringing impressive hardware to the table. Some of that influence comes directly from manufacturers building their own motorcycles, while other brands have entered the market through Chinese ownership of established names. Either way, the result is a growing presence that’s becoming harder to ignore, with CFMoto potentially serving as the average North American rider’s first real introduction to the modern Chinese motorcycle.
The CFMoto 675NK Is A Lot Of Motorcycle For Under $7k
CFMoto makes plenty of motorcycles. If you want a fully faired bike that you can take to the track, there’s the 675SS, while riders looking to venture off the pavement can look at the Ibex 450. But the one that’s going to make you stop scrolling when you’re going through listings is the naked 675NK. The 2027 model is priced at $6,999, making it CFMoto’s most affordable entry into this particular middleweight space. For that attainable MSRP, you get a three-cylinder engine, adjustable suspension, and likable modern features.
A 675cc Triple Makes The CFMoto 675NK Stand Out
This is what separates the 675NK from most of its competition. At the heart of the motorcycle is a 675cc inline-three, rather than the parallel-twin configuration you’ll find in many other middleweight nakeds. CFMoto claims 95 horsepower at 11,000 rpm and 51.6 lb-ft of torque at 8,250 rpm, with the engine sending its power through a six-speed gearbox with a slipper clutch and an up-only quickshifter. CFMoto’s global site also claims a 0-to-62 mph time of 3.9 seconds and a top speed of 124 mph.
The Underpinnings Hold Their Own Among The Middleweights
The engine would be a pretty hollow victory if the rest of the motorcycle had been assembled around a price target, but the 675NK doesn’t take that route either. It gets a tubular steel frame, an aluminum swingarm, a 41mm KYB inverted fork with adjustable damping, and a KYB rear shock with preload and damping adjustment. Up front, J.Juan supplies dual 300mm discs with radial-mounted four-piston calipers, while dual-channel ABS and two-level traction control come standard. All that, plus the 31.8-inch seat height, keeps the 675NK reasonably approachable without making it feel like a small motorcycle.
Ample Electronics Keep The Value Proposition Going
The electronics package is pretty extensive too. There’s a 5-inch curved TFT display with CFMoto’s Ride app for connectivity and vehicle information, along with tire-pressure monitoring, a USB-C port, LED lighting, and heated grips. The curved screen could be a gimmick, or it could simply be one of those things you stop noticing after a while, but it is there. Either way, the 675NK gives a rider pretty much everything they’d reasonably need from the cockpit and electronics package.
The CFMoto 675NK Still Has A Few Things To Prove
The bike itself doesn’t really have a mechanical Achilles’ heel, but if you’re adamant about finding a reason to put the 675NK down, the bigger issue might be the name on the tank. Spend enough time on forums discussing the 675 platform, and you’ll find owners who have put a considerable amount of miles on these bikes, with some reporting more than 10,000 miles without anything catastrophic cropping up. The problems that do come up tend to be the sort of minor mechanical or electrical niggles you can find on plenty of motorcycles.
The bigger concern for many owners is parts availability, with reports of relatively minor components being back-ordered for extended periods, while dealer and after-sales support can vary considerably depending on where you live. Then there’s resale value, which is probably the hardest pill to swallow if you plan on selling the bike later, since CFMoto motorcycles generally depreciate more heavily than comparable offerings from the established Japanese brands. That’s the trade-off you’re making for getting this much motorcycle at this price.
There’s Barely Any Direct Competition Under $7,000 For The CFMoto Naked
The 675NK gets even more interesting when you look at what else you can buy around this price. Spend less and you’re generally dropping into smaller bikes, like Kawasaki’s $5,699 Z500, with its 451cc parallel-twin and simpler hardware. Spend a little more and you can get something like the $7,999 Honda CB750 Hornet, which brings Honda’s reputation for reliability and a 755cc parallel-twin, but you’re paying $1,000 more and don’t get the same level of suspension adjustability or the extra cylinder.
You could keep climbing too. Kawasaki’s Z900 starts at $9,999 and gives you a 948cc inline-four and considerably more motorcycle, but that’s another $3,000 before you even start adding the other costs of buying a new bike. The point is that the 675NK occupies a pretty unusual spot, where getting substantially more motorcycle either means accepting some compromises or spending considerably more money.
Source: CFMoto, Kawasaki, Honda
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