Kove 450 Rally review: ultimate unicorn or Chinese crap?︱Cross Training Adventure

#kove450rrallyreview #kove450rally

[crosstrainingadventure]

HOW TO PRONOUNCE KOVE? I have some viewers saying that 'kov-veh' is the wrong way to say it. That is how the Kove CEO, factory riders, and marketing team say it. If you think it should rhyme with 'stove' then argue with them lol.
The politics of buying a Chinese motorbike? Some riders refuse to buy a bike made in China. Others have no problem if it's cheap and reasonable quality. We have discussed this in previous videos. Here is our main discussion. ttps://youtu.be/B407_Zi8T6A

THE OLD ANTI-CHINESE DEBATE! Some viewers are saying why be against indirectly supporting the CCP by buying Chinese bikes when countries like the USA are just as bad, or even worse. That's a really good question for anyone interested in geopolitics, ethics and consumer choices. I'm no fan of US politics and there have been plenty of horrendous situations with their foreign affairs. And of course positive interventions too. I know anyone who leans to the left will tend to downplay China's bad behaviour and say the USA is just as bad, or even worse... a gross over-simplification in my opinion. And of course anyone leaning toward the right will see any socialist/communist country as inherently evil and the USA as the world's righteous policeman. This is also downplaying the fact that the CCP has done a lot of good such as dramatically decreasing poverty for the Chinese people.
Everyone will have different opinions. Me? I think it depends on why the sanctions are applied. A lot of sanctions are applied due to human rights abuses and state-sponsored terrorism (I know all the old arguments about one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter). Generally I have no issues with those. But other sanctions are applied due to what the USA sees as unfair trade practices and this is where it can be a can of worms. At times it might be justified. At other times it can be used to simply punish a country for not acting in the USA's interest.

[MustBePerfectForever]

I simply cannot understand why Honda and Yamaha etc have not made a bike like this. Honda 300 rally is too underpowered, and the jump to T7 and KTM 890 is too extreme. Whoever makes these first is going to be hugely successful, and if it's Kove, hats off to them for being smart and bringing this to the market.

[asherlito]

my only hope is kove 450 sells well and forces yamaha KTM and Honda to make rally bikes for the market. I think rally dual sports is the thing missing from the offroad market since the gap between dual sport and adv is rather large.

[OverlandTheSlowWay]

5, 000km on/off road my Kove 450 Rally, ridden for a month across some of Europes TET . 100% reliable. I would agree with most of the review. Power is "enough", suspension is good, weight carried low even with full ranks so feels lighter. The fuel range is really a game changer when you're traveling in less populated areas. Build and design quality is up there imo. Overall it's a fantastic bike.

[davidfindlay]

Poor Kove. People seem to think this bike has to rally like a KTM 450RR bike, cut up an enduro track like a WR250F, head across the countryside like a Goldwing, be as reliable as a Honda Cub, yet be sold for peanuts on every street corner. Hey, I went for an EXC500 to "adventurize" because I don't even know if it's coming here or not [ To OZ ]. But I also say bravo! to Kove, it looks like a pretty decent first up crack at a bike that a lot of people have been whining about, since forever.
Fuel and oil capacity, twin radiators/fans, reasonable engine power, fairing/screen, decent seat/suspension, there's a lot to

[agustincuevae]

30.000 km in 3 years with the nc450 motor on the caballero rally, very hard riding, off road at the Andes mountains in Ecuador and like 5 desert racings by the coast the motor it holding fine

[carlosteixeira]

Great video!
For sure that ultimate unicorn that you are searching is the AJP PR7, perfect handling and just enough power.
Please bring a review to the channel!

[truthseeker]

it doesn't matter whether this bike was made in china or zimbabwe. every bike manufacturers should do what japanese and european manufacturers do : win races, prove long-term durability and provide after sales support. there are no shortcuts like buying influencers on youtube.

[ChaohsiangChen]

I'm impressed with your ability to say Chinese and Italian names.

The KTM 790 engine prolly is made by CF moto who has the license.

[mxbadboy]

I went on the Kove USA importer website last night (11/28/2023) and there's a long disclaimer statement that states that the Kove Rally is a closed course competition bike only and is not for use in off road area's (California) or for street use. IMO that means it does not meet EPA regulations. One commenter wrote that the BMV could not find his vin number in the system. I know someone from Utah or similar states might have got a plate for it but that's not the real world.

[Trailfocused]

I have a Kove with 500 miles. No glitches or issues so far. Its properly rung out for most of those miles. I’ve taken off the extra emissions and electronic bits(abs, clutch/kickstand switch). Dipping my toes into the dual sport/adventure world has never been so easy, thanks to this bike. Oh ya, I’m also going to race it next year in a few enduros, just because dirt bikes got boring.

[WhatTimeIsIt]

Man!! I have been waiting for this review from you. Let's watch!

[andrewyoung]

I have a chinese 140 pit bike bought it, brand new and I have over 70 hours on it not really had any problems yet and I’m really hard on it I have destroyed 4 wheels so far I wouldn’t blame that on the bike but because I destroy wheels on my yz250 all the time I think the chinese bakes are going to take over in the future they’re getting better and better

[boy]

Buddy of mine has just got a LPR732 from Lyndon Poskitt, now that is the bike right there. Its the perfect package albeit a bit pricy.
690 rally engine bored out with wide ratio gearbox on carb (if you choose), adv fairing all proven and developed by Lyndon.

[mechanicalman]

Seems cool I guess, if it’s actually street legal. For the weight, it seems like a sort of 690 without the big price tag and electronic rider aids. Kinda makes me miss the old Husky TE610 and 630.

Others have mentioned the pointlessness of the big tank. I disagree. I like to take pretty un-aggressive multi day backroads trips in the Sierra and Cascade ranges. It’s nice to not have to get off route to dip into to town for fuel. Could take hours and detailed planning in some areas.

[gpaull]

As me and my knees get older I need good suspension and low maintenance more than I need maximum horsepower. Might have to give this a good look.

[istra]

Nearly 10 more Hp Kove has than Honda CRF 450 L. The nearest comparison to Kove would be AJP PR 7 which is actually 600 ccm but produces about 50 Hp - just like Kove, and it is similar stile ( adventure / dual sport / rally ) .
Low compression ratio is good for reliability and economy ( unlike KTM/ Husqvarna 701 with 13:1 - you better have fun near your house ) .
Great price too. I am delighted that finally someone is coming out with models people are asking for for so long .... and challenging monopoly of big and famous brands in the business .
Don't worry about politics; your phone, laptop, PC, everything is already made there, and now BMW, KTM, Honda, Yamaha are all shifting production of certain models in to China.

[randombuilds]

I had a tiger 800xc, it was a great highway bike, and ok on fire roads. It liked to push the front in softer terrain, and was heavy. But it was still running strong when I sold it with 110k miles. I'm currently riding a drzr400sm. It's modded with a stroker crank, big bore, cams, ported head and bigger carb. So hopefully it'll show mid 50s when I get it on the dyno, it was high 40s with a smaller carb and no stroker crank. These Kove bikes look interesting, but I'll wait a couple years to see how well they hold up. Maybe they'll spread out and offer a SM variant, decent power, drop some of the weight from this model but keep the fuel capacity to 3-4 gallons so it's still a good street bike.

[sarahdell]

I think this is that unicorn adventure style bike many of us dirt bike riders have been seeking. With a tune and different exhaust, it will make more power.

The bike should end up being a huge success if they stay reliable, and Kove continues to develop the brand.

It would be nice to see more dealers in the states and more of backing behind the Kove brand

[andrisrepulis]

I cannot express enough how relaxing it is to hear Australian accent saying words like "liters", "kilograms" and "meters". Instead of, well you know - "size big enough to fit 6 washing machines" or "13/34 of navy short inch used back in 15th century"!
👍😆