2025 Honda CRF450RL Preview

Mind the turn signals when you hit the brush. Honda’s street-legal CRF450RL hits non-street environs.

Welcome to the VIP section of Honda’s CRF dirt bike class of 2025. While the smaller and intermediate members of the 2025 CRF family have already been introduced, the 2025 Honda CRF450RL deserves its own reveal. Honda’s CRF450 family is a big one. Between the CFR450R (motocross), CRF450RWE (premium motocross), CRF450X (off-road), CRF450RX (competition off-road), and CRF450RL (street-legal, dual-sport— the one we’re talking about), the 450cc platform does lots of things for lots of riders.

A studio shot of Honda’s street-legal CRF450RL. Note the mirrors, lights, plate holder, and standard hand guards.

Basically, the Honda CRF450RL is designed to ride trails separated by pavement in all 50 states. As such, there are lights, signals, and a plate holder. When asphalt ends, it’s light and powerful enough to navigate all sorts of things that defy common sense and physics. But for pavement purposes, that legal stuff means it’s slightly heavier, friendlier, and stiffer-sprung until adjusted otherwise.

Hypothetically, it could haul giant square bags on an interstate, making the CRF450RL a terrible ADV rig of sorts. But as sales materials point out, the CRF450RL is more of a dual sport, “engineered for adventurers seeking a seamless transition from off-road ruggedness to on-road finesse.” Nicely put, Honda copywriter.

The beating heart of the Honda CRF450RL: the single cylinder 449cc liquid-cooled engine, with six-speed transmission.

The dimensions of the single-cylinder 449cc liquid-cooled engine are the same as when it was introduced to the world in 2002. But the unchanged 96mm x 62.1mm bore and stroke have seen a number of changes over the years. Currently, it has programmed fuel injection with 46mm downdraft bodies, with an oval exhaust replacing the round one in 2021. Compression is 12.0:1, rather than the 13.5:1 of the pure-dirt CRF450R. A new three-ring piston helps keep the oil and gas from fraternizing, while increased crank inertia (12 percent more than the CRF450R) helps with power delivery. That’s the fancy way of saying the crank is heavier, which helps with technical trail riding.

“Sorry, officer, forgot my trail sticker. But it’s got a plate holder, just look.” The street-legal 2025 Honda CRF450RL.

It all goes through a six-speed transmission and a stator capable of powering lights and turn signals. Of primary interest to most riders are the adjustable 49mm Showa fork and pro-link Showa rear shock, also adjustable. Careful riding over those boulders, folks.

The front gets a healthy 12.0 inches of travel, while the rear gets 11.8 inches. Front two-piston 260mm disc stoppers are from the CRF450R, with thicker pads and a bigger reservoir. A urethane-injected swingarm and front sprocket damper makes things more civilized on the pavement between trails, as does the previously mentioned sixth gear.

The new CRF450RL is one of the better all-round dual sports out there as reported during the 2021 Honda CRF450RL MC Commute Review. You could certainly opt for the classic Suzuki DR-Z400S and pocket the savings. But for those who want real MX DNA in their dual sport, the CRF450RL is your ride. In the finest Honda tradition, it isn’t the lightest, most powerful, or fastest. It’s just one of the best. And among its Japanese peers, it’s the only 450cc street-legal dual sport built on an MX platform. MSRP is $10,099.

Reserve the 2025 Honda CRF450RL now and get a cool deal!