This is the new CFMOTO 700 MT. It costs around 6,500 euros in Germany, 6,500 Swiss francs in Switzerland and 7,500 euros in Austria. But what exactly do you get for that money and what does this bike have to do with the Beluga Whale? You'll find out in this video.
So welcome to 1000 PSTV. In the background you can see the Portimao circuit, a legendary racetrack, but we weren't riding the MT there, we took it out on the country roads surrounding this stunning circuit. Until now the 700 MT has always been a classic sport tourer, meaning a 17-inch front wheel and a more road-focused setup, but that's changing for 2025. What we have here is a crossover adventure tourer with a 19-inch front wheel pushing more towards an adventure-oriented direction.
But to make sure we're all on the same page, let's take a look at the technical specifications. The CFMOTOR 700MT is powered by a 693cc parallel twin engine. It's liquid cooled and features a DOHC setup.
It delivers 68 horsepower at 9500 rpm and 60 newton meters of torque at 6000 rpm. The seat height is 800 millimeters with an optional higher seat available at 840 millimeters. The weight comes in at 240 kilograms and the fuel tank holds 20 liters. The suspension consists of a fully adjustable 43 millimeter upside down fork and a rear shock adjustable for rebound and preload. Suspension travel is 150 millimeters at the front and 148 millimeters at the rear.
Braking is handled by dual front discs and a single rear disc with abs and traction control included as standard. The wheels are set up for a 19 inch front and 17 inch rear combination with tire sizes of 110-80-19 at the front and 150-70-17 at the rear. Standard features include LED lighting, a 5 inch TFT display and the CFMOTO connectivity system T-box. The 700 MT is available in nebula black and nebula white.
Let's get back on the bike. I've taken a seat on the standard seat which has an 800 millimeter height. At 1 meter 75 I find the riding position to be quite comfortable. It's almost regal, the handlebars are positioned close to me, exactly where I want them and the overall ergonomics suit my height well.
The knee angle is relaxed and it definitely has a strong touring feel. I spoke with a few colleagues who are taller 1.80m, 1.85m, even 1.90m and they found that after a while the 700MT became a bit uncomfortable. So if you're on the taller side you might want to opt for the higher seat. Looking at the cockpit in front of me it has a substantial robust design. The side fairings extend quite far forward and the display is set relatively far away.
That said, the 5-inch TFT screen is still perfectly readable. One thing I did notice... Adjusting the windscreen works well while riding as it's manually adjustable but you do have to lean forward quite a bit to reach it. So it might be a good idea to find your ideal windscreen position before setting off. I already mentioned the display but I won't go into too much detail here.
Instead let's do a proper walk around and take a closer look at the bike. Now against this stunning backdrop let's check out the CFMOTO 700MT up close. Starting at the front you can see the design of the LED headlights.
Their shape actually reminds me a bit of the beluga whale, also known as the white whale, which can weigh up to a ton. Thankfully the CF Moto doesn't weigh that much. Housed within this front fairing are the LED headlights and daytime running light.
It's well integrated into the design and I assume the light output is good at night thanks to the LED setup. We haven't tested it in the dark. as we've been riding in daylight. Another key change for this bike is the 19-inch front wheel.
As mentioned earlier its predecessor still had a 17-inch front wheel. Moving on to the cockpit, handlebars and controls, let's take a look at what the TFT display has to offer. It's a 5-inch screen with a clean and straightforward layout.
There's a large rev counter, the speedometer in the center, a gear indicator in the top right and even extra features like tire pressure and tire temperature monitoring. A nice touch if that's something you want. Digging deeper into the menu, you can access the vehicle settings.
Here, you can deactivate the rear ABS as well as the traction control. You can also disable the ABS on the fly using this button which is handy if you suddenly hit gravel and want to switch it off quickly. The menu also includes additional features related to smartphone connectivity which we didn't test on this ride but if you are interested in seeing that in action let me know in the comments and we'll cover it in a future test. There's also a USB and USB-C port so you can charge essential devices while riding.
Looking at the cockpit and display overall everything is nicely put together. Sure this bike was developed with a budget conscious approach but the build quality is still solid, the controls are well designed and operating them while riding is genuinely enjoyable and as you can see we've got quite a bit of extra equipment on this bike such as heated grips and a heated seat that was really nice this morning with each adjustable in three levels that meant we could keep our fingers and backside warm so we didn't have to freeze. Moving towards the rear we can see even more accessories namely the luggage set, the top case has a storage capacity of 36 liters, the left pannier holds 35 liters and the right pannier has 28 liters if I remember correctly and when you look inside it's well put together it's lined with a sort of felt material which feels nice to the touch and gives a high quality impression especially on an adventure bike it's really practical to have enough space to store your gear if we look at the other side of the bike we see the engine the twin cylinder that has accompanied us today I'll tell you how it performs at the end when I give my riding impressions. Apart from that I also notice the crash bars which are part of the accessory range but they're nicely integrated into the fairing so you can install them without worrying about them looking out of place. So just from this walk around at first glance when I look at the bike it's feel, it's build quality, it's quite convincing.
Everything is properly bolted together, nothing rattles or shakes and visually in black It looks quite understated but still makes an impression. But let me know in the comments what you think. Now we know everything about the MT but the most important part is still to come. How does it actually ride?
Today we covered just under 200 kilometers on country roads, a bit of off-road and some motorway which gave us a proper feel for the bike. Let's start with the engine. A pure twin cylinder and a classic one at that. It pulls cleanly across the entire rev range.
No extreme peaks. no noticeable weak points in power delivery, it just moves along nicely. 68 horsepower for a ready to ride weight of 240 kilograms sounded quite underwhelming on paper, but when riding solo it's actually manageable. Of course if you fully load the bike with luggage and a passenger it might start to feel a bit sluggish, especially on uphill sections.
In that case you might want to consider upgrading to a larger model like the 800MT. A quick side note here next to the MT. I asked you on Instagram what you wanted to know about this bike. And the most asked question was about the weight. On the spec sheet it states 240 kilograms. With all the accessories CFMoto claims it weighs around 258 kilograms.
So for a 68 horsepower bike that's quite a significant weight. I don't have the longest legs at 1.75 meters and I have to say yes when maneuvering the weight does feel quite noticeable. We were riding fully equipped today and if you find yourself in a situation where you need to turn the bike around on an incline, for example, it can be a bit nerve-wracking if you have shorter legs. However, once on the move the weight disappears, just like on so many other motorcycles.
And the engine handles it well. This is not a racer, it's a relaxed touring bike, the 700 MT. So I'd say the weight is manageable as long as you plan ahead when stopping. Now about the gearbox, there's no quick shifter just to clarify, but we do have a slipper clutch and like so much else on this bike it works just fine.
It's nothing extraordinary, not super smooth, but not particularly rough either. It's just a well-functioning gearbox where you can find your gears easily. The suspension really impressed and surprised me after all this is a bike built with a budget in mind. But we have a fully adjustable fork at the front and a rear shock adjustable for rebound and preload and that gives you a really smooth ride.
We encountered a lot of poor road surfaces today but the suspension absorbed them well allowing us to cruise comfortably of course when you pick up speed fast corners with bumps you do notice that the plush setup takes away a bit of sportiness but on this kind of bike i think sportiness isn't really the priority it's much more ...about relaxed riding. Speaking of relaxed riding, let's talk about the brakes. I have to give them some benefit of the doubt because the bikes only had 100 kilometers on the clock when we started today and as expected the brakes still felt quite weak. So let's assume they'll get stronger as they bed in but at the moment I really miss a well-defined bite point especially on the rear brake. Quick camera change here because you need to know that this event is packed with journalists and unfortunately I only had five minutes behind.
the official CFMoto camera but I wasn't finished yet so let's continue with this bike which in my opinion has the much nicer color scheme. This blue and white combination classic CFMoto colors along with the golden rims looks absolutely stunning. Now we left off talking about the brakes but I also wanted to go into more detail about the riding experience. We were out riding in the mountainous regions of Portugal today and if I go back to the engine one thing that stood out was that the transition Between acceleration and deceleration isn't quite perfect yet. In tight hairpins you do get some noticeable throttle jerkiness so you might have to compensate a bit with the clutch.
But honestly, you get used to it and at this price point I can overlook it. We also took it on the motorway and up to a certain speed the CF motor performed well I'd say, but at around 135 kilometers per hour the bike started to wobble a bit. Again, I'll give it the benefit of the doubt. Because this bike was fully equipped with luggage cases and you wouldn't be riding at full throttle with that setup anyway. It's more suited for relaxed cruising plus there's no cruise control on board so it's best to take it easy.
Apart from that on the road the CF Moto really convinced me. The whole time I was riding I kept thinking about its price point. A fully equipped adventure tourer can easily cost 30 000 euros while this one costs 7 500 euros in Austria. While riding I noticed that it doesn't particularly excel at anything.
It doesn't have an outstandingly powerful engine, a super smooth gearbox or the best brakes, which as mentioned are still new and hopefully will get better as they bed in. The suspension, while comfortable, does show its limits when you push the bike harder, but at the same time it doesn't do anything badly either. The equipment is really stripped back to the basics, nothing more than what you need.
You get ABS, traction control and the option to switch them off, but there are no unnecessary riding modes. You simply turn the key and ride. It's a wonderfully simple motorcycle and because of its affordability I can't really fault it for much.
Of course if you want to step up there's also the MTX 800 MTX. I didn't get to ride it today unfortunately. But otherwise this bike is a great choice for anyone looking to get into touring. If you're unsure about long distance travel and just want a solid bike that takes you from A to B in daily use but also lets you explore the countryside or go on an adventure, This could be a great option and even though it doesn't have a 21 inch front wheel this bike can still handle a bit of off-road riding. Today we took it on some light gravel sections, some sandy patches as well.
Now I'm by no means an experienced off-road rider, far from it, but I still felt comfortable on this bike. The controls are intuitive, the adjustable levers let you fine-tune the ergonomics to your needs and the standing position is quite comfortable thanks to the large 20 liter fuel tank. So even for an off-road beginner like me it feels like a confidence inspiring bike.
All in all I'd say the CFMOTO 700 MT is a great choice for those who don't want to spend too much and who don't have overly high expectations from a motorcycle. If you don't care about having a high prestige brand and just want a solid functional machine this one does the job well. Behind me you can see Portimo where I'll be riding a CFMOTO super sport bike tomorrow and of course there's also the 800 MTX which I didn't have time to test today. But we'll definitely get to that later in the season.
Thanks a lot for watching and I hope you enjoyed this video on the CFMOTO 700MT. See you again soon, take care and goodbye!