Photo: Cleveland CycleWorks
Cleveland CycleWorks have been around for some time now, and some of their builds were pretty nice, actually. However, as they prepare to launch their dual-sport machine dubbed the Hooligun, we cannot miss the extreme resemblance to the older Honda CRF450X machine.
Taking a closer looks at both motorcycles brings up a question on whether Honda will take some legal action as the Hooligun makes it's way to dealerships. While the declarations of CCW's Scott Colosimo are not disclosing too much of the bike's origin, seeing it announced for $6,000 (€4,455) hints to some Chinese manufacturing.
Such a price for a 450cc-class machine is a normal one... for manufacturers with a well-established legacy and retailer network. But starting off from almost scrap with lower prices than similar bikes from Suzuki or Honda doesn't seem to really cut it.
We don't have anything against Chinese bikes, but it's just down to two facts. First of all it the testing and quality control: few builders can do this well, and China plants aren't quite the quality reference when it comes to letting them on their own. Sorry to say this, but it's just the truth.
On the other hand... the Hooligun IS the old CRF450X, and one doesn't have to be a motorcycle engineer or designer to figure this out. We are really looking forward to see the story unfold, because there are too many things which are suspicious.
Such a price for a 450cc-class machine is a normal one... for manufacturers with a well-established legacy and retailer network. But starting off from almost scrap with lower prices than similar bikes from Suzuki or Honda doesn't seem to really cut it.
We don't have anything against Chinese bikes, but it's just down to two facts. First of all it the testing and quality control: few builders can do this well, and China plants aren't quite the quality reference when it comes to letting them on their own. Sorry to say this, but it's just the truth.
On the other hand... the Hooligun IS the old CRF450X, and one doesn't have to be a motorcycle engineer or designer to figure this out. We are really looking forward to see the story unfold, because there are too many things which are suspicious.
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