A brief CFMoto 300CL-X review by some amateur
#motorcycles 2 min.
I knew I wanted to ride a motorcycle in Tenerife as soon as we bought the plane tickets. I’ve been riding for 5 years, but never abroad or in the mountains. I wanted something light and nippy, as on most roads in Tenerife, you can only go up to 60-80 kph anyway. I didn’t have strong preferences for a bike, so I went with what the nearby rental store had available that day—a CFMoto 300CL-X.
~30 hp in ~150 kg bike isn’t impressive, but it’s enough on an island. Due to the altitude, quite a few horses were lost on the way up to Teide, but we collected all those horses coming back down. It’s a good-value bike, but you can feel it’s been built down to a price. Like most single-cylinder engines, it sounds like a lawnmower, the plastics feel cheap and toy-like, the suspension is pretty uncomfortable, and the bike generally has little charm.
This is an excellent entry-model bike, though, and I’d get one if I needed a daily beater in the city. The position is upright and comfortable. The bike is cheap and cheerful, should be reliable or at least simple to fix, and you wouldn’t care about minor dings or scratches. For the weekend rides, I’d like something more memorable.
Tenerife itself outshines any motorcycle. It’s the best riding destination I’ve been to so far. My only regret is renting the bike for just one day. If you have a license, you owe it to yourself.