They have only been around for five years, but the Chinese motorcycle brand Kove already claims to be the fourth largest motorcycle manufacturer in its own country. With the launch of the 800X Super Adventure, Kove has now set its sights on the European market.
Chances are you’ve never heard of it, but that could change in the foreseeable future. Founded in 2017 by off-road rider Zhang Xue, Kove has quickly become a major player in the Chinese market.
Unlike many other Chinese manufacturers, who have collaborated with other brands in terms of the drivetrain, Kove claims to do all this entirely in-house. And not only the block, also the frame, tank, brakes and exhaust system are developed and produced in-house, as well as all CNC milling.
Until recently, the top model was the 500X, a parallel twin that was voted engine of the year in 2019 by the Chinese motorcycle industry. The same 500X is also marketed in Spain and Portugal under the name Macbor Motana XR5 and in the Czech Republic under the name Jawa RVM 500. Kove claims to have sold more than 20,000 units since its launch in 2019.
Kove says he does everything in-house, but the specs and layout of the 471cc parallel twin suggest that reverse engineering was certainly involved here. It is too coincidental that the block has exactly the same shapes and specifications as the (471cc) 500 twin of Honda’s CB500 platform. In terms of design, Kove seems to be inspired by the BMW GS.
Kove seems to have done the same reverse engineering trick on the new 2023 800X Super Adventure. This mature all-road is powered by a 799cc parallel twin, which appears to be an outright copy of the KTM 799cc LC8c parallel twin. Here too, the specifications as well as its dimensions are exactly the same.
Reverse engineering is no stranger to the Chinese, CFMoto has done exactly the same with the 650 parallel twin, a copy of the parallel twin of the Kawasaki 650 platform in terms of dimensions and specifications. If reverse engineering doesn’t mean anything to you, that’s a nice English term for ‘cut & paste’: you take something apart, measure all the parts and build it.
Given the specifications, Kove has real off-road ambitions with the 800X Super Adventure, as evidenced by the spoked wheels in sizes 21″ at the front and 18″ at the rear, fitted with 90/90-21 rubber at the front and 150/70-18 rubber at the rear, the suspension with 210 mm suspension travel and the ground clearance of 245 mm.
The 800X Super Adventure has a relatively compact wheelbase of 1,502 mm, head angle and trail are 26.15° and 118.5 mm. For off-road concepts, the 830 mm is quite low, the same can be said about the curb weight of 183 kilos. Kove also claims a range of 400 kilometers with a 22 liter tank.
That Zhang Xue has naughty plans for Kove is evidenced by the fact that the brand will make its official debut in the Dakar rally next year with an in-house developed 450 Rally, a liquid-cooled 449cc single-cylinder that squeezes out 53 horsepower. Kove is at the start with 2 machines, driven by the Chinese Deng Liansong and Sunier Sunier.
Kove also plans to compete in the Supersport 300 World Championship next season with the 321RR-S, a 322cc parallel twin that is specified for a peak power output of 30.5 kW (41.4 hp) at 11,000 rpm and maximum torque of 29 Nm at 9,000 rpm.
The most remarkable model on the Kove stand in Milan, however, has undoubtedly been the 400RR, a 399cc four-cylinder supersport with striking design. In addition to aerodynamic winglets screwed onto the fairing, the fairing and butt are also fitted with aerodynamic scoops.
The 399cc four-in-line has a top power of 68 hp at 13,500 rpm and a maximum torque of 36 Nm at 12,000 rpm, which, in combination with the curb weight of only 160 kilos, should guarantee quite a lot of fun on the street.
– Thanks for information from Motorfreaks.