New BMW F 450 R: All the Right Ingredients. Where’s the Excitement?
BMW’s new A2 roadster brings a twin-cylinder engine, proper equipment and an optional Easy Ride Clutch. But my first reaction was sheer underwhelm. Has BMW played it too safe?
I wanted to like this bike. BMW had a chance to do something properly interesting in the smaller-capacity naked sector. Something cool, desirable and capable of making riders want a BMW long before they started thinking about GS ownership.
Then I saw the new F 450 R.
Oh. Is that it?
Unveiled on 1 October, the new roadster starts at £6,395, with UK showroom arrival expected in May 2027. On paper, there’s plenty to talk about. But before I’d read a single specification, I was already disappointed.
Because, to my eyes, it looks far too much like a continuation of the G 310 R. And I thought that was bloody ugly.
BMW had an opportunity here
There’s nothing wrong with making an accessible motorcycle. Quite the opposite. We need bikes that people can afford, feel confident riding and enjoy without having to work their way through a finance application resembling a mortgage.
But accessible doesn’t have to mean visually forgettable.
This is a sector where a bike’s appearance matters enormously. It might be someone’s first proper motorcycle. Their first purchase after passing their test. The thing they’ve spent months saving for and imagining outside their house.
They should want to look back at it after parking.
BMW has clearly tried to give the F 450 R some attitude, but I’m struggling to find anything that makes me stop scrolling. The styling feels familiar, cautious and, frankly, boring.
BMW describes the design as following its S 1000 R family language. Fair enough. I can see the intention. I just don’t think the result delivers enough of that bigger bike’s presence.
Look at what else is out there
Take the CFMOTO 450NK.
You don’t have to love its styling to recognise that it has a point of view. To me, it looks sharper, more purposeful and more interested in catching your attention.
That matters when you’re trying to persuade someone to buy into a brand.
I’m not suggesting BMW should copy CFMOTO. I’m asking why a manufacturer with BMW’s resources and design pedigree hasn’t produced something that feels more exciting in its own right.
A smaller BMW could be a brilliant proposition. Something with a recognisable identity, some premium details and enough visual character to make the badge feel like a bonus.
With this, I wonder whether the badge is doing rather too much of the selling.
Underneath, there’s a stronger story
To give BMW its due, the mechanical package deserves more enthusiasm than my first reaction to the styling.
The F 450 R uses a 420cc parallel twin producing 35kW, or roughly 47bhp, with 43Nm of torque. BMW quotes a ready-to-ride weight of 175kg and a standard seat height of 790mm. It’s an A2 proposition with dimensions that should make it approachable.
There’s useful equipment, too. Cornering ABS, traction control, heated grips and a 6.5-inch TFT are standard. Those are meaningful features on a motorcycle aimed at newer riders and everyday use.
So I’m certainly not writing it off as a riding experience. I haven’t ridden it. It could turn out to be a cracking little roadster with an entertaining engine and a chassis that makes you take the long way home.
But that’s what makes the appearance more frustrating. There’s an interesting motorcycle underneath. I wanted the outside to suggest that.
The prices make things interesting
BMW’s announced UK range looks like this:
Version | Announced UK price |
F 450 R Base | £6,395 |
F 450 R Exclusive | £6,645 |
F 450 R M Sport | £6,770 |
F 450 R M Sport with Easy Ride Clutch | £6,995 |
The Exclusive adds Shift Assistant Pro and sport suspension, while the M Sport versions bring additional equipment and the Motorsport colour scheme. The £6,995 version includes the Innovation Package with Easy Ride Clutch. These are announced prices; confirm the final on-the-road figure with a dealer.
At the bottom of the range, the BMW sits almost exactly alongside Honda’s CB500 Hornet E-Clutch, currently listed at £6,399 on the road. That makes the BMW’s starting price competitive, particularly considering its equipment.
But climb to the top and you’re looking at seven grand.
That’s where I start asking harder questions.
Seven grand puts it close to bigger-bike money
Honda currently lists the CB750 Hornet E-Clutch at £7,549. That’s £554 more than the announced price of the top-spec BMW, before accounting for any differences in on-the-road charges.
For a rider with a full licence, that is close enough to invite a serious comparison.
Of course, the BMW’s smaller size and lower weight might be precisely why someone wants it. More capacity isn’t automatically better. But once the prices become neighbours, buyers are going to look across the showroom.
BMW’s Easy Ride Clutch is an interesting feature. It uses a centrifugal mechanism to manage clutch engagement, and paired with Shift Assistant Pro it allows riding and shifting without manually operating the clutch lever. You still change gears yourself, and the lever remains available.
I can see the appeal. What feels odd is having that factory package tied to the range-topping M Sport configuration. If easier operation is part of the attraction for newer riders, I’d like to see it offered as a straightforward choice without having to climb the trim ladder.
Who is going to buy it?
I suspect the F 450 R will appeal to riders who already want a BMW. People drawn to the badge, the dealer experience and the idea of entering the brand on something manageable.
Others will look at the equipment and see a sensible daily bike. That’s a perfectly reasonable buying decision.
But will it win over someone who wasn’t already considering BMW?
That’s the bit I’m less convinced about.
There are bikes in this sector I find much more aesthetically pleasing. And when so many motorcycles can satisfy the practical requirements, the one that makes you feel something has an advantage.
Perhaps the F 450 R will change my mind when I see it in the metal. Perhaps the first ride will make its conservative appearance irrelevant.
For now, though, BMW has given me plenty of reasons to understand this bike and very few reasons to want it.
What do you think? Has BMW got the balance right, or missed a chance to build something more exciting? And at £6,995, would the top-spec F 450 R make your shortlist?
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