Honda CRF 50 F 2019 — Specifications

How old was your kid the first time he asked for "a real motorcycle"? Five, six? That's precisely when the Honda CRF 50 F enters the picture. With its 49 cc, 10-inch wheels, and a seat sitting just 548 mm off the ground, this little dirt bike is aimed at budding riders who can barely stay upright on a bicycle without training wheels. And if it looks exactly like its bigger siblings in the CRF family, that's no accident. Honda wanted the kid to feel like a real rider, not like a child on a motorized toy.

Beneath the compact 4.1-liter tank beats an air-cooled four-stroke single-cylinder, with a 39 mm bore and 41.4 mm stroke. The power? Three horsepower at 8,500 rpm. We're a long way from a rodeo. Peak torque of 2.9 Nm arrives as low as 3,500 rpm, ensuring a smooth, progressive response at the throttle. The gearbox has just three speeds, paired with an automatic clutch that eliminates any lever operation. A five-year-old simply has to twist the grip and shift gears with his foot. The detail that reassures parents: a throttle limiter lets you restrict the available power to match the rider's skill level. You meter out the horsepower the way you'd adjust the length of a leash.

On the chassis side, the Honda CRF 50 F sits on a steel-tube backbone frame that soaks up off-road impacts without flinching. The inverted telescopic hydraulic fork offers 94 mm of travel, while the rear mono-shock works through 69 mm. It's no long-travel enduro setup, but it's more than enough to swallow the ruts of a child-sized motocross track. Braking is handled by two 80 mm drum brakes — a sensible choice given the machine's modest speed. Serrated folding footpegs, a cross-style handlebar protected by its foam pad, and brake levers sized for small hands round out a cockpit thought through down to the last detail. The bike weighs 50.3 kg wet, which remains manageable for an adult who has to pick it up after a tumble in the grass.

Against the competition, the CRF 50 F plays the Honda reliability card rather than chasing outright performance. The Yamaha PW 50 remains its historical rival, with a peppier two-stroke that's also more temperamental to maintain. Honda bets on a no-surprises four-stroke, an automatic cam chain tensioner, a washable air filter, and a quiet exhaust that won't send the neighbors running. Maintenance boils down to checking the 420 chain, cleaning the filter, and filling the tank. No need for a mechanic — a handy parent will do.

The price of a new 2023 Honda CRF 50 F sits around 2,099 euros. That's a significant investment for a beginner bike, especially when you know the child will outgrow it and move up to a 110 in two or three seasons. But CRF resale values hold strong, and the ruggedness of Honda's four-stroke means you can pass it from one kid to the next without any nasty surprises. This little dirt bike will never make the top step of a podium. It'll do something better: it'll give a kid the motorcycling bug, in complete safety, with a grin from ear to ear from the very first turn of the wheels.