British built CCM GP450 Adventure weighs just 276 pounds (125 kg) dry. Shown here with optional hard luggage, auxiliary lights, skid plate, radiator guard, adjustable windscreen and hand guards.

The US always seems to be last on the list when it comes to receiving the latest Adventure Bike models. New models typically get released in Europe first, then we wait patiently to see if the bike will ever be distributed here. Often times we are disappointed to find that the bike of our dreams never makes it to the US. Some examples of desirable Adventure Bikes we can’t get in the US are the Yamaha XT660Z Ténéré, Honda XL700V Transalp and the Honda Crosstourer.

Many expected the British built CCM GP450 Adventure to become just the next cool Adventure Bike never to make it to the US. We have seen the marketing materials from CCM stating their intentions to expand globally, but too often those statements turn out to be unreliable. The GP450 is the perfect bike to fill the gap in the US market for a lightweight, high-performance, off-road focused Adventure Bike. A spot that has been left vacant ever since KTM stopped producing the 640 Adventure in 2008.

The CCM GP450 is a lightweight, high performance, off-road focused Adventure Bike.

CCM has been hard at work over the last year launching the GP450 in Europe and building out an extensive dealer network. The company recently received funding from the UK’s Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) to help support their global expansion. CCM has already made progress in their goal of bringing the GP450 to North America by starting the Type Approval process in Canada.

These promising signs prompted us to contact CCM to discover if there were any solid plans underway for US distribution of the GP450. We were pleased to receive a signed confirmation today from the Head of CCM, Austin Clews, stating that the company will begin the US homologation process for the GP450 Adventure. CCM expects to complete the process by the end of this year and officially launch the GP450 in the US by early 2015.

US pricing has not been set for the CCM GP450 Adventure. However, the bike currently retails for £7,995 ($11,819 US) before taxes in the UK.

So what is CCM?
CCM is a British motorcycle manufacturer based out of Bolton, England. The company was born out of the collapse of BSA’s Competition Department in 1971 by founder and former trials rider Alan Clews. Clews started building high-performance motocross bikes out of his garage and soon gained a reputation as a builder of four-stroke motocross bikes that were capable of competing with the dominant two-stroke bikes of the time.

Throughout its 40-year history the firm has competed successfully at the national and world championship level in both Motocross, Rally Raid and Trails. Between 2007-2011, CCM MX450 won numerous rounds of the British Motocross Championship and also won the manufacturers award in the 1998 Paris Dakar Rally. CCM’s racing has always been a test bed for research and development for the motorcycles it brings to market.

CCM recognized a gap in the market for a light-weight Adventure Bike capable of long-distance touring on pavement and spirited off-road riding. The launch of the GP450 is the culmination of five years of development and research.

CCM GP450 Adventure Highlights

CCM is the first to use cutting edge bonded aluminum frame technology on a production motorcycle.

CCM has long been at the forefront of cutting edge technology and the GP450 is the first production motorcycle using a Bond-Lite aluminium chassis. The Bond-Lite technology uses 13 individually forged CNC machined aluminum pieces to create an extremely strong, light-weight frame. Bond-Lite also provides advantages of predictable flex and stress handling characteristics and improved durability over welded frames.

Continue Reading: More CCM GP450 Adventure Highlights