CCM 644 DUAL SPORT (2002 - on) Review

The CCM 644E Trail is a versatile Suzuki-powered single-cylinder thumper can turn from greenlaning motorcycle to supermoto motorcycle in just 15 minutes thanks to a simple swap of wheels. It’s loud, tough, cheap secondhand and great fun providing you steer clear of long straights and pillions.

The CCM 644E is nicely balanced both on and off-road, though at higher speeds (over 80mph)on tarmac the motorcycle's tall wheels begin to feel vague in corners. The Brembo brakes are excellent and probably offer too much power on the dirt. The CCM 644E's WP suspension works well in either environment with plenty of adjustability available.

The CCM 644E's oil/air cooled SOHC lump produces 50bhp – which might not sound like a lot, but when your motorcycle is geared low for off-road use it’s more than enough, especially when you finally leave the tarmac and turn onto the rough stuff. The CCM 644E doesn’t vibrate too much and is very reliable compared to rival motorcycles.

While the components on the CCM 644E are from some of the names in the business the quality control at CCM has historically been poor – welds snap, bolts sheer and exhaust header pipes crack. CCM 644E's made between 2003-2004 are particularly prone to problems.

After some well-reported financial problems in 2004, when the CCM factory essentially went bust, consumer confidence in the motorcycles plunged. Secondhand prices are at near giveaway levels, making them excellent value for money. Spares are widely available for the CCM 644E too, which somewhat offsets the iffy quality. Find a CCM 644E for sale.

On one hand you get top names like WP (suspension), Acerbis (plastics), Renthal (bars) and so on with a CCM 644E. On the other the dash is small and hard to read. That’s quirky hand-built British motorcycles for you…