Kove 800X Maintenance Schedule and Service Information

This is the maintenance schedule and related information from the manual for the Kove 800X, the adventure bike from Chinese manufacturer Kove.

The Kove 800X is a small family of adventure bikes based on a 799 cc parallel twin. It’s a dual overhead cam liquid-cooled engine with a 270-degree crankshaft and four valves per cylinder. With a 13:1 compression ratio, it makes a feisty 71 kW / 96.5 CV at 9000 rpm. Final drive is via a 6-speed transmission and chain.

The 800X comes in a number of configurations that affect its brake, suspension, and tyre setup, noted below. But they all have the same engine and drivetrain.

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Service Intervals

The Kove 800X has fairly short 5,000 km / 3,000-mile service intervals. At every service, change the oil and filter, and do a host of checks.

Kove also recommends doing most service items — other than the valve service, notably — every year. They even want you to change the spark plugs and filter every year, even if you’ve done no distance. (Whether you do so is up to you!)

The Kove 800X thankfully has wider 20,000 km (or 12,000 mile) valve clearance service intervals.

In general, the 800X’s service schedule is quite aggressive, but whether you keep up to it precisely depends on how and where you ride your bike. If you do regularly ride it on dusty roads, then you might want to follow it precisely.

Maintenance Schedule

Below is the maintenance schedule for the Kove 800X.

  • The service intervals are every 5000 km or year. Observe the earlier of the two.
  • Keep following this schedule in the pattern shown.
km x 10001-1.55101520Every
Inspection checklist (see below) — Check all itemsYear
Engine oil — ChangeYear
Oil filter — ChangeYear
Air filter — Inspect / (R)eplaceRYear
Spark plugs — Inspect. Replace if necessaryYear
Valve clearances — Inspect / AdjustYear
Brake fluid — ReplaceYear
Coolant — Check level, and system for leaksYear
Coolant — Replace2 years
Battery — Check voltage and connection tightnessYear
Fuel pipe, fuel filter — ReplaceYear
Swing arm bearing — Inspect and lubricateYear
Kove 800X Maintenance Schedule

Inspection checklist

Below is the list of items to inspect at every service. A few items are not explicitly mentioned in the maintenance schedule (e.g. checking brake fluid level), but are common sense and common to other manuals for similar motorcycles.

Kove 800X Inspection Checklist
Timing chain tension — Check
Throttle — Inspect operation
Tire tread, condition, and pressure — Check / adjust
Brake pads and discs — Check for wear, replace as necessary
Brake fluid — Check levels, check system for leaks
Clutch — Check free play and correct function
Fasteners — Check tightness
Steering bearing — Check tightness and for notches
Link for
Suspension — Check free movement, no damage or leaks
Wheel spokes — Check tightness
Wheel bearings — Check for free play, no notches
Kove 800X Inspection Checklist

Chain Maintenance

You need to regularly clean, lubricate, and check and adjust the chain tension of the Kove 800X.

Generally, check the condition of the chain and clean it after every ride in adverse conditions — dirt, mud, or rain. After washing it, be sure to lubricate it using a good chain lubricant, like Motul chain lubricant or Motul chain paste.

Checking chain slack

To check the chain slack, put the motorcycle on a level surface and switch the transmission into neutral.

Push the chain behind the chain slider up and determine the chain slack (which Kove calls “sag”). Chain slack for Kove is total deflection of the chain from top to bottom position.

Kove 800X Chain Slack

Target chain slack for the Kove 800X is 30-45mm (1.18-1.77 in). If the chain slack is more than 45mm, you shouldn’t ride the motorcycle.

Adjusting chain slack

Chain slack adjustment on Kove 800X

To adjust the chain slack, follow these steps.

  1. Loosen the rear wheel axle nut
  2. Loosen the locknuts.
  3. Rotate the adjusting bolts evenly on both sides of the wheel. Tighten the chain to the tighter end of the range.
  4. Keep checking the adjusting markers on both sides to make sure the wheel is aligned.
  5. Tighten the locknut
  6. Tighten the axle to 128 Nm / 94 lb-ft.

About the Kove 800X

Kove 800X Pro Studio RHS 3-4

The Kove 800X is a suite of three adventure / rally bikes from Chinese manufacturer Kove, which has built a reputation for affordable, high-spec adventure and off-road bikes.

The engine in the Kove 800X is the old 790 design also used in CFMoto’s 800 range (like the Ibex 800). It’s a parallel twin with a 270-degree crankshaft, tuned to make great midrange power with a decent top-end — one that most riders won’t use if they’re going off-road, anyway.

The engine is already a well-liked one. It has a lot of character, it’s easy to service, and it’s so widely used that parts are available for it from many sources (KTM, CFMoto, and now Kove). It’s used in both road bikes and off-road bikes. In short, it’s likely to be around for while, as are parts.

The bikes are all mid-spec — they have ABS and traction control, with nice add-ons like a TFT display, steering damper, and slipper clutch. The Pro even comes with a quick shifter. However, there’s no cornering ABS, nor cruise control. It’s up to you to decide whether they’re important!

But the best news is just how light these bikes are. These are bona fide lightweight adventure bikes. The Pro weighs around 200 kg ready to ride with a full tank of gas, which is phenomenal. Most bikes in the class weigh 20kg more — or much more.

Despite this, the maintenance schedule looks quite different from CFMOTO’s. It also looks different from how KTM presents it. Why, I’m not sure — different country standards, different engineers, or different expectations of usage.

Below are the major differences between the different specs of the Kove 800X.

Spec levelAdventure
(Base)
ProRally
Peak power71 kW / 96.5 CV @ 9000 rpm71 kW / 96.5 CV @ 9000 rpm70 kW / 95.2 CV @ 9000 rpm
SuspensionYu-An adjustable USD, Yu-An monoshockKYB adjustable USD, KYB monoshockYu-An adjustable USD, Yu-An monoshock
Front/Rear suspension travel210/210 mm240/240 mm270/250 mm
Front brakes2 x 310mm discs, 2 piston sliding calipers2 x 320 mm discs, 4-piston radial calipers1 x 310 mm disc, 4-piston radial caliper
Front tyre90/90-21, tubeless90/90-21, tubeless90/90-21, tube type
Rear tyre150/70-18 CST, tubeless150/70-18 Pirelly, tubeless140/80-18, tube type
Seat height835/845 mm865/875 mm895 mm
Kove 800X spec differences

Reference — Manual Screenshots

The above maintenance schedule came from the maintenance schedule for the Kove 800X, which is part of a general document of maintenance schedules. A screenshot is below.

Some other information came from the press releases as well as other public info about the 800X.

Kove 800X maintenance schedule

You can download materials from the Kove website’s service section here, with some instruction manuals available here.

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Dane Taylor

a great article!