cheap chinese bikes in a crate

[NiteW4tcher]

£1000 for a 60 plate 125cc chinese bikes.

cheap cr@p or worth a look for a reliable ( i have my doubts) commuter or for 1st time rider?

this goes back to my gf learning. (but also has a general relevance to the machines that seem to be apearing alot recently) do i spend £1k on a brand new bike in a crate or spend £1200-£1800 on a recongnised manufactuer 2nd hand low mileage bike?

im unsure of what back up you would get if the crate bike needed work withing the 12month warranty.

as the warranty could be a return to base warranty meaning it has to go back to china.

and once out of warranty where do u go for help?

also i see insurance may be promblematic

my gut feeling is to spend that little more on a jap manufactuer

has anyone had dealings with these bikes in a crate??

Dan

[crewy]

My mate had one about 3 years ago, it was 2 years old and the frame rusted really easy to the point where the engine bracket snapped causing the engine to drop and cause the chain to snap. He even left it on the side of the road hoping it would get stolen but it never did.

[crewy]

Forgot to mention i'm pretty sure the make was superbyke, hope this helps

[Nooj]

You get what you pay for. Mate with a repair shop in Huntingdon is sick of people dragging Chinese mopeds and quads round for him to fix. The few parts he can get in are all crap and don't last more than a few months, so then the owners blame him for doing a poor job when their mobile piles of poo break down again.

[NiteW4tcher]

that will do me stay clear of them

[Nooj]

Give them a few years to get to grips with the quality levels and back up services we expect and they may well be OK, but I wouldn't bother with one now.

[Nelly]

Mrs H had a Jinlun 125. Awful piece of rubbish. It felt like at any second it would fall to bits. Chokek never worked properly and it handled like a donkey on acid! :)

[Mitch9128]

The Taliban wouldn't be seen dead on anything else :)

[Scotty]

Just step away from the crate sir....
I think we're all best off leaving cheap and nasty Chinese bikes in their crates. I wouldn't mind the Chinese hoovering up all the world's steel and driving up the prices if they actually made something worth having with it all... >:(

[jonnydangerous]

i had a mate who wanted to learn to ride, he did his CBT and passed, then spent £550 on a brand new "In a crate" offroad biased 125 from an importer in portsmouth.
apart from getting to the tracks he didnt do much road work, and he crashed alot, but the bike "seemed" ok for a few jaunts out, BUT he did only expect it to last a year, and he wasnt fast offroad.
the 125 engines make about 8 BHP, (whatever the adverts say, dont beleive them!)

youd be MUCH better off spending that grand on a Honda CRM250, Kawasaki KDX or an older Yamaha WRF250 or similar, which was designed to go offroading in the first place...

shame you missed it, Tuono-Don just sold his WR250f for a grand!...

shout if you find something you think is suitable, you can have a LOT of fun on the right grands worth of offroad bike :-)
see you out getting muddy soon.

[Nooj]

like a donkey on acid Sounds like top entertainment, I'd pay to see that!

[Iceman]

Ha!this takes me back to the 60's when "Jap" bikes were the imports so to say,and the word was "Buy British", not japanese sowing machines"!lol "Eat your words there sonny boy!". How times have changed!

[Caz]

I had a test ride on a Hyasung 650 was supposed to be an equivalent to the SV but didnt really like it, you could tell it was a cheap copy.

[Scotty]

Ha!this takes me back to the 60's when "Jap" bikes were the imports so to say,and the word was "Buy British", not japanese sowing machines"!lol "Eat your words there sonny boy!". How times have changed!

Big difference between now and those days is that when Japanese bikes appeared they were oil-tight and reliable, unlike the antique designs churned out by the native manufacturers who couldn't be bothered to develop stuff like 12V electrics, horizontally-splitting crankcases with accurate manufacturing tolerances and electric starts... ::)
The new kids on the block (or in the crate) are a retrograde step with abysmal manufacturing quality and awful reliability...

What goes around, comes around? :-?

[redken1]

Heard the same arguments about Korean car maker Hyundai 20 years ago and more recently Kia. Where are they now? With regards to the Chinese, building quality motorcycles, it's not a question of if but a question of when. For now however, they do look cheap and nasty.

[Spider1981]

stay well clear they are a not worth it at any price!!!! i had one, :nearly fell to bits everytime i rode it :'( :'( :'(

[Squashed_Fly]

I had a Kia piccanto that I learnt in and had for the first year - fantastic car. Mechanically sound, drove well, handled ok (for a small car). I had 3 mechanic friends in Cheltenham that all said they were great to work on.

I'm sure the chinese imports will get better with time. But right now? I wouldn't touch one.... I've only ever known 1 person have one run with no problems, and quite a few of my mates had them back up north (by that I mean Gloucestershire!)

[redken1]

Ye you are right SF they are crap at the mo, but the Chinese mean business. I think a Chinese company have invested alot of capital into Benneli.

[Jon_W]

Oh yes, expect the Chinese to get better. These bikes are only the start. look at Hyosung, now making 650cc bikes and of good quality.

[Nooj]

The Chinese CAN make good stuff, but to beat Western produce prices, the quality has to be poorer (and so cheaper) to make up for shipping costs.

Give it time, it'll happen.

[Kevinb]

Newer chinese bikes are better than ever now. Still not up to Jap standards. Spend £1000 on one but don't expect it to last more than one/two years. Good Jap copied engines are the best bit, other parts/plastics are rubbish.

[baxie]

my friend bought one and has had nothing but problems hence thats why i went to a dealer and spent just a bit more but worth it for piece of mind

[newnut]

junk! steer clear mate. maybe they will get better but at the moment the quality is junk. all the crates should be labelled "return to sender" bought my lads one each, i actually ended up cutting them up and dumping them at the tip! one of my mates had one and the swingarm fell off! think "toys are us"