Any current bikers got any experience of Chinese motorcycles, in particular Lexmoto? Age is making cycling a bit of a chore nowdays as I don't have time to ride enough to keep my fitness up and it's just too hilly round here for the occasional run out. I still want two wheels for a plod round the lanes but I don't want to get back into anything big or expensive. 175 would be ideal, but the learner laws seem to have killed anything between 125 and 500 stone dead. I've seen these Lexmotos for under a grand and they seem to get decent reviews, and are fast enough to keep up with the rural traffic flow.
I wonder if they have any reputation regarding reliability or finish. I'm not really interested in going down the second hand Jap route as any used learner bike is likely to be a dog.
|
They'll get better. They have to.
But from recent experience, avoid.
Finish lasts about a week - then the tinworm appears. Chrome lasts about 2 weeks - ditto.
Mechanically, there may be a few problems - and what will the dealer back-up be like?
|
Loads of Lexmoto here. About as good as MZ & Jawa were in the late 70s, i.e. not very, but ok.
>>as any used learner bike is likely to be a dog.
No, not so. A dog in what way? Engines can take a brutal amount of abuse these days, so provided the thing doesn’t look like its slid down the street and across a kerb, it’ll probably be fine.
|
>> No, not so. A dog in what way? Engines can take a brutal amount of
>> abuse these days, so provided the thing doesn’t look like its slid down the street
>> and across a kerb, it’ll probably be fine.
>>
>>
Looking on ebay about 90% of them seem to have suffered that fate.
|
Perhaps, but it’s easy to spot. You don't really need to worry unnecessarily about the hidden unknown.
What you see, is almost certainly what you'll get.
|
>> >> No, not so. A dog in what way? Engines can take a brutal amount
>> of
>> >> abuse these days, so provided the thing doesn’t look like its slid down the
>> street
>> >> and across a kerb, it’ll probably be fine.
>> >>
>> >>
>> Looking on ebay about 90% of them seem to have suffered that fate.
Why worry about it, your'll end up doing yourself at some stage,
|
|
Just been out for a spin on the jointly owned ER6 that my wife normally rides. This Jap badged middleweight was made in Thailand but the finish is as good as anything Japanese. I was meeting a friend (the one who crashed quite spectacularly 12 months ago, to the day almost as it happens, in France last year). He was bikeless for 6 months after the crash and eventually landed himself a brand new Bonnie. In the meantime he was using his little 07 Lifean 125cc to commute and undertook two long trips on, the most recent to Ypres and back three weeks ago (I went with him on my GS) - The bike still looks good despite all year round use. He's had some minor electrical issues with it that you'd never get on a Japanese or Euro bike but he loves it. He looks after his kit and the bike looks pretty good. The Chinese are coming....!
|
>> the bike looks pretty good The Chinese are coming....!
Excellent, I'll have some free prawn crackers with that no 67 and no 42.
|
Anyone else been watching that "China on four wheels" documentary? 'King scary ! Can't remember the numbers but some big amount of expensive imported cars being bought daily for example.
Biggest market for European luxury goods. Often, hugely paradoxically of course, made in...China.
Funny old world. I was at a trade show in Milan this week and sold a large consignment of British designed but Chinese made products to a large Chinese retail chain who specialise in Euopean and American brands.
My brain hurts.
|
|
I saw a Dutch registered, Japanese Badged, British built car the other day - that made mine hurt....
|
|
Why not spend a tiny bit more and buy something that's not made in a country with a record of appalling human rights abuses, a scathing altitude to IP, and a history of propping up vile regimes?
|
|
The UK isn't that bad these days FF....!
|
>> Why not spend a tiny bit more and buy something that's not made in a
>> country with a record of appalling human rights abuses, a scathing altitude to IP, and
>> a history of propping up vile regimes?
>>
Where did I say I wanted a Harley Davidson?
|
>>that's not made in a country with a record of appalling human rights abuses, a scathing altitude to IP, and a history of propping up vile regimes?
Damn. They make bikes on the moon?
The Human Race has a record of appalling human rights abuses.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Sat 22 Sep 12 at 21:07
|
>> I saw a Dutch registered, Japanese Badged, British built car the other day - that
>> made mine hurt....
you must have just popped your Cherry.
|
|
It was a CRV .....I'm somewhat tempted to get back into one....now the new one is out.
|
Fair enough. Old people do seem to like Hondas. Crack on I say.
:-)
|
Hee Hee...I love that six cylinder though..
Chinese made scooters are getting popular as the Japanese and Germans have priced themselves out of reach.
|
|
Talk to a bike mechanic. You won't find one that recomends a Chinese product.
|
Talk to a bike mechanic. You won't find one that recomends a Chinese product.
Didn't that be said of Japanese bikes in the early 70s ?
|
|
...and, Skodas more recently than that eh?
|
>> Age is making cycling a bit of a chore nowdays as I don't have time to ride enough to keep my fitness up and it's just too hilly round here for the occasional run out.
Have you considered the latest pedelec cycles?
One of my patients with fairly knackered lungs (read probably can barely manage a couple of hundred yards walking on the flat) bought one of these and finds it excellent for getting around, managing hills without too much trouble.
Not sure which brand but there's a fair few out there.
The better ones with Li-ion batteries seem good for 50+ miles between charges depending upon how much assistance you need.
This appears to be one of the 'Rolls Royce' pedelecs:
www.50cycles.com/product.htm?product=kalkhoff-agattu-premium-c11-impulse
I found this comment interesting -
"I bought the bike to try and improve my health. It's very difficult to articulate a qualitative target like the last statement to other people as it tends to be quite subjective so Ill try and make it more objective for you.
I'm a type 2 diabetic. I have been for seven years. At the beginning of April 2012 I took 2000mg of Metformin and injected 18 unit of Insulin twice daily to control my diabetes. A week ago I stopped all my diabetic medication on the advice of my Doctor and Diabetic nurse. Not a miracle. Just 200km a week on a bike that allowed me to maintain a constant effort without leaving me struggling to recover. When I was put on Insulin at Xmas I was told it was statistically unlikely I would ever get off it."
I have no reason to doubt this statement - I've seen quite a few diabetics go from serious meds to nothing through exercise and weight loss alone.
|
Two and a half grand for a bike with an electric motor?
|
Dare I say that the Chinese do a version of these - A friend used to sell them from his small bicycle shop. Seem to be solid enough bikes that never came back for warranty work.
www.powabyke.com/
|
>>Dare I say that the Chinese do a version of these
Thought I'd seen the same thing in a shop in Buxton recently, but they were "Juicy Bikes" - similar prices
www.eco-republic.co.uk/shopbikes.asp
www.juicybike.co.uk/
The shop seems to be the importer and they are also Chinese -
www.electricbikemag.co.uk/showStory.php?storynum=72
|
>>
>> Have you considered the latest pedelec cycles?
>>
No chance.
I'm a bike snob, if it don't look like you could ride the Tour de France on it I'm not interested.
|
Why not go "classic" there was a very tasty little Honda RS250 in the classifieds of Motorcycle Sport last month.
Not knowing your budget, one of these appeals to me. Japanese - properly made, good for 70mph - much approved of by GS riders as a second bike.
www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201223474712379/sort/recpriceascdefault/usedbikes/cc-from/200cc/cc-to/300cc/model/xt/make/yamaha/radius/1500/postcode/ll625rg/page/1?logcode=p
|
|
It's over £3k. Seems a lot for a little bike ,to me.
|
One of our bike club members, Fred, now deceased, used a bike to get everywhere since National Service. He was with the Transport Corps as a bike mechanic, so knew his stuff.
At the age of about 73, he added a Wolf 125 to his fleet. It looked to be a very nice little machine, seemingly well put together. He was very pleased with it and came regularly to the club on it.
I believe he had a car but I never once saw it in about 15 yrs of friendship. We took him on one of our camping trips to Southern Germany and weaned him off tea and chips onto German beer and pasta.
He took one of the bigger bikes, I think it was a Kawasaki Triumph replica, with a sidecar. Big mistake ! The camber was wrong for a chair on the British nearside and it was a pig to handle although it was useful for all the tents !
|
My two cents worth on this subject; buy Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha or Piaggio if you want something that will last and be easy to get spares for. A few non-Japanese makes are getting there (Daelim and Hyosung) but the vast majority are junk which are unlikely to outlast their warranties.
I've run a Honda SCV100 for three years; it has been totally reliable, only probs have been rot around the exhaust mountings and a dodgy starter button which was cured by a strip-down and a good clean of the contacts, a ten-minute job.
|
|
Forgot to say, bit of local knowledge; Lamo's in Llandissilio is as good a place as any to shop for a scoot. In fact now that Garlands has closed it's probably the only place down your way.
|
>> Forgot to say, bit of local knowledge; Lamo's in Llandissilio is as good a place
>> as any to shop for a scoot. In fact now that Garlands has closed it's
>> probably the only place down your way.
>>
After a bit of internet research (and the opinions expressed here) the Chinese option is now out of the question. Opinions are running at 99% bad to very bad.
You're right about Lamo's being the only dealer within miles. It's a pity about Garlands as he was always fair with me when I did have a bike. I'm not sure what happened there but I think he lost all his main dealer franchises and that coupled with the closing of Haverfordwest test centre hit him hard. He reckons he lost a fortune when the local bike instructors either packed up or moved elsewhere.
|
>> You're right about Lamo's being the only dealer within miles. It's a pity about Garlands
>> as he was always fair with me when I did have a bike. I'm not
>> sure what happened there but I think he lost all his main dealer franchises and
>> that coupled with the closing of Haverfordwest test centre hit him hard. He reckons he
>> lost a fortune when the local bike instructors either packed up or moved elsewhere.
>>
Yes Dai's a decent bloke; I know him through the VMCC.
Referring to my earlier post, I may have the older Honda up for sale once I get the new one sorted; it needs a bit of work for MOT (exhaust and front suspension bushes IIRC) but it's mechanically sound if a bit scruffy. Won't want a fortune for it so if you're interested let me know.
|
>> Referring to my earlier post, I may have the older Honda up for sale once
>> I get the new one sorted;
>>
The Honda's a scoot though, isn't it HM? 'Fraid I'm strictly a bike man.
|
>> The Honda's a scoot though, isn't it HM? 'Fraid I'm strictly a bike man.
>>
So was I till I bought this one! It really is so handy, and the enforced use of the other bikes at the moment only serves to reinforce the scooter's qualities for a short-range commuter and general gadabout.
What sort of bike are you after? The old Honda CD200 Benly sounds like it'd be an ideal tool, but they're getting quite desirable and command good money even though they're over 20 years old.
Might be worth you popping in to Pembrokeshire Classics just outside Narberth, on the Tavernspite road. He has a lot of 70's/80's Jap stuff in there, might even find yourself something more modern he's taken in part-ex. Or if you want something a bit bigger, there's an FT500 single on e-bay at the moment, seller's in Kidwelly. Would've fancied it meself but I've got far too many toys as it is, and a fire in me garage three weeks ago has left me in a bit of a mess.
|
>> Might be worth you popping in to Pembrokeshire Classics just outside Narberth, on the Tavernspite
>> road. He has a lot of 70's/80's Jap stuff in there, might even find yourself
>> something more modern he's taken in part-ex. Or if you want something a bit bigger,
>> there's an FT500 single on e-bay at the moment, seller's in Kidwelly.
>>
Thanks for the tip about Pembrokeshire Classics, I'd never heard of them till now. I remember the FT 500, or the Honda Foot as it was nicknamed. I seem to recall it suffering from the usual big single problem of stalling at tickover due to running out of puff between bangs, and then being a mare to restart the hot engine.
|
Ah the FT500 - big single, I seem to remember them all as being red for some reason. Was it kick start only ?
I would second HM's view on scoots, don't disregard them - I've been a dyed in the wool biker for over 30 years. The scoot I bought in the summer is a hoot to ride. Two potential pitfalls though.
1. Don't try to ride the scoot like a bike - it'll hurt in the end.
2. Don't ride a bike like a sccot - that could be very embarrassing in a Mickey D car park....
Didn't fall off either time though !
|
|
Do you still have to dress up like Sir Lancelot to ride a scoot?
|
|
The received wisdom is you don't. I do for work simply because I keep my office wear - jeans/trainers in work. And there always is the falling off thing. I'm old but not bold. Maybe if I had a shorter commute I wouldn't bother. BMW do a very nice one piece "city" overall with armour (£1000.00) not going there !
|
>> Do you still have to dress up like Sir Lancelot to ride a scoot?
>>
You wouldn't think so, but that's often the downfall of inexperienced riders. They see the scoot as having leg protection and they've also seen all the films of teenagers bopping through Italian plazas in t-shirt and shorts, and they soon find out it hurts just as much coming off a scooter as a bike.
I use one of those open-face lids with a flip visor for the scoot; it's no good on the Harleys as the visor flaps at anything over 50mph, but ideal for commuting in Welsh downpours. Old but sturdy Buffalo jacket with body armour, ex-army camo leggings if raining too heavily.
There have been several feeble attempts to get the helmet law rescinded on scooters. None, thankfully, have succeeded, and nor should they, reasons in first paragraph. It would be akin to rescinding the seat-belt law for Nissan Micras.
|
And therein lies the problem with Biking. I gave it up about 30 years ago, and of course have had the mid life crisis born again again biker urges (specially when someone mentions Bonnevilles) and then I look at all the hastle of being winched into the suit of armour and the urge goes again. Quickly. I would look more stupid than I do now if I had a Richard the third hunchback duck walk.
Last edited by: Zero on Mon 24 Sep 12 at 09:28
|
BONNEVILLE !!!!
Triumph have some very good deals including 800 quids worth of riding kit. It's all very modern and high tech this days - textile suits with built in armour etc.
Go on you know you want to. I dare you.
|
>> Loads of Lexmoto here. About as good as MZ & Jawa were in the late
>> 70s, i.e. not very, but ok.
>>
No comparison. Jawa and MZ were old-fashioned and a bit crude, but were reasonably well made; MZ's in particular have an enviable reputation for durability. They also had a good dealer network back in the day and spares were cheap and plentiful; in fact they still are.
The vast majority of Chinese motorcycles are poorly made from inferior materials and are sold on e-bay or by people with little or no skills or back-up.
|
You can still get Jawas as I'm sure you know. No idea whether they're any good...the Ural people sell them.
www.jawamotorcycles.co.uk/
I had an MZ250 once, the ugly one with the faired in headlight. It plodded along with little maintenance, I just lost my bottle when a car pulled out on a dual carriageway and I did about 50 yards on the central reservation next to the armco at 60mph.
There's a Royal Enfield dealer in Tring...
I'm so out of touch with bikes, that's not a suggestion!
Last edited by: Manatee on Sun 23 Sep 12 at 18:28
|
I am strangely tempted by one of these electric bikes. They do seem expensive to buy but for the sort of daily driving I do now - 10-mile round trips for trivial shopping - they would be a lot cheaper to run than a 2 litre petrol car.
Even more tempting are claims that a bit of gentle pedal assistance transforms the health of people of my age with appalling habits and lifestyles within weeks. Could this be true? I suppose I will have to try and get a trial ride on one and see how demanding this pedal assistance will be.
Harleyman doesn't even give electric bikes the time of day but recommends Honda 50s and the like. When hacking in Chad I used to hire a sort of belt-and-chain driven moped thingy for four quid a day to get round the capital, a town with no hills. I can't remember what make it was but you pedalled it until it was rolling along and then let the clutch in and opened the throttle. It could wind up to about 35 I reckon. It had a sort of CVT arrangement and the belts could get twisted. But the locals understood the thing and could untwist them.
The AP man, a distinguished old hack with a big expense account who had hired the only Peugeot 504 in town, teased me by saying I was letting the western press down by riding that prole thing. He was all right though. The man the Emperor Bokassa bashed over the head with a stick for filing something uncomplimentary.
|
If we are talking about e-bikes, how about one of these:
tinyurl.com/chzsgon
I am not sure if it would be road-legal in the UK though In Germany it counts as a moped.
|
I certainly recommend the old East German MZ... I did have one when I did courier work for a while in London in the 80's , crude but reliable as hell and much cheaper to run than the big bikes and easier to get through the traffic....
The later Scorpion made in Turkey I believe was a nice looking bike as well.
I remember being stopped in Parliament Square by a copper who checked my documents ( particularly to see I had business insurance ) and when he found everything in order he was quite chatty and mentioned he had stopped a courier MZ once with over 200 K on the clock....
|
I had an e-mail from some company a few weeks back offering a brand new "Lexmoto" 125 commuter for a ridiculous £1049 on the road, including a 12 month warranty!
I would imagine it's pretty miserable to ride, but that is a very cheap commuting tool assuming it's even half reliable. Ride it for 3 yrs, and chuck it away before you have to bother with an MOT or major parts replacement.
Although I'd hate to think how bad the tyres are, among other things...
|
>>
>> I would imagine it's pretty miserable to ride, but that is a very cheap commuting
>> tool assuming it's even half reliable. Ride it for 3 yrs, and chuck it away
>> before you have to bother with an MOT or major parts replacement.
>>
>> Although I'd hate to think how bad the tyres are, among other things...
>>
If they were even half reliable I'd be tempted to agree with you. The problem is that they aren't, by and large; and if it does go wrong, where do you take it for repairs? A fair number of motorcycle dealers, with a certain amount of justification, treat these bikes with extreme suspicion and won't touch them with the proverbial barge-pole.
The warranties really are not worth the paper they're written on with stuff like this.
Last edited by: Harleyman on Mon 24 Sep 12 at 15:00
|
My friend has been lucky - 15k on a bike he paid less than a grand for new - he's had to put a new tyre on it (Metzler) and his throttle cable broke last year and blown a few tail lights but otherwise reliable and a first time starter. He took it to Belgium three weeks ago to prove the minimalist mobility stuff works. 800 miles, not a drop of oil used and turning around a 100mpg. It wouldn't be my chariot of choice - I find 125s to damned slow. Worth peanuts now but it got a new MoT and ready for another 12 months commuting. What maintenance it needs he does it himself, doesn't need software !
Photo of the Chinese beast of burden in Milton Keynes Tesco. The suave guy in the background is me.
www.flickr.com/photos/67389469@N02/8019826714/in/set-72157631612215074/
Last edited by: R.P. on Mon 24 Sep 12 at 15:50
|
Chinese Bikes - Ian (Cape Town)
