Chinese motorcycles in Russia - how justified is the choice?

Motorcycles, mopeds and scooters in Russia are in demand, albeit low. Wealthy people choose expensive Japanese, European and American-made bikes. Such motorcycles are expensive to maintain - only original spare parts are used for them.

Why Chinese motorcycles?

Many people need a simple and cheap two-wheeled transport with minimal gasoline consumption, and here the Chinese come to the rescue.

Available motorcycles were produced in the USSR:

• ? Light Minskys and Voskhods
  
• ? Medium Izh, plus Java was massively supplied to the country
  
• ? Heavy Ural and Dnieper
  

Now there is only one motorcycle left in Russia - this is the Urals, but it costs about a million rubles, which automatically makes the bike inaccessible to 99% of buyers.





It turns out a paradox - the demand for light motorcycles in Russia is high, but there are no domestic manufacturers. All attempts to create motorcycle factories began the same way - the assembly of Chinese technology, dreams of gradually switching to their own components and assemblies.

The maximum that turned out was the manufacture of frames on their own, but such motorcycles were more expensive with the same appearance and technical characteristics. The buyer saw two identical bikes at different prices, and took the cheaper one.

As a result, the market for new lightweight motorcycles, scooters and mopeds is dominated by Chinese vehicles, which can be divided into three categories:

• ? Tales from China
  
• ? The same models, but under the brand of a Russian seller
  
• ? Equipment like ZiD, Stealth and so on - sort of like domestic, but assembled from Chinese components
  

It turns out that one way or another, but the choice is predetermined. If not stock Japanese and Americans, then in any case, the motorist rests on the assortment of models from the Middle Kingdom. And if you close your eyes a little to the quality, then it is not so bad, this choice.

What China offers

In the early 2000s, Chinese motorcycles supplied to Russia were of low quality, they were sold in batches, and in a year or two they could bring in another model, leaving buyers without spare parts.



Now the situation has normalized, and there are no problems with spare parts for Chinese devices, although often the “body” panels have to be ordered directly. The quality of Chinese motorcycles is growing, they look stylish, but they cost 2-4 times cheaper than classmates from Japan.
For example, you can take the same mega-popular Yamaha YBR 125, which costs about 180 rubles new. A motorcycle of this kind from ZiD (Chinese, of course) costs 000 rubles.

There is only one way to reduce prices by more than 2 times - using cheap metal, plastic and structurally simple solutions. This has become the main reason for the Chinese to work with small-capacity motorcycles - they allow the use of low-quality raw materials, powerful bikes will fall apart under high loads.

Features of Chinese motorcycles

The most hassle-free part of any motorcycle from China is the engine. Chinese motors mainly have a working volume of up to 270 cubic centimeters. These are copies of old Japanese engines of different years of release, mainly until the mid-1980s.

What do the Chinese copy?

• ? 1958 Honda Super Cub
  
• ? Honda CB/CG
  
• ? Honda CBF125/150
  
• ? Suzuki GS/GN but rare
  

The Chinese engines turn out to be quite good, but during repairs, cases of thread failure are not uncommon, sometimes spare parts have to be processed with a file.



As for other nodes, they do not differ in strength - frames, handlebars, footrests, mounts and other metal elements often bend under severe loads. If you drive carefully, then the Chinese motorcycle will serve for years, if you give it high loads, it will begin to constantly break down on trifles.



Another nuance is the build quality. As a rule, in Russia, Chinese motorcycles are assembled by people "from the street", and not by professionals. They work on piecework wages - the more they collect and the faster, the more they get. As a result, you will never guess whether a new motorcycle will reach home after purchase without loss, or something will unscrew.

Who is recommended to buy Chinese equipment?

If the buyer is ready to periodically upgrade the iron horse, he is not afraid of breakdowns, then you can take a Chinese motorcycle. Engines calmly take care of at least 10 km, or even 000 km. After replacing the piston, which costs a penny, the motor is ready to go again.

It is better to buy Chinese motorcycles of well-known brands in Russia:

• ? Stels
  
• ? Lifan
  
• ? M1NSK
  
• ? ZiD and so on
  

Buying such a bike somehow guarantees the availability of spare parts, although not always.



After buying a Chinese motorcycle, it is advisable to disassemble it and reassemble it, but after putting all the threaded connections on the sealant, asking for the contacts, shifting the wiring away from the hot parts of the engine and places where it can catch or fray.
It is recommended to change the stars and chain for high-quality ones, the steering wheel too, put lubricants in all friction joints where it should be, but it usually isn’t there.

Pros and cons of Chinese motorcycles

The high demand for motorcycles from the Middle Kingdom hints that not everything is as bad as some claim. If we compare a modern Chinese bike with the Soviet Minsk, Voskhod or Izh, a guest from China will be much better. Now the conversation is not about the quality of steel, but about the technical characteristics.

You can ride Chinese motorcycles for a long time without repairs, yes, they will break down little things, bend, and so on, but they will move. Soviet models broke much more often.

Advantages of Chinese motorcycles:

• ? Low price, especially for used devices
  
• ? Cheap spare parts;
  
• ? Simplicity of design
  
• ? Ability to repair "in the field" with a minimum set of tools
  
• ? Choice among models
  
• ? Enduring Engines
  

There are many advantages, and judging by the fact that a huge amount of Chinese motorcycles travels along Russian roads, people have long appreciated this.



Cons of Chinese motorcycles:

• ? Frequent change of model range, after which it is difficult to get "body" spare parts
  
• ? Poor build quality and materials
  
• ? Spare parts sometimes do not fit, they need to be finalized with a file
  
• ? The resource of equipment is many times less than that of Japanese and even European-made motorcycles
  
• ? Corrosion susceptibility
  
• ? Bad "native" tires, chains, stars, brakes and consumables
  
• ? Attempts to tune the engine end badly - there is no margin of safety
  

Buying a Chinese motorcycle is a budget way to join the biker movement or an opportunity to move around with minimal financial costs. In order to understand whether a motorcycle is needed, a Chinese model will do. She will also teach you to understand the device and repair of motorcycles.

If you need a reliable bike and the budget allows, it is better to look towards Japanese manufacturers.