Shineray / XinYuan X5 review

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Originally Posted by bikerdoc

Woa, that is a serious safety issue... I'd be swaping the whole wheel to a mag wheel to be done with it.

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BD - Agree completely. Have not yet seen this on my bike, but I can bet it will be an issue very soon given how I ride and the fact that I weigh more than a Pixie! Next step is to verify the size and get to work finding a wheel to replace it with.

Am actually surprised at myself here...I have ALWAYS had problems with spokes here in China and for my CJ's I just completely replace the wheels with Mags by default now - and I have built 7 so far. Solid mag wheel is the only way to go, but I have no idea if they even MAKE one that would fit the front wheel, or if it would be necessary. Since most of the weight / impact pressure on these bikes in in the rear, my guess is that it would NOT be as much of an issue.

Shuben - If you can help me confirm the rear wheel specs, I can hit some shops here in the US while I'm traveling here and maybe find a replacement option. Will also be checking with some mech's about the sticky clutch issue to see what they would recommend. If interested, I might be able to order up and send over 2x once confirmed.

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Originally Posted by Serpentza

An analogy if I may...

Each day stuck in traffic in my car here in Shenzhen... I look at how the people in front of me are all trying desperately to squeeze into the same space, not allowing anyone in, blatantly blocking and taking any gap they can... I think to myself, if these buggers just learned how to merge and actually let the person in front of them into their lane, then we'd all be home already... then I try let someone in infront of me... and then the whole of Shenzhen's traffic squeezes into that gap I made for that one guy... and then I realise that rational thinking simply does not apply here. If I don't buy their product "in order to make them care about Quality Control"... then they'll sell it to someone else and I'll have to sit and swivel till the end of time :P

So the idea of buying a bike that has a great engine, frame, reasonable looks and potential for constantly being improved and enjoyed.. then I'll jump at the chance... Basically all of my bikes and cars my entire life have been rubbish, old, second hand, abused etc... but I've loved them all and also learnt to overcome just about every problem that can be thrown at me (mechanically... don't talk to me about women, that I'll never master).

When you're in China, a Chinese bike makes sense! However I understand people who don't want trouble since they either don't have patience or the skill to deal with niggles and problems, whatever floats your boats ;)
Anyway I'm in the process of selling most of my bikes to afford the X5 (I have the cash.. but I try to keep my "Bike" money separate from my other finances... also the wife can't touch that ;) )
:D

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Hear hear!!! Nice one Serpentza!

Totally agree. By the way, I also try to balance my TOY budget - If I wan a new bike / whatever, I have to sell something else. Tried to get my wife to think like this with her jewelry....that's when the argument started. :taz:

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Originally Posted by Golden boy

Hi all,

I have been following this thread with great interest for a while now. Very good review ShuBen and Chinasam... it made me really curious about the bike. Hopefully i gonna hold my chinese license in my hands in october and then I am ready to hit the road. I was at the Knightrider shop in Shanghai this weekend to have a look at the X5 - sadly there was no bike for a testride available. First buy - then try!

Whats do your opinion (especially ShuBen and Chinasam): Would you recommend buying the bike and do you think it could do a three months trip with a few modifications?
Is the clutchproblem solved now? Was that really just an issue of the oil? or is that a manufacturing problem.
Keep up the good work and enjoy your toys

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Gboy -
Really surprised the guys at KR shop didn't let you do a test ride. They only had new ones when I went there first time, and within 20 minutes I was able to talk them into letting take a quick spin around the block just to get a feel for the bike a bit before I made a decision.

Maybe you just look SHIFTY!?!? :naughty:

I contacted a seller today selling X5s in Foshan down here in Guangdong, I asked him if he could help me with the registration process, but he seemed unsure as he's never dealt with a foreigner before, I'm planning to go out there with the pope to go and have a chat with him... perhaps a wad of cash will grease the wheels here... :D

The rear wheel spec has to wait a few days as I am tomorrow on vacation and return on 5th Oct. (sunshine, sea, palm trees, long drinks, beach beauties :-) )

For the clutch issue I am considering to buy a set of friction disks from XR400 after checking the X5 clutch dimensions. Anyway the information I have says it is identical. (but better check than believe)

For kick stand or engine guard I had no problems yet. Except the stand spring end was a little to wide open and scratched my boots on the heel inside.

For the spoke issue I am disappointed about the Shineray quality guy. We sent him the same pics as published here and described the situation in Chinese ..... not any response ....

Someone was pointing on the CFR250 Honda .... GREAT bike .... I had tried this last winter in Thailand. After 4 hours offroad I brought it back exhausted and gained the next 4 days heavy muscle ache from my fun action.
I found that bike in TaoBao for 38500 RMB, but no clue if legal .... would love to own one .... seems to be VERY stable

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I've installed that GPS tracker from taobao... for those interested: http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...led-and-tested

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Originally Posted by ShuBen

some bike porn from the way up to WeiChang (400km northeast of BJ)
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TB-Racing, the German Rudi and myself had a overnight trip to WeiChang.
Nice road to get there through country side. Another way around planned back, but we end up with full 400km distance rain from 1st to last second.

The X5 did well. Only the chain seems to be made from cheap weak materials and gets longer and longer. In 2300km i readjusted the length 3 times already and after this tour its necessary again.
Any statements from the community? (Maybe I buy another one from Germany.)

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How did those bags work for you? I think I bought mine around the same time and the zippers all went to crap after about the third haul. Were crap from the beginning. My new M.O. is to stop buying cheap crap...

I just used them twice. Anyway they are not really water proof even with the included covers and yes, one of the Zips did open but I managed to fix it. I took a pliers and made the gap of the moving metal part a bit tighter. But for a big trip I would invest in Alu boxes.
Again: cheap price = cheap stuff (I didn't buy them with high quality expectations)

A quick update from my side.

After a few months of doing the motorcycle license back in my home country and finally doing the chinese license test - am ready to go.
For the chinese license i can also highly recommend the "Driving in China" Iphone app. The translation was a bit different than in the actual test but it was a great tool for preparation.
I really wanted to avoid to fail and wait another six! weeks for the next appointment. - So I practiced quite a bit
After looking at the X5 at the Knight rider shop and Cf Moto i decided to buy it at Knight rider.
Both shops let you do a testride if you call them in advance.
Jeff at CF moto is a really nice guy and there was a whole bunch of chinese riders hanging out at the shop.
They had an already sold X5 ready for a ride... with aluminum boxes and all.
After several attempts to start up the bike which included getting water out of the engine I could go for a ride.
After 500m the bike broke down on a heavy traffic intersection and I couldnt start it up agian... so i pushed it back to the shop.
I waited an hour or so for them to fix the problem before I gave up.
Jeff told me that there gets water into the tank if the bike stands outside in heavy rain for a longer time - two days before Shanghai was hit by a Taifun - so that might be true...but still hard to believe.

My friend already bought his X2 at the Knight rider shop and always had good experiences with the owners and the mechanics. so I decided to go with them
After a downpayment they said they need two weeks to get plates and all the documents. When I picked the bike up it had already 100km on the clock - so I think they also used it for testriding for potential buyers over the last two weeks.
I am riding now for a week and its a lot of fun!
As its my first motorcycle ever I dont have much to compare to - except my electric scooter - I really like the high seating position and the overall dimensions. its quite slim around the tank and with my 175 cm height it fits me perfectly.
Everything seems fine so far
I rode around 60 km around Pudong and after i came back the license plate was just loosely hanging on one screw. Easy to solve
Also when I go over a bit deeper manholes I hear a noise as somethings loose around the Instruments area.
I doublechecked and i couldnt find anything.
The guys at knight rider told me its the noise of the of the front suspension when I went there yesterday for the first Oil change... I dont think the suspension would make that kind of noise - so I keep my ears and eyes open.
Generally riding around the city is quite exhausting - traffic is crazy as usual and riding on the normal road I feel more vulnerable than with the scooter on the side - also I didnt realize how many one-way roads are there - as I did mostly ignore them on the scooter. I will get used to that
Next weekend I will do a longer trip to Suzhou and see how the bike does on the three hour ride there.

The noise, rattling sounds, vibrations ...... continuously I hear all of these ... since 9000km. The front sound "CLONK" when hitting a pothole I know too and never found something wrong.
Until now the bike runs good..... If you check out what the X5 riders experiences say here and if you stay on top of maintenance it should be ok.
I advise to inspect the bike shortly before and after each ride as you may found things lose or worn out. The bike washing i also do myself because it gives you the chance to look in all that corners you don't check normally. Whenever I found lose screws or during re assembly I use removeable screw glue (kind of locktite) to make sure they are reliable fixed.

Hi GoldenBoy & ShuBen,

yes the "CLONK" I know too well.... in the beginning I was quite nervous about it and checked frenetically the steering head and other things, though couldn't find anything... I still have it and get used to it after 1400km... I think ShuBen has a valid point there... just check before and after a long ride and you should be fine... :thumbsup:

Hi everybody.
i have a issue with the chocke.

I use the choke to start the bike up and when the engine is running smoothly I pull it back a little.
But also after riding for a while i cannot remove the choke totally. if I pull it back halfway the engine will turn off on each traffic light.
Anybody got the same issue?
Is that something I can adjust by myself?

have you adjusted the idle speed in warm engine condition? It should run on 1300 +/-100 RPM

This carburetor is still a mysterious thing. When I open the Chock the first moment it runs on higher RPM but then very fast the RPMs going down and finally the engine stops.
I also tried to adjust the pilot screw in warm condition but the effect is minimal to nothing. Only when I reach the inner or outer limit the idle speed changes. Over the long wide distance between in and out it doesnt change at all. (?????)

I call the the carb experts ...... HELP with knowledge!

The gas cap is not water tight, when it rains water gets in the tank. Doe anyone have any suggestions?

might be able to cure that with a large o-ring. You can buy them from an engineering supply outfit or if you cant find the right size some rubber tube about 3-4 mm diameter and some super glue. Just make sure the tank can still vent...

Also if you already have water in the gas adding about half a cup of meths to the tank will emulsify the water and allow the engine to eat it.

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Originally Posted by zhu

might be able to cure that with a large o-ring. You can buy them from an engineering supply outfit or if you cant find the right size some rubber tube about 3-4 mm diameter and some super glue. Just make sure the tank can still vent...

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Surely there must be a O-ring or similar already fitted to the X5. If not then it's a serious oversight, and if there is, then something needs to be done by the manufacturer. I'd be getting the bike back to the dealer and after being polite, creaming bloody "blue murder" stamping my feet until something gets done. Sounds childish, but TIC and that's pretty much how it works when trying to get results. YMMV.

Under the tank nozzle is a rubber ring plate inner diameter about orifice size , outer diameter same as the outer nozzle size. The rubber will be fixed between fuel tank plastic and nozzle by the 5 allen bolts that hold the nozzle in place.
I assume the water goes through the lock into the tank.

Deleted. Nevermind.... I can't seem to find a delete button.

Shuben, did you replace your clutch discs with ones from XR400? I remember reading that you were thinking about it, I wonder if they fit.
Im thinking of buying X5. I have 2 options:
-sell my YBR250, add some cash and get the X5 or
-keep YBR250 and buy the X2X
Im just trying to get all the possible info before i make up my mind

no, I haven't done the clutch disc replacement because after I had a oil change the problem was gone. During my last maintenance activity I found another thing:

The X5 is very sensitive for the positioning of the rear wheel. In the past I had just checked the position marking at the swing arm to adjust the rear wheel and chain.
Then a unusual chain rattling sound came up on my good DID chain.
At last maintenance time I saw that the chain was not straight between front and rear sprocket. So I used a laser pointer along the chain to get a straight positioning and measured the left and right distance from rim to outer swing arm edge.
I found the rim before correction was out of center about 8mm to the left.
Now with the rim and chain adjustment the sound is gone.

One question to the experts here:
When putting up the bike on a stand so that the rear wheel can turn freely without load and then run the engine in gear 1, the chain starts jumping on the way from rear to front sprocket and want to jump over the small sprocket. Is that normal?

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Originally Posted by ShuBen

no, I haven't done the clutch disc replacement because after I had a oil change the problem was gone. During my last maintenance activity I found another thing:

The X5 is very sensitive for the positioning of the rear wheel. In the past I had just checked the position marking at the swing arm to adjust the rear wheel and chain.
Then a unusual chain rattling sound came up on my good DID chain.
At last maintenance time I saw that the chain was not straight between front and rear sprocket. So I used a laser pointer along the chain to get a straight positioning and measured the left and right distance from rim to outer swing arm edge.
I found the rim before correction was out of center about 8mm to the left.
Now with the rim and chain adjustment the sound is gone.

One question to the experts here:
When putting up the bike on a stand so that the rear wheel can turn freely without load and then run the engine in gear 1, the chain starts jumping on the way from rear to front sprocket and want to jump over the small sprocket. Is that normal?

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First: do not EVER assume the markings on the swing-arm above or below the chain adjuster blocks are accurate. Mostly, they are not so if you set the adjusters to say the fourth mark on each side, chances are the wheel will not be aligned correctly, which means the chain line will not be right, with the result that the chain will not be running straight over both sprockets. That in turn will lead to premature wearing of the chain and sprockets, and will have a deleterious effect on the motorcycle's handling.

Second, chain jumping on sprockets: If the chain is adjusted correctly - about 20 mm free-play in the middle of the run between the two sprockets with the rider sitting n the bike, loading the rear suspension - there should be no jumping. If the chain is very slack mid-run, it will lead to 'standing waves' being set up on the chain run between the sprockets when the motorcycle is being ridden.

Thanks for speedy answer Shuben!

Could anyone politely provide me with a link or links to some threads on Chinese motorcycle forums about the X5? I want to do some more reading about its problems.
Now, i did some google translate and baidu but the results arent great, I guess i didnt search the right frase.
Thanks in advance!

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Originally Posted by modron

Thanks for speedy answer Shuben!

Could anyone politely provide me with a link or links to some threads on Chinese motorcycle forums about the X5? I want to do some more reading about its problems.
Now, i did some google translate and baidu but the results arent great, I guess i didnt search the right frase.
Thanks in advance!

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To get you started...

Motorfans
Shineray forum
Shineray news (English)
ADVrider forum
Moto8 forum
XJMoto forum
Weifengtang forum
Motorcycle SH forum

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Originally Posted by Rewi Alley

If the chain is adjusted correctly - about 20 mm free-play in the middle of the run between the two sprockets with the rider sitting n the bike, loading the rear suspension - there should be no jumping. If the chain is very slack mid-run, it will lead to 'standing waves' being set up on the chain run between the sprockets when the motorcycle is being ridden.

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+1

I get someone to help me measure/adjust my chain with me on the bike (loaded). Then after it is adjusted, I hop off and check how much slack the unloaded bike has. I use that unloaded slack as a reference for when I need to check/adjust my chain by myself.

Not sure, but I'd guess the X5 has lots of suspension travel, so chain adjustment is probably quite important.

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Originally Posted by bikerdoc

To get you started...

Motorfans
Shineray forum
Shineray news (English)
ADVrider forum
Moto8 forum
XJMoto forum
Weifengtang forum
Motorcycle SH forum

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http://www.dallasartsrevue.com/shows...ul-J226400.jpg

BJ offroad play with X2 and X5 (Barry and me)
Winter is coming, we saw the first iced mud path and the temperature dropped significantly at the end of our ride.

still big fun ..... enjoy some pics

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Great pics ShuBen. A couple of us just collected our X5s, 3 to be exact (bought from Jeff Zhu in Shanghai) and after 130km the engine is leaking oil like crazy on mine. Everyone too have some sort of leak. Was wondering if anyone following this thread have similar experience and knows exactly what to rectify? I am guessing engine bolts not torqued to specification or cheap gaskets. Many thanks.

the leaking story I know:

Check all the hose connections of the oil cooler system and re tighten them. It is most probably coming from there and pollute your engine. I had this problem too. It seems in the assembly they don't fix it well or these hoses are cheap stuff.
For it just came up 2 week ago after 9000 km and was solved in a minute. Its only annoying that everything is oily.

Let us know if this could fix you trouble.

... and check all bolts and nuts and buy some screw glue

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Originally Posted by ShuBen

the leaking story I know:

Check all the hose connections of the oil cooler system and re tighten them. It is most probably coming from there and pollute your engine. I had this problem too. It seems in the assembly they don't fix it well or these hoses are cheap stuff.
For it just came up 2 week ago after 9000 km and was solved in a minute. Its only annoying that everything is oily.

Let us know if this could fix you trouble.

... and check all bolts and nuts and buy some screw glue

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Thanks for the quick reply! Yup will give it a run through and hopefully, it wouldn't be a problem. We hope to explore Moganshan with the X5 soon!