New rider British in Shanghai. Want to buy first bike

Hi there, I'm a fairly new user of the site. I find it very useful as a resource. I am a Brit and have lived in China for nearly six years. Last year, I was bitten by the motorcycle bug. I got my Chinese license- C1D- last October and promptly went down to Yunnan to rent a bike(Got pictures of that- six days Dali-Lijiang-Baoshan and back). This was with tibetmoto.de An outfit I'd highly recommend for rental or tours. Helmut there helped me a lot even when I had a traffic police issue. I spent six days riding in the mountains of Yunnan on that trip on a Shineray X5 400cc .It was challenging but exhilarating. Since then, I have been looking to buy my first bike in China.

This is a total obsession, something maybe you can all relate to, but it's weird having this new hobby and passion in a foreign country. I got my license after many exasperating experiences...in Shanghai.. and then the next problem of actually riding here. I had adventures in Yunnan but also an injury. Despite these problems, this bike thing won't go away.

The problems I'm having atm concern buying and registering a bike. As you know Shanghai has a crazy plate system, so I'm considering moving out of the center of Shanghai in order to follow this passion. The difficult thing also is that every time I look at a bike for sale (four ridden now-( I took time off work and travelled to Nanjing the other week) , the rabbit hole seems to get deeper. Seems that all decent bikes (IE Japanese) are actually not sold here and the apps like XianYU offer many many illegal" bikes."I say illegal but an English speaking seller last week explained to me that all Chinese are aware of this and there are ways around it. There are however Chinese agencies or individuals that can register smuggled bikes and get plates. This all seems extremely clandestine, so I'm turning my attention again to Chinese made bikes. It's frustrating though.. Chinese police and sellers seem to present different versions of the truth, so I really want a way to talk to expats and other motorcycle enthusiasts on here in English.

So I want to meet fellow enthusiasts, get advice and share stories.
Pictures from the trip mentioned above (Dali-Lijiang- Baoshan Shitoucheng) in November 2016, with the trusty Shineray x5 400ccAttachment 19122Attachment 19123Attachment 19124Attachment 19125Attachment 19126

More pictures from the trip mentioned above (Dali-Lijiang- Baoshan Shitoucheng) in November 2016 Attachment 19127Attachment 19128Attachment 19129Attachment 19130Attachment 19131

Hi and welcome to MCM
Have A look at the Honda CB 500X which is now available in China.
Also consider contacting BikerDoc on here as I do hear he could be selling his BMW F650 GS ( Legel and plated ) and he is located very near you ?
I am located in Shandong province and I am just about to leave Thailand on the 24th March to pick up my bike that I left in kumming to finish the final leg of a 10 month ride China to UK and back again.
Hoping to have 4 weeks riding around Yunnan and Sichuan.
You have got this far by obtaining you C1D.
DON'T consider I clone plated illegal bike.

Cheers for the support. Your trip sounds epic. Surely it's what every biker wants to do..go trans-continental.
Thanks for your suggestions re bikes. As I said, I rode a 400cc in Yunnan and that was manageable, but dropped it in the dirt with painful and lasting effects. Um.. so I looked at the same Shineray for sale by a chinese chap from the Xianyu app in Nanjing earlier this month. Same bike, but suddenly seemed beyond me- maybe a bit spooked by the state of it- seat was not attached and actually came off when I first threw my leg over it. I'm far from an expert but pretty sure the back brake had a habit of sticking. The owner said"oh that's because this bike doesn't have ABS" fair enough, but the well cared for bike that I rented in Dali from The German guy didn't lock up and throw it's back wheel out once. Turned that one down.
Next stop was a dr250xc 2017 sold locally. Luckily the guy spoke English. Bike is in great condition- he's hardly ridden it in four years and never dropped it. Also kept under cover. To my untrained eye, it looks new. Apart from an inability to locate neutral when stopped, very nice. Anyway, the thing abut this bike, apart from the price tag 19500 was that he said it is shuihuo- smuggled. As such he can't give me his blue book or green book. It cannot guohu. He can however put me in contact with the same person who plated it for his and hopefully get all papers and plates for 2000 kuai. Dodgy? Yes. Legal? Anyone know?
So, I really like the bike and I think the weight is good for further training plus it's dual sport so great for off road. The problem comes that it's set way above the kelley blue book suggested price of $2,085 (okay, it's China, I'll swallow that) but more so that registration process leaves me upon purchase with a bike that's not legally mine. By all acccounts this is common.
Does anyone have advice?
I'm having to take in the wacky plating system here, then the fact I live in Shanghai... hmmm. I won't quite, but...

Wait a minute.. so you've ridden from the UK to China and you're about to ride back? Crikey.
Would love to do that. AtM I only have a Chinese motorcycle license so will have to get back to Blighty at some time to get a U.K one. Haha, also need a bike....

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Originally Posted by Metalmonkey

Wait a minute.. so you've ridden from the UK to China and you're about to ride back? Crikey.
Would love to do that. AtM I only have a Chinese motorcycle license so will have to get back to Blighty at some time to get a U.K one. Haha, also need a bike....

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No I live in China rode to the UK and 25 EU country's and then back to China.
Now please STAY away from bikes which are not fully legal.
Don't matter what a Chinese friends say he can or can't do ?

Your Chinese C1D is legal in the UK no problems.

Hi and welcome to MCM. Always good to have new riders around.

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Originally Posted by prince666

Now please STAY away from bikes which are not fully legal.

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This answers your question completely. You might be lucky with the coppers and they wont pull you over but when you have an accident (yes, its WHEN not IF here) you will be responsible for everything and might even face deportation. The other thing is that you would have to get a new registration every year or two so more $$$.

There are some "ok" options here for a first bike. Browse through the site and Im sure youll find something.

p.s. Did you pass your license in Chinese?

Yeah, Only did a written test in Chinglish at the Hami lu centre. Kept saying are you sure this is a full license? I speak Chinese but the intricacies of traffic law and motorcycles is beyond me. But, yes, I got a C1D.
Feels like this road has had a few bumps in it. hmmmm. Amazed last year I started looking at pictures of the kawasaki 250tr and thought it looked great. I looked on here and found that I could get a license in China with my British driver's license. Anyway, then found the tr is not available here, then that the klr650 is also not for sale in china...disappointing.
Now, what with living in Shanghai, the plot seems to thicken when it comes to buying and registering a bike.. ah well. I'm on this forum now. Jopefully can help.

I'd like to ask anyone who knows, what is the heritage of the Qingqi qm200gy? Seen on here that it's a faithful copy of the Suzuki dr200. That would be great. Actually, when I baidu the model, a picture of this site's owner turns up:) Is the build quality good? problems with the bike? What about the 250cc version?

Thanks,

From what I hear the QM250GY is insanely reliable for a china bike. My buddy had one for over 60k km with no problems, and I know of at least 2 other ones that give no headaches to their owners. They are sold in the UK under Sinnis Apache and Pulse adrenaline brand (dunno if Im spelling correctly). They do have some long warranty period in the UK so Im guessing they dont break in the first few years ;)

That's interesting above re the qm250gy. Put onto this from an old vid of serpentza's.... How come there are not more motovloggers like him in China? Am I wrong, or was he in China nine years ago posting?
Anyway....
@Prince 666 What did you ride to the U.K and back?

Was gonna post a massive rant about the system here/lack of Japanese (legal) bikes. Thanks for Bikerdoc's PM...

Umm...The drz400 seems to be a really popular bike for long distance travel. Don't suppose anyone knows of a legal one for sale in the PRC.... heck, or a Kawasaki klx250
Pretty much giving up on the XianYu （闲鱼） app at this point...

Did you note the Jialing for sale here in this forum? The plate is legal and even though not a Shanghai plate, it could but good for a while. As long as you do not plan to cruise the Bund daily, I suspect you would be OK for what I think you are wanting. Price seems fair.....


http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...ale-24-500-RMB


Not affiliated with the seller, just thought you might want to look at the package as a legal option.

Thanks for the nudge... You also have a jh600 for sale. Seems a popular bike on here.. I've only come across it with sidecar on my hunt for a second hand bike.
. I'm really a new rider, although I've ridden a 400cc before.. Dunno about the weight and power of that 600... Seems like China's answer to the klr650 though eh? (From totally inexperienced eyes)
The one above certainly seems to come with a lot of extras . Having never been on something that big... I'm not sure... Can certainly see the touring possibility it holds... Especially with all that luggage.. Looks comfortable too. Who needs a beautiful bike;)?
Kidding aside, I do appreciate the recommendation.

Can I ask the chap above something 666 , what bike did you ride back to U.K.? Must have been epic. For years I've wanted to do the overland to China.. Even bought maps of Turkey and Iran... Was planning on getting a 4wd... Now with my new motorbike license... Seems the real vehicle for such a trip has only two wheels.. Awesome stuff. Do you have a ride report or bog or videos or something?

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Originally Posted by Metalmonkey

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Can I ask the chap above something 666 , what bike did you ride back to U.K.? Must have been epic. For years I've wanted to do the overland to China.. Even bought maps of Turkey and Iran... Was planning on getting a 4wd... Now with my new motorbike license... Seems the real vehicle for such a trip has only two wheels.. Awesome stuff. Do you have a ride report or bog or videos or something?

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Prince666... rode from Ch!na to EU and return on a CF650TR-G... The Long Way Home

I sold my JH600 bike to an inmate here by the call name Zhu. You can see his input on Jialings. I also saw an old friend Franki is selling his for very cheap. He says he rebuilt it. My dealings with Franki were always up and up. For RMB8000, I would look into it for sure. I am even contemplating it as a back up ride for friends...

Here is the link:
http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...by-first-owner

For what it is worth, I bought the Wilbers suspension for my JH600 with help from Franki. He treated me very fairly in my opinion.

Hmmmm, on Monday, I went to try out a second hand bike for sale here in Shanghai. It was from the xianyu (闲鱼) app.... Resist is I liked the bike and wanted to buy it... Only 8k km on the clock, a 2013 shineray x5 400cc....i asked what hos lowest price is and he and his wife said well there are two options to buy the bike.. The first is without a plate and the second is with the 苏F plate that was in there.. They rang the middle man who had plated out for them and he apparently said because I'm a foreigner with an address in Shanghai it wasn't possible to transfer this plate to me... Further to this, they said that a 沪c plate would be like 10万 RMB. Disappointed... The fifth bike I've ridden with a view to buy... Short of moving to another city in China which would mean changing jobs.. I'm stumped
I mean, do the powers that be actually want me to get a bike that sits in a grey area?
Maybe you guys outside Shania would just say move.. Perhaps I should

I live inside the 内环路 atm... The plan is to move outside the 外环路 this month... Still if all sellers are like this guy that royal Pita won't be worth it.... Won't achieve the aim of registering a bike... Don't know what to do... One thing forget about motorcycles... Is this an option?

I can understand you being pissed off.
All you would like to do is buy a bike be legal and ride about.
But TIC (This is China) the zogic free zone.
So just keep trying to work out what is best and in the end you will get there.
Good luck and keep us all posted on MCM.


P.s. Talk to BikerDoc on here because he has a CFMoto TR for sale in Ningbo and I am sure he can get it plated in your name over in his area without you moving.

Or speak to TexasAggie.
Both these guys have good contacts and knowalage about how things work here .
"Never say Never"

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Originally Posted by Metalmonkey

I mean, do the powers that be actually want me to get a bike that sits in a grey area?

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No, they don't want you to have a bike at all. Bikes are for poor peasants and China doesn't want them on the road. You only need to move for a few minutes, just long enough to get a piece of paper with a non Shanghai address on it.

Bikes I've considered -

drz400 (number one choice given power, reliability, off road ability, weight etc) Actually have found one for 28950 on 闲鱼.. ugly white colour, but the owner says it's legally registered
klx250
shineray x5 400
qingqi qm200gy (also weirdly names qm150 by qingqi)
dr250 and dr250xc
dr350

Five bikes I've ridden, supposedly for sale but sketchy when it comes to plating (slash several offered me "help")-
Shineray x5 400cc one in Nanjing, sticky breaks plenty of rust, seat fell off when I threw my leg over it
klx250 in Shanghai- guy said his 沪A plate was fake... battery was dead over twenty years old(un-platable?) and wouldn't come down from 9500
shineray x2x in shanghai seller said he replaced the engine himself to a 300cc 10000yuan for the bikes. Just felt him skidding to a halt in front of me and saying let's go where there are no police wasn't the right vibe.. loose clutch and break levers.. but general the air of the meeting and the power to weight...
dr250xc 07 English speaking seller.. smuggled said he could help plating it... excellent condition although difficult to find neutral when stopped.. 2wan expensive but good condition, where I learned about the shuihuo plating that goes on.. rattled by it and thought what's the difference between buying this and a stolen bike- seems the norm the more I ask
Last one shineray x5 400cc only 8175km on the clock good condition, about to make and offer and he and his wife start telling me a complicated tale of the options- illegal without the plate or we can transfer it.. quick call to their "friend" whilst still stood in the pitch black of the alley in their housing estate "no, sorry, you're a foreigner with a Shanghai address, he can't change the plate over to your name.." since then he's said he's using the plate on a smuggled yamaha xt660 so it's no hegezheng (the police really keep the original at their office when its plated???!!- his reason for not being able to give me this)

Dunno what to ask you guys for really.. unless it's a qingqi dealer in shanghai or the address of a place that is reputable and has a wide range of second hand bikes for sale...or does anyone know of a legal drz400 (asking the impossible?)
Perhaps I should move to Chongqing. It's more "Chinese than Shanghai and it seems it's not only the centre of motorcycle manufacture in China but also allows motorbikes in the city.:clap:

Please take note the Chinese seller will tell you a load of bullshit about "yes it is " "yes I can " all there are after is the stupid "Laowai" money not saying you are stupid but please be carefull.
Apart from the Shineray X3 and the X5 all the other bikes sound dodge IMO.
If you are happy to ride on a clone bike it is not for me to tell you what is best.
Good luck on your hunting.

NO SUCH THING AS A FULLY LEGAL DRZ 400 IN CHINA.

Was never imported.

Go somewhere and buy a new X5 or X2 or QingQi 250. Let it plate ( maybe in the shops name .. In BJ it works this way trouble free, seems for many LaoWai)
Listen to the Prince.
Forget DRZ.

Sent from my GN8003 using Tapatalk

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ShuBen

Go somewhere and buy a new X5 or X2 or QingQi 250. Let it plate ( maybe in the shops name .. In BJ it works this way trouble free, seems for many LaoWai)
Listen to the Prince.
Forget DRZ.

Sent from my GN8003 using Tapatalk

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^^^^ +1 on the above advice.

Or keep an eye out for a legally plated used bike for sale. A friend bought Honda 150 plated with A plates here in Nanjing for RMB12K 3 years ago. Just sold it to a guy for RMB60K for the Nanjing Plates... The deals are out there and as long as you are aware of the difference between "legal" and "grey" plates, you should be fine. It is cheap to fix a Chinese bike here in China. This is of course if you do not need/want to ride downtown Shanghai. Me, I gave up riding in the city as it simply pissed me off everytime I tried. I get paid to get that pissed off so I found somewhere else to ride since no one pays me to ride....

I'm in Shanghai. Does anyone have a spare bike (preferably smaller) or know of a good rental place in or near Shanghai? I'm looking to go on a trip 1-4 May.... Bit late notice. I'd go on my own bike , but Qingqi failed to deliver it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Metalmonkey

I'm in Shanghai. Does anyone have a spare bike (preferably smaller) or know of a good rental place in or near Shanghai? I'm looking to go on a trip 1-4 May.... Bit late notice. I'd go on my own bike , but Qingqi failed to deliver it.

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Have a good trip.
The closest rental shop is Chiang Rai Thailand.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Metalmonkey

I'm in Shanghai. Does anyone have a spare bike (preferably smaller) or know of a good rental place in or near Shanghai? I'm looking to go on a trip 1-4 May.... Bit late notice. I'd go on my own bike , but Qingqi failed to deliver it.

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Yeah, Im going camping spree 1-4 May on me bike :D....life is good

sorry, you cant ;)

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Originally Posted by modron

Yeah, Im going camping spree 1-4 May on me bike :D....life is good

sorry, you cant ;)

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Haha, I went to Anhui province (not by bike) and climbed Huangshan. It was stunning.

Been thinking moto-camping would be great in China, but hopefully could find places to camp. Heard in places like Changbaishan, camping is banned...

I do actually know a couple of rental places... down in Yunnan I've personally rented from Hendrik in Dali.. great.. and there's a chinese rental place on Yishan road in Shanghai(which weirdly doubles as a kick-boxing place) just they only have bigger bikes like gs1200 and harley sportsters.

wanted dirt bikes or adv in Shanghai but..

Great news you had a good time.
yes, motorbikes rental shops are as rare as rocking horse shit.
Likewise, with camp sites, Chinese is not set up for such things.
Maybe consider a push bike and a tent.