KINLON what is happening?

I have a Kinlon rt200 but found out yesterday the importers down my way are selling them AND THE SUPER MOTARD off for half price or less, yup brand new $AU 1500 and a couple of dozen in stock to sell.

They say it is because new models are coming end of year but that doesn't make any sense - why sell current models so cheap and so early then? I know Kinlon went through a couple of name changes as so many chinese manufacturers do, 'Roketa' was one. But would even a possible name change make a bike be dumped on the market, half price or less? Nah.

I have also read that Kinlon are going into International MotoGP racing next year ... so that would make you think they are strong.

Does anyone in the business or with Kinlon contacts know anything? I would love to know more about this machine and company, is it sold in China? What engine does it copy or is it a real design etc. etc. What make of bike if any can I get bits from?

I am in fact tempted to buy another one at this price as a spares bike if they still have any left next time I have enough cash especially if they are going out of business.

Jape,

Probable selling them at half price to liquidate their inventory. Seems like they often times won't (can't afford to) order newer models unless they've cleared their current inventory off the floors. Sounds like they're just getting ready for their next big push.

Regarding MotoGP racing, that could be anything from dropping some coin to get their logo on someone's bike to actually paying to run a bike in the series. Unless they have some tricks up their sleeves which we haven't heard about... I'd be more inclined to guess the former.

CC

You mean freeing up some cash to purchase more? Could be I guess, but why sell half-price, even allowing of 100% margins that would be a loss or close to a loss when you include costs of unpacking, setup, marketing, storage. Seems more likely they are dumping them to me but as I said, I don't know!

I also don't understand why no-one over there knows this brand or manufacturer, surely they would have a home market and a model for that, or at least for the engine?

It would be prohibitively uneconomical to develop an engine to sell it as a cheap branded bike even with stock running gear etc from elsewhere (and who says it is?), or to a develop and market a copy of a jap bike (if it is such) just for a very, very small export market.

I am really surprised they don't have a home chinese bike!

These bikes similar to the ones you ride have been sold in china for the past several years. For some reason though, they aren't extremely popular, probably due to the extra marketing efforts of primarily ZongShen.

From the business side of things (and this is only speculation) it doesn't make sense to start selling a newer model when your older models will be collecting mothballs and haven't made their ROI yet. Warehouses operating on a tight to zero budget can't afford to continually stack new on old inventory or the whole thing becomes a massive money loser. Basically they need to purge the old to get in the new and that may mean selling them at or near cost.

FWIW, I had a buddy in China with one of the Kinlon bikes and was very happy with it. He beat the hell out of the bike and used it to commute 70-80kms a day as well as a few longer trips in China and didn't have any serious problem with it. I'm not sure why more folks don't ride them but it could be something to do with lack of a luggage rack... I don't think I've ever seen one with proper carrying capacity even though the bike has a nice platform for it.

Just my .02.

CC

Thanks Carl. I waver between hating and loving the thing but overall it is not a bad machine at all - although I have still only done 1000km. It certainly seems as good/bad as any other chinese bike on the forums. Maybe Kinlon has a bad rep over there like some cars do here? Funny how something small like no provision for or after-market rack can affect sales, it has certainly frustrated me! I use a soft rucksack strapped to passenger grips for most daily items, but that is limited. Local bloke wants $200 to lash up a quick steel pack frame for me, that is a bit much for my budget so I shall try and weld and bend something myself and then get a smick ally one fabbed later as AW has with Franki for his J600. I wish Franki lives near me!

If any of the dealer and mechanical folk on this forum know of the company, the origins of the bike design and so on I would genuinely be interested.
I hope you are right about the liquidation/cash flow, that would mean Kinlon are selling enough worldwide if not here in Aus to re-invest and retool so the new design coming out may be a good'un!

Hi Guys, What you have written above sounds very very interesting. On monday my brotherinlaw and my self are going to the dealership in Brunswick (Melbourne Australia) to purchase a Kinlon Supermoto each.

Retailing at $3290.00 ride away and registered in Victoria I did not think that there would be a great deal of margin to haggle over. I will try my luck and see how I get on.

Well both they (FX) and the main dealers (Kinlon) in Brisbane have had and still have current auctions on Ebay that went for $1500. That was the R/T and also the Motard so if you pay more than that for one you are insane I reckon!

This is the auction that sold the motard for $1500
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI....m=370366990814


http://cgi.ebay.com.au/KINLON-200CC-...-/200466891993
is one current example so I reckon $1500 is the auction reserve. Do a google and look through the pages past page 1 and see what you uncover, somewhere I saw it was in fact FX in Brunswick they were selling for ......!

hey jape
interesting news about fx as i got mine there as well
all in all though you have to love the bike though cheap, fuel efficient, easy to work on and comfy to ride.

The story I was told by the salesman at Fx was that the bikes offered on the E-bay Auctions were first series bikes. Apparently these first series bikes had issues that were fixed in the second series of bikesand that is why they were being auctioned in crate form on E-bay.

The salesman did say that they were still a good bike but were not as good as the current series and they don't go through a thorough pre delivery inspection that the dealers provide. A few of the differences he mentioned were different size bolts used and more attention to detail in plastic fitment.


It seemed quite reasonable although a $500 plus price difference could buy you alot of loctite and tinker time, and that is purely from my point of view. At $3290.00 ride away the bikes I saw in the dealership looked like fantastic value for some body looking for their first bike.

Its more like $1700 from the auction prices of $1500 to the $3290 - but lets not quibble. One f**k of a lot of bolts!

I guess I have the first series then, nice of them to let us find out the safety and maintenance issues as bits fall off. Look, I like the bike but certainly not the dealers who at times lied and misled and were unhelpful and uncooperative once they had my money. Smarmy salespeople don't set the bikes up but to pay $1700 extra to have them tighten a couple of bucks and pay the tax is still a ripoff to my mind.

They also boasted how they designed and set up the first series for import, well if they now admit it had faults that was down to them. Mine came in a crate unassembled, despite that I was never told that, I ordered (after telephone consultation and emails) and thought I paid for an assembled bike ready to ride.Check the fine print! When it finally arrived the metal frame in the crate was bent and battered and yes, the factory assembly was not good. It would need a miracle to make me trust FX again.

Hi Jape
Unfortunately many of the importers of Chinese bikes here have mostly been in it for the money with little concern for supporting a customer base, but the winds of change are blowing even if it is a light breeze at the moment the signs point to changes.
The new revolutionmx bike is a sign of this. Fitted standard with DNM suspension and OKO carb and the first shipment are Z155 motors but second shipment will be Z175.
http://revolutionmx.com.au/index.php...d=48&Itemid=62
Although it is a competition mx mini it is the first one on the market here that I would consider potentially competitive out of the box, and at under $2000 that is much better value than anything else that has been offered here to date.
I have also heard whispers of another road registrable Chinese bike that is going to be available before the end of the year, cant say to much just yet as it is only just whispers. But this bike is also likely to be exceptional value for it’s specifications and will also have exceptional support from a dealer that is truly interested in their customers.
I suspect that other importers may start to feel more than a breeze soon.

What I got most of out of that STB was that it is a competition bike, my thinking being that if folk really start participating and even winning on chinese bikes then THAT will change the game totally. Worked for the Japanese and now they own the m'cycling world ... it is all down to dealers backing the customers over time, and then the icing on the cake is when more knowledgeable people try mods. and accessories and have success, whether with a road bike or for track use. Look at Pfaelzer's JH600 thread for example, I think a few people are buying that machine on the back of that thread alone and the QingQi has the same renown as ride-able and workable going on forum threads alone. The dealers here still don't seem supportive, it might not just be them, perhaps it is such a new idea to have people wanting and affording Motards, R/T bikes and more in China (rather than just 'four people and a pig on a bike' for farmers) that the manufacturers cannot grasp the potential. I was talking about this to someone here the other day, maybe WE need to feed back into China with competitions and shows like the Crusties, then just a small pickup in sales in such an area would assist us and so on. Just wondering but it makes sense to me. How would you feel about organising a 'cultural exchange' visit (both ways) for a team or two then? I am sure Kevin would support the idea ... lol

hey guys just reading through may issue of just bikes and found the r/t model for $1750 ride away (page 75)
somewhere in Melbourne but haven't had a chance to ring them yet to find out who the dealer is.

Hi Stromnes
I think that the kinlon for $1750 ride away would a good deal
I totally agree Jape, it's the old adage ‘win on Sunday sell on Monday’. In the mini scene at least this is already happening, four years ago it was very difficult to keep up with the big dollar ‘built’ jap bikes. Two years ago the mix on race day was getting to 50/50 jap and china, now we hardly see any jap bikes at the track as it is almost impossible to make them competitive against the Chinese motors. In mini motox it is a similar situation. This is exactly why I am breaking out of focusing on the Chinese minis and am now looking toward the larger bikes as I believe they can be competitive in the market, but to achieve this we need to get some good reports of how the bikes perform circulating. The perception in Australia has been added to by some of the early importers buying the cheapest products they could and then only focusing on the $$$ profits, but with the new players in the scene I feel that the reputation Chinese bikes have will change over time.