Shanghai advice?!

Hello! I've been in Shanghai a year now, half-heartedly looked into getting a bike last year but wasn't sure how long I'd be staying and was massively put off by the hassle and the A-plate horror stories.

But spent the summer riding my CBR around Europe (Black Forest in Germany, Route Des Grande Alpes in France, Stelvio Pass from Switzerland into Italy, seriously reccommended, amazing riding, esp the Route des Grandes Alpes) and am having serious withdrawal symptoms now (riding my scooter too fast, making vrroom vrroom noises, etc)

All my research has led me to the conclusion that getting a bike in Shanghai is a bit of a nightmare, but possible. I've got a Chinese driving licence, really not keen on shelling out 54000 for an A-plate, even if I can probably sell it on when I leave, but would like to be as legal as possible.

So can anyone reccommend me some bikes that are available here, either Chinese made or register-able imports? Ideally I want something bigger and with a bit of power after having ridden sports bikes at home, but I recognise that you can't ride fast on Chinese roads. Main purpose of the bike is to get out of the city and explore the countryside. I was thinking about a bigger-engine enduro bike maybe? Even a CB400 would be kind of cool for around town and comfy enough for touring.

Also, how is the riding around Shanghai? Is it possible to get to some nice roads and back in a weekend?

I don't read Chinese and my speaking/reading level is vastly improved but still basically rubbish, so it's really hard to get information here...

Thanks for any pointers

hey dannyboy

some half decent 250 trail bikes can be found on taobao

Welcome dannyboy,

Your in luck, Shanghai is home to some of the most active members here on MCM. All your questions are answered in various threads already, so fire up that search button and spend a few hours browsing.

Do you mind if I delete your other post? It kind of said the same thing as this one and doesn't really belong in the ride report forum.

Good luck with getting on the road in Shanghai.

Cheers!
ChinaV

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dannyboy

....All my research has led me to the conclusion that getting a bike in Shanghai is a bit of a nightmare, but possible. I've got a Chinese driving licence, really not keen on shelling out 54000 for an A-plate, even if I can probably sell it on when I leave, but would like to be as legal as possible.

So can anyone reccommend me some bikes that are available here, either Chinese made or register-able imports? Ideally I want something bigger and with a bit of power after having ridden sports bikes at home, but I recognise that you can't ride fast on Chinese roads. Main purpose of the bike is to get out of the city and explore the countryside. I was thinking about a bigger-engine enduro bike maybe? Even a CB400 would be kind of cool for around town and comfy enough for touring.

Also, how is the riding around Shanghai? Is it possible to get to some nice roads and back in a weekend?

...

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Dear Dannyboy,

As ChinaV has noted, there's a ton of good information in this forum that goes directly to your questions, so fire up advanced search and go crazy.

With all due respect, I'll take issue with your characterization of getting on the road and legal in Shanghai as a horror story or nightmare; nothing could be further from the truth, unless this is merely a "sticker shock" reaction the price of admission. In truth, it's very easy to get a a 沪A plate here. The process is straightforward, uncomplicated and transparent. We've all done it and no one has spilt any blood.

Yes, it is expensive, but it's exactly the same price as a plate for a car, so not entirely unreasonable, especially when you consider that this is why Shanghai's streets are so delightfully free of traffic compared to any other major city in China (I'm not counting the gaojia, where we're technically "unwelcome" anyway). You pay to play. I've been stuck in traffic jams in Beijing after midnight; that's never happened to me in Shanghai.

And, yes, great riding is within a few hours' ride out of town in Zhejiang (see Felix's Zhejiang is the shit) and Anhui and even Fujian, especially if you don't mind slinking onto the expressway. Two days you can get in a great ride (see my Slabbing to Moganshan post).

Again, fire up advanced search and you'll find enlightenment!

cheers!

yeah no worries, delete it! Thanks

And I stand corrected on the horror story A plates thing, more my horror at the price.

actually you should consider a shanghai license plate is an asset, not the cost. specially the bike plate, it's diminishing every year. So it will be a really hard currency in next 3-5 years. if you leave the country, you could sell the plate to earn your bike back.