Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
Thanks for the suggestions ChinaV and Shuben. Already got the Taobao volt meter and ran the basic tests. Haven’t had the opportunity to get out on the road to see about higher speed. I’ve talked to a trusted mechanic in the US and done research on the internet. While the volt meter might show a weak or bad battery, and may indicate a charging system problem, from what I learned it’s not going to diagnose the problem beyond that. The battery has tested fine, 12.6V static and just below 10V on starter. While running in the garage it showed 14.2 dropping to 14.1 with RPM. According to everything I learned those numbers are within spec. Right now I’m leaning toward Shuben’s suggestion of it being a regulator; which could explain both a parasitic drain on the battery as well as a failure to maintain proper voltage under load. Taking the bike out this afternoon. If there is a problem under load (at a reasonably high speed). I’ll attempt to test the alternator & regulator separately to see if I can distinguish the problem. If no voltage issue at higher speed then on to plan ?C?
I am starting to understand why riders in China seem to be carrying an excessive amount of luggage, it's all the spare parts they expect to need. :)
Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
Hello GSR, I am a new member on this forum and based in the Philippines, here they start to sell the ZF-KY 500x under the name Brixx Venturi 500.
Since i read your story in this post, i start to worry about the reliability, specially about the battery drain issue.
Could you find the root cause off the battery drain? If yes, how did you solve it?
Are here other members who experienced the same issues?
Thanks in advance
Phils
Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
Hello everyone. Interesting thread, thanks for the information.
Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
Phils, sorry for the slow reply I’m currently in Thailand unable to return to China due to travel bans. As to the batter/charging issue I had with my motorcycle. After the factory ran tests and found nothing I ran my own tests. The charging system tested fine. I think I found the problem which is a parasitic drain which was straining the battery. I had an anti-theft tracking device installed on the bike when it was new. The device was suppose to go into sleep mode after a short time when parked. I think because it was parked in a garage and the sensitivity was set to low it was being activated to frequently. When the bike is first parked the device defiantly draws too much power putting too much drain on the battery. I did not have time to test the device to see if it was going into sleep mode like it is suppose to, or what the drain is in sleep mode. My attempted solution for the short term, and to test to see if that was the problem, was to put a quick connect into the device power and disconnect it when safely parked or when I was not going to run the bike frequently. I still think the stock battery is of low quality having failed in 5 months without ever being fully drained. Had I had the opportunity when I had to replace it I would have put in a better battery. I would recommend installing quality wheel bearings sooner rather than later, and watch the battery and replace it with a quality unit when needed.
Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
Quote:
Originally Posted by
GSR
Phils, sorry for the slow reply I’m currently in Thailand unable to return to China due to travel bans. As to the batter/charging issue I had with my motorcycle. After the factory ran tests and found nothing I ran my own tests. The charging system tested fine. I think I found the problem which is a parasitic drain which was straining the battery. I had an anti-theft tracking device installed on the bike when it was new. The device was suppose to go into sleep mode after a short time when parked. I think because it was parked in a garage and the sensitivity was set to low it was being activated to frequently. When the bike is first parked the device defiantly draws too much power putting too much drain on the battery. I did not have time to test the device to see if it was going into sleep mode like it is suppose to, or what the drain is in sleep mode. My attempted solution for the short term, and to test to see if that was the problem, was to put a quick connect into the device power and disconnect it when safely parked or when I was not going to run the bike frequently. I still think the stock battery is of low quality having failed in 5 months without ever being fully drained. Had I had the opportunity when I had to replace it I would have put in a better battery. I would recommend installing quality wheel bearings sooner rather than later, and watch the battery and replace it with a quality unit when needed.
Seems you likely found the cause of the parasitic draw. I wonder if its possible to obtain a different GPS Tracker that has its own semi-independent power supply (battery backup)? After all if the GPS tracker becomes disconnected from the bike battery for any reason then it makes the function of said tracker null-in-void being that it then becomes inoperable.
Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
Incidentally, not a bad place to be stranded in, except that Thailand had implemented curfews in some locations, and life isn't all "smile". Which part of the land of smiles are you staying? I've a house in Samutprakarn, with riding buddies located up in the northern provinces of Thailand. Fantastic riding up around Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai, Fang, Mae Hong Song, Pai, Nan, the mountains and border roads around Mae Sai and many more...
Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
GSR,Thank you very much for sharing your information, I will visit the dealer here in Philippines when the lock down is over, looks like this bike is a great value for the money.Here in Philippines they sell them for 358K pesos and 378k including the panniers and top case.
Enjoy Thailand :-)
Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
Hi, thanks for all usefull info.
Any update 2 years later?
Is it still running? Any issues?
Anyone else?
Cheers, Nika
Re: Initial review of the CoLove ZF500GYx
No updates for the last 2.5 years. I left the bike in China when the pandemic began and haven't seen it since. China has remained closed for almost all types of visas, including the type I was on. The dealer I bought it from was nice enough to put it in his storage facility. No idea if I'll ever see it again or what shape it may be in if I do. I got over 30K kms out of it so not a total loss.