BEIJING and the plate numbers

[sylvainR1150R]

Hey Guys,

i would guess that you already had this question a couple of times, but being the owner of a BMW R1150R, and living in Beijing, i was wondering if it was necessary to get a Beijing number or "kid of" authorized to get a HEBEI plate number ...
anyone has experience onto that ?
...i am an expat... and arrived a few months ago in Beijing only...

i would appreciate your help on the subject...
Thanks !

[bikerdoc]

Hey Guys,

i would guess that you already had this question a couple of times, but being the owner of a BMW R1150R, and living in Beijing, i was wondering if it was necessary to get a Beijing number or "kid of" authorized to get a HEBEI plate number ...
anyone has experience onto that ?
...i am an expat... and arrived a few months ago in Beijing only...

i would appreciate your help on the subject...
Thanks !

It depends on whether you bought a 100% legally imported bike or not? If you have official import certificate, customs certificate and tax certificate etc, then yes provided you have the right visa status. If you don't have the right visa but do have the correct documents (ie. you bike was legally imported either privately or sold from official BMW dealership) then you could have the bike licensed in someone else's name (e.g. Chinese GF etc). If you don't have any of the correct/legal documents then you have a couple of other routes to take that are not so legal.

[chinabiker]

Hey Guys,

i would guess that you already had this question a couple of times, but being the owner of a BMW R1150R, and living in Beijing, i was wondering if it was necessary to get a Beijing number or "kid of" authorized to get a HEBEI plate number ...
anyone has experience onto that ?
...i am an expat... and arrived a few months ago in Beijing only...

i would appreciate your help on the subject...
Thanks !

Only two things to clarify.
1. What visa are you on
2. Is the bike legal (PM me the VIN and I'll ckeck it)

Ready for a this weekend ?

[euphonius]

Hey, Chinabiker. quick question. I'm planning a first ride up to beijing this month, and would like to know what kind of welcome my JH600 and I will get there. Restrictions inside any of the ring roads?

thanks!

[chinabiker]

Hey, Chinabiker. quick question. I'm planning a first ride up to beijing this month, and would like to know what kind of welcome my JH600 and I will get there. Restrictions inside any of the ring roads?

thanks!

The Rule is:
Jing A plated bikes can go anywhere in the city unless particularly forbidden by signs, e.g. 2nd ring, 3rd ring
Jing B as well as non Jing registered bikes are not allowed inside the 4th ring road (side road of 4th ring road excluded)

Practically, I've never seen police checking between 4th and 3rd, and you can see many bikes actually not allowed there.
Not seen many forbidden bikes inside 3rd.

I think on a legal JH with Hu plates you won't have a problem, as this rule is only to block the farmers from riding their crappy bikes into the city.

You are very welcome with your JH to join us for a BBQ and beer, or better a ride

[PandaBeat]

China sounds like a very problematic place... you can't drive your motorcycle across the whole country? if you get a plate from place X you can drive only there???

damn

[euphonius]

China sounds like a very problematic place... you can't drive your motorcycle across the whole country? if you get a plate from place X you can drive only there???

damn

PandaBeat, Actually, though it's pretty bad here for motorcyclists, it's not THAT bad! Once your bike is licensed in any city, you can ride it anywhere in China -- anywhere where bikes are not banned or restricted, that is. Some cities are completely off limits, including Guangzhou, the capital of southern Guangdong, next to Hong Kong. But those of us who ride here generally feel free to ride most anywhere. Last week I rode right through the heart of Hangzhou, which is supposedly a restricted zone. I passed tons of traffic cops, and none lifted a finger. If they had, I would have said simply, "I'm passing through, and if you can kindly direct me on my way I'll be out of town as fast as I can." Fact is, a big Chinese city is about the last place you want to be spending time on a motorcycle. Isn't that true most anywhere?

Where are you based?

cheers

[euphonius]

Aha, now I see from a separate post that you are based in Uruguay.

Nice showing in the World Cup!

[PandaBeat]

PandaBeat, Actually, though it's pretty bad here for motorcyclists, it's not THAT bad! Once your bike is licensed in any city, you can ride it anywhere in China -- anywhere where bikes are not banned or restricted, that is. Some cities are completely off limits, including Guangzhou, the capital of southern Guangdong, next to Hong Kong. But those of us who ride here generally feel free to ride most anywhere. Last week I rode right through the heart of Hangzhou, which is supposedly a restricted zone. I passed tons of traffic cops, and none lifted a finger. If they had, I would have said simply, "I'm passing through, and if you can kindly direct me on my way I'll be out of town as fast as I can." Fact is, a big Chinese city is about the last place you want to be spending time on a motorcycle. Isn't that true most anywhere?

Where are you based?

cheers

Well that's not THAT bad indeed... but why are some cities "banned", like Guangzhou?

Aha, now I see from a separate post that you are based in Uruguay.

Nice showing in the World Cup!

hehehehe, thanks!!! we're very proud and still in awe of our team's performance, they arrived yesterday and almost 1 million people went to receive and honour them (and we're only 3 millions!)

[euphonius]

Well that's not THAT bad indeed... but why are some cities "banned", like Guangzhou?

Government officials, whose power is absolute and unchecked in China, can make these decisions for whatever reasons they like. In Guangzhou's case, the argument was made that motorcycles were unwelcome because 1) some criminals were using them for purse-snatchings, 2) riders were driving them on sidewalks and other inappropriate places, creating safety hazards, 3) the motorcycles were often in poor condition, and caused pollution, 4) officials prefer cars and don't like the appearance of motorcycles in the city's streets.

Needless to say, criminal and other anti-social behavior is not the fault of the motorcycle, or of law-abiding motorcyclists, and a simple system of safety inspections and enforcement could have been implemented to weed out substandard bikes. Numbers of bikes could be controlled through heavy registration fees or other administrative measures, as is done here in Shanghai where I live.

Ultimately, however, the reason for the ban, in my humble opinion, was an unchecked authoritarian impulse on the part of the government, which is loyal only to China's ruling C*mmunist P*arty, not to the city's people.

/RANT