Zongshen RX3 report

**MJH** · 05-01-2014, 12:59 PM

Can you find another shop locally, go around asking and maybe try contacting Zongshen?
I would not take it back to them not unless that mechanic has a boss that can solve the issue. You may want to try to get them to contact Zonsghen or at least provide you with a number to contact yourself?

You have to tell them the repairs are not acceptable, that the motorcycle is not running like it should. If they cannot fix it then who can? Tell them you are unhappy.

**gjackson4431** · 05-28-2014, 12:22 AM

So its been a while since I wrote an update on the mechanical problems I've been having. Its been nearly two months since these problems began and the bike has been in the shop almost the entire time. Last time I demanded to see a professional mechanic from Zongshen and he came immediately. He did not provide the relief that I had been hoping for. After revving the engine once or twice he declared that there were no problems........... After about an hour of yelling into google translate he eventually took it for a test drive and decided that the clutch was worn out. As for the speed problem he just said, "the information on the specs sheet is sometimes exaggerated." indicating to me that he completely misunderstood the problem. He wouldn't listen to any further input from me. Im the idiot foreigner, he's the professional.

Yesterday, I went in to pick up the bike. When i arrived, I found a whole new engine had been installed. Everything looked alright, it sounded good so after a quick check I drove it home. When I arrived, I noticed that the entire rear end was covered in oil and a nice little pool was quickly forming under the engine... The sound remained but i didn't dare test the new engine for the speed problem.

This sound kinda sounds like popping and it only occurs when accelerating at certain RPMS and in certain gears. I've heard pre-ignition sounds like ball bearings dropped on glass and I guess that also sort of describes it. Before meeting the zongshen mechanic, I decided to check the spark plug for signs of preignition and found a totally black and burnt spark plug. The master mechanic told me it was a faulty plug and after we changed it it did sound a bit better. The popping was less frequent and happened in a more narrow range.

Anyway, Im starting to lose hope for this every being resolved and the prospects for my trip at this point are pretty grim. Hopefully i can convince someone to just replace the whole thing.

**zhu** · 05-28-2014, 04:27 AM

A couple of things to check. New engines sometimes have the crankcase vent sealed for transport so if they fitted a new engine maybe the did not remove the plug from the case vent . If the engine is sealed then it will spew oil from any available seal or gasket.
You may have gone through a tank or two but water is hard to eliminate so try some fuel cleaner from the gas station.

**smr310** · 05-30-2014, 02:18 AM

GJackson, thanks for your PM response. I'll post the question here for everyone else to see:

Hey,

I'm sorry to hear about all of your RX3 problems, and I hope everything works out. I bought an RX3 a couple of months ago and then last weekend I washed it with a high pressure washer, and then the same things started happening to me. Later on that day, the bike started revving really high, but then it went down. This happened a few times and it hasnt happened since. Also, the next day, I had trouble starting it after I rode it for a while, and then that also happened two times. But then today there weren't any problems at all.

Were your problems constant or did they ever go away like I described? I'm trying to figure out if maybe the problem fixed itself or if I should take it back to the dealer and deal with the retarded mechanics.

If you have wechat feel free to add me: steveromm

We can share our RX3 troubles and outcomes.

Thanks,
Steve

The thing is, you mentioned that your high RPMs became pretty constant, but for the last two days it hasnt happened once to me. So I'm hoping that maybe the problem just went away on its own. Maybe whatever water came in to the wrong places came out or dried out as Beijing has been over 40 degrees C lately.

**smr310** · 05-30-2014, 02:22 AM

I have one more question about the oil filter - The mechanics at the dealer said that the RX3 has no Oil Filter??? Every time they have changed the oil so far they have not changed any filter. I noticed earlier on in this thread there are photos of the oil filter location and also a link to taobao where you can buy these filters. Have you purchased these filters from taobao yet? Also have you been changing the filters every oil change?

Thanks for the help,

Steve

**modron** · 05-30-2014, 03:51 AM

Hey, dont trust mechanics with maintenance here. There must be an oil filter and it needs to be replaced. In the running in period its best to replace filter every oil change. If you have not done that already do it asap. Just buy the filter on taobao, show them where it should go if they dont know and done

**gjackson4431** · 05-30-2014, 05:19 AM

Definitely has an oil filter... I got the same response from pretty much everyone i spoke to about it. Its under the oil window and towards the front. there are two nuts securing it and theres a 6 or 8 sided shape in the middle... i forget.. I got a bunch of them off taobao and have changed it every other oil change. They're a strange shape and i don't think they'll be easy to find anywhere else.

There is also a foam air filter which DOES need to be cleaned occasionally despite what your mechanic may say :D It is terribly inconvenient to remove though.

So when I had the neutral RPM problem after power washing it, it slowly got worse and after three days i couldn't start the engine without giving it a lot of gas and it idled at around 5000 rpms constantly. They tried un plugging all the connections on the EFI and blowing air in and they disassembled the TPS but nothing changed. They ended up replacing the TPS. It seems like you may have gotten lucky.

And by the way, Zhu, you were right. They forgot about the plug in the crank case vent. Thanks. I'll also try to find some fuel cleaner.

**zhu** · 05-30-2014, 06:47 AM

Fuel cleaner or conditioner as they call it can usually be found at a gas station a small bottle about 50ml and the stuff is usually blue . I just dumped the whole bottle in a full 20litre tank and it sorted the ybr right out.

**MJH** · 06-03-2014, 06:15 PM

I do not want to be a downer but if they forgot to unplug the case then did they then do a compression test? I would be wondering if it lost compression after that mishap?

Is it running better or not now?

**gjackson4431** · 06-04-2014, 09:36 AM

Good idea. But i think I'll have another shop do that. Its running fine now. The popping sound is still there and neutral is harder to find and it has jumped out of neutral a couple times now but Im not really worried. Maybe I've given up worrying :D Im going to have another shop do a full tune up next week. I'll mention the compression test. These guys seem more professional so i should have better luck.