Thread: Steve's CFMoto 250T-6a Jetmax
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#1 Steve's CFMoto 250T-6a Jetmax
03-25-2016, 06:29 AM
After a long love/hate relationship with my 650 NK I decided to get rid of it for good. There were more than a few reasons for it, and I don't want to go into that. Long story short, I exchanged it for a 2010 CFMoto Jetmax 250 with 7600km on the clock.
Here it is:
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The scooter is legal and carries Nanjing plates. I am getting me the insurance Tuesday and do the yearly check sometime in April.
Well, as I have learned over these years, Chinese motorcycles suck. Scooters - less so, but still... I don't have my hopes my hopes high up for this machine, but I don't want to be unfair and biased when reviewing it either.
So, let's start:
Why the scoot?
Let's admit it: I'm not much of a rider. I don't do track days; I don't ride motocross, I don't do wheelies / stoppies; neither do I use my bike to get me them girls. All these considered, I need something practical for downtown riding. Hence this scooter.
It can surely be ridden aggressively, should the need arise, but that's not what the bike wants from the rider. It's a grandpa's ride - long, steady, practical, and utterly voiding its promise of comfort (more on that later).
Pros
1. It is practical. I went to Metro, bought a bag full of groceries and was able to fit it under my seat. Throw in a 48L Shad top box, and you have an ultimate groceries machine.
2. It is roomy. Much roomier than the Benelli 250 I used to ride. And the stock seat is nicely sculpted too, meaning your butt won't slide. I had to re-foam and re-upholster a seat on Benelli. I don't think I want to do it here.
3. Good weather protection. And again, the weather protection on the CFMoto is much better than that on Benelli 250, where I had to fit a taller aftermarket windscreen just to direct the air flow where it should have been in the first place. Nothing of that sort here - the fairing is well-designed (protection-wise) and keeps you well protected. Those warm air vents are great too. They are indeed a nice useful touch.
4. Spares. Everything could be had from taobao, and the local dealer seems to be intimately familiar with those scooters. Fixing it shouldn't be a problem.
5. Electrics work. Light shines, blinkers blink, etc. I know this is the way a bike should be, but coming from a 650NK with a steady stream of electric failures I am impressed.
6. Kudos to the CFMoto engineers for an original engine design. After all, it really is a rare fact that a Chinese manufacturer doesn't copy (too much of) something.
I will probably think of more pros and post them some time down the line.
Contras
1. Suspension is worse than terrible. The front is wobbly and is downright dangerous. That may be the tire, steering bearings, fork oil or a bent rim - I got no idea yet, but I'll get down to sorting it out. It is also jumpy, bumpy and doesn't cushion any road irregularities at all. It feels like a suspension of a 2000 yuan GY-6 NoName Chinese scooter.
Rear is in no way better - those shock absorbers don't absorb shock at all. In fact, all the impact is immediately transferred to the frame and the backbone of whoever happens to be riding the scoot. The shocks I got are non-adjustable ones, so I guess throwing them away and welding in metal struts won't change the quality of the ride that much.
In its present form riding it feels harsh, uncontrolled and pretty exhausting. I took a pillion a couple of times, and both guys complained about the harshness of the ride. I can very well feel it myself, and am determined to do something about it.
I thought I would swap rear shocks for something aftermarket, but so far I have been unable to find any aftermarket shocks for Jetmax.
2. Stock CST tires suck big time. Sure enough, they are made of some metal-infused toy plastic and will last forever, but that doesn't make them be tires at all. Those are round things that look like tires being something totally different. They don't stick in the dry at all, much less so in the wet.
I think this is the direction a certain part of my March salary will go in.
3. Plastic fairing panels are never flush with one another. There are gaps and holes pretty much everywhere. The inside plastics (black panels) are even worse; and shiny-blingy passenger footrests are downright tacky. Besides being low quality (that's where Benelli fairings shine), the panels have gotten too dull too soon. I don't know what kind of painting process CFMoto uses on its scooters, but now the paint looks lackluster, as if the scoot spent the 6 years of its life in a fishtank with 95 degrees water in direct sunlight.
4. There are some minor creaking noises here and there, but I guess an oil change (engine and tranny both) and lubricating axle bearings will solve that. If not - it may be that the axle bearings are going to take a walk.
5. Frame flexes. This is apparently where big costs were cut. It feels... well... soft and not that tight, if I may. It is a long scooter and I don't expect it to handle as an R6 would. But I would expect it to handle somehow, which it does not. It is very-very scary to take it through corners in the state it is in now. Probably overhauling and dialing the suspension will help.
6. The radio works alright. Yet I have so far been unable to make the sound system read my mp3. I have tried connecting an iPhone 6s+ (unrecognized); iPhone 6s (unrecognized); iPod Nano 5th gen (unrecognized); Yota Phone 2 (unrecognized) and a USB pen drive with .mp3 files in the root folder (recognized, not read) to it. Maybe I should use some fake Chinese AiFeng thingie for the Chinese system to recognize it - I don't really know.
7. Visual design is horrid. Well, it's not the way the thing looks, it's the way the thing rides, but still... I can't imagine what on earth the designers were snorting or shooting. From behind the scoot looks like it was butt-raped and videotaped at that. Very-very pitiful. Front is a tad better, yet it just doesn't flow. That's yet another point where Benelli shines - it is well-designed (well, except for a dashboard cluster apparently).
I can't do anything about that (which is sad), so I'll just take it as it is.Last edited by Steve_Halt; 02-21-2017 at 11:16 AM.
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#2 Rear Shocks
03-27-2016, 04:10 AM
I have been looking into the rear shocks replacement for my Jetmax. Well... No luck so far. Looks like Taobao has nothing but the stock shocks (not even adjustable ones).
I could have probably fitted shocks from a 300cc Kymco, but the problem is that CF Moto engineers engineered a very elegant solution shock-wise. One of the shocks has an ear mount top and an ear mount bottom, whereas the other one has an ear mount top and a U-strut mount bottom. I have yet to find a maxi scooter with a similar setup...
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#3 Re: Rear Shocks
03-27-2016, 07:07 AM
Easy peasy!
My suggestion: buy a pair of shocks with U struts on one end and fill this... gap on on of the shock with, say... from few wide flange washers, to metal or rubber bushing. I believe it'll work.Ask me nothing - I DO NOT speak english. Really...
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#4 Re: Rear Shocks
03-28-2016, 04:46 AM
Right. I had the same idea - put something like the inside of a bearing in the U-strut and be done with that. Yet I think it'll stress the mechanical structure improperly. And, as I know, Chinese bikes (build material in fact) won't allow for it.
Top mount points might twist; bottom mount point might crack...
I think I'll just go with a pair of new original shocks and see how they are. Those are aplenty on Taobao and the prices are reasonable.
It's not happening anytime soon though - my salary is coming in on the 5th next month :)
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#5 Re: Rear Shocks
03-28-2016, 06:16 AM
I thought about this too, but this thing mod can be improved with some extra drilling and piece of impregnated rubber hose, but if you say that those stock sets are widely available and affordable...
After all, you sell this scooter until the winter.Ask me nothing - I DO NOT speak english. Really...
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#6 Re: Rear Shocks
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#7 Re: Rear Shocks
03-29-2016, 03:32 AM
Yea. So far, your "fancy" was very... "schekotlivoe".
Ask me nothing - I DO NOT speak english. Really...
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#8 Re: Rear Shocks
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#9 Re: Rear Shocks
03-29-2016, 07:31 AM
Try to find some "Suzie" AX 100 clone. It is two-stroker to the bone.
Ask me nothing - I DO NOT speak english. Really...
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#10 Re: Rear Shocks
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