Many thanks for the advice about the FJR, you're right... forking out all that money and then having to worry while on the road constantly isn't what I consider "fun". Will look into the CJ and contact you once I get my first RMB salary! =)

Quote Originally Posted by felix View Post
You are right, the roads in jiangsu are mostly flat and straight. Lake taihu has some nice enough spots that are close to us, but nothing spectacular. We are lucky enough to live in the south of jiangsu though, and just 150km away is Anji where there are some pretty cool mountain roads. Look at this area, the S206 and S304 are particularly good.

Both the ural and CJ750 are derived from the BMW R71. The CJ in china comes in two different engine versions, the 24hp flat head like the original R71, and the 32hp ohv which is like a ural (but less powerful). There is already a lot of stuff out there written about them so i'm not gonna bother. Your wife will definately change her mind, these bikes are great fun, and way more comfortable for her. Pimping it up a bit won't hurt either... I've had mine for two years, driven it a lot, and it's probably my most favorite possession in the world. It will not, however, replace your VFR as a way to get your adrenaline fix.

About buying a used big bike here; you've got a pretty good chance of buying a lemon. A lot of these bikes (possibly like the FJR1300 you saw) on the used bike websites have had a few owners, have been crashed, rebuilt, engines taken apart by incompetent people, etc... You don't really know what you're buying in a lot of cases, and when you find out after 100km that you need to spend another 30k on parts, you're on your own. I don't want to sound too cynical, but i have seen happen a few times already. If i was buying a used imported big bike, i think i would only buy one from someone i knew and trusted, who had had the bike for a while with no problems.
And yes, finding someone who can service such a bike is not going to be easy either. Most mechanics here have no experience with japanese 4cyl engines and will probably make it worst. And then there's the trust issue, i've a friend who recently found out that his mechanic had been stealing parts from his engine and replacing with old crashed parts.