Sorry, Nathan, I was being cryptic and a bit sarcastic, maybe even mean-spirited. I apologize. By FOB I meant "fresh off the boat" -- i.e., naive.

How did the bike come into your possession? Did it involve a legal transfer of documents in Shaanxi? Is the bike in your name? I'll reveal my bias and suggest that the odds that your bike is actually legal are not very good at all, though if you've got a guy who traffics in Shaanxi plates it's possible, but very likely dodgy all the same. In the time that you've had it, have you ever renewed the registration? This is probably an annual requirement for a bike like this. The national rules require annual inspection and re-registration for any bike that is more than 4 years old. If the bike is actually legal in Shaanxi, it's registered in somebody's name, and they presumably bear some liability for whatever you do with the bike. More likely it's all fictitious, and even if you went to the provincial Vehicle Management Bureau in Xi'an to execute a legal transfer you'd be met with blank stares.

The sad fact is that the CJ is an increasingly difficult bike to manage legally, and according to several people one of the few reliable places for legal plates is Hubei 鄂 and these require a go-between. It's unlikely it would be registered in your (or the buyer's) name, meaning a real or fake person is your proxy. This is increasingly dodgy, especially if you find yourself in an accident. In an accident, if there is anything at all amiss in your own driver's license or the registration, the rules automatically hold you 100% responsible, even if the other guy is 100% at fault.

There is zero chance of registering a CJ in Shanghai, or in Huzhou where our little band of Jialing fans have been plating our JH600Bs.

You SHOULD care about how the buyer registers the bike, which is why I suggested going to a reputable guy like Fan who can get the bike legally plated even if you've been illegal during your tenure as its owner.

I don't trust the guys at CJ Sidecar. They're known for doing anything for a sale. I can't remember how many lies I've been told there, but it's a substantial number. They have a habit of preying on vulnerable, naive foreigners. Caveat emptor.

I'm not trying to be a prick, though I've been accused of this before. If you want to do the right thing, talk to a trusted person who knows how to handle sales of these bikes. Talk to Fan.

cheers!