I've fixed the keyless ignition! It was my fault for transposing two connectors. I'll explain more in the next video, but it wasn't Zontes' fault! FOR A FREE 30 DAY TRIAL OF CALIMOTO, go to calimoto.app.link/bikesocial and use the code bikesocial30 FOR 10% OFF CALIMOTO, go to calimoto.app.link/bikesocial and use the code bikesocial10 * Join our Facebook group at: facebook.com/groups/bikesocial * Donate to Magpas Air Ambulance at: www.justgiving.com/page/bennetts-magpas-2024-1704812646441 * Donate to Coventry Haven at: www.justgiving.com/page/angela-robinson-1706796328204?newPage=true
Too many people don’t realize how all the great brands now outsourced to foreign countries including China and India. At present, Chinese Loncin makes engines for the BMW F 750 GS and F 850 GS. In addition, the midsize scooters BMW C 400 X and C 400 GT roll off the production lines there. Chinese CFMoto company is already producing and assembling most parts of the middleweight adventure and naked KTM models, including the KTM 790 Adventure and the KTM 790 Duke. Harley Davidson has two models made in China and one in India. Sold in those markets and also for use in their USA riding academy program-perhaps USA sales in later years. The list goes on and on endlessly. Italian brands resurrected as Chinese companies and sold to people remembering the old brand names. Somehow buying an actual Chinese branded motorcycle seems more honest these days than Japanese, European, etc brands selling you models not made where you think they should be made. 😂 Edit. Looks like more news I didn’t keep up with. End of 2023 Pierer Mobility Group, owner of KTM, Husqvarna, and GasGas, has decided to cut jobs from its Austrian assembly lines and move additional production and some R&D jobs to China.
I love the attention to detail on the bike (apart from the Bosch unit). Thanks for showing us how it looks under the skin! Keyless entry on bike solves no problem we ever had. And this is not a bash at Zontes. BMW do it, Triumph, Ducati... it is crap. It causes more issues rather than making life easier. You cannot lose a key that it in the ignition. You can, however lose a fob while you are out riding.
I keep my fob in the inside zipped pocket of my jacket, I never ride without the jacket not ever. I also keep 2 spare batteries with the fob just in case but I've not needed to use them as the bike let's me know when the fob battery is low. I also have a permanently attached cable/connector to the bikes battery behind a pop off panel just incase it goes flat so I can unlock the seat.
I will have to correct you on that. I have had a key jump/fall out of the ignition barrel on my high mileage gpz900. It was a shock after doing 30 odd miles across London to find no key in the ignition. I was fortunate enough though to have the keyring and plastic part of the key to melt and stick to the top of the downpipes.
I bought a six month old Sinnis terrain 125 when I passed my CBT. I ordered it for eight months and about 2000 miles on a mix of 40 mile trips up to a 1000mile four day tour. While the dealer network were not particularly good (overhead telephone conversations about not bothering to replace seals, wrong oil used, poor customer service/timekeeping), the bike itself was great. I don’t recall it ever letting me down(although on the factory battery it struggled to keep itself charged and supply my heated kit) and on one day back from the Lake District (370 miles) it was at 9000rpm, red lining, all day without any complaint. I did swap the tyres across from the CST Nylon specials to Metzelers. It was also hosed down with ACF regularly. Overall I was impressed particularly given everyone said it would be a mistake. The depreciation was spectacular for the first owner as list was £3400 and I paid £2100 but then I sold it for £2200. I’d get another. My next bike was a 748, which I still have and now a r1250 GSA but I’d love to ride that Sinnis again as it would be a laugh. Motorways were not as much fun but I could happily go green landing on it and I do recall a couple that took a pair to Mongolia with little fuss.
I've a carbon copy experience with my sinnis terrain too, I strangely wish I'd kept it for town and local runs. The throttle cable went on mine and a AA guy made me a new one on the side of the road in the middle of Northumberland moors- which I never replaced!!
You've got some classic Chinese words of wisdom there I'll be adding to my collection. My favorite translation ... although that is not the correct term, comes from the expertise I acquired in the early 2000's marketing Chinese Scooter Parts. "Turn your winker on when swerving". While I live on the far side of the pond, I think that is just as funny in your English as it is in my English.
Under a couple of thousand miles and there's already paint flaking around the welds exposing corrosion beneath ! That's not an issue with the welds not being cleaned, that is paint over rust ! I know it's a budget bike but people buy bikes like this to commute to work and have fun on their days off, those electrical issues could leave you stranded at any time !
@@bennettsbikesocial The world loves an optimist. On your own that could potentially be an adventure (been there, done that on three continents), but with your wife on board…? Yep, you’re definitely an optimist. I once drove a Volvo 264 with a KNOWN busted cylinder block paper gasket, from the UK to half way up Norway in the middle of winter - without snow tyres!! (Not only Totally illegal, but officially regarded as impossible). I was running an open radiator (to prevent the cooling system from pressurising and forcing water into the oil), and had a washer bottle with water pump from an Austin 1300 rigged to top up the radiator every few miles as it boiled away. The system was wired up to a redundant switch on the dashboard. Naturally the heater was on full all the time, so it helped augment the main cooling system. I was carrying litres of water in bottles, and had to stop multiple times to refill everything - once at a fast flowing mountain stream that was only acceptable over a field of 2ft deep snow. No one ever believes this story, except my fiancé who was waiting for me in our apartment half way up the side of a fjord. Despite coming off the road several times, and performing the most ludicrous stunts to navigate up the steep inclines after disembarking from the multiple ferries, and averaging 15mph over two and a half days of driving, I eventually arrived in one piece, and loved every single minute of the journey. Driving back to the UK, in the same car, in the same condition (except for studded tyres), but now with my fiancé on board, FULLY loaded with gear, was a somewhat less funny experience. They are much more sensitive to impending disaster, and wired less predictably than Chinese bikes. Peace 🏴
Although in a perfect world all those welds would have been immaculately clean before painting. And the electrics could be made next level. The fact remain that It's a cheap bike. With way more features than the Japanese competitors. And truth be told regarding many of those issues even the Japanese bikes are not totally exempt of them! Which is something anyone who work on their own bikes could tell you right away. In all honesty I'm very well impressed by the overall bike until now. A few rough edges, for sure, but none that I could pin point as a deal breaker. I'm pretty sure in a few years most probably production methods will evolve. And things like galvanized frames will be a reality but then the price... ;-)
Thanks John, nice review. I've pretty much given up with other bike channels as they're too influenced by sponsors, so it's refreshing to see independent reviews like this. Long may it continue 👍
@@bennettsbikesocial Yep, that's the problem with other YT "reviewers" - they don't want to bite the hand that feeds and hence fail to give an honest review. Unlike you guys so massive thumbs up 👍 Long time viewer and have always enjoyed your content 💯
"Supposedly"? Lol, your out of your mind. Wait a couple years until all the rubber seals (forks, brake master cylinders, o rings) have dry rotted on this zontes.
Excellent, detailed, thoughtful writeup. Thanks very much for doing this. Finally someone has stopped speculating and dug into this topic. Don't look for the Chinese manufacturers to stand still. They will improve their quality.
9.19....I had this defect on a number of welds on my brand new Honda Adv 350....being a scooter they were hidden away and the only reason I noticed them was when I went into the dark recesses to apply Acf50...the dealer took the bike back and rectified the issues....it's not only Chinese bikes where quality is a concern.
When I watched the previous video i was considering a new Zontes-G1 scrambler125 for around £3200. I instead got a 2005 Honda Varadero XL125 in mint condition 7k miles for the same money, I think I made the right choice.
@@mrpantur7280 I've not seen any Varaderos with chavy mods on tbh, I had a Speedfight 2 2stroke before this and that was a chavtastic special - this one is a bit more grown up.
@@TheOmniscientAtheist dam. Where I live I've probably only seen 2 clean examples. Usually they are covered in stickers and have modified exhausts that has a exhaust leak and the engine is rattling because it hasn't had an oil change for 5 years lol. Yeah seen loads of chav 2 stroke Peds. Especially if it's an aerox or Zip they always smashed up and heavily modified lol.
Thanks you for being so informative and it's quite refreshing for someone to go so in depth. I've got a new NC750X and it's got 700 miles on it now and the exhaust is showing some rust already and I've not even been out in the rain just once one slightly wet roads. Also the plastic panels just above the pegs are showing signs of scratches where my trousers rest so I've covered them with helicopter tape. So in essence it's not just the Chinese bikes..
I have the cmx rebel 500 it’s only 9 months old, the front bottom fork on the left side mat black paint has started coming off, luckily my Honda dealer got it done under warranty, but all bikes these days have problems with paint coming off, I have a virago 750 it’s from 1993 and the paint is still perfect on the forks , so it must be the different paints they use today .
A few years ago I had a Chinese electric engineering machine. I striped out all the wiring and fuse box and replaced with flexible race quality cable etc. Total reliability and better efficiency. The quality of steel was still crap but it did what I needed.
Excellent report thank you very much! About the warning light, I haven't had any since I bought the bike in October. Still, I think my case is different because I know that the 350T is assembled in Egypt and they have fixed the errors of the previous generations; again, this is according to what the local manufacturer has said. Talking about the antenna, I had the same problem at the beginning when I left the bike unused for a while, but when I went back to using it every two days, things went back to normal, I do not have any explanations for this. Finally, you are right about the rust. As for your trip to Spain, I know a RUclipsr has made a long trip from Egypt to Libya with his 350T, so you can rest assured that the conditions of your trip to Spain will be much smoother.
Spotter here - the connector in your hand at 2:17 is a TE Electronics Superseal connector - a fairly pricey family of connectors found on premium bikes (like the Ducati 1199) and cars (like the McLarens I used to work on). The smaller connectors at 2:21 and 8:29 are Japan Solderless Terminals (JST) connectors and (again) are fairly premium, high quality connectors (and found on the 1199) - so it's very surprising to find this 'quality' of electrical hardware on such a budget bike...... .......They are however, regularly counterfeited and available on the likes of Amazon, eBay, AliExpress etc etc. - the types of counterfeit manufacturing regularly attributed to the Chinese.
Can't wait to watch the next episodes of this series! Zontes just yesterday released their 350 range in Brazil, the bikes have aggressive prices and all, but I'd be cautious of buying one before knowing if it has any major problems or design flaws. In recent years Brazil got Bajaj and Royal Enfield motorcycles, those had some quality issues at first but both brands were quick to fix their models and adapt them to the market. I hope Zontes is successful in increasing the quality of its products as well, the bikes look awesome and have amazing prices.
Really enjoyed this video, my last bike was a cb300r which was very well put together, in a lot of aspects I'd say it was better built than my current trident 660.
I have a hankering for the Zontes myself. Definitely with you on the Calimoto thing. Had a holiday in Wales last summer and it was wonderful. Did some amazing round trips on wonderful obscure roads.
I'd wait and see with the Zontes - I'm aiming for 10,000 miles this year, though might not quite manage that. There is lots to like on it though. And cheers for that with Calimoto - it is a great app! All the best, John
Hi, I work for a company in Gibraltar that sells Zontes bikes. Before I worked for this company I had never heard of them but I was, of course, well aware of the reputation of Chinese bikes. I've been been pleasently surprised by them so far though. I'm enjoying hearing your thoughts on this one and I'd love to hear what you think about some of the other bikes in the Zontes line. I know you rode down to southern Spain recently, if you ever come as far south as Gibraltar give me a shout.
What a good idea its nice to see a bike that many would not think of buying and if to them its worth it. For me I rather have an older mainstream bike like used GS310 or Honda. Nice information cant wait for the next one great job.
I'd always stand by the belief of having all the yaw and wheelie control, abs, efi, drive by wires, real time suspension adjusters, or any tech to push performance and driveability on heavy adv bikes or circuit bikes. ..but for small cc adv, commuters, or thumpers below 650cc, carbies all the way! That's considering the rider knows what to do with a wrench tho lol
Loved the video. 'Bosch' ECU grounding wire @ 10:10. Held vaguely in position by one zip tie! What's wrong with Wrigley's Doublemint? It's the most popular brand in China. Cheapskate.
My Honda CB500f is 10 years old and getting very close to 80,000 miles. Things that have gone wrong that weren’t a service or wear item: 1 neutral sensor, cost: about £5. That’s it. Seriously when I see things like this, or people with KTM’s saying is been great… followed by half a dozen things replaced ´under warranty’ before it has even done 10,000 miles I just don’t get it. Buy shite, buy twice.
I had a 2022 CF Moto 250NK for a while and I had a couple of issues with it. First one was after riding in the rain I had a fault showed up on the display and it only went when I clicked the on/off stop switch next to the throttle a couple of times. Must had got water inside. The second which was more annoying was the heat from the engine on a warm day. Very uncomfortable and I feel they didn't get the fan to come on early enough. Apart from those issues I liked it.
I have a terrible problem with my 1 year old Herald Maverick 250. It's been sitting in my garage with a full tank of E10 since October, but the battery didn't go flat and the thing fired right up this morning. It has almost 9000km on the clocks and it hasn't gone wrong once, no rust no flakey paint nothing, despite commuting through all the salt and rain, and being hammered off road most days. (ACF 50 is a miracle worker). Everyone tells me this isn't right, and I should sell it quickly while it still has a years warranty and RAC recovery left on it. I would add that the electrode fell off the "NGK" spark plug when I was gapping it, and the local motor factor told me it was a counterfeit.
Excellent pair of videos. Very thorough. As a fairly inexperienced, though not new, rider I won't be buying one of these, sadly. I'll look into the Sinnis t-380 or a yamaha/honda used. This, though it looks amazing, would have caused me to tear my hair out. Thanks very much...for saving me all this headache.
Thank you for taking the time and the pain, so that, we don't have to. I wouldn't buy a Chinese vehicle even if there were no other options. They always compromise quality over quantity and safety. Great video. Winker is an American term by the way, heard it first when I came to Japan and was confused by the terminology.
I had a lexmoto briefly, the fasteners were all going rusty in a couple of months and quality was obviously lacking. Sold it very quickly before the rot took hold. As others have said, get second hand Japanese if you want affordable reliability.
Anybody who works in Engineering knows that reaching 80% of the proyect is realatively easy, the problem lies in the last 20%. The top 20% of the work usually takes 80% of the time and budget. That's why old Japanese bikes are better than new Chinese ones. The Chinese ones have decent quality, but they lack that top percert of quality, which is what makes a difference. And contrary to many people's believe, they're not close to reach the Japanese quality, as they're still reaching the 70-80% of the quality. The big steep for quality improvements is what comes next.
I’m a Calimoto user and I can’t recommend them enough, like you, I’ve been enlightened to so many roads and lanes I didn’t know existed, and they are so much fun, and it always tries to give you a new route no matter how well travelled your local area is…
Приветствую! В России Zontes представлен большим количеством моделей, но такого подробного разбора хотя бы одной из них я не видел. Отличной обзор, думаю после увиденного приобрету эту модель (причем у нас она на спицованных колесах). Спасибо за труды👍.
Not interested in this Chinese stuff but my ears pricked up when you mentioned a satnav review! I use a car TomTom in a waterproof case (bike satnavs are horrifically expensive) as it has speed camera warnings which has proved very useful to me on a few occasions. I think I'm correct in saying phones still use cellular network antennas which can have dead spots while satnavs use satellites.
Depends on the phone, though the tablet I use (a Carpe Iter) has a dedicated high-end GPS chip: www.bennetts.co.uk/bikesocial/reviews/products/motorcycle-technology/carpe-iter-v4b-tablet-review
Nah. Every smartphone has GPS, works really well with maps. Waze is especially good as users can input real-time alerts for crashes, speedtrap vans etc, and every user in that area gets immediate update). I used Garmin satnavs for years, but now I'm solid for Waze.
I have a Zontes 310-X2 instead of the 350T. One common issue on my bike is the coolant container tends to develop a leak. I had mine replaced about a year into owning it (around end 2020), and the replacement started to leak end of 2022. The other issue is that the brake line needs to be bled quite often. Somehow air gets trapped one way or another. I didn't have the Dump Sensor issue, but it does make me want to strip my Zontes just to see how the unit is placed.
Interesting how your getting on with this. The dyno should be fun. :) A revisit of the rust and small electrical connectors after the 2k run, will be revealing.
My old 2013 EXCF350 used those connectors for the indicators. Useless flippin connectors. That headlight is quite similar too but yours is better than the EXCF. 🤣
Thanks for taking one for the team :D I think chinese products come a long way to be done properly, but I also think that the devil is in the long term use and quality. Long term test is what might show how biased I/we(?) are.
The fitness tests get easier after every iteration to reduce the amount of people un deployable. I left a number of years ago and and still fitter than alot of the new recruits
@@bennettsbikesocial Thanks for reply, but that doesn't mean they DON'T corrode. Pretty sure viewers would like to see a £20,000 GS with the Bad/Ugly points as well. Go On be brave!
@@frankspeakmore7104 if mine did it, I would. Look back at some of the previous videos and I'm not shy of highlighting any issues I have, no matter what the brand.
Buying a Chinese bike is a bit like buying a "Used something else." They are modestly priced and you get exactly what you have paid for. I have recently bought a 2023 Moto Guzzi V7850. It was a lot of money and is built like it was hewn from granite. However, I have still found cross threaded bolts on it and such. So, NOTHING is ever 100% fault free, even the expensive stuff on occasion. I also have a "Chinese made," Benelli Imperiale 400 in my collection. It is 3 years old now, with just under 5000 miles on it. I use it for going up to the village to go shopping and nipping to the garage for a pint of milk etc. It does need "Keeping dry" as the chrome is not been very good, and the ABS fault light, has a mind of it's own but, it has been faultlessly reliable, economical and great fun to ride. I could see it still being a useful runaround for another 20 years. I'm enjoying the series and hope to see more of the same! 👍👍.
careful with the fuel connectors. the fuel pump plastic gets brittle over 3 years....... my 310r suffered. the bikes well made but you need the hands of a small child to get things off. electronic seat hidden release is also a huge headache!
Agreed.. The disassembly required to get access to the seat lock is considerable, especially if you have side cases and mounting frame attached. My solenoid failed (corroded copper wire wrapping for some reason) I bought a generic solenoid online and managed to customize it to fit the lock instead of buying a whole new lock assembly. There is an access hole in the wheel arch for a screw driver to manually unlock the seat where the side cases frame is bolted but it is a pain to get to. The bike does seem to be pretty well protected against rain ingress....I think frequent pressure washing was the cause of the failure
Chigee is amazing at early bird price TPMS on screen tyre pressures and temp, front rear cameras BSD amazing shame it’s is not removable I tried to put a ram bolt but plate hole is smaller
With what Royal Enfield are offering in the 350cc, A2 sort of range I really can't see why you'd go near a Chinese motorcycle. I own a Royal Enfield Meteor 350 and its a amazing machine. You've also got the classic 350 and the Himalayan which comes in 411cc and 450cc. All three are fantastic bikes for what they are aimed at younger riders and new bikers like myself.
I have a 2 year old 310 ADV with 15,000 miles on It has been pretty good but has had faults. my son has a 125 U1. The keyless system uses a P.K.E unit and you can start the bike if the fob batteries are flat.
personally i love chinese and korean bikes because they're a blank slate. it's a guranteed they're goofy as but if you get a cheap one and don't mind pratting around they're fun to practice working on.
@@bennettsbikesocialI actually come from the electrical world and I'm probably a bit weird as i find chinese electrical stuff fun becuase they're so weird, though they absolutely are challenging if you're not sure what you're looking at.
I had a Sinnis 250 retrostar, based on a gn250. It was fast, reliable and economical but peripherals are bad like hard seat and poor quality chain n rear shocks which can easily be changed. Worst part was the very heavy clutch; your arm hurts after an along ride. Then I had a cbr250 which was altogether far less rough but riding position too cramped. It's not easy finding the ideal bike.
A really good, detailed and in depth analysis. With reference to the ECU, I wonder if the foam pads are meant to be self-adhesive on both sides, with the ECU being held on the underside of the rear subframe? Still doesn't explain or excuse the ziptied earth connector though...
Very interesting vid. No bikes will be perfect but I do think the Chinese brands are trying hard now. My old Firestorm is 27 years old now and it's been great but there's no water proof connectors anywhere and while the frame is aluminium the steel subframe badly corroded asking with anything else made of steel including most fasteners. Over time I've combatted all of these issues, stainless fasteners etc but I think as a direct comparison the Chinese brands are better now than Honda were all those years ago.
Have someone drive towards you to check your lights. It’s worth it. Someone wrecked just past me when I was running aftermarket HID’s that were insanely too bright back in the day and I was waiting due my appointment to get them swapped out. I felt terribly guilty.
I was wondering when you would mention the Chigee. Every other RUclipsr who's ever sat on a bike has been sent one, it seems, so I figured you'd have one too!
@@bennettsbikesocial Good on you, I'm pleased to hear that. Will be good to hear a truly unbiased view. Most reviews so far have been a bit hagiographic, but light on the downsides of the device. For example, I don't think the BMW wonderwheel link reads scrolling, just left/right.
I'm trying to choose a middleweight adventure bike from the 286 options on the market and the CFMOTO 800mt seems like a great choice specs wise but... Really what I need is some way to separate all the options!
An engine disassembly and tolerance measurement is what i will be the most interested on. Something tells me those won't last over 100,000 miles like the japanese ones do with minimal diligent maintenance.
Ignore Chinese bikes at our peril. Seem to be getting better year on year. There’s a lot of People that knock them and call them junk. Well my 18 month old 20k GS needed new engine cases for corrosion. Calimoto is a superb App, I can stick in a random route and within 10 minutes from my home I’m on a road I didn’t know existed. Used it to plot B road route from Northampton down to Devon and it was brilliant, took ages but was a lovely route.
I said this on the last video but my CFmoto is one of the best bikes I’ve owned. So much character and it always gives me a good ride. I just did a ride with my buddy who has a Ducati v4 and was a bit skeptical but I was able to keep up with him in the twistys where our average pace was around 152 kilometers an hour or 95 mph. Let’s just say he was quite surprised😂
Give China there dues from when I started riding 25 years ago to now its unbelievable Japanese are pulling out motorcycles ... anyone trying has got my respect, if these brands came out of Italy or Germany there would be a backlog of sales
Probably not what your channel does, but it would be interesting to find out if there can be any modest performance mods done to the bike after youre done with it. Cant wait to see the Dyno run. I really curious to see if they have undersold you on the performance of the bike. Always the case when it comes to dodgy chinese products albeit this Zonte seems to have a lot more care and attention gone into it then a lot of other chinese bikes.
My zontes lights sort of do the same there is no ambient light outside the spread. What it lights up it lights up amazing well but it's pitch black outside the spread. I put this down to being LED lights. The high beam is the same but the big problem is the blue light on the dash is stupid bright and distracting especially as I wear an adventure helmet the light hits the sun peak and reflects back down.
I’m a retired motorcycle mechanic and the reality of owning a Chinese bike hasn’t kicked in yet, the sun destroys anything plastic, the wire plastic become brittle and the wires get metal fatigue, all rubber components become hard and disintegrate ,welds have little or no penetration and the frame is made of such bad quality metal that the heat in the welding process causes stress fractures, anything electrical will vibrate its self to pieces or melts, I’d like to have your optimism but we would then both be wrong 🤷🏻I’m not a religious man but personally I would make say a prayer before riding
i would be interested in part replacement costs and getting the parts. such as a replacement exhaust or those pipes you showed covered in salt for example. it looks like its going to rust a lot within 15k miles. back in 2006 i bought a new kawasaki KLE 500, and by 2009/2010, an exhaust for it cost £1600 which felt like the value of the motorbike, i had put 25k miles on the thing riding all year round as it was all i had back then. also kawasaki had ended production (2004 to 2007 was the production years i think) of it so getting the parts was difficult and expensive for an old bike. if not a lot of people buy this model, you might find it goes out of production and then its difficult to find parts to keep it going, and if you find parts they might be expensive.
Yes, those are the same as the standard Ducati indicator connectors. Kojaycat sell them for about seven pounds each - useful if you want to make aftermarket indicators "plug-and-play".
Err on that aerial on the right side panel and you saying it wasn't working, to the best of my knowledge on that it's not for the PKE wireless signal, it's a short range chip based transponder which is used if the fob battery is dead by touching it to that very location
Yes, that's right. Sorry if I made it a bit muddled! The problem is that that is doing nothing now. Range has dropped, and it won't work with no power at the fob.
@@bennettsbikesocial so what your saying is that if you remove the fob battery, and hold it over that right side panel where that strip is located with the red power button pressed, it does nothing? Have you tried moving it around over the sensor area while holding the power button 🤷🏻♂️
Those small connectors are JST style connectors, and they're also used on my MV Agusta and an older SV650. That said, obviously that one was not crimped correctly, and I suspect they aren't genuine JST plugs, but a cheap knock off. I can't say how good or bad those knock offs are, when crimped correctly.
Can we talk about that welding? Quality generally is much improved from a cheap Chinese bike I had 12 years ago (think it was called a Zongshen something....250 air cooled single) but welding hasn't come on very much at all. Lots of opportunity for rust to set in.
@pd8559 mine was 2012 as I mentioned and it was shocking. The welds on the rear of the bike in the video (when showing the rubber bungs seal the end of the frame tubes) looks very very poor
Regarding Calimoto: I really wanted to like it but found it is problematic. Where I live is quite rural so direct/fast routes are nice sweeper 'A' roads, fun twisties you would call 'B' roads are also demarked 'A' roads and sometimes 'B' roads. Then there are tight, rough near farm track roads normally not classified but count as 'B' roads round here. So, Calimoto routes have me wishing I was riding an adventure/off road bike if I put in a twisty route request as it defaults to the latter everytime!! And trying to get it to default to a good motorcycle roads can take a long time of putting in way points to "persuade" the algorithm not to send you off down a road with gravel sections and grass growing down the middle!! If you simply put in a fast route it will send you on the one main route through the area everytime. Too much work, sorry. Your video was very interesting though and thorough as usual.
Thanks! I love tight rural backroads, and would say that in the UK at least, it's perhaps not going to suit someone looking for fast sweepers. Cheers, John
I think there is a lot of animosity towards Chinese products I have the chigee CarPlay unit TPMS BSD awesome quality. I like to point that apple computers are made in Chinese as are other mobile phones .i remember when people hated japanese cars years ago. I would allow these Chinese brands to catch up. Don’t forget Ktm bmw have bikes assembled in the far east .
I have no idea what keyless ignition is doing on a bike that cheap. There seems to be far too much in the way of electronics as well. Please don't tell me that a 350cc bike has traction control or a lean sensitive imu! The main thing that I would be looking at on a cheap bike like that would be mechanical strength and design. Are the brakes decent? Are the lines cheap? Do the forks work? The corrosion at the weld joints is really worrying. Is the steering clamp and are the head bearings tight? Do the bearing seals hold? Things like that. I don't know if you use a pressure washer for cleaning, but you really shouldn't or at least stand far away to lower the pressure of water. That can ruin bearing seals and cause nasty stuff to happen.
![Hunxho - Ball Forever [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/nki9ZTF9Uls/mqdefault.jpg)
I've fixed the keyless ignition! It was my fault for transposing two connectors. I'll explain more in the next video, but it wasn't Zontes' fault!
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That is a easy mistake to make.
Too many people don’t realize how all the great brands now outsourced to foreign countries including China and India. At present, Chinese Loncin makes engines for the BMW F 750 GS and F 850 GS. In addition, the midsize scooters BMW C 400 X and C 400 GT roll off the production lines there. Chinese CFMoto company is already producing and assembling most parts of the middleweight adventure and naked KTM models, including the KTM 790 Adventure and the KTM 790 Duke. Harley Davidson has two models made in China and one in India. Sold in those markets and also for use in their USA riding academy program-perhaps USA sales in later years. The list goes on and on endlessly. Italian brands resurrected as Chinese companies and sold to people remembering the old brand names. Somehow buying an actual Chinese branded motorcycle seems more honest these days than Japanese, European, etc brands selling you models not made where you think they should be made. 😂
Edit. Looks like more news I didn’t keep up with. End of 2023 Pierer Mobility Group, owner of KTM, Husqvarna, and GasGas, has decided to cut jobs from its Austrian assembly lines and move additional production and some R&D jobs to China.
I love the attention to detail on the bike (apart from the Bosch unit). Thanks for showing us how it looks under the skin! Keyless entry on bike solves no problem we ever had. And this is not a bash at Zontes. BMW do it, Triumph, Ducati... it is crap. It causes more issues rather than making life easier. You cannot lose a key that it in the ignition. You can, however lose a fob while you are out riding.
I keep my fob in the inside zipped pocket of my jacket, I never ride without the jacket not ever. I also keep 2 spare batteries with the fob just in case but I've not needed to use them as the bike let's me know when the fob battery is low. I also have a permanently attached cable/connector to the bikes battery behind a pop off panel just incase it goes flat so I can unlock the seat.
I will have to correct you on that. I have had a key jump/fall out of the ignition barrel on my high mileage gpz900. It was a shock after doing 30 odd miles across London to find no key in the ignition.
I was fortunate enough though to have the keyring and plastic part of the key to melt and stick to the top of the downpipes.
I bought a six month old Sinnis terrain 125 when I passed my CBT. I ordered it for eight months and about 2000 miles on a mix of 40 mile trips up to a 1000mile four day tour. While the dealer network were not particularly good (overhead telephone conversations about not bothering to replace seals, wrong oil used, poor customer service/timekeeping), the bike itself was great. I don’t recall it ever letting me down(although on the factory battery it struggled to keep itself charged and supply my heated kit) and on one day back from the Lake District (370 miles) it was at 9000rpm, red lining, all day without any complaint. I did swap the tyres across from the CST Nylon specials to Metzelers. It was also hosed down with ACF regularly. Overall I was impressed particularly given everyone said it would be a mistake. The depreciation was spectacular for the first owner as list was £3400 and I paid £2100 but then I sold it for £2200. I’d get another. My next bike was a 748, which I still have and now a r1250 GSA but I’d love to ride that Sinnis again as it would be a laugh. Motorways were not as much fun but I could happily go green landing on it and I do recall a couple that took a pair to Mongolia with little fuss.
Thanks so much for this! Please do join our FB group if you can. Cheers, John
I've a carbon copy experience with my sinnis terrain too, I strangely wish I'd kept it for town and local runs. The throttle cable went on mine and a AA guy made me a new one on the side of the road in the middle of Northumberland moors- which I never replaced!!
You've got some classic Chinese words of wisdom there I'll be adding to my collection. My favorite translation ... although that is not the correct term, comes from the expertise I acquired in the early 2000's marketing Chinese Scooter Parts. "Turn your winker on when swerving". While I live on the far side of the pond, I think that is just as funny in your English as it is in my English.
Under a couple of thousand miles and there's already paint flaking around the welds exposing corrosion beneath !
That's not an issue with the welds not being cleaned, that is paint over rust ! I know it's a budget bike but people buy bikes like this to commute to work and have fun on their days off, those electrical issues could leave you stranded at any time !
Hopefully not when I'm on my way down to Spain! Still, that's what this test is to find out... Cheers, John
@@bennettsbikesocial The world loves an optimist. On your own that could potentially be an adventure (been there, done that on three continents), but with your wife on board…? Yep, you’re definitely an optimist.
I once drove a Volvo 264 with a KNOWN busted cylinder block paper gasket, from the UK to half way up Norway in the middle of winter - without snow tyres!! (Not only Totally illegal, but officially regarded as impossible).
I was running an open radiator (to prevent the cooling system from pressurising and forcing water into the oil), and had a washer bottle with water pump from an Austin 1300 rigged to top up the radiator every few miles as it boiled away. The system was wired up to a redundant switch on the dashboard.
Naturally the heater was on full all the time, so it helped augment the main cooling system. I was carrying litres of water in bottles, and had to stop multiple times to refill everything - once at a fast flowing mountain stream that was only acceptable over a field of 2ft deep snow.
No one ever believes this story, except my fiancé who was waiting for me in our apartment half way up the side of a fjord.
Despite coming off the road several times, and performing the most ludicrous stunts to navigate up the steep inclines after disembarking from the multiple ferries, and averaging 15mph over two and a half days of driving, I eventually arrived in one piece, and loved every single minute of the journey.
Driving back to the UK, in the same car, in the same condition (except for studded tyres), but now with my fiancé on board, FULLY loaded with gear, was a somewhat less funny experience.
They are much more sensitive to impending disaster, and wired less predictably than Chinese bikes.
Peace 🏴
@@G58 😪
my Lexmoto had a throttle issue - left me stranded just like you said!
Although in a perfect world all those welds would have been immaculately clean before painting. And the electrics could be made next level. The fact remain that It's a cheap bike. With way more features than the Japanese competitors. And truth be told regarding many of those issues even the Japanese bikes are not totally exempt of them! Which is something anyone who work on their own bikes could tell you right away.
In all honesty I'm very well impressed by the overall bike until now. A few rough edges, for sure, but none that I could pin point as a deal breaker. I'm pretty sure in a few years most probably production methods will evolve. And things like galvanized frames will be a reality but then the price... ;-)
Outstanding report. I'd like to see more real world stuff - sad that 'journalists' don't do this.
Thanks so much! Cheers, John
Thanks John, nice review. I've pretty much given up with other bike channels as they're too influenced by sponsors, so it's refreshing to see independent reviews like this. Long may it continue 👍
Thanks very much! I'm lucky as I'm paid a salary, so it doesn't matter who I upset!
@@bennettsbikesocial Yep, that's the problem with other YT "reviewers" - they don't want to bite the hand that feeds and hence fail to give an honest review. Unlike you guys so massive thumbs up 👍 Long time viewer and have always enjoyed your content 💯
Fascinating. Of course, what we need is a comparison video, using something like a Triumph or BMW which have supposedly superior build quality...
"Supposedly"? Lol, your out of your mind.
Wait a couple years until all the rubber seals (forks, brake master cylinders, o rings) have dry rotted on this zontes.
Excellent, detailed, thoughtful writeup. Thanks very much for doing this. Finally someone has stopped speculating and dug into this topic. Don't look for the Chinese manufacturers to stand still. They will improve their quality.
Thanks very much! Cheers, John
9.19....I had this defect on a number of welds on my brand new Honda Adv 350....being a scooter they were hidden away and the only reason I noticed them was when I went into the dark recesses to apply Acf50...the dealer took the bike back and rectified the issues....it's not only Chinese bikes where quality is a concern.
Wow. That was a real shocker about the Bosch unit.
Great video.
If the parts are marked "Bosch made in China" then they are absolutely counterfeit.
No, they're not, as explained in the video@@thra5herxb12s
When I watched the previous video i was considering a new Zontes-G1 scrambler125 for around £3200.
I instead got a 2005 Honda Varadero XL125 in mint condition 7k miles for the same money,
I think I made the right choice.
Absolutely.
Just don't ruin it with awful chav modifications lol. very rare seeing a good condition Varadero these days.
@@mrpantur7280 I've not seen any Varaderos with chavy mods on tbh, I had a Speedfight 2 2stroke before this and that was a chavtastic special - this one is a bit more grown up.
@@TheOmniscientAtheist dam. Where I live I've probably only seen 2 clean examples. Usually they are covered in stickers and have modified exhausts that has a exhaust leak and the engine is rattling because it hasn't had an oil change for 5 years lol. Yeah seen loads of chav 2 stroke Peds. Especially if it's an aerox or Zip they always smashed up and heavily modified lol.
I think you did and you weren't supporting a hostile power.
Thanks you for being so informative and it's quite refreshing for someone to go so in depth. I've got a new NC750X and it's got 700 miles on it now and the exhaust is showing some rust already and I've not even been out in the rain just once one slightly wet roads. Also the plastic panels just above the pegs are showing signs of scratches where my trousers rest so I've covered them with helicopter tape. So in essence it's not just the Chinese bikes..
I have the cmx rebel 500 it’s only 9 months old, the front bottom fork on the left side mat black paint has started coming off, luckily my Honda dealer got it done under warranty, but all bikes these days have problems with paint coming off, I have a virago 750 it’s from 1993 and the paint is still perfect on the forks , so it must be the different paints they use today .
Thanks for watching! All the best, John
No interest in the bike but always watch your reviews, they are so in depth. Keep them coming.👍.
Thanks! All the best, John
A few years ago I had a Chinese electric engineering machine. I striped out all the wiring and fuse box and replaced with flexible race quality cable etc. Total reliability and better efficiency. The quality of steel was still crap but it did what I needed.
Excellent report thank you very much! About the warning light, I haven't had any since I bought the bike in October. Still, I think my case is different because I know that the 350T is assembled in Egypt and they have fixed the errors of the previous generations; again, this is according to what the local manufacturer has said. Talking about the antenna, I had the same problem at the beginning when I left the bike unused for a while, but when I went back to using it every two days, things went back to normal, I do not have any explanations for this. Finally, you are right about the rust.
As for your trip to Spain, I know a RUclipsr has made a long trip from Egypt to Libya with his 350T, so you can rest assured that the conditions of your trip to Spain will be much smoother.
Spotter here - the connector in your hand at 2:17 is a TE Electronics Superseal connector - a fairly pricey family of connectors found on premium bikes (like the Ducati 1199) and cars (like the McLarens I used to work on). The smaller connectors at 2:21 and 8:29 are Japan Solderless Terminals (JST) connectors and (again) are fairly premium, high quality connectors (and found on the 1199) - so it's very surprising to find this 'quality' of electrical hardware on such a budget bike......
.......They are however, regularly counterfeited and available on the likes of Amazon, eBay, AliExpress etc etc. - the types of counterfeit manufacturing regularly attributed to the Chinese.
Fantastic, thanks very much for this!
pair of 2 pin superseal connectors cost around 70 euro cents...
Yep anything that 'looks' quality is a tofu copy.
Can't wait to watch the next episodes of this series! Zontes just yesterday released their 350 range in Brazil, the bikes have aggressive prices and all, but I'd be cautious of buying one before knowing if it has any major problems or design flaws. In recent years Brazil got Bajaj and Royal Enfield motorcycles, those had some quality issues at first but both brands were quick to fix their models and adapt them to the market. I hope Zontes is successful in increasing the quality of its products as well, the bikes look awesome and have amazing prices.
Really enjoyed this video, my last bike was a cb300r which was very well put together, in a lot of aspects I'd say it was better built than my current trident 660.
I have a hankering for the Zontes myself.
Definitely with you on the Calimoto thing. Had a holiday in Wales last summer and it was wonderful. Did some amazing round trips on wonderful obscure roads.
I'd wait and see with the Zontes - I'm aiming for 10,000 miles this year, though might not quite manage that. There is lots to like on it though. And cheers for that with Calimoto - it is a great app! All the best, John
Hi, I work for a company in Gibraltar that sells Zontes bikes. Before I worked for this company I had never heard of them but I was, of course, well aware of the reputation of Chinese bikes. I've been been pleasently surprised by them so far though. I'm enjoying hearing your thoughts on this one and I'd love to hear what you think about some of the other bikes in the Zontes line. I know you rode down to southern Spain recently, if you ever come as far south as Gibraltar give me a shout.
What a good idea its nice to see a bike that many would not think of buying and if to them its worth it. For me I rather have an older mainstream bike like used GS310 or Honda. Nice information cant wait for the next one great job.
I'd always stand by the belief of having all the yaw and wheelie control, abs, efi, drive by wires, real time suspension adjusters, or any tech to push performance and driveability on heavy adv bikes or circuit bikes.
..but for small cc adv, commuters, or thumpers below 650cc, carbies all the way! That's considering the rider knows what to do with a wrench tho lol
Loved the video. 'Bosch' ECU grounding wire @ 10:10. Held vaguely in position by one zip tie! What's wrong with Wrigley's Doublemint? It's the most popular brand in China. Cheapskate.
Ha! Might have been a more reliable solution!
Well nothing is perfect but at least Zontes is on the right track.
You haven't got to the bad bit yet...
Are you kidding me? You’re making it seem much better than it is
My Honda CB500f is 10 years old and getting very close to 80,000 miles.
Things that have gone wrong that weren’t a service or wear item: 1 neutral sensor, cost: about £5. That’s it.
Seriously when I see things like this, or people with KTM’s saying is been great… followed by half a dozen things replaced ´under warranty’ before it has even done 10,000 miles I just don’t get it.
Buy shite, buy twice.
That tune between the sections is a proper bop!😄👌🏻
Great stuff! Be very interested to see the same re CF moto bikes.
I had a 2022 CF Moto 250NK for a while and I had a couple of issues with it. First one was after riding in the rain I had a fault showed up on the display and it only went when I clicked the on/off stop switch next to the throttle a couple of times. Must had got water inside. The second which was more annoying was the heat from the engine on a warm day. Very uncomfortable and I feel they didn't get the fan to come on early enough. Apart from those issues I liked it.
I have a terrible problem with my 1 year old Herald Maverick 250. It's been sitting in my garage with a full tank of E10 since October, but the battery didn't go flat and the thing fired right up this morning. It has almost 9000km on the clocks and it hasn't gone wrong once, no rust no flakey paint nothing, despite commuting through all the salt and rain, and being hammered off road most days. (ACF 50 is a miracle worker). Everyone tells me this isn't right, and I should sell it quickly while it still has a years warranty and RAC recovery left on it. I would add that the electrode fell off the "NGK" spark plug when I was gapping it, and the local motor factor told me it was a counterfeit.
Excellent pair of videos. Very thorough. As a fairly inexperienced, though not new, rider I won't be buying one of these, sadly. I'll look into the Sinnis t-380 or a yamaha/honda used. This, though it looks amazing, would have caused me to tear my hair out. Thanks very much...for saving me all this headache.
Another gear video 👍
So the verdict is still out on this bike so far the good and bad (apart from an unfixed Ecu) it fairs reasonably well
Yep! Hopefully the keyless ignition will be my fault and soon sorted.
I appreciate the air filter position!
My Zontes has 5000 miles and is a backup to other machines so far no issues and has been better in all respects over my Himalayan.
Thank you for taking the time and the pain, so that, we don't have to. I wouldn't buy a Chinese vehicle even if there were no other options. They always compromise quality over quantity and safety. Great video. Winker is an American term by the way, heard it first when I came to Japan and was confused by the terminology.
You cant paint all Chinese as bad. For me personally dont like Jap brand bikes and probably never will, I've always had chinese bikes.
I had a lexmoto briefly, the fasteners were all going rusty in a couple of months and quality was obviously lacking. Sold it very quickly before the rot took hold. As others have said, get second hand Japanese if you want affordable reliability.
Anybody who works in Engineering knows that reaching 80% of the proyect is realatively easy, the problem lies in the last 20%. The top 20% of the work usually takes 80% of the time and budget.
That's why old Japanese bikes are better than new Chinese ones. The Chinese ones have decent quality, but they lack that top percert of quality, which is what makes a difference. And contrary to many people's believe, they're not close to reach the Japanese quality, as they're still reaching the 70-80% of the quality. The big steep for quality improvements is what comes next.
Very informative article, thank you & safe travels
Thanks very much! You too...
I’m a Calimoto user and I can’t recommend them enough, like you, I’ve been enlightened to so many roads and lanes I didn’t know existed, and they are so much fun, and it always tries to give you a new route no matter how well travelled your local area is…
Приветствую! В России Zontes представлен большим количеством моделей, но такого подробного разбора хотя бы одной из них я не видел. Отличной обзор, думаю после увиденного приобрету эту модель (причем у нас она на спицованных колесах). Спасибо за труды👍.
Not interested in this Chinese stuff but my ears pricked up when you mentioned a satnav review! I use a car TomTom in a waterproof case (bike satnavs are horrifically expensive) as it has speed camera warnings which has proved very useful to me on a few occasions. I think I'm correct in saying phones still use cellular network antennas which can have dead spots while satnavs use satellites.
Depends on the phone, though the tablet I use (a Carpe Iter) has a dedicated high-end GPS chip: www.bennetts.co.uk/bikesocial/reviews/products/motorcycle-technology/carpe-iter-v4b-tablet-review
Nah. Every smartphone has GPS, works really well with maps. Waze is especially good as users can input real-time alerts for crashes, speedtrap vans etc, and every user in that area gets immediate update). I used Garmin satnavs for years, but now I'm solid for Waze.
Very nicely done, John. Really enjoyable 👍
Thanks! All the best, John
I have a Zontes 310-X2 instead of the 350T. One common issue on my bike is the coolant container tends to develop a leak. I had mine replaced about a year into owning it (around end 2020), and the replacement started to leak end of 2022.
The other issue is that the brake line needs to be bled quite often. Somehow air gets trapped one way or another.
I didn't have the Dump Sensor issue, but it does make me want to strip my Zontes just to see how the unit is placed.
Interesting how your getting on with this. The dyno should be fun. :) A revisit of the rust and small electrical connectors after the 2k run, will be revealing.
Cheers! Dyno coming soon...
Really enjoying this series
Thanks! All the best, John
My old 2013 EXCF350 used those connectors for the indicators. Useless flippin connectors. That headlight is quite similar too but yours is better than the EXCF. 🤣
Thanks for taking one for the team :D I think chinese products come a long way to be done properly, but I also think that the devil is in the long term use and quality. Long term test is what might show how biased I/we(?) are.
Time will tell! Cheers, John
Really enjoying this series 😁
The fitness tests get easier after every iteration to reduce the amount of people un deployable. I left a number of years ago and and still fitter than alot of the new recruits
The BMW GS suffers from corrosion problems, would love to see a video of that, as they are rather expensive motorbikes.
Touch wood, mine hasn't yet (2019)
@@bennettsbikesocial Thanks for reply, but that doesn't mean they DON'T corrode. Pretty sure viewers would like to see a £20,000 GS with the Bad/Ugly points as well. Go On be brave!
@@frankspeakmore7104 if mine did it, I would. Look back at some of the previous videos and I'm not shy of highlighting any issues I have, no matter what the brand.
Buying a Chinese bike is a bit like buying a "Used something else." They are modestly priced and you get exactly what you have paid for. I have recently bought a 2023 Moto Guzzi V7850. It was a lot of money and is built like it was hewn from granite. However, I have still found cross threaded bolts on it and such. So, NOTHING is ever 100% fault free, even the expensive stuff on occasion. I also have a "Chinese made," Benelli Imperiale 400 in my collection. It is 3 years old now, with just under 5000 miles on it. I use it for going up to the village to go shopping and nipping to the garage for a pint of milk etc. It does need "Keeping dry" as the chrome is not been very good, and the ABS fault light, has a mind of it's own but, it has been faultlessly reliable, economical and great fun to ride. I could see it still being a useful runaround for another 20 years. I'm enjoying the series and hope to see more of the same! 👍👍.
Thanks! Please do join our FB group if you have a chance too. Cheers, John
Enjoyed that! Hope the next episode comes soon. 😎
17:03 hey that’s actually very clear!
careful with the fuel connectors. the fuel pump plastic gets brittle over 3 years....... my 310r suffered. the bikes well made but you need the hands of a small child to get things off. electronic seat hidden release is also a huge headache!
Agreed.. The disassembly required to get access to the seat lock is considerable, especially if you have side cases and mounting frame attached. My solenoid failed (corroded copper wire wrapping for some reason) I bought a generic solenoid online and managed to customize it to fit the lock instead of buying a whole new lock assembly. There is an access hole in the wheel arch for a screw driver to manually unlock the seat where the side cases frame is bolted but it is a pain to get to. The bike does seem to be pretty well protected against rain ingress....I think frequent pressure washing was the cause of the failure
Grounding the electrics is always overlooked by Chinese manufacturers of lots of products.
Great video! Plenty of time & effort no doubt to make it! Keep up the good work sir.
Thanks very much! Cheers, John
Chigee is amazing at early bird price TPMS on screen tyre pressures and temp, front rear cameras BSD amazing shame it’s is not removable I tried to put a ram bolt but plate hole is smaller
With what Royal Enfield are offering in the 350cc, A2 sort of range I really can't see why you'd go near a Chinese motorcycle. I own a Royal Enfield Meteor 350 and its a amazing machine. You've also got the classic 350 and the Himalayan which comes in 411cc and 450cc. All three are fantastic bikes for what they are aimed at younger riders and new bikers like myself.
I have a 2 year old 310 ADV with 15,000 miles on It has been pretty good but has had faults. my son has a 125 U1. The keyless system uses a P.K.E unit and you can start the bike if the fob batteries are flat.
That's the bit that's not working on mine at the mo
personally i love chinese and korean bikes because they're a blank slate. it's a guranteed they're goofy as but if you get a cheap one and don't mind pratting around they're fun to practice working on.
With you on that. Though the electrics can be tricky!
@@bennettsbikesocialI actually come from the electrical world and I'm probably a bit weird as i find chinese electrical stuff fun becuase they're so weird, though they absolutely are challenging if you're not sure what you're looking at.
I had a Sinnis 250 retrostar, based on a gn250. It was fast, reliable and economical but peripherals are bad like hard seat and poor quality chain n rear shocks which can easily be changed. Worst part was the very heavy clutch; your arm hurts after an along ride.
Then I had a cbr250 which was altogether far less rough but riding position too cramped. It's not easy finding the ideal bike.
A really good, detailed and in depth analysis. With reference to the ECU, I wonder if the foam pads are meant to be self-adhesive on both sides, with the ECU being held on the underside of the rear subframe? Still doesn't explain or excuse the ziptied earth connector though...
No, sadly not. And the chassis plates are too contoured for that to work. Nice idea though. Cheers, John
@@bennettsbikesocial Thanks for replying 👍
@@luddite6239 sorry it took a while... Four of us from work were doing a firewalk to raise money for Magpas!
@@bennettsbikesocial 🔥🔥🦶🔥🔥 Ouch!
It never once mentioned in my new bike's service manual the need to tighten every nut, bolt and screw at least once a month! 🤔😉
10:50 I imagine the Bosch engineer seeing this and having a heart attack 😂.
At least they didn't use double sided tape
Really. Perfect english in this manual....in my v310 as well...but in my next gk350 a little better😊
Very interesting vid. No bikes will be perfect but I do think the Chinese brands are trying hard now. My old Firestorm is 27 years old now and it's been great but there's no water proof connectors anywhere and while the frame is aluminium the steel subframe badly corroded asking with anything else made of steel including most fasteners. Over time I've combatted all of these issues, stainless fasteners etc but I think as a direct comparison the Chinese brands are better now than Honda were all those years ago.
Thanks very much! Cheers, John
Have someone drive towards you to check your lights. It’s worth it. Someone wrecked just past me when I was running aftermarket HID’s that were insanely too bright back in the day and I was waiting due my appointment to get them swapped out. I felt terribly guilty.
Your work is appreciated
Thanks very much! All the best, John
Great video, thanks.
Thanks for watching!
Say Bennett, Thanks for, "the Good, Bad and Ugly" of your bike. I'm very interested in the Lifan KP 350, but I'm in, California, USA.
Ok, that is some cool content added there, olde fellow, nicely done keep up the good worx....
Thanks! All the best, John
I was wondering when you would mention the Chigee. Every other RUclipsr who's ever sat on a bike has been sent one, it seems, so I figured you'd have one too!
I was offered a partnership deal, but declined and said I'd simply review it. Cheers, John
@@bennettsbikesocial Good on you, I'm pleased to hear that.
Will be good to hear a truly unbiased view. Most reviews so far have been a bit hagiographic, but light on the downsides of the device. For example, I don't think the BMW wonderwheel link reads scrolling, just left/right.
@@NickElliottuk cheers! I had to Google hagiographic! All the best, John
The Honda 300 Rally has the little “ push pin plastic pins “ on 2 places on side covers .
They're on loads of stuff - they're surprisingly effective.
Great content John 👍🏻
Thanks very much! Cheers, John
I'm trying to choose a middleweight adventure bike from the 286 options on the market and the CFMOTO 800mt seems like a great choice specs wise but... Really what I need is some way to separate all the options!
An engine disassembly and tolerance measurement is what i will be the most interested on. Something tells me those won't last over 100,000 miles like the japanese ones do with minimal diligent maintenance.
Ignore Chinese bikes at our peril. Seem to be getting better year on year. There’s a lot of People that knock them and call them junk. Well my 18 month old 20k GS needed new engine cases for corrosion.
Calimoto is a superb App, I can stick in a random route and within 10 minutes from my home I’m on a road I didn’t know existed.
Used it to plot B road route from Northampton down to Devon and it was brilliant, took ages but was a lovely route.
If you need to get somewhere quick, Google maps is hard to beat, but if you want to enjoy yourself it's great! Cheers, John
I said this on the last video but my CFmoto is one of the best bikes I’ve owned. So much character and it always gives me a good ride. I just did a ride with my buddy who has a Ducati v4 and was a bit skeptical but I was able to keep up with him in the twistys where our average pace was around 152 kilometers an hour or 95 mph. Let’s just say he was quite surprised😂
Give China there dues from when I started riding 25 years ago to now its unbelievable Japanese are pulling out motorcycles ... anyone trying has got my respect, if these brands came out of Italy or Germany there would be a backlog of sales
Most Chinese stuff is made with poor quality steel, they just rust away, especially in Florida. I use boeshield T9 to rustproof things
You're taking that to southern Spain?!
Nice, that's up there with Bruce's sinnis terrain shenanigans... brilliant!
When do you leave for that?
Probably not what your channel does, but it would be interesting to find out if there can be any modest performance mods done to the bike after youre done with it.
Cant wait to see the Dyno run. I really curious to see if they have undersold you on the performance of the bike. Always the case when it comes to dodgy chinese products albeit this Zonte seems to have a lot more care and attention gone into it then a lot of other chinese bikes.
Calimoto is great.
My zontes lights sort of do the same there is no ambient light outside the spread. What it lights up it lights up amazing well but it's pitch black outside the spread. I put this down to being LED lights. The high beam is the same but the big problem is the blue light on the dash is stupid bright and distracting especially as I wear an adventure helmet the light hits the sun peak and reflects back down.
I’m a retired motorcycle mechanic and the reality of owning a Chinese bike hasn’t kicked in yet, the sun destroys anything plastic, the wire plastic become brittle and the wires get metal fatigue, all rubber components become hard and disintegrate ,welds have little or no penetration and the frame is made of such bad quality metal that the heat in the welding process causes stress fractures, anything electrical will vibrate its self to pieces or melts, I’d like to have your optimism but we would then both be wrong 🤷🏻I’m not a religious man but personally I would make say a prayer before riding
The ground is probably for programming or reseting codes. Dont use solder in wires only crimp.
i would be interested in part replacement costs and getting the parts. such as a replacement exhaust or those pipes you showed covered in salt for example. it looks like its going to rust a lot within 15k miles.
back in 2006 i bought a new kawasaki KLE 500, and by 2009/2010, an exhaust for it cost £1600 which felt like the value of the motorbike, i had put 25k miles on the thing riding all year round as it was all i had back then. also kawasaki had ended production (2004 to 2007 was the production years i think) of it so getting the parts was difficult and expensive for an old bike. if not a lot of people buy this model, you might find it goes out of production and then its difficult to find parts to keep it going, and if you find parts they might be expensive.
I'm going to find out stuff like that where I can in an upcoming video. Cheers, John
Those little connectors look just like those on my brand new Ducati behind the headlight
They just seem too small for a motorcycle. Or they're too small for my clumsy hands!
Yes, those are the same as the standard Ducati indicator connectors. Kojaycat sell them for about seven pounds each - useful if you want to make aftermarket indicators "plug-and-play".
Err on that aerial on the right side panel and you saying it wasn't working, to the best of my knowledge on that it's not for the PKE wireless signal, it's a short range chip based transponder which is used if the fob battery is dead by touching it to that very location
Yes, that's right. Sorry if I made it a bit muddled! The problem is that that is doing nothing now. Range has dropped, and it won't work with no power at the fob.
@@bennettsbikesocial so what your saying is that if you remove the fob battery, and hold it over that right side panel where that strip is located with the red power button pressed, it does nothing? Have you tried moving it around over the sensor area while holding the power button 🤷🏻♂️
Yes - it doesn't detect the fob at all at the moment if the fob doesn't have power.
@@bennettsbikesocial strange
Try holding the fob under the rear arch where the battery recharge plug port is located@@bennettsbikesocial
Those small connectors are JST style connectors, and they're also used on my MV Agusta and an older SV650. That said, obviously that one was not crimped correctly, and I suspect they aren't genuine JST plugs, but a cheap knock off. I can't say how good or bad those knock offs are, when crimped correctly.
Hopefully the others will be okay! Cheers, John
Good advertisement video
Can we talk about that welding? Quality generally is much improved from a cheap Chinese bike I had 12 years ago (think it was called a Zongshen something....250 air cooled single) but welding hasn't come on very much at all. Lots of opportunity for rust to set in.
I have a 2022 made bike whose motor is zongshen. Not sure if they made the frame but the frame welds are so good they at first appeared to be robotic.
@pd8559 mine was 2012 as I mentioned and it was shocking. The welds on the rear of the bike in the video (when showing the rubber bungs seal the end of the frame tubes) looks very very poor
Bought a new Lexmoto Arrow £1200 and rusted badly engine wasn't to bad electrics were not the best got rid of it 2years later.
Chinglish 😂😂😂
That’s amazing, I’m gonna start using that. As an Asian American, I approve of this message
Regarding Calimoto: I really wanted to like it but found it is problematic. Where I live is quite rural so direct/fast routes are nice sweeper 'A' roads, fun twisties you would call 'B' roads are also demarked 'A' roads and sometimes 'B' roads. Then there are tight, rough near farm track roads normally not classified but count as 'B' roads round here. So, Calimoto routes have me wishing I was riding an adventure/off road bike if I put in a twisty route request as it defaults to the latter everytime!! And trying to get it to default to a good motorcycle roads can take a long time of putting in way points to "persuade" the algorithm not to send you off down a road with gravel sections and grass growing down the middle!! If you simply put in a fast route it will send you on the one main route through the area everytime. Too much work, sorry.
Your video was very interesting though and thorough as usual.
Thanks! I love tight rural backroads, and would say that in the UK at least, it's perhaps not going to suit someone looking for fast sweepers. Cheers, John
I think there is a lot of animosity towards Chinese products I have the chigee CarPlay unit TPMS BSD awesome quality. I like to point that apple computers are made in Chinese as are other mobile phones .i remember when people hated japanese cars years ago. I would allow these Chinese brands to catch up. Don’t forget Ktm bmw have bikes assembled in the far east .
I have no idea what keyless ignition is doing on a bike that cheap. There seems to be far too much in the way of electronics as well. Please don't tell me that a 350cc bike has traction control or a lean sensitive imu! The main thing that I would be looking at on a cheap bike like that would be mechanical strength and design. Are the brakes decent? Are the lines cheap? Do the forks work? The corrosion at the weld joints is really worrying. Is the steering clamp and are the head bearings tight? Do the bearing seals hold? Things like that. I don't know if you use a pressure washer for cleaning, but you really shouldn't or at least stand far away to lower the pressure of water. That can ruin bearing seals and cause nasty stuff to happen.
My 125cc Zontes has keyless
If I buy a brand new Chinese bike do you think it will serve me well for the first two years? It will be my first bike and my daily ride.
The old issue of British conditions causing corrosion. Admittedly, the finish looks sub standard.
It's way ahead of 5 years ago
So Harley quality and reliability, got it thanks