Move over Hyosung, here come the Chinese

[delusionz]

My chinabike is dead on 1560kms on the ODOMETER. So I'm back on a Hyosung SB50 scooter until I get a new bike, The Hyosung is on 3600kms ODO and is slightly suffering from wear on the drive belt but nothing major, It's been raped all day every day and still as reliable as ever. My comment about the Hyosung GT250R with the tail light out was the only negative thing about Hyosung that I've ever seen which in all honesty is awesome for a Korean company. I wish I could say the same for my chinabike which from day 1 was nothing but trouble, The lights blew constantly, there were many clunks & rattles to fix, my clutch cable snapped at the nipple in the lever while riding one day (I don't even drop the clutch) and then the final straw was the spark plug not firing on the morning I had to go to my new job on the first day and I was an hour late!!!!!! And get this, The frame welds have air bubbles and in some areas don't cover the whole join! I now suffer from chinabikephobia and would refuse to let anyone I know ride one let alone buy one.

[ZeroIndex]

Dont worry they did the same about the RG150 as it technically wasnt japanese (malasian?) But now that bike has legend status here.
The nay-sayers would also think the Honda Hero is black magic (if it came here) even though a good chunk of india ride it.
People are scared of new things. They buy stuff from names that have been here for decades. And will continue to do so.
Would they complain so much if the bike was labelled a Suzuki FXR 230?

people still bitch about those crappy gn250's

[rphenix]

You're actually wrong, Hyosung is thriving in NZ and I've tested the whole range except for the Aquilas and there's nothing wrong with them. Plenty of dealers and better warranty support than Kawasaki for instance.

The Aquilas aren't bad I've got an Aquila till I get my full motorcycle license again, back when I brought it I wouldn't have considered for a permanent ride but now I'm rethinking that and might just consider the 650 instead of buying a Honda as for the 250 instead of flicking it on the wife quite likes it so its got a permanent home.

As for parts with Kawasaki NZ supporting the brand parts should be plentiful and I've had no issue getting it serviced.

[janno]

I try not to buy Chinese stuff, not because of quality concerns, although that's a worry, but because of their labour conditions.

These bikes are probably made by 10 year old workers getting a bowl of rice a day and a dollar a month, and if they don't work hard enough they get to "donate" their organs . . .

Bad, bad karma to support that crap all in the name of saving a dollar.

Though you'd be hard pressed to find something that doesn't have a component made in China these days.

Bring back tariffs, I say. Global trade is not the best idea in the world, though that comment is from an idealistic point of view with no economic knowledge whatsoever.

Anyone ever feel like you get "issue overload" these days?

Is it getting worse, all these things we are supposed to worry about, or am I just getting older?

[rocketman1]

Maybe Im abit older than some of you guys that read this, when I was 13 the local dealer in town bought in a japanese car called it a Datsun Bluebird ugly thing, cheap, and nasty, nobody said the would sell, never heard of Datsun before, Ford Cortina's were the rage. Jap was crap, mate 10years later it was the other way around.. those of you dissing the Chinese bikes,,, you just wait.
In fact I will date this 22-06-07 and come back to it in 10 years time and see if I was wrong.

[kevfromcoro]

as above.i can remeber the honda dream when it came out...1st jap bike.what a load of shit we scofted...jap bikes ..now look at them.....iam sure the chinese will get into the market..and take it over..they are a pack of cunning devils...in fact i think they will take over the world one day...not in my lifetime i hope.....then again ...some of the chickies look ok

[moko]

Have to agree with 2 above comments,anything Japanese back then in the UK was invariably called "Japanese Rubbish" ,particularly Hi Fi gear and TVs.
Thing that strikes me at the moment is that history is repeating but this time it seems as if the Japanese are the ones not listening and making exactly the same mistakes as the British bike industry all those years ago.They're concentrating on the supersports stuff while seeming not to have noticed the learner and commuter market being swamped with Chinese machines.A Chinese 125traily here(kind of stuff the kids buy) will cost you about the same as the depreciation in the first year of a Honda XR125 or DTR125 Yamaha,the Honda's even built in Brazil so they can hardly blame Japanese production costs.Chinese bikes are improving all the time and most now come with a 2 year warranty.The Lifan 125 traily now outsells the well-established DTR and is gaining on the XR,so far the reaction from honda and Yamamha has been to persist with dated designs and make no attempt to bring prices down.