|
|
Post by tundrav8 on Sept 21, 2008 20:23:08 GMT -5
I am looking to purchase a chinese made 250 cc scoot- prefer the ones that look like the reflex-
Any input on which brands are better and why and which ones to avoid and why and links would be great.
|
|
|
|
Post by greginhershey on Sept 21, 2008 21:29:31 GMT -5
Everyone will have their favorites but I'll stick up for the QLink Commuter: www.qlinkmotor.com/product.php?id=62. I'm up to about 1450 miles on mine and aside from some self-inflicted problems a couple weeks back, this thing just gets better and better. I just tweaked my valves the day before yesterday and the scoot runs beautifully, nice acceleration, comfortable top end speed. Now, I've only had it since the beginning of August, so I can't give a fair assessment on a longer term basis. But so far, I'm happy. |
|
|
|
Post by glassvial on Sept 21, 2008 21:31:16 GMT -5
I *think* the only Reflex-clones are Roketa's or clones of Roketas. There's also a JCL brand model that looks like a Reflex clone that's supposedly different than the Roketa's, but I don't know much about those other than they look like Roketa's. And of course what I mean is, Roketa is the importer, and the bikes are actually Jonways/JMStar's/Unique/etc.  Get your decoder ring out  |
|
|
|
Post by leo on Sept 21, 2008 22:27:50 GMT -5
Any input on which brands are better and why and which ones to avoid and why and links would be great. i believe any chinese scoot with the cfmoto 244cc engine will be a good choice, mainly because of parts availability. the cfmoto 244cc is a clone of the honda helix. other quality scoots are the qlink line and the linhai aeolus. i would avoid all scoots sold on ebay. just a personal choice but i would avoid ANY online dealer. i must also point out that i have no experience whatsoever with online dealers. personally i would go to the place of purchase so that i could look around and see for myself what their service is like. don't forget that ALL new scoots (including the big 4)* need a thorough PDI. the chinese brands you must PDI yourself whereas the big 4 does it for you and includes the price in the sales price. * big 4 - yamaha, kawasaki, honda, and suzuki. be safe, wear the minimum of a fullface helmet and leather gloves. i went to the store today about a block away and didn't wear my helmet or gloves and i actually felt naked without them. |
|
|
|
Post by crducky on Sept 22, 2008 12:33:38 GMT -5
Leo is correct, buy from a dealer not on line. You will pay a little extra as they will PDI it for you but you will avoid what happened to me when mine came from an online wholesaler as a piece of junk straight off the boat from China.
|
|
|
|
Post by pspock on Sept 22, 2008 13:17:31 GMT -5
Buying from a local dealer is relatively safer than buying online, but there have been some horror stories about buying from local dealers as well.
In theory, the local dealer should cost more than the online dealer because the local dealer does a PDI on the scooter. However, it's been found that this isn't always the case. The local dealer can just as easily sell you a scooter in which he has done nothing more than attached the wheels and the mirrors and handed it over to you. It cost more than online not because he performed a PDI on it, but only because he has more overhead than an online dealer.
If you are going to buy a chinese scooter locally, ask what they do to the scooter before they sell it. If it doesn't sound like they do anything, then you will need to PDI the scooter. Which at that point you might as well buy online as it would be cheaper.
|
|
|
|
Post by crducky on Sept 22, 2008 15:41:07 GMT -5
pspock, Being in a very small town and dealing with a local dealer 80 miles away in a larger town of about 25,000 I know if a dealer didn't PDI and have the bike in good shape on the floor would be out of business very rapidly. Primarily because of the cost to him to repair the unit frequently and subsequent rapid word of mouth would keep customers away. Of course there is the "real world" and you are totally correct to get the documentation from the dealer regarding what they have done to the unit and the warranty in writing.
|
|
|
|
Post by pspock on Sept 22, 2008 16:26:17 GMT -5
In case you haven't noticed over the past couple years a lot of these local Chinese dealers are out are out of business very rapidly.
The Chinese scooter dealers that seem to have some staying power are the brands that require their dealers to do a PDI. Like Flyscooters, QLink, Lance, etc....
A local dealer can easily start carrying Roketa, but no one at Roketa does anything to enforce that the dealer does a PDI on the scooters they sell. There's really no way Roketa could enforce it without getting out of the dropshipping business, or else they'd have two different sets of rules for their dealers.
So IMHO I don't think buying a Roketa from a local dealer is any safer than buying a Roketa online, unless I believed the dealer actually decided by himself to go the extra mile and did a PDI on the scooter, and that's what I'm paying more for.
When I buy a Chinese scooter from Flyscooters, QLink, or Lance, I know that the PDI is a requiremnet. Big difference.
|
|
|
|
Post by tumbleweed on Sept 22, 2008 20:23:33 GMT -5
Here's a DIRECT comparison of online experiences ... same scooter - same dealer (ATVDiscounters) - shipped by same carrier (Roadway) to the same terminal (Tannersville, PA).
MY Red MC-54-250B arrived in the color I requested, with the engine I expected, in absolutely CLEAN condition. The "box" had been strapped to a "custom" skid, and stretch-wrapped. Even the stretch wrap was undisturbed.
If you look elsewhere in this forum, you will find pictures of the same model, shipped to the same destination by the same carrier - and it look like they dropped a container on it ! ! !
EVERY piece of plastic is destroyed, the entire instrument cluster was smashed down to bending the indicator needles, the box was not identifiable, there was frame damage. It is a complete disaster ... and unfortunately, the buyer "accepted" the shipment with damage noted. He should have refused it and called his credit card company!
Buying online is a crap-shoot. I got lucky ... my PDI was uneventful, and my first oil changes yielded no metal in the filter screen. I am cautiously optimistic that my luck will continue.
Mine was built by "Unique Industrial and Trading Co., Ltd., for Goldenvale".
So far (only 300 miles) I'm VERY happy.
|
|
|
|
Post by leo on Sept 22, 2008 21:37:22 GMT -5
the only reason i said avoid online dealers was because of the possibility of getting scammed.
plus, i don't think it's fair to B&M places.
an online dealer has absolutely no overhead or responsibilities.
give your business to a local B&M joint.
of course the above doesn't apply to all online dealers, just some of them.
|
|
|
|
Post by chaajoad on Sept 24, 2008 1:03:33 GMT -5
leo - geez we agree.
One small point I've thought about. The terms like "Yamaha clone" seem misleading. A clone is an exact duplicate, down to a molecular level. A yamaha or Honda clone would be ... well, a yamaha or a Honda. A Honda or Yamaha copy is a better term. Semantics, but ...
|
|
|
|
Post by dean on Sept 24, 2008 8:18:13 GMT -5
What hasn't been mentioned is that with a B/M you get the labor warranty -- online is just parts (if anything). However, I have found -- from personal experience, stories here and from friends -- that even with B/M support for the CCS the repairs are frequent enough to create major inconveniences dealing with the logistics of getting scooter to said B/M, waiting for the repair, and getting scooter back. And the B/Ms I have come across aren't exactly focused on customer service.
|
|
