2017 Apollo 250 Feedback needed
 

Guys new to the forum. I have been looking into getting a dirt bike for a while. In CA a used Named Honda/yamaha 250 in the year range of 2002 to 2005 sell aroundd 2200-3500.

I found the Apollo 250 shipped for around 1500 to 1700 range (give or take).

What should be my expectations with this bike? I'm sure this bike would not last long on a motorcross track, but how about trail riding with minor jumps. Am I better off just saving some more cash, and buying a Honda/Yamaha?

I have never owned a dirt bike, and the few people that do own them say to stay away from the Chinese bikes, but the prices make them very enticing.

Thanks for any feedback,

Douglass

I may not represent the majority opinion, but here is MY opinion.

The bikes are strong, and will take you wherever you want to go. Fabulous bikes.

Parts for these bikes when they break is the decision point.

I bought 2 a year ago, and found it took too much away from my riding time to deal with the hassle of finding replacement parts. If you have multiple bikes to ride it would likely be less of a problem.

My worst experience was finding sprockets for the rear. It is impossible if you want to get your ratio anywhere near 3.8 or higher. I had to order blanks sprockets after looking for weeks and consider machining them myself. I could have ordered custom but they were all aluminum and shipping to Canada is silly expensive.

I also had a hell of a time finding a replacement oil drain plug. I was fortunate to find a local Honda dealer who would help me. We guessed and he ordered them in and they fit!

Broke my rear brake level... did not even try to find a replacement. Just MacGyver'd it.

Most mechanics will not work on these bikes, I even had a guy on craiglist refuse to touch it. If you can't maintain them yourself, then IMHO they are not for you. I did find a local deal who was also a mechanic and he was able to fix my problem which saved me from replacing the engine for $500+.

Again, my opinion others will likely have difference ones.

As you say you have never owned a dirt bike so a chinese bike maybe ok..
as you won't be giving it a hard time right from the start...

I have only had one china bike..Shinray 200... I bought after 3 or 4 years with out a bike...
Motor went well... but I ended up braking the frame & twisting the swing arm.. welded
the frame up straightened the arm.. gave it to a family freind to use on there hobby
farm and was still going 3 years later..
So what I learnt was... Don't try and ride them like a japper and they will last..


My bit of wisdom for the day...
If you are going to be riding with fastish guys on japper / euro's bikes..buy a japper or euro bike..



..

Thank you both for your feed back.

As far as durability goes, do these bikes wear/break parts more often than the Honda/yamaha bikes?

No problem.

IME, no. All bikes break for various reasons.

Rossw, I can buy the Apollo 250 shipped for around 1600. I can buy a 2002-2006 honda crf250 for around 2400-3000. If you where going to buy a bike knowing and having experienced the Chinese bikes, would you spend the extra cash for the used bike, or buy the New Chinese bike?

I have been able to talk to couple dealers about the parts, and the impression I have been given sounds like what you said earlier.

I will answer with sharing my experience... I just bought 2 CRF230F's for about $2300 each. One is a 2004 and one is a 2007. The Chonda's will be up for sale once I get one of them running 100% again.

In hindsight, it would have been cheaper for me to buy the CRF's a year ago but I did not know I would love riding as much as I do and I that I would find the missed time on the trails looking for parts so frustrating. My son and I are totally addicted to riding... I now understand the saying "Live to ride, and ride to live!" ;-)

I just replaced both sprockets and chain on one of the CRFs yesterday. Took me 1 hour to decided and order the parts, 2 days for the parts to arrive, and 4 hours to swap. When I was looking to make similar changes on my Chonda I spent hours upon hours trying to find compatible parts, emailing manufacturer's, etc. Ended up ordering from several different companies, ranging from US, Europe, and China and waiting for them to arrive.

I don't want to end on a negative note, so I will repeat the bikes were solid and NEVER let me down. I never hit a trail, hill, or rock pile I could not climb.

One last item to consider. The Apollo will likely come crated, which means you have a min. 4-10 hours putting that bike together and going over all the bolts, etc. Don't underestimate the recommendation when people tell you to check, and Loctite all bolts. There are also some mods you will want to really consider. Do some research here, there is a wealth of information on what to do with the bike to prepare it for your first ride, and what mods to consider.

Rossw

Thank you very much for your input. From what you mentioned, and speaking with my buddy I think the Honda/Yamaha bike will be the direction for me.

Having the bike be down due part issues seems very frustrating. I like the idea of getting parts within a few day when needed.

Douglass

Probably a wise choice. What was really left out for the most part was how important keeping to any particular price range was.. If price wasn't much of a consideration, there were a lot more bikes that would be great choices as well. Just remember for $3K more or less you are buying a used bike and should be gone over carefully.. Good luck : )