I mentioned earlier in this thread that the Zongshen Sierra 200 is a "clone" of the Yamaha TW200. To avoid the possibility of misleading anyone, I feel that I should point out that the Sierra 200 is not an
exact replica of the Yamaha TW200. There are many similarities, but there are also many differences.
I do not own a Yamaha TW200. However, based upon my research of the Yamaha I will try to outline the main similarities and differences between the two motorcycles. First we will examine the Sierra 200 engine.
The Zongshen engine copies the engine block used in several Yamaha motorcycles. The 196cc version of this engine is the basic powerplant for the Yamaha TW200 dual sport motorcycle. However, the same engine block with a slightly larger, 223cc displacement is the powerplant for both the Yamaha XT225 dual sport motorcycle and the Yamaha TT-R225 and TT-R230 dirt bikes.
The Sierra 200 employs a replica of the smaller, 196cc engine used in the Yamaha TW200. However, the Sierra 200 differs in using the shorter countershaft from the larger, 223cc versions of this engine. This shorter countershaft places the front sprocket closer to the engine of the Sierra 200 than to the engine of the TW200. Therefore, the Sierra 200 cannot be easily modified to accept the wider, 180/100-14 tire of the TW200. If you lace a TW200 rear rim to a Sierra 200 rear hub, the wider TW200 wheel will not have enough clearance with the drive chain because of the Zongshen's shorter countershaft.
The engine mounting points are the same in both the Zongshen and Yamaha motorcycle frames. You could bolt the 223cc version of the Yamaha engine into the Zongshen frame, and the sprockets would align. However, if you bolted a TW200 engine into the Zongshen frame the front sprocket would be too far from the engine to properly align with the Zongshen swingarm.
Because several Yamaha engines share the same engine block, the Zongshen Sierra 200 uses the same oil filter as the Yamaha TW200, XT225, TT-R225 and TT-R230 motorcycles.
The Sierra 200 engine has both kick and electric starters. The latest models of the Yamaha TW200 have only an electric starter.
Spud
