New models from SSR

[culcune]

Thanks to someone wanting information on shorter motorcycles, I went to SSR's site where I haven't been for a while, and low and behold, they show some bikes that look like they are ready to compete with Cleveland Cycle Werks' offerings, and one to compete with Honda's Grom and Zongshen's Rapido. All look like decent bikes.

http://www.ssrmotorsports.com/news/2...s-coming-soon/

[Adjuster]

Crap I was hoping one of them would be one of those mountain bike/motorcycle combinations.


/

[culcune]

Are those currently available via CCW? They have been showing them for a while now. Then again, they have been showing the Asiawing 450 enduro and motards for a few years, too, re-branded as CCW, which are still not available!

[SpudRider]

Those are nice looking bikes.

[ArcherSix]

SSR seems to have the same problem that Cleveland Cyclewerks and even Royal Enfield have: Not Enough Freakin' Dealers! I really want to check some of these bikes out personally, but they are nowhere to be found near me....

[wheelbender6]

Man, I like that Snakeyes. My closest dealer is about 300 miles, in Kileen.
Curious that the single makes more power than the V-twin.

[culcune]

Originally Posted by wheelbender6

Man, I like that Snakeyes. My closest dealer is about 300 miles, in Kileen.
Curious that the single makes more power than the V-twin.

The two cafe looking bikes are OEM by Longjia, and the 'Snakeyes' is OEM by Pioneer--the same company who make the XF250 enduros sold by SSR. They are affiliated with Qingqi, and their engine is the Suzuki-cloned 250cc single. Ironically, the bobber is made from a cafe racer-style bike, but evidently SSR wanted to differentiate their cafe racers from CCW's and are using Longia's who utilize the twin, while their bobber is using the tried and true Suzuki-cloned single as used in their XF250. Not sure who makes the twin in the cafes as small companies don't usually make their own; my guess is either Zongshen or Loncin, but either way, they went conservative in power.

Here is the cafe racer on the Pioneer site. If look right below at 'Products in the same category' you can see the 'Snakeyes'

http://xfmotor.en.alibaba.com/produc...otorcycle.html

[2LZ]

Originally Posted by ArcherSix

SSR seems to have the same problem that Cleveland Cyclewerks and even Royal Enfield have: Not Enough Freakin' Dealers! I really want to check some of these bikes out personally, but they are nowhere to be found near me....

Mrs. 2LZ went into my local Sac CB guy yesterday and all of his full sized SSR's are gone. This is not boding well for SSR because Doug will give anyone a chance if it looks decent. I'm looking to add to the stable again soon and I'd like an SSR XF250....but not if they're going away. I may end up with a second TT250 Hondoid just because I know that parts and support are available. The problem is I think the SSR is a better bike regarding build and materials. My Qlink is "virtually Japanese", uses tons of awesome alloys and has been flawless since 2009. I can get an SSR from Superior Power Sports but man...if there's no parts or support.....I don't know.

[culcune]

The only thing I can see that might give you hope is this ad from Superior Powersports. It states that this is a 'New 2016' model. http://www.superiorpowersports.com/2...r250edb-xf.htm

But it does seem odd that your local brick and mortar dealer is not carrying them. I should call JP Motorsports in San Diego to see if they have the story on them. They were up front about when Qlink left the market altogether as they bought out many of the remaining XF200's. They still show SSR in their inventory, but the 2013 models.

Another thing that gives me some hope is that Qingqi seems to renew their EPA certificate year after year for the US; I haven't looked to see if they have an early list of 2017 models, yet, but they did have fresh certification for 2016, as well as 2015 and 2014. They go through a firm out of Virginia that is the 'official' Qingqi distributor who seem to NEVER sell the bikes. I remember calling them a few years back, and some guy would answer in a huff, saying 'hello' not very enthusiastically. When I asked if they were Qingqi's distributor, he stated yes, but only during these few hours a day... Kind of weird, but they are still the company of record on the EPA lists. However, SSR also has a certificate for the same bikes, including 2016. I know it costs money to keep re-certifying, but not quite the same as introducing a brand new bike, so perhaps they keep renewing certification just so they don't have a lapse and have to start from scratch in a few years if they drop the bike and decide to sell them later on.

I should bug Excalibur Motorsports to try to carry the Qingqi bikes to supplement their TGB scooters and a few other Chinese brands they still wholesale.

[2LZ]

Originally Posted by culcune

The only thing I can see that might give you hope is this ad from Superior Powersports. It states that this is a 'New 2016' model. http://www.superiorpowersports.com/2...r250edb-xf.htm

But it does seem odd that your local brick and mortar dealer is not carrying them. I should call JP Motorsports in San Diego to see if they have the story on them. They were up front about when Qlink left the market altogether as they bought out many of the remaining XF200's. They still show SSR in their inventory, but the 2013 models.

Another thing that gives me some hope is that Qingqi seems to renew their EPA certificate year after year for the US; I haven't looked to see if they have an early list of 2017 models, yet, but they did have fresh certification for 2016, as well as 2015 and 2014. They go through a firm out of Virginia that is the 'official' Qingqi distributor who seem to NEVER sell the bikes. I remember calling them a few years back, and some guy would answer in a huff, saying 'hello' not very enthusiastically. When I asked if they were Qingqi's distributor, he stated yes, but only during these few hours a day... Kind of weird, but they are still the company of record on the EPA lists. However, SSR also has a certificate for the same bikes, including 2016. I know it costs money to keep re-certifying, but not quite the same as introducing a brand new bike, so perhaps they keep renewing certification just so they don't have a lapse and have to start from scratch in a few years if they drop the bike and decide to sell them later on.

I should bug Excalibur Motorsports to try to carry the Qingqi bikes to supplement their TGB scooters and a few other Chinese brands they still wholesale.

That would be cool if you could do some snooping around and find out what's happening. The SSR is an awesome bike and I wish there were more here on CR's. Seems after the flood of Q XP's and XF's a few years back and all the activity, that would rival today's Hawk activity here currently, it all vanished!...but alas...the Hondoid will always be back again and again under a different tag. This is really swaying my scales.

I know, especially back in the early days, we were happy as China Riders just to be able to go to the same rent-a-garage a few months in a row and still see the same guy you bought the bike/quad/scooter from!....so asking for a rock solid, long term bike "brand" to be around may be asking a bit much!

I saw that on SPS about the "2016 models".....but one never knows about the accuracy of these websites. SPS had my Rhino as a CA "red sticker" (can only be ridden certain times of the year) and Power Sports Max had it as a green sticker. I had to call SPS back to confirm. Lo and behold, it was a green sticker after all!....and a half hour later the web site had changed!

[culcune]

I like Hondoids simply because they are so low cost. Way back in '05 when I mail-ordered my Jetmoto 200 (which was near identical to your bike which you de-streeted; probably had the same OEM which was Shineray at that time) it was really cool to order a proverbial 'bike-in-a-box' for about a grand. Some of these brands have since gone through and got themselves EPA/DOT certification, such as Bashan's lineup, and TMEC (which is still carried through Sunright and has been certified year after year) but that has bumped up the price on certain Hondnoids. Which is why CSC's own Hondoid costs so much--CARB certification and 50 state street legality. Fortunately, the Hawk has brought back the $1k 'bike-in-a-box' for many of us, at least those who can register bikes dubiously sold as streetable, but NOT on the EPA/DOT certification list, LOL.

Then there is the cult-like Qingqi/Pioneer bikes via SSR. I relooked over the EPA/DOT list for 2016, and I was wrong about them being brought in under an importer's name as well as SSR--this year they are only certified for SSR. I do remember the Sacramento dealer being active here on chinariders a few years back, but apparently has moved on from SSR. I think that SSR is stuck in a catch-22; they want to be a 'legitimate' brand selling all kinds of motorsports product, but haven't really thought out their dealer network. Actually, I think they felt it would fall into place with a wide variety of product, but the lack of consumer financing will have an effect if they plan to charge over twice for some similar products offered by other Chinese motorsports distributors. For instance, if I could put down less than a grand on a XF250, and make reasonable payments, and not for several years, I would totally go for one. Lack of dealers is holding me back...

One more interesting thing I noticed looking over the 'list' (EPA/DOT 2016) is that Cleveland Cycle Werks is now using a Qingqi/Pioneer manufactured bike throughout their lineup which still consists of the Misfit, Ace, and the other cafe bike I can't remember, while using a proprietary Lifan OEM'd engine in 229cc form.

[2LZ]

All valid and well thought-out points, culcune. I totally agree that without proper financing, bigger SSR bikes are out of reach from the average China buyer, especially the buyer who wanders into a showroom or garage full of mini-quads and scooters. They're just out of place. I think that's what happened with Doug. He didn't finance either, so you had to cash out or put 3300.00 OTD on a Visa card.

That is what makes the Hondoids still so appealing. Their rock solid reliability and a constant flood of available parts. Heck, I just ordered an intake for my X-Moto (163FML) last night on Amazon to replace my cracked one! 7 bucks and free shipping! Add to that, anyone with a burger flipping job can afford them to get to work or school and back and it's an easy choice.

Fortunately, I'm not pulling the trigger soon on an additional bike. Other projects currently but man...knowing what I know now, I may have ordered two of the TT250's at the boat price....but then i look at my Q and think, "Man...that's a really nice piece of work."

Decisions, decisions.....

[culcune]

Originally Posted by 2LZ

All valid and well thought-out points, culcune. I totally agree that without proper financing, bigger SSR bikes are out of reach from the average China buyer, especially the buyer who wanders into a showroom or garage full of mini-quads and scooters. They're just out of place. I think that's what happened with Doug. He didn't finance either, so you had to cash out or put 3300.00 OTD on a Visa card.

That is what makes the Hondoids still so appealing. Their rock solid reliability and a constant flood of available parts. Heck, I just ordered an intake for my X-Moto (163FML) last night on Amazon to replace my cracked one! 7 bucks and free shipping! Add to that, anyone with a burger flipping job can afford them to get to work or school and back and it's an easy choice.

Fortunately, I'm not pulling the trigger soon on an additional bike. Other projects currently but man...knowing what I know now, I may have ordered two of the TT250's at the boat price....but then i look at my Q and think, "Man...that's a really nice piece of work."

Decisions, decisions.....

Wait until the laws of economics fall into place--I don't think the MSRP on the CSC bikes can hold indefinitely; more so with the TT.