New Zongshen RX3 (ZS250GY-3) Dual Sport

[Wolftrax]

Originally Posted by SpudRider

I wish he were more mechanically inclined. I would like to try to help him, but I find his descriptions of the problem difficult to understand, and he hasn't done any testing to eliminate any of the potential problems.

I agree Spud. A lot of his problems seem self inflicted. I wonder how many of his problems could have been eliminated with a daily pretrip Maitenance regime?

[SpudRider]

A fellow told him to try starting the bike by jump starting it with a car battery; that's good advice. However, he really needs to determine if he has a good spark. If the spark is good, he needs to check the air, fuel, and compression.

His valves might be tight, et cetera. He took a very long trip, and I don't think he performed any maintanence to the bike, other than change the oil, and fill up the fuel tank. The fact that he made such a long trip with such minimal maintenance speaks well for Zongshen manufacturing quality.

[MotoJ]

I hadn't thought of that. He probably hasn't even done the first service. Do these motors need to be run in like we used to have to do?

The young feller just hopped on and started ridin'! I guess it's probably taken a lot of neglect and is still going.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by MotoJ

I hadn't thought of that. He probably hasn't even done the first service. Do these motors need to be run in like we used to have to do?

The young feller just hopped on and started ridin'! I guess it's probably taken a lot of neglect and is still going.

I just re-read the first few pages of his thread at MyChinaMoto.

http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...hen-RX3-report

He rode his new bike at least 2,000 kilometers, and changed the original engine oil. Then he had a new throttle position sensor (TPS) installed. Finally, he had an entire new engine installed. Then he left for his trip. I don't know how many miles he rode the new engine, or what maintenance he performed before he left. It's difficult to know what happened, since he doesn't seem to have much mechanical experience, and I have trouble understanding his descriptions of his problems.

[Weldangrind]

Originally Posted by detours

Got my confirmation too. And here's my color (red adds 10 hp)

Only 10hp? Too bad you didn't buy orange.

That is a beautiful bike. Congrats!

[Weldangrind]

Originally Posted by Wolftrax

I agree Spud. A lot of his problems seem self inflicted. I wonder how many of his problems could have been eliminated with a daily pretrip Maitenance regime?

That's wisdom, right there.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by Weldangrind

Only 10hp? Too bad you didn't buy orange.

Let the record show, you said it, not I.

[culcune]

Originally Posted by weldangrind

only 10hp? Too bad you didn't buy orange.

[culcune]

Originally Posted by SpudRider

It's difficult to know what happened, since he doesn't seem to have much mechanical experience, and I have trouble understanding his descriptions of his problems.

This almost sounds like me and my TMEC!!

In all seriousness, I have found him kind of amateur, and I don't have a lot of knowledge myself!

[SpudRider]

In all fairness, he did take the bike to Chinese mechanics before he left on his trip. I think he should now take the bike to a mechanic in Turkey.

I haven't heard any reports of either the Belarusians or the Russians having these kind of problems. The NC250 engine has proven itself reliable in several different motorcycles. The RX3 has U.S. Delphi, EFI technology. In addition, I am very glad to know CSC has extended the warranty for the RX3 to 2 years for parts, and one year for parts and labor. I really don't foresee any problems arising with this bikes in the United States.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by Weldangrind

Only 10hp? Too bad you didn't buy orange.

That is a beautiful bike. Congrats!

I agree; the red bike really does look good. The blue bike is beautiful, also. The RX3 is a good looking motorcycle in any color.

[MotoJ]

I confess I'm having a hard time following our friend GJackson- in one post he says he has 13K km on the bike, then in a subsequent post he say he has a "record" of 10K km, then, like a month later, he suddenly has 25K racked up!
Maybe I was mis-reading- I was skimming a bit.

I am concerned with the motor problems, (especially a replacement!) but it's hard to tell how much of whatever happened might have been prevented by a more experienced moto-owner. Also it seems he has suffered at the hands of unscrupulous (or just plain lousy) mechanic shops. Obviously he has problems the language barrier presents, too.

I never heard of any bike shop power washing a bike! That could be the cause of everything from his electrical glitches to the wheel bearing failures. He's lucky his brakes didn't fail.

Has anyone found another long-term review of the RX-3? I'd be really interested.

[Wolftrax]

I must say that the "Silk Rider" has pretty big cajones. He had a dream and he followed it, ill prepared or not. Sometimes I wish I was a bit more like him. Over planning and over thinking everything can sometimes get in the way of true freedom.

[MotoJ]

Originally Posted by Wolftrax

I must say that the "Silk Rider" has pretty big cajones. He had a dream and he followed it, ill prepared or not. Sometimes I wish I was a bit more like him. Over planning and over thinking everything can sometimes get in the way of true freedom.

Definitely- he has an adventurous spirit just traveling to China by himself to be a teacher. He'll be fine in the end. He'll have learned a lot about bikes too!

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by Wolftrax

I must say that the "Silk Rider" has pretty big cajones. He had a dream and he followed it, ill prepared or not. Sometimes I wish I was a bit more like him. Over planning and over thinking everything can sometimes get in the way of true freedom.

I agree; I have felt that way from the beginning. I certainly hope nothing I have said was negatively interpreted by anyone, since I never had that intention.

In regards to the Zongshen RX3, I will say the following. Even if someone has excellent mechanical experience, he can't ride a bad motorcycle all the way from the east coast of China to Istanbul, Turkey. The trip speaks for itself, regarding both the rider, and the bike.