500 hour report on Rhino

Mudflap · 02-14-2019, 11:11 AM

Taotao Rhino 500 hour review.

Bought new in early 2017, the Rhino has now passed 500 hours.

Engine has been perfect, never even a cough or a wheeze. Now running smoother than ever. Only mods are a pod filter, slightly larger main jet (98), oil cooler.

428 chain and 12/40 gear ratio is about perfect for the riding I do. The DID Xring chain has never needed adjustment and the sprockets show very little wear. Using snap rings and a spacer to secure the front sprocket works fine. Replacing the chain roller with a rubber belt wrapped around the swing arm made it quieter and works great.

The rear axle splines at the right hub do indeed wear, causing the hub to become loose. Adding a piece of pipe over the axle between the hub and axle nuts at the brake disk solves the problem.

Both rear wheel bearings and one front have failed so far. Should have repacked them with grease when new.

The front drum brakes are pretty bad, it really needs front disks. The rear disk brake works fine but does tend to squeek and chirp.

Swing arm cracked after a couple hundred hours bouncing around on rocks. No more cracks after welding it up.

Gas mileage is good. It has always gone at least 50 miles on a tank of regular gas.

The Kenda Bear Claw rear tires are rugged and have excellent traction but I wouldn't buy them again because they are too stiff to give a good ride. Need to find rear tires with a more rounded and flexible design. The Schnef front tires are much better than the originals in both ride and traction.

Original front shock came apart inside so both were replaced with RFY brand. Big improvement. Original rear shock works OK but I'm sure a better one would really improve ride comfort.

The stock seat sucks. It tilts forward so you're always sliding toward the tank. I use a Coleman ATV seat cover with some padding stuffed under the front to make the seat more level.

Azhule · 02-14-2019, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mudflap

The front drum brakes are pretty bad, it really needs front disks. The rear disk brake works fine but does tend to squeek and chirp.

A few Q's to help narrow down the sounds...

Did you clean the rotor and brake pads before you first used the Rhino?

Do you know if the rear brake pads are "stintered" or metal based? Have you cleaned and lubed the brake caliper parts with something like "AGS Sil-Glyde", things like the guides/pins/bolts

...

First I would clean the pads and rotor with a good quality Brake Cleaner, SuperTech (walmart brand) or CRC brands are easy to find and work great for the price... you might need to hit the rotor with some sand paper to get any "glazed on materials" off...

Or... sometimes it takes a dab of "disk brake quiet" on contact points of the caliper, piston, and brake pads

Bruces · 02-14-2019, 03:24 PM

That’s pretty amazing it hit 500 hrs. ,I often buy very new Junkaha YZF 250 and 450 bikes that have blown up (due to the owner not doing proper maintenance ) with under 20 hrs ,and just the parts to fix the engine cost over $1500.00 .

wheelbender6 · 02-14-2019, 08:42 PM

Thanks for the report. It sounds like a great quad if you keep up with scheduled maintenance.

Mudflap · 12-14-2019, 09:18 AM

Now at 640 hours and not much new to report. Using it daily here in Arizona where it's still running great and has more power than ever. I replaced the front sprocket but the Oring chain and rear sprockets show almost no wear. There is slight wear on the countershaft splines where the sprocket rides. The oil is staying clean longer now so I've gone to a 50 hour change interval.

Mudflap · 01-06-2020, 09:21 AM

Past 700 hours on the Rhino now and running better than ever. The aftermarket RFY shocks I had on the front started leaking pretty bad so I replaced them but will rebuild the leaky ones and put them on my old Trail 90. I also replaced the spacer between the rear axle bearings because the original one mushroomed on the ends making it shorter causing sideways stress on the bearings. I made the new spacer out of heavier material.

Mudflap · 04-18-2020, 11:36 AM

Not quite to 800 hours. Original battery has died after 3 years. Ordered a 12N9-4b-1 battery from Amazon for $29.51. Chinese made battery distributed by Western Power Sports, formerly known as Western Scooters back in the 1970s. The owner was a good friend of my dad when he was in the Vespa business in the 1960s.

bigkahuna · 04-18-2020, 11:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mudflap

Not quite to 800 hours. Original battery has died after 3 years. Ordered a 12N9-4b-1 battery from Amazon for $29.51. Chinese made battery distributed by Western Power Sports, formerly known as Western Scooters back in the 1970s. The owner was a good friend of my dad when he was in the Vespa business in the 1960s.

Wow, 800 hours, that's impressive. How hard do you ride your rhino?

Mudflap · 04-18-2020, 12:15 PM

It's ridden hard when it comes to suspension, rough trails, but the engine never works hard. The GPS app I use says my average moving speed is 9 MPH.

02-14-2019, 11:11 AM	#1
Mudflap Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 1,870	500 hour report on Rhino Taotao Rhino 500 hour review. Bought new in early 2017, the Rhino has now passed 500 hours. Engine has been perfect, never even a cough or a wheeze. Now running smoother than ever. Only mods are a pod filter, slightly larger main jet (98), oil cooler. 428 chain and 12/40 gear ratio is about perfect for the riding I do. The DID Xring chain has never needed adjustment and the sprockets show very little wear. Using snap rings and a spacer to secure the front sprocket works fine. Replacing the chain roller with a rubber belt wrapped around the swing arm made it quieter and works great. The rear axle splines at the right hub do indeed wear, causing the hub to become loose. Adding a piece of pipe over the axle between the hub and axle nuts at the brake disk solves the problem. Both rear wheel bearings and one front have failed so far. Should have repacked them with grease when new. The front drum brakes are pretty bad, it really needs front disks. The rear disk brake works fine but does tend to squeek and chirp. Swing arm cracked after a couple hundred hours bouncing around on rocks. No more cracks after welding it up. Gas mileage is good. It has always gone at least 50 miles on a tank of regular gas. The Kenda Bear Claw rear tires are rugged and have excellent traction but I wouldn't buy them again because they are too stiff to give a good ride. Need to find rear tires with a more rounded and flexible design. The Schnef front tires are much better than the originals in both ride and traction. Original front shock came apart inside so both were replaced with RFY brand. Big improvement. Original rear shock works OK but I'm sure a better one would really improve ride comfort. The stock seat sucks. It tilts forward so you're always sliding toward the tank. I use a Coleman ATV seat cover with some padding stuffed under the front to make the seat more level.
	6

02-14-2019, 08:42 PM	#4
wheelbender6 Join Date: May 2015 Location: Houston area Posts: 1,902	Thanks for the report. It sounds like a great quad if you keep up with scheduled maintenance. __________________ "Its not WHAT you ride; its THAT you ride"
	0

02-14-2019, 03:24 PM	#3
Bruces Join Date: May 2018 Posts: 1,578	That’s pretty amazing it hit 500 hrs. ,I often buy very new Junkaha YZF 250 and 450 bikes that have blown up (due to the owner not doing proper maintenance ) with under 20 hrs ,and just the parts to fix the engine cost over $1500.00 .
	0

12-14-2019, 09:18 AM	#5
Mudflap Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 1,870	Now at 640 hours and not much new to report. Using it daily here in Arizona where it's still running great and has more power than ever. I replaced the front sprocket but the Oring chain and rear sprockets show almost no wear. There is slight wear on the countershaft splines where the sprocket rides. The oil is staying clean longer now so I've gone to a 50 hour change interval.
	6

01-06-2020, 09:21 AM	#6
Mudflap Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 1,870	Past 700 hours on the Rhino now and running better than ever. The aftermarket RFY shocks I had on the front started leaking pretty bad so I replaced them but will rebuild the leaky ones and put them on my old Trail 90. I also replaced the spacer between the rear axle bearings because the original one mushroomed on the ends making it shorter causing sideways stress on the bearings. I made the new spacer out of heavier material.
	3

04-18-2020, 11:36 AM	#7
Mudflap Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 1,870	Not quite to 800 hours. Original battery has died after 3 years. Ordered a 12N9-4b-1 battery from Amazon for $29.51. Chinese made battery distributed by Western Power Sports, formerly known as Western Scooters back in the 1970s. The owner was a good friend of my dad when he was in the Vespa business in the 1960s.
	0

04-18-2020, 12:15 PM	#9
Mudflap Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 1,870	It's ridden hard when it comes to suspension, rough trails, but the engine never works hard. The GPS app I use says my average moving speed is 9 MPH.
	0