I am almost certain the ZS250GY-3 will not be coming soon to the shores of North America. In fact, the RX3 might never arrive here. If the bike ever does arrive in North America, I'm sure it will sell for much more than $3,400 USD. ;)

I bought my used XR650L with 7,800 miles on the odometer for $2,000. In stock form, my Honda XR650L has a curb weight of 346 pounds, which is much lighter than the ZS250GY-3. The XR650L has a much better suspension, more power, and better build quality than any Chinese bike. In addition, Honda also has an international dealer support network for parts and repair. If I had the choice today between buying my used, Honda XR650L for $2,000, or a new, Zongshen RX3 for $3,400, I would certainly buy the Honda XR650L. ;)

However, in many parts of the world, consumers don't have access to the huge market in slightly used, Japanese motorcycles as we do in the United States. How much would it cost to farkle a new, XR650L or DR650SE with the same equipment which is stock on the ZS250GY-3? After spending the time and money to add luggage, crash guards, et cetera, how much would the 650cc motorcycle weigh? ;)

Based upon my experience with my own Zongshen ZS200GY-2, I am confident this Zongshen ZS250GY-3 is not manufactured to the same high quality as a Japanese or European motorcycle. However, I bet the RX3 engine is reliable, and the RX3 is a durable, strong little adventure bike. For a price of approximately $3,400 USD in China, I think this bike represents an excellent value in many places outside North America.

If I were personally going to travel to China, and buy a domestic Chinese motorcycle for an adventure ride in Asia, I would definitely buy the Zongshen ZS250GY-3 (RX3). :)

SpudRider,

Following your Link to TaoBao.com, looks like the price of the basic 'Standard' ZS250GY-3 RX3 (without Luggage) is Price ¥ 19800.00
Upgraded version (with three boxes) 20,800 yuan
** version 23,500 Yuan (so what version is this ** one - Police?)

Zongshen NC motocross ZS250GY-3 RX3 super wild car NC250 water-cooled six-speed front and rear disc brakes

Price ¥ 19800.00

19800 Chinese Yuan equals 3232.13 US Dollar

You posted that the ZS250GY-3 RX3, do you have a URL giving details of this please.
(I have been out of Cebu, Philippines, working in China since August 2012 for 8 months a year, so not aware of it being available from Motostar (who OEM imports Zongshen).

To give some idea of why the the price of the ZS250GY-3 RX3 is relatively high for Chinese Motorcyle, you only have to look at the price of the Water-cooled engine:-

博技摩配 宗申摩托车RX3原厂配件ZS250GY-3 NC水冷250发动机总成 Bo technical Motorcycle Zongshen Motorcycle RX3 Genuine Parts ZS250GY-3 NC 250 water-cooled engine assembly

http://img03.taobaocdn.com/bao/uploa...pg_310x310.jpg

http://img01.taobaocdn.com/bao/uploa...!!79859902.jpg

NC250 engine assembly: $962.61/piece
NC250 carburetor: $162.61/piece
Total: $ 1125.22

Welcome back, Britster. :) I don't know what information you seek. :shrug: However, I have already posted every source of information I could find in this thread. ;)

I don t think anyone imports them. I also don t think anyone imports road registrable complete zongshen branded zongs these days, but I hope I stand to be corrected on this point :-)

Indeed, it was my impression that Zongshen Australia closed shop several years ago. However, if one wished to tangle with the authorities regarding licensing, he could purchase a Zongshen RX3 from either the Alibaba or the Taobao websites. ;)

probably better to go to China and buy and ride it there! luggage consisting of quality tools, silicone glue, zip ties and duct tape.

to get the bike road approved in australia would be a painful process AFAIK

I'm sure you are correct. ;)

An interseting read. Do Zong do a 200 version of this engine?

No, this fuel injected, water cooled engine is only available in a 250cc engine displacement. ;)

2080 Chinese Yuan equals 14597.50 Philippine Peso

Seems in the Philippines, they are looking for 50 buyers of Zongshen RX3, who are willing to fill out a Reservation Form and pay PHP15,000 Deposit

https://www.facebook.com/groups/zonshen.motard




[img]http://www.motorcyclephilippines.com/forums/images/misc/logo-mcp2.png[/image]

http://www.motorcyclephilippines.com...&highlight=RX3

Re: RX3 more photos
we had the opportunity to test the very 1st RX3 here in the Philippines.. its being sold for 130k for the 1st 50 unit that will be reserved.. but the bike will only be imported here if 50 people will fill up a reservation form, and pay the 15k reservation/downpayment fee. ( as per the motorstar/ zhonshen Philippine plant manager ) an installment plan is being drafted by motorstar

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2897/...a6a0d342_c.jpg
by m_pacalda, on Flickr

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5490/...a4b678c5_c.jpg
by m_pacalda, on Flickr

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3838/...cb26466b_c.jpg
by m_pacalda, on Flickr
Last edited by leopacalda; 1 Week Ago at 11:06 PM.

This is good news. :tup: Are you going to order one? ;)

ZongShen RX3
 

Hi all. I've been searching across the net for info and forums on the RX3. Couldn't find much but did a lot of research for months on every bike I could find in the adventure tour field and after a lot of consideration finally bought the RX3. I've had it for about 4 weeks now. Anyway, I'm glad I found this forum with other interested people. I'd be glad to answer any questions you might have (to the best of my ability. I've a lot to learn) This is an absolutely, beyond shadow of a doubt fantastic bike! I haven't ridden other adventure tours but based on comparing many different reviews of other riders, I believe this to be the king of adventure touring. Instead of waiting for any questions I'll tell what I've experienced so far and see if I can add some of my personal pics. By the way. I'm a U.S. citizen teaching English in China right now. So here are some things I appreciate.
1. Shocks - Even in quite bumpy situations, the shocks on this thing make it feel like a Mercedes on a smooth road.
2. Engine - It has power that is quite surprising for a 250cc. I've let a friend ride it who's easily over 200lbs and he said the bike drives likes it doesn't even recognize his weight. We both rode around for a bit and with all that weight it still treated us like feather weights.
3. Seat height - I'm 5 foot 6 inches and am able to just rest on the balls of my feet. Any higher and I wouldn't be able to sit the thing, so it does sit up there.
4. Luggage - If anyone is interested, you can drop the cash and get a special set of 3 very large stainless steel carriers that are padlocked and everything. They have their own special frame and in the future, if my carriers (which are already a good size) don't provide enough room I'll move to the others. If you want pictures of those from TaoBao I can post them.
5. Power - it has it and lets you control it. You drive nice and carefully the bill will be nice. You gun it and drive it like a mad man, it will give you the power without thinking twice - and send you the bill later. In other words, its very fuel efficient, unless you enjoy its power often, and then you'll pay a bit more.
6. Long freeway drives - I was just on the freeway at 120kph to 130kph for an extended amount of time just last Thursday. It has no problem in the least. I kept my eye on the cooling and it didn't ever get above 2 blocks once I was full out.
7. Cooling - in reply to someones comment, it does indeed have two fans over the two separate radiators. You can hear them running even at 90kph. It's pretty cool to listen to.
In addition to the cooling, it's a good thing it has it and the fans do their jobs. Along the right leg I often feel the heat being jetted past the inside of my leg. If it weren't for the computer monitor letting me watch the cooling I would have been nervous because the engine runs quite hot, but the cooling does it's job and keeps everything safe.
8. Gears. Slipping into neutral is sticky. Often I have to sit there and fiddle with it as it constantly will bypasses right past into first or second. That's my only complaint about the bike. I'm still a noob to be honest so that might be entirely normal. Clue me in please if it is.
9. Stock tires - It comes with on road off road tires. Took them through some bad road on not to deep mud but the really slick stuff and it was very stable.
I treat it like my baby but I took it near the coast into a bit of the wet and semi deep sand (I know the tires aren't meant for deep coastal sands.) It crawled all over the place. Got it semi stuck a few times but turned the wheel, rocked it a bit and gave it the throttle and thankfully, I've ridden enough that I kept it under control. It turned into a big angry beast and clawed itself right out. It may be heavy, but it's engine more than easily makes up for it. On the way back I hit the freeway again at 120kph for an hour through down pouring tropical rain. It remained stable and smooth. Any more questions and I'd be glad to answer. I love this thing! Sometime if I get a gopro I'll videos on youtube. This baby really needs more public face time in the west.

As much as I'd like to see it in the U.S. (If/When) I returned there is maybe even a bigger problem to deal with in selling this bike. No matter how fantastic the bike may be and even if it beat all the statistics and competition, it's biggest barrier is the average biker mentality. Who the heck wants a 250 when they could have a 600? Sure the 250s perks as in fuel efficiency, repairs etc vs a 600 and above make it a great bike. Sure you could do the same thing, pack your luggage and go on the same trips - but sadly most other forums I've been to have motor power at the top of the list. The "bigger is better" mentality would make most bike enthusiasts laugh at the RX3 and call it a beginner bike.

Thanks for joining us, and posting your excellent review of the Zongshen RX3. :tup: Is your bike burgundy, or red in color? In either event, it is a sweet looking motorcycle. :)

Please do post a link to the luggage for sale on Taobao. In answer to your question, it's natural for many bikes to have some difficulty shifting into neutral while stopped. I have the same problem with my Honda CRF250X. ;)

Yes, please post the stainless pannier link.

RX3 Stainless Steel Carriers/Pannier
 

Thank you for the info on the gear shifting. I was a bit nervous about it wondering if mine had some sort of glitch. Nice to know that's not an issue. I'll post the pics for the carriers for anyone that has issues seeing TaoBao. The link is here also. Don't know what is up these days but I have to constantly jump back and forth from VPN and non VPN to view pages. Either there are general issues on Hainan with internet or China is cracking down even harder. So here's the link below.

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=...k1445c7#detail

There are a couple other places that sell them on TaoBao also but I lost the links.

It's a blood red color. I like it since bright hot rod red or sports car red draws to much attention. The bike certainly gets enough attention though and its road presence is VERY nice.

Thanks for posting the Taobao link for the side cases. :)

I will look at the measurements on mine to see. As a side question, what is the difference of the (Rear) 130/70-17 vs the (Rear) 130/90-15 and as for duel sport, what is the reason for the difference? Is one wider than the other?

the 15 is a smaller wheel, a 15 inch wheel.

great bike you ve got there, i have two zongs (well, one zong and one zong motor) and they ve been very good. don t worry about the beefy bike boys, no need to compete. true motorheads will appreciate a good set of wheels.

Thanks for the link and pics of the stainless panniers; they're huge! I don't think I'll pull the trigger on boxes that are that big.

To respond to your tire size question, a 130mm wide tire with a 90 sidewall ratio is 69.23mm high. A 130mm wide tire with a 70 sidewall ratio is 53.85mm high. For easy comparison, a 15 inch rim is 381mm, and a 17 inch rim is 432mm.

The 15 inch rim would be a 381mm rim + 69.23mm sidewall = 450.23mm overall.
The 17 inch rim would be a 432mm rim + 53.85mm sidewall = 485.85mm overall.

The 130/70-17 is about 35mm taller overall, which would change the seat height and the speedometer reading. The 130/90-15 would have a much softer ride, due to the tall sidewall. The choice depends on your personal preference, and local tire availability. In North America, a 130/90-15 is a little harder to find.

This bike will be available in the US soon
 

Check this out:

http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1000180

And here:

http://californiascooterco.com/blog/?p=13253

I read the advrider thread maybe a week and a half ago. No price set yet. These guys sell a 150 and a 250 air cooled little bike similiar to the old Mustang motorcycles from he past, and have for a few years now.

Thanks for the links. I appreciated the blog about Zongshen.

My thoughts are that it is great they plan to bring the bike here but they will never take off on the sole basis of price. Based on the scooter pricing the RX3 will be priced to high for a Chinese bike. :cry:

Thanks for posting the links. :tup:

I agree on both points. ;) How much are they charging for the scooter? Can you share a link for the scooter price?

It is retail but even with a generous discount they are still very pricy.

http://www.californiascooterco.com/retail_prices.htm

RX3 price
 

They haven't released the price yet. They are waiting for the EPA, and whoever else has to approve the sale of these, in the US. Interesting that California Scooter Co. should bring these in. I think they have done a pretty good job with their Classic line of bikes, that look like the old Mustang. I got a chance to look at a few in Tacoma, Washington, at a dealer. I was pretty impressed with the bikes, and owners seem to like them. Pricing may be high. Those bikes are assembled at their place in California.


I probably wouldn't buy a new RX3 for myself. I prefer a more traditionally styled dual sport, more on the order of an XT250, or DRZ400S, or KLX250. Also, I live on the big island of Hawaii, and would be concerned about warranty issues.

I read that these engines have a rocker, or rocker arm with a roller bearing. I wonder if they run the dual overhead camshafts on replaceable bearing also? I haven't seen a good drawing of engine internals. For me, a 250cc would be fine. Especially one with 26 horsepower (I think that's what I read on this bike). It is a heavy bike, but has a lot of good features. I wish Zongshen and Ca. Scooter Co. good luck with this bike. Your 65,000 mile Zong is a proven workhorse, and I hope the RX3 turns out to be as good.

Indeed, I also hope the RX3 proves to be as reliable as my Zongshen 200GY-2. :) I am glad to see CSC is importing this bike to the United States. :tup:

Uh oh I want this.

Thanks for the links! I do like their scooters, they look like fun, to the extent you can buy that off the rack. i suppose they sell to a niche market where the price is not an issue for those who want to look hip but can t or won t DIY.
A few lines from the sales rap on the blog caught my eye:

That s why one should always insist on genuine china (over fake, rebadged china) ;)

So if I didn t have a stable full of small bikes, I d keep an eye out for the RX-3! If it comes here, I d like to test ride.

Indeed, one should accept no substitutes. ;) I am proud to own a genuine, Chinese clone of a Yamaha motorcycle. :tup:

:hehe:

zongshen rx3
 

well californiascooter is taking orders for the new zong at a special one time ,,,price $2895 at that price man i want one,,,,But no one know if they are any good ,,,,I got burnt bad on the pitster pro 400......I must admit im in love with the orange and black one..I have my harley on craigslist. If it sells ,i will probably do it an be a guinea pig.

there is a forum member, an american who lives in china, who has one. i tried to find his post, but was not successful. he had a good impression of the bike, but he had just bought it. maybe somebody else here remembers his post and can link you up.
i think it s not too much of a risk, the bike is probably good value.

Is this the link?

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

I remember a couple guys bought some of the early production models in China. This guy (in the above thread) had some bad luck somewhere, but I honestly didn't read the whole thing to see if he did something or it was the bike's fault.

that is also an interesting read, yes, but the one i remembered is #53 on page 4 of this very forum thread, the user is SaharaStorms, here s the link:
http://www.chinariders.net/showpost....2&postcount=53

Atta boy, Fish! That PP400 was an awful experience, but I trust Zong to make a better product. As well, Zong parts are cheap on Taobao.

Forgot about him! I haven't been paying attention to this bike since it wasn't coming to the US, but now that is about to (supposed to) come this way, I will have to pay more attention to it. Would I buy one? If I had money to play around with, then yes (not like it's a big investment), but I might be tempted away with the SSR XF250 based on its already proven engine. Dealing with liquid cooling and fuel injection might prove futile coming from a Chinese bike. Who knows? It might prove to be the perfect bargain adventure tourer, and, like the SSR, may be a good bike for me to cross the border and take a weekend in Mexico with?

Zong rx3
 

I got on the list. For the first. Container. Blowout pricing. Since I won't see the bike till January. I'm going to pound out a bunch of overtime till then. An of course. I ordered orange Hope. This is not another pitster pro episode