Review: Vbike 300 Monster [Pics!]

[KentuckyDonkey]

O-K, ATV fans! The long-awaited Vbike 300 "Monster" review! [Make crowd-cheering noise with throat, like when you were a kid playing that electric football game!]

I had first contemplated the Monster many months ago when I had seen it on Vbikes site. It seemed to be just what I needed- a large utility quad with full racks, big 24" tires and full fenders. I was hesitant to pay $2K for a Chinese bike though, never having owned one before and hearing mixed reviews of Chinx in general.

So...I ordered me a cheaper Vbike V4SW- figuring for <$1300 I couldn't go too wrong.

I ended up loving the quality of the V4SW, but longing for the features of the Monster. Still a little leary of the price, but I noticed it did have greasable zerks on the front ball studs(and Tim at Vbike confirmed on the phone that "Look at the pictures on my site...it greasable...")...so it should be durable- and seeing how awesome the V4SW was, it could only get better if i bought a more expensive Vbike, right? RIGHT?

Well...I sold my beloved V4SW and ordered a 300 Monster (as well as a 250T- figuring one of them would suit me to a T, and I'd sell the other).

The Monster was the quickest of the three ATV's to put together of the 3 quads I've had thus far.



Just had to put on the wheels; the handlebars; front brake lever; instrument pod; rear rack and upper front shock bolts, and viola![sic]- put some gas in it and she fired up on the first crank!

Had some good reading while I was idling it- the usual Chinglish stickers (I have NO idea what this one is talking about!)



This is actually the real color of it: (for some reason, these blues and greens used on ATVs are very hard to photograph accurately!)



I took her for a ride, and was very disappointed at the fact that it would barely go over 20MPH!

D'oh! I would later discover that the speed limiter screw was turned halfway in from the factory! (First thing I had checked, but saw the screw sticking out quite a bit, so thought it was fine!)



Oh, and I had to remove the cheesey decals that were already on it from the factory! They peeled right off.





What's good:
This bike will do over 40MPH with 215 lb. me aboard.
The digital speedometer is a nice feature.
The 300cc Loncin motor, while sounding a little "clunky" and unnerving at idle, sounds really good and robust when you give it the gas!
Shifts nice and smoothly.
Rides nice and is very stable.
Holds a lot of gas.



The not-so-good:
While the motor and tranny seem smooth and reliable, the quality of the rest of the bike is stereotypical Chinese. While I had my V4SW for a good month and rode it virtually every day, without any complaints; without anything breaking; without any bolts falling out.....things started breaking on this 300 Monster from day one!

First: The electrical connections are VERY cheesey. While feeling around the back of one of the headlights the first day, to see why the low beams were so dim as to be useless, the wires fell right off of the headlight in my hand! (I still have to fix that and make the connection more robust- the skimpy spade connectors broke right off!). After inspecting the rest of the bikes wiring, I am either going to have to rewire the whole bike, or risk breaking down/not starting in the field very soon!

The frame is also quite cheesey. This weld on the front rack that looks like it was done by someone who was blind and drunk is typical:


The front (plastic) "skid plate" does not even line up with it's bolt holes:


The bracket that holds one of the front brake lines away from the wheel is ready to break off- and the the line was out of it when it arrived:


The front suspension is rickety. One of the ball studs nuts had come loose the very first day, and overall, I don't foresee the bushings being very durable.

There is no way of attaching a sturdy trailer hitch. The skid plate that I thought could be utilized under the rear axle (and which Tim also suggested) is too weak and unsupported; There is no room to put a larger member under it from the swingarm, as there would be virtually no ground clearance; and there appears to be no way to fabricate anything over the top of the axle from the swingarm, as there is no way to support it from underneath.

The second day, the choke cable fell off at the handlebars. Nothing was loose; the housing is just very flimsy and is not made to close tolerances.

The turn signals work backwards!

And...the piece of resistance- the one they sent me does NOT have greasable zerks on the ball studs!!!!!!!

This is what is pictured on Tim's site:


In retrospect, it is likely not even a pic of the Monster- but rather of the 300 Thunder, as the Monster has vlack frame components, while the Thunder has the silver as pictured.

Basically, I paid $2K for something which is not going to durable, and which is going to require constant repairs to keep going.

Although the motor and tranny seem robust, and the ride is good, I would not recommend this bike because of the poor quality of the electrical system, frame and suspension and other minor components.

So far, the only Vbike model I have been happy with, was the V4SW, which I believe (despite what Tim says) is discontinued (No one else has them anymore, and they are no longer shown on Kandi's[the manufacturer] website.).

The V4SW was good right out of the crate- and seemed to be even better than many Jap bikes- and in a months riding, never gave me a problem nor showed any signs of poor quality. I KNEW I'd regret selling that bike!

This Monster, on the other hand, has manifested small problems from day one and is of inferior quality. (To Tim's credit, he did offer to take the upper balkl studs off of a 300 Thunder and ship them to me if I sent in mine first- but this seemed pointless, as the lower studs are welded in and non-replaceable, and will likely go before the uppers- so I insread just had Tim send me a set of replacement upper ball studs, for when the present ones wear out. I am still not happy though, as I asked about the greeasability of these components before purchaseing, because I did not want to spend $2K on a bike that would not be durable- and of course, indeed did end up with just that!)

While I wouldn't say that this bike is a total piece of junk, it IMO is not worth $2K.

I had been a zealous promoter of Vbike after having gotten aquainted with the V4SW (and the V4S seems to be a good deal, too, from what manyu others say)- but all Vbikes are not alike! Their different models are made by different manufacturers...and they seem to have a mixed stock- apparently shipping out older bikes than the exact ones pictured on their site, which have different features than pictured. And calling and asking Tim is no guarantee that you will receive what you expect/are promised, because he just "yesses" you to death, but either has no true knowledge of what he is shipping out...or just plain lies. (I think the former is true though)

To recap the three Vbike models I have now had experience with:

V4SW- <$1300. Wonderful quality. Highly recommended, if they get any more in stock. Mfg. by Kandi. Highly recommended!

250T- $1399. Promoted as an updated version of the V4SW, but the particular ones Vbike currently have are an older version (at least the one he sent me!) and are in fact nowhere near as good as the V4SW- See my review on this bike elsewhere in this forum. Mfg: KMD. Would be O-K for less money, or perhaps if you got the newer model which is more like the V4SW. Roll the dice if you buy this one!

300 Monster: $1999. Mfg: Tao Tao. See above review.

I think Precious has the right idea, here:

[KentuckyDonkey]

Oh, here's an initial video review of the 300 Monster which I made last week- the vid kinda sucks...but you can here what the bike sounds like.

[SpudRider]

Thank you for yet another honest, detailed, superbly written vehicle report, KD. As usual, your excellent photographs are also very well chosen.

I sincerely appreciate your objectivity and hard work in sharing this information. I am sure many forum readers will benefit greatly from your experience.

Spud

[KentuckyDonkey]

Thanks for the kind words, Spud!

No trouble a T'all....it's kind of fun writing these reviews...and I've gotten so much from this forum and other members experiences, that I'm glad that I can at least contribute a little something.

[KentuckyDonkey]

L'il help guys?
http://www.chinariders.net/modules.p...ewtopic&t=7955

[jason]

thanks for your findings on these machines.now im really thinking twice about ordering anything from vbike.i noticed that the "T" model is not on the web site anymore,wondering why.i think the only way i would buy one would be the v4sw and really if i cant see exactly what im buying before tim gets my money i may be in the same situation as you are with these units.

[SpudRider]

If you don’t mind, KD, I will quote you from another thread.

Originally Posted by SpudRider

That says it all, in a nutshell!

Thank you for telling the truth about your experiences with these quads.

Spud

I would encourage all prospective Chinese ATV owners to read the following thread concerning Chinese motorcycles. I believe the same principles apply to Chinese ATVs.

http://www.chinariders.net/modules.p...otorcycle++000

Judge for yourself, but here is my opinion. At the current level of quality, I believe very few Chinese motorcycles or quads are worth $2,000 USD (U.S. Dollars). In most instances, as the price of a Chinese motorcycle or quad approaches $2,000 USD, I believe a good, used Japanese motorcycle or quad is probably a much better value.

However, a good price is not the only criterion. As KD so succinctly phrased it, “My advice to everyone is to only consider the Chinese bikes that have been shown by others to be of good quality- avoid the ones that have constant problems reported.”

Good deals on new and used Japanese quads and motorcycles can be found, if you are patient. For example, I paid $2,599, OTD (out-the-door), for my new, 2007 Arctic Cat 250 2X4 Utility ATV.

http://www.chinariders.net/modules.p...ewtopic&t=7578

You can also find very good deals on Chinese ATVs. KD’s experience with the $1,300 V-Bike V4SW is an example.

http://www.chinariders.net/modules.p...er=asc&start=0

Also, I paid $950 plus $238 shipping for my new Zongshen Sierra 200GY-2. At that price, I believe my Chinese motorcycle is an exceptional value.

http://www.chinariders.net/modules.p...rra+200+report

In summary, here is my opinion. Buy only Chinese bikes that get consistently good reviews. Also, in most instances, when the price approaches $2,000, you should seriously start considering a good new, or used, Japanese bike.

Spud

[KentuckyDonkey]

Well-said, Spud! (If you really want to be a spud-rider, maybe you should get an Irish bike?! )

You are absolutely right though- for under $1300, many of these Chinese bikes are a good deal. But, as was my initial fear...and which indeed has proven to be true, for $2K...they are not a good deal, and they are not easy to resell as the cheaper ones are. (I actually sold the V4SW for more than I paid for it- whereas I am not getting any calls on the 300 Monster, and will have to take a hefty loss, if I can sell it all).

Around here, the used ATV market sucks- all you get for under $2K is 10+ year-old stuff....and stuff that is pretty well beat, as this is a rural area, and ATVs get a lot of use...and often hard use, so the $1300 Chinx look really good- but not the $2K ones!

And Jason has the right idea: When you order over the internet, you're pretty much at the mercy of the seller- and never know what you are going to get, and even the dealers with good reps don't want to resolve major problems. Sure, they'll send you little parts is something is missing or breaks during warranty period...but if they screw up big-time, they're not going to do anything.

For a $1300 bike, it's worth rolling the dice- as the quality vs. price paid is pretty good....but the quality does not seem to increase with price paid, and in fact, it seems the more expensive Chinese bikes aren't as good as the cheaper ones.

[KentuckyDonkey]

BTW: Good deal on the Cat, Spud! Looks like a nice bike- If I had known they could be had for that price, I would've gone that route myself!

[culcune]

I think Vbike has been a good online dealer, and still is, but the product line has expanded, too. A few years ago, Vbike mainly carried Hi-Bird bikes, which were and are very good bikes for the money, so Tim got a good reputation.

However, Hi-Bird is trying to establish itself as a brick and mortar manufacturer, and with that two-punch combo of cruiser and the (who knows when)soon to be released dual sport, they should have winners on their hand, but Vbike has had to find other suppliers, hence the Tao Tao and the others. So with trying to find a steady, quality supplier(s), they are carrying bikes that are making them look bad. It seems to be with the ATV's, as the Hensim 250 cruiser they carry, and the Kinroad dual-sport bikes are proven bikes (for the money, as they are Chinese sourced, after all).

I would hesitate to mail-order unknown, unproven brands of ATV's from anyone, not just Vbike.

(If you are real nice, I think that Hi-Bird will let you order their utility 250cc ATV, and their 250cc cruiser for dealer pricing directly from them).

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by KentuckyDonkey

Well-said, Spud! (If you really want to be a spud-rider, maybe you should get an Irish bike?! )

They grow potatoes elsewhere? Surely you jest!

Now that you mention it, I believe that I have heard rumors of people growing potatoes in Ireland. However, the potato is native to the New World. Scholars debate when they first began, but the Inca Indians of Peru were cultivating potatoes when discovered by the Spanish conquistadores in 1537. In turn, the Spanish introduced the potato to Europe.

http://www.foodreference.com/html/a-pot-hist0607.html

Although grown elsewhere, all other potatoes must certainly be inferior to genuine, Idaho potatoes! I counsel everyone to accept no substitute for the superior quality of delicious, Idaho potatoes!



Spud

[KentuckyDonkey]

Just for the record, guys,

My main problem with Vbike is that they "yes" you to death on the phone when you ask questions....and tend not to keep abreast of what they are actually shipping. I think that is the case with all the other internet dealers/importers, too- but at least Vbike is pretty good on post-sale service, warranty issues, parts, etc. And at least they always answer the phone, and even answer emails till quite late at night.

Tim just needs to be a little more diligent about what he actually receives in the containers, and maybe actually check things when people ask questions, or simply say "I don't know".

Tim and I have worked out a little settlement- I will post details soon. It isn't much...and doesn't rectify the problems- but at least it is something.

[KentuckyDonkey]

EDIT: Problem solved! I sent the vid to Tim, he had his tech guy listen to it- turned out to be the skid plate under the motor vibrating!! (Good ear!). Sucks that the welds are loosening up already...but thank goodness it's not the motor.

Now what?!!!

O-K, guys, I need your help.

The motor of the 300 Monster just started making this metalic scraping noise- I'm not too familiar with small engines, so if yous[sic] could please watch this short vid I posted....



Any ideas? I sure hope this isn't thje small engine version of a rod knock!!

This thing doesn't even have 20 miles on it yet!!! (Remember in the initial review, I said it sounds "clunky"- I have a feeling whatever was making it sound "clunky from day one, has gotten worse!)

[fishman10]

sounds like the gear that is engaged by the starter,. on an auto it would be the flywheel.Do you have a cheap harbor freight stethoscope if not a long handled screwdriver can be held up to different parts of the engine with your ear on the handle end, I'll; bet you can pinpoint the area at least

[KentuckyDonkey]

Hehe...I was gonna do the screwdriver bit (diagnosed many a car engine that way, back in the days when I used to rebuild 'em)...but luckily Tim at Vbike solved the riddle.