So my buddy wants to upgrade from his scooter to a bike. He said he thinks a DS would be good for him and I said I couldn't agree more.

Problem is he is between a jap (specifically a klx) and Chinese knock off bikes a local dealer says they can order. Any suggestions on how to logically explain to him why Chinese bikes especially street legal ones are a BAD idea?

 

Maybe the best comparison here is with bicycles. Tell your friend to go to a bicycle shop and ride a $500 dollar bicycle. Then have him compare it to a Walmart, Academy Sports, or whatever big box discount store bike that is around the $150-$200 level. The level of ride quality, component function, and even weight will be clearly evident. That's the real difference in comparison. Heck, have him ride your KLX and then test ride one of these Chinese bikes. Oh...you said they had to order one. Hmmm...don't they have enough faith in their product to keep some in stock?

 

The Chinese "enduro" DS bikes I've been around are not bad per se, but compared to a KLX theres no contest.

I bought a china wheeler back in 08 and I've been pretty dang pleased with it. It does need a lot of attention that a Japanese wheeler wouldn't (tightening bolts and adjust chains and things like that, imagine a Harley 4 wheeler) but for the $700 it cost me brand new in the crate I don't think I did bad.

If your buddy can get a china DS bike for $800 like you could back when I bought my wheeler he probably can't go wrong but since the price at most places I've seen these days has gotten into the $1500-2000 range for what you used to get for less than a grand the bang for buck ratio starts to get a lot closer in the KLX (or similar Japanese bike) favor.

Just my .02

 

hahaha TNC that's what I told him...I guess great minds think alike.

Wilcard you actually helped enforce my point too, I feel like low maintenance of jap bikes is a huge plus.

 

What kind of scooter does he ride? Itailian, Japanese, Taiwanese, or Chinese? The answer to that question may explain his thought process. What goes for scoots goes for motorcycles. You get what you pay for.

 

As TNC said, compare it a bicycle. A $500 and a $150 bike might feel the same at first, but after a few rides that $150 bike is going to break down, i.e tires go bad quickly, sprockets chip, chain stretches, brakes vanish, cables get frayed, pedals crack (plastic), bars bend on first fall, seat upholstery tears apart. I could go on.

 

Some of our dirt bike club's members have tried a few of these Chinese bikes and ATV's, mainly for kids and pit bike stuff. I've seen these rigs and heard all the discussions of their experiences with them. Parts are sometimes available and sometimes they're not. They are much heavier than a comparable "name brand" product. They don't produce the same power for engine size. They are not even close in a durability comparison. One member who is an extreme gearhead and has access to machine shop stuff has grafted Honda stuff on to and into the engine to make a frankenstein pit bike that is pretty neat. Somebody gave him the bike after it quit running, and he was just having some fun with it. His case is not your normal comparison of course.

 

Show him my pictures of my bike from "I've got the worst luck" thread. I fell into a 7-9 foot ravine/crater/death pit. All my KLX got was a bent handle bar.

These bikes are built like tanks! I sadly abuse the heck out of my 07 KLX 250s. But I never have any concerns the bike will fall apart on me. I do the routine work on it, and it just keeps on ticking!

China bike would have broken into 4-12 pieces and never would have ran again after my wreck.

 

I have a Chinese Pitbike. It is Awesome. But it is just a pitbike. I would not buy anything bigger or something that I would be riding on the street with.

I wish my KLX forks where as good as the pitbikes, they work so well even on big jumps.
The engine will pull just as hard as my Yamaha TT-R125L. Yes they do pull hard even for a little 125. I think they may even have more low end torque then the KLX. Or it just seems that way because they are way lighter

 

One word... "PARTS".

If he EVER does anything to it that requires any replacement part(s), he might as well buy another new one. Parts are non-existent. He will be able to get 0 (zero, nada, zilch) parts for it.

I recently helped a friend look for parts for a used China-bike he bought. I couldn't find ANY source of parts anywhere on the entire globe. That should be reason enough to stay away from buying Chinese junk.