It’s cheap @ £1000 and insurance is cheap @ about £350 (some of the quotes I’ve had for a Honda XR have been outrageous).
Being my first bike, I’m starting to think that perhaps it makes sense not to dive in head first and get a more expensive Honda XR, and rather buy a cheaper/nastier import to knock about with, drop, and just generally mangle (well hopefully not!). Then once I’ve done my full license I can upgrade to a “proper” bike.
I know I risk poor build quality on these “copy” bikes, but a 12 (possibly 24) month warranty kind of helps.
Just wondering if anyone on here rides a Jinlun, what the general feelings are, etc. Are there shops in London that service them…
Now is the time to be picking up cheap bikes as it’s out of season. A few years ago I bought a new Honda Lead 100cc scooter for a grand, not even preregistered. It would just go faster than the bike you mention but honda reliability. Also keeps its value far better.
I highly recommend sending an email to dealers in London stating you have approx £1k to play with and do they have any clearance new bikes.
Before taking my test I rented a CG for a day for £40 to practise gears. There is no need to wrestle with a manual low powered bike for a long time before upgrading.
I wouldn’t touch a ‘normal’ powered manual under 125cc, especially in london.
I agree with PussyHorse – it’s too soon for Jinlun to be worthwhile. There’s a good chance you’ll be throwing your money away as the resale will most likely be awful. Remember a warranty only comes into play when something goes wrong and many cheap manufacturers factor in quite a high number of warranty problems as it’s cheaper than getting it entirely right in the first place.
Aviod. I know several workshops that wont even touch these bikes for repair because they’re so bad. Crap, cheap alloy subframes cracking headbearing get shot real quick and poor qulaity components, why risk it. Get a second hand Honda.
Hi,
Friend of mine at work bought a Jinlun JL125 scooter thing. Absolute pile of rubbish. Build quality is very poor and although all dealers mention great spares back up you can bet that the part you want isnt in stock but ‘can be ordered’ for you! I speak from experience as i had the misfortune of working on said jinlun. My advice? for what its worth, AVOID !!! As it happens the shop in Essex that sold these Jinluns has closed down. Only lasted about 3 months.You do the math.
ive been out to 3 of these in the last 2 months 2 with rear wheel colapsed and 1 with seized engine they cant cope with the way we ride here in the uk there fine pottering about at 15-25 mph in third world countries with a mechanic on every corner with a adjustable spanner and a hammer …
