I bought my first bike back in 2021, a brand new out of the box Lexmoto Michigan. Bloody lovely bike, shes my baby. We've gone over 5000 miles together since, and I still love her. Ive now passed Mod 1 and Mod 2 to get my full cat A licence and bought a Honda NT650V-2 Dauville, but will still look to take my baby out for a run at the weekends.
The days of really bad China built bikes are gone. The early ones fell apart, rusted away and broke down. Everything about the quality was poor. Since then. China has really upped their game. My own China bike (A 2016 AJS Cadwell) is rock solid. It may not be the fastest or the quickest 125 on the road, but it's well made. Sadly. The bad reputation persists.
Completely agree! I've had many people say to me that cheap Chinese bikes are nothing like what they used to be (in a positive way) Ahh, so yours is a few years old and still going strong, that says a lot in itself. Thank you for watching & thank you for the information! - Drew
As long as you look after it, clean it when it needs it and keep up with maintenance it should last as long as any other bike these days. At least with Lexmoto you have a nationwide dealer network and parts if needed are relatively cheap and easy to get. The skills in riding and maintenance you learn on this bike will stand you well going forward when you eventually start to move up to bigger bikes.
You are absolutely right! It's the same with any mechanical object, it's down to how they are looked after. Fortunately, I found out there is a dealer on my route to work! Thank you for watching & thank you for the information! - Drew
Good choice! I initially wanted the Lexmoto Michigan (similar style to the Hoodlum) but this ZSB popped up & I couldn't resist. Kind if wish I went for the Michigan/Hoodlum as they are much cooler looking bikes in my opinion. I have been into cars my whole life, but the feeling you get on a motorbike is unmatched! Thank you for watching! - Drew
Thank you much for the kind words! 🙏 It really is a great bike! I had it as my first bike, passed my test, bought a much bigger bike...but ended up keeping the ZSB around for a few months as I loved it so much, AND it is so incredibly cheap to run! Thank you for watching! - Drew
I bought a brand new Lexmoto lxs last year.. I’ve had nothing but issues with it. The shims needed replacing, chain and sprocket has been replaced, horn stopped working (not that I ever needed it) the rear indicators have stopped working, had to have the display replaced as it stopped working, new clutch cable and also blew 2 gaskets in the exhaust, all under 2000 miles. It looks amazing, but I’m never going Chinese bikes again, I’ve now moved to Japanese bikes (Kawasaki ninja 125)
ACF50 will be your friend. Bolts, exhaust, mounts, the lot. Keep it clean too. Dry it off if you've been out in the rain. Should last as long as anything else on the road.
I do like ACF50! Thats very good advice in fairness. Neglect will kill off most things, so if you look after them, they should look after you! Thank you for watching! - Drew
The only things I didn`t like about my ZSB were the obligatory EU bits, so over the last three years, I have removed the link pipe from the rear brake to the front, which has given me much better brakes with more feel and, since I feel that stuffing a catalytic converter into the exhaust pipe on a little 125 is a personal insult I have de-catted it, it does not go much faster, but the engine does have a crisper feel to it. Neither of these mods affected its first MOT.
Oh wow, that's interesting! I didn't raise removing the link in the brakes would give it a better feel, does make sense. I completely agree about the cat. Strangling these little engines does seem a bit of a kick in the teeth, I immediately thought about decatting it but wasn't sure. Has it affected the sound at all?? Thank you for watching & thank you for the information! - Drew
@@accelerateyoutube Removing the attempt at a cat made little difference to the sound, but I had already fitted a slightly louder home made silencer after the third smartphone zombie stepped out in front of me in town. As a non stipendiary Priest I have to visit hospitals and the Hospice, so I don`t want to use too noisy a bike. My 750 Ural on more or less straight pipes does rattle the windows a bit if I forget and give it a few revs.
Apologies for the delay, I didn't get a notification of your comment. The weather has made it hard to do more videos on the ZSB but they are coming soon! I did exactly that!. I was very nervous about doing my CBT, so I bought the bike first, went to a car park multiple times to get a feel for it, and I felt sooo much more confident going into the CBT. And I flew through it 👌 Thank you for watching! - Drew
What cannot be underestimated is how good lexmoto is for spare parts. There's a finite level of quality at this price point, but most failures are cheap fixes. In the UK and parts of north Germany, conditions are particularly bad for vehicle biodegradability. If they can survive here then they will be good in other markets
My son has just purchased a keeway superlight 125 he loves it its a well built bike for the money bit on the heavy side tbh but still a nice bike just wondering if anyone else has owned one and if there ok bikes like .
Chinese workers/builders/designers are learning more and more fast then EU and USA workers do. Every year the designs and qualty are much better then everywhere else. China will be big soon, really big and theire Brics adventure will make them huge....
@volkiruski1221 I think you may be right. Chinese products have comes leaps & bounds from where they were many years back. Thank you for watching! - Drew
Nothing wrong with a cheaper bike Drew, looks good for your first bike👍 and the weather is finally getting better 🌞 get out and enjoy it😁👍thanks john🏴
Thanks man! It seemed like a no brainer; basically brand new & still under warranty! Plus I thought it would be interesting to see if Chinese bikes deserve all the hate first hand. Thank you as always mate! 🙏 - Drew
I looked at lexmoto among lots of other 125's and although i decided on an almost new cb125f (that i got at a great price), did a lot of reading up first and came to the conclusion that the performance and reliability between different 125 manufacturers these days wasn't that much, and certainly as a beginner didn't justify paying a whopping £5k for some of them. You will learn a lot, probably have some shall we say unscheduled dismounts, put some scratches/dents here and there, and quite possibly want to pass your test and move up in a year or so anyway, but the good thing is the market for used 125's is really buoyant, so whatever happens you won't lose any real money when you come to sell it whatever. Even though i'm a lot older than you having had a full car licence for 42 years as well as being a keen cyclist i soon realised how much i didn't know, and the importance of safety, so i try treat every ride as if i'm being watched while on a test lol, and spent what turned out to be much more than i expected on a good helmet, jacket, trousers and boots, which are worth their weight in gold - don't skimp on protective gear - sounds boring i know, but just the riding is it's own thrill, so stay safe, take care and enjoy it !!. GL
Absolutely! The Lexmoto ZSB can be had, brand new with 2 years warranty for £1,999! I was looking at paying that for a 2006 Japanese equivalent, so thought it must be worth a shot. You are right, I am expecting some mis-haps for sure! So, better it be on a cheaper bike. Yes, I'm only planning on keeping it for a year maximum if all goes to plan. My protective gear turned up yesterday, and your advice mirrors that of every biker I have spoken to. So I listened, and invested in some quality gear. Thank you for watching & thank you for the information! - Drew
Top stuff lads , Kenny looks like a top piss taker , hope you’ve a few adventures planned , I’d change the tyres straight off it’ll pay dividends especially in the wet , enjoy you journey and have a blast 🏍🏍👍👍
😂 we always give eachother stick, Kenny's just jealous that I have better taste in bikes than him 👀 My CBT is booked this Friday, bike is already taxed & insured so we are heading straight out! We will be filming my first ride etc too! That's good advice, I'll look into changing the tyres. Thank you for watching! - Drew
@@jimhedley7459 we are currently restoring his Triumph TT600. He's had many bikes; Fireblade, 1250 Bandit etc. We both said, we thought he may look a bit silly on the Lexmoto because he is a lot bigger than me, but I think he looked good on it! Am I right in assuming you're a biker? If so, what's your weapon of choice? - Drew
@@accelerateyoutube yeah , probably a bike addict , at the moment 2 ducati diavels , triumph rocket 3 , triumph street twin , 2 honda groms , 1 honda monkeybike , 4 benelli tnts , I’m a 60 year old teenager and proud of it ,enjoy your bike , I’m a big fan of 125s as you can see 🏍🏍👍👍
I have heard people say parts can be a nightmare sometimes. There is a dealer on my route to work so hopefully should be OK. I'm not planning on owning it much longer, as soon as I have my big boy license it's going. - Drew
My first motorcycle was a lexmoto arrow. Cheap to run insure and work on. The issue with them is not the bike but the owners. In general it's a 17yr olds first bike and they likely don't know much about motorcycles like I was, so they don't get looked after well or regular maintenance. However some Chinese bikes are 💩 But lexmoto is good, always parts available and cheap to repair when things go wrong.
You are absolutely right mate! I think you've hit the nail on the head 👌 17 year old just want to go out and hoon the bike, and not worry about maintenance. For a first bike it seems ideal, as you said it looks very easy to work on etc. I genuinely have heard some very good things about Lexmoto as a company, and there is a dealer located on my route to work so I am confident I'll enjoy ownership. Thank you for watching! - Drew
They really are great bikes to learn on. I have out a few hundred miles on the bike now so really getting to know it. I will be doing a video of my impressions & running costs etc very soon! Thank you for watching! - Drew
You are absolutely right mate! I think people hate them because the Internet tells them to hate them! I am thoroughly enjoying it so far! Thank you for watching! - Drew
Well on the plus side these will definitely get cheaper because otherwise they'll just sit in warehouses as stock. There was a point where they were about 2 grand, now considering for about 800 quid more you can have a brand new honda, theres no way they're getting many sales. Id view these as a kind of kit bike where you get it and carefully rebuild it to a decent standard, reroute all the cables so water doesn't run down them, seal all the electrics properly etc, acf it all. But many folks aren't able to do this. Personally im done with buying cheap Chinese items because its a false economy, theyre cheap for a reason, cheap bolts, soft metal, cast brittle levers etc. If people want to kid themselves that theyre brilliant then thats up to them because theyre not and you get what you pay for with all machines not just motorcycles.
"Running in" a new engine is not a matter of road speed. That is irrelevant to the motor. The best way to bed things down is to just run the engine light and smooth. Listen to the sounds, the motor will tell you if it's happy or struggling.
@@accelerateyoutube yes, ignition cable frayed so the bike kept cutting out, one puncture that was understandable, now suspected water damage to wireless key fobs causing the bike to lock ignition and cut out so not great 👍 up until around 7,000 no real issues, and I fitted s third party grab mount wireless charger for my phone so that is not going to help with warranty issues
@accelerateyoutube it was pretty much fine up until about 7,000 miles, I am not sure if someone tried hot wiring it but the ignition cable failed and now the keyless ignition is turning the bike off so I have to see. Love the bike when it is working but when it fails my heart sinks luckily I have AA break down cover and a mobile phone for the time being
I went to collect some carpet for my daughter at Merthyr and there's new massive shop there call Trago. I was surprised to see lots of these Chinese motor bikes there . Brand new £1899 + £99 on the road for the bike you have there . As I'm short arse 5'5 theres not a lot of choice for me . I passed my test in 1977 on an illegal Ossa 250 trails bike . It was illegal because it wasn't road registered and i used the plates off my brother's 250 super dream. Well i was 17. Didn't have the internet in them days to check. Anyroadup i passed and the next week i fell off and hurt myself and dad took the ossa off me . I passed my car test a few months later and never bothered with a road bike again. But now I'm 63 and retired my mrs is pisssing me off so i thought i would get back on the road. They had the Herald motor bikes there at £2499+ £99 but my feet don't touch the ground. My daughter's the same height as me yet she rides a CB 125 honda. What the fucks wrong with me?
Wow, I didn't know Trago Mills sold motorbikes! I would've had a good look around there before purchasing my bike. 😂 I was going to say, that takes guts to swap plates etc, but as you say, luckily the technology wasn't there to check! 😂 "Mrs is pissing me off" 😂😂 I'm sure buying a motorbike helpes that! Thank you for watching, and making me laugh! - Drew
@@AntGeezer my next thought is a ⛵. She doesn't like open water . I'm surprised she spends so long in the bath. Luckily we have a bucket down the bottom of the garden. Trouble is I want a boat I can tow behind my van and also be big enough to sail to the isles of Scilly from Porthcawl South Wales. Indoors said what about me . Why do you think I want a ⛵?
Nothing wrong with these or any other Chinese bikes, it's the owners. Most people who buy a cheap run around or bike usually don't follow proper maintenance, penny pinching and then blame th bike. It's th same with cars or anything. Nothing wrong with them.
Look at the diagrams from the parts vendors, to be honest it's pretty straightforward as most things only clip to what they're meant to and screws only fit where they're supposed to. They will be very similar to other bikes so just look on RU-vid and find a similar video to help you. 👍🙂
Hello, I wonder if you can help me please. I have a Wangye Eivissa 2 125cc scooter year 2022. I'm looking for a OBD2 scanner for Chinese motorcycles. I have contacted Wangye in China who manufacture the bike. Unfortunately they won't advise me on a suitable OBD2 scanner for Chinese motorcycles. Would it be possible for you to check it out and advise me. Cheers
Funny you should say that...I had only owned it a few weeks before I realised the chain needed adjusting lol Sound advice, thank you. Thank you for watching! - Drew
I buy and rebuild chinese motorcycles. Mainly lexmoto and I can vouch for the quality. Old yamaha ybr are built by jianshe in a chinese factory so all these people saying they won't go chinese
Thank you for asking! I not only thoroughly enjoyed the CBT...I passed! I have racked up close to 900 miles on the bike and am throughly enjoying the bike life so far! - Drew
Lexmoto is a Chinese brand not a english brand the sinnis on the other hand is a british brand that is built in China and all them bikes look nice but there not my cup of tea I will always stick to Japanese brand bikes but each to there own
Oh, I didn't realise that. From the little research I did I thought Lexmoto was a British brand. Thank you for the info. Once I pass my test & am able to rode a bigger bike, I will more than likely be going down the Honda route. - Drew
Lexmoto and Sinnis are British brands but they import and modify Chinese bikes to bring them up to a reasonable standard. Lexmoto is based in Exeter and Sinnis is based in Brighton.
Honda Suzuki Yamaha & Kawasaki & most big name motorcycle brands ,source components ,full engines & even have motorcycles manufactured in Chinese partner factories . The Chinese factories have the latest tech & machinery to produce to any build quality & price point the customer requires . Sinus & Lexmoto don’t manufacture or design motorcycles ,they import generic Chinese built machines from various Chinese factories in job lots ,with their British importers brand name & model name. Other importers around the world also import & sell the same or very similar bikes from the same Chinese factories & sell them under a different name in their respective countries . Also some of the models are made in the same Chinese factories as Honda ,Suzuki or Yamaha partner with & have the same cloned ex Honda or Suzuki designed 125 engines .
@@maskedavenger2578 Chinese 125 engines are deemed to be reliable and often get uses to restore old barn find classics. Sinnis have a good reputation and have long warrant and Lexmoto seem to offer better quality now. AJS have connection with owners when they were genuinely English and still have influence in design
