First Bike... what is it?
 

Hello all,

I have had the recent fortune of acquiring a Zongshen enduro style motorcycle. Aside from the name Zongshen on the VIN plate, I'm really not sure what I have here. The bike was given to me by it's former owner, who walked away from it due to repairs needed. From what I understand, he moved and just didn't want to bring it with him and now it's mine. I am currently trying to legally acquire a valid title for an abandoned vehicle, at which point I would like to repair the bike and ride it. My first step is to try and figure out exactly what model it is. Other than "UM" on the seat, there are no markings or decals whatsoever on it. From pics I've seen online, it appears to be a 250cc engine, but could be a 200. I have not had much luck decoding the VIN, except verifying through vincheck.com that it has not been reported stolen or totaled. I am hoping someone here might be able to point me in the direction of a VIN decoder so I can at least find out what model bike it is.

I would like to mention that this is my first motorcycle. I know how to ride, but I have never taken a rider safety course or gotten a motorcycle endorsement on my DL, two things I will be pursuing in very short order. I am very mechanically inclined, I have had 3 years of automotive education, have competed and placed nationally in automotive competitions, hold NATEF certifications, have rebuilt engines, worked in world class machine shops making parts for F1, CART, and NASCAR engines, and various residential maintenance jobs, and can fix damn near anything. I love working on anything mechanical and enjoy a good challenge, but I've never worked on motorcycles until now.

Thanks in advance for any help you folks can offer, I look forward to being a part of this community and contributing where I can

- J

Welcome! You've certainly got more training than many of us. The one thing you must have when owning a China bike is a sense of humour.

Please show us a pic of your bike, and we'll get started.

It seems you guys really like pictures :-) so here's one of my ZongAttachment 91

Thanks Weldangrind, for the speedy reply. I didn't mean to come off sounding like a braggart, just wanted to offer a little background and assurances that technical comments and info won't go over my head - sometimes I talk too much. Apologies for the sub-par image quality. I will take some pics with a better camera as soon as I can remember what drawer or box it's in. Can you tell the model from this pic? Manufacture date on the VIN plate is 1-18-2004

More pics!

Attachment 92

Attachment 93

Attachment 94

Yes, that's a tropicana orange juice lid in place of the left turn signal lens, and a piece of L-channel aluminum tied on with twine for the clutch lever... the previous owner was apparently VERY fond of zip ties

the front brake lever is broken, the brake pump sight glass is broken out, the clutch cable is broken, the oil drain plug is missing half of its integral washer and thus leaks oil, and the clutch lever is quite obviously broken. The ignition cylinder has been tampered with(no key) and the locking gas cap is stuck halfway on/off. I took a gamble and ordered replacement parts last night, very pleased that "high performance" brake pump with polished aluminum lever, clutch lever, clutch cable, oil drain plug w/filter, fuel filter, and keyed ignition switch only cost me $65, hopefully everything fits...

UM = http://umglobal.com/en/index.php/company
From the picture it's powered by a Honda OHC clone. There maybe a family # (required by chinese law, something like: ZS16?FM? http://chinariders.net/showpost.php?...2&postcount=30) stamped on the engine.

UM was for United Motors. I am sure the bike was built by Zongshen and labelled a UM. It does have the common honda style engine and is a typical GY bike. Most likely a 200cc.

As far a title goes. Look at the Vermont route. The information is in the registration forum.

You don't sound like a braggart to me; in fact, I'm most intrigued by the F1, CART and NASCAR engine experience.

That looks almost identical to a bike I'm building right now. Yours is missing the tank shrouds, and I removed mine. The bike looks much better that way, IMHO. We can certainly help you to make a strong runner out of that bike.

Is there a number stamped in front of the shifter?

Welcome! You came to the right place. :)

The U.S. branch of United Motors went out of business several years ago. I believe FastDoc is correct. The United Motors dirt bikes were built by Zongshen, and had a good reputation. :tup:

There are several threads posted on these forums regarding VIN decoding. However, I always have a hard time finding them. ;) You bike has a reliable clone of a Honda engine. You should see an engine code engraved somewhere on the engine.

Thanks everyone, I will go check for any engine stamps after work today and report back. I'm headed to the dmv on my lunch break to see about applying for a lost title. From what I understand, this is the preferred method n NC. Hopefully they play nice :)

Weldangrind, I used to work at CV(Clyde Vickers - Bryan Vickers' daddy) products, and Xceldyne Technologies, makers of arguably the worlds finest titanium racing valves. It was a great job and I miss it, just didn't pay enough

If NC turns you down or the cost is too much check out the Vermont route.

Should be less than $100 to get registered.

http://chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=12368

Thanks Kato, i did look into that route and I think that's probably what I'm going to do. The DMV was a bust yesterday, line was out the door... i did put in a call to the local DMV inspector who has yet to get back in touch with me. Since then I have "learned" through hearsay that if you have had possession of a vehicle for more than 90 days (i have) you can file for a lost title. One of my co-workers apparently did this with an SUV that was left on his property, but since Vermont doesn't require a title, I'm not sure that it's even necessary. I just want to have it titled in my name to avoid any future potential issues. I was off for half a day today and was able to play with the bike a little more today, study it, and learned quite a bit about it.

I realize that this is the new members intro page and don't want to clog it up with more questions that would be better posted in a tech section of the site. With that said, I want to ask one more question. Does this help anyone ID the engine?

Attachment 95

I realize that the oil drain plug is broken and leaking, a new one will be here tomorrow, along with the clutch lever, clutch lever, brake pump, and keyed ignition switch.

It's 69.0 x 53.0. http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=19585044175
Can be found in trike http://jessiestar.en.busytrade.com/p...otorcycle.html

That's quite a big bore and short stroke for a 200! I bet it'll rev like mad.