ScooterOllie
05-19-2008, 09:43 AM
Anyone looking for a QUALITY Chinese scoot (didn't think "quality" & "Chinese" went together, did you? LOL), look at the Linahi 300. It is totally produced by Linhai and sold in Europe for the past few years as the Linhai Mainstreet 300. Here in the U.S. it is imported and distributed by Sunright, International and has been badged as the Diamo Turista 300, SuperStrada 300 and Aeolus 300. Linhai partnered with Yamaha several years ago and builds some parts and bikes for them. If you know about the quality differences between Chinese bikes and the name brand offerings, one look will tell you that Linhai sure has benefitted from their association with Yamaha. The frame is high quality, welds are professional, materials are better quality.
The Linhai 300 is a performance modded version of the Linahi 260. The 260 is based on the European Yamaha YP250. The base engine (260) is a 257 cc horizontal engine. Both the LInhai 260 and 300 share the same chassis but the body style of the 300 is unique, not a clone of anything. The engine in the 300 is bumped up to 275 cc with a 4-valve head and other engine mods to match. The Linhai/Yamaha variator uses 8 weights and both the variator and clutch have been tuned to make the most of the 275 engine's performance. Wheels/tires are high profile 12" with wheelbase at 60". This is a maxiscooter that weighs in at 370 lbs. - about 30-40 pounds more than the typical Chinese maxi. Performance is strong with no dead spots in acceleration and will top out at 75-80 mph. Consumption is 60+ mpg.
In '06, Sunright brought over a ton of these scoots for a major "dealer" who went belly up. They were originally priced from $3.5-4K. Very few folks would spring for that much on an unknown, unproven Chinese scoot. The flood of CFMoto powered 250s hit the U.S. market the same year and sold for $1-1.5K less. By the Winter of '06-07, price was dropped. You can now get a leftover '06 drop shipped for as little as $2600. The '08s have just come in this month with no changes except for a pillion seat backrest and a $500+ price increase. There are less than 300 of the '06 models remaining.
On www.scootdawg.com we now have almost a dozen members with either the 260 or 300. No major problems like you hear about with the typical cheap Chinese scoot. One issue: Since these scoots have sat around in the warehouse with Chinese antifreeze in them (VERY POOR corrosion inhibitor additives), there will be some internal cooling system corrosion. At the initial run, it may cause the temp. gauge to peg because of a partial blockage or stuck thermostat. This is fairly easily dealt with by draining coolant, flushing and refill with 50/50% mixture of good antifreeze.
This scoot has the styling of a sport bike and great handling. Pics on websites don't do justice to it's style. Dealers we support at ScootDawg are: www.scootersus.com and www.scootertronics.com
The Linhai 300 is a performance modded version of the Linahi 260. The 260 is based on the European Yamaha YP250. The base engine (260) is a 257 cc horizontal engine. Both the LInhai 260 and 300 share the same chassis but the body style of the 300 is unique, not a clone of anything. The engine in the 300 is bumped up to 275 cc with a 4-valve head and other engine mods to match. The Linhai/Yamaha variator uses 8 weights and both the variator and clutch have been tuned to make the most of the 275 engine's performance. Wheels/tires are high profile 12" with wheelbase at 60". This is a maxiscooter that weighs in at 370 lbs. - about 30-40 pounds more than the typical Chinese maxi. Performance is strong with no dead spots in acceleration and will top out at 75-80 mph. Consumption is 60+ mpg.
In '06, Sunright brought over a ton of these scoots for a major "dealer" who went belly up. They were originally priced from $3.5-4K. Very few folks would spring for that much on an unknown, unproven Chinese scoot. The flood of CFMoto powered 250s hit the U.S. market the same year and sold for $1-1.5K less. By the Winter of '06-07, price was dropped. You can now get a leftover '06 drop shipped for as little as $2600. The '08s have just come in this month with no changes except for a pillion seat backrest and a $500+ price increase. There are less than 300 of the '06 models remaining.
On www.scootdawg.com we now have almost a dozen members with either the 260 or 300. No major problems like you hear about with the typical cheap Chinese scoot. One issue: Since these scoots have sat around in the warehouse with Chinese antifreeze in them (VERY POOR corrosion inhibitor additives), there will be some internal cooling system corrosion. At the initial run, it may cause the temp. gauge to peg because of a partial blockage or stuck thermostat. This is fairly easily dealt with by draining coolant, flushing and refill with 50/50% mixture of good antifreeze.
This scoot has the styling of a sport bike and great handling. Pics on websites don't do justice to it's style. Dealers we support at ScootDawg are: www.scootersus.com and www.scootertronics.com