G'Day,
no problem to come to Mainland China as long you go through the extensive paperwork ("red tape"), accept a guard/guide 24hours and pay the top $$$$.

Porsche Owners Club Hong-Kong as well Ferrari Owners Club Hong-Kong coming regular to southern china (Zhuhai) to use the race track there for practice and club outings.

There are signs that things are changing in PRC, since a couple of 2002 BMW R1150R motorbikes (originally crated/brandnew) have been imported and sold for 280000RMB (approx.35000$US), but no registration/license have been issued to my knowledge.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

G'Day!
A small update on China motorcycling, once again, here goes all the fun.... and the price of a registered Chang-Jiang sidecar increased again....great city, great people, but no motorbikes please!!!
See Shanghai Daily story below, the authorities announced the ban the night before! Many pissed off Chinese bike owners.


Shanghai Daily (Tuesday 30th.July 2002)
Biker ban in effect downtown
Police yesterday declared downtown Shanghai's main roads off-limits to
two-wheeled motor vehicles. The ban, effective today, is intended to make travel safer and more efficient. More than 789,000 motor-cycles, motor scooters and mopeds in the city are covered by the new edict.
However, Shanghai's 7 million-plus bicycles are not, but they too have come under increasing restrictions. At a hastily called news conference yesterday, the city's Public Security Bureau announced that motorcycles and their ilk will no longer be permitted
on 32 main roads inside the Inner Ring Road in west Shanghai and on Century Avenue and in three areas in Pudong. At the same time, 10 highways and two areas in the western district of Qingpu became no-roll zones for such vehicles from out of town. Traffic safety and efficiency were cited as the main reasons for cracking down on motorized two-wheelers, whose numbers have soared in recent years. "Although they account for 55 percent of overall motor vehicle numbers, they carry only 2.1 percent of the city's transportation load," said Zhu Yinglei, vice director of city's public security bureau.
Zhu said two-wheeled "troublemakers" caused 2,265 traffic accidents last year, killing 237 people and injuring 2,389. The casualty figures represent about a 60 percent rise over 1998, he said. In the first five months of this year, 482 such accidents killed 53 people. The number of accidents was up 17.6 percent and the death toll up 7.5 percent over the same period of 2001. Two-wheelers' ability to change lanes quickly creates disorder and causes accidents, the police said. From now until October 25, public education will be emphasized. But in theory, riders in the prohibited areas will immediately be liable to fines of between 50 and 200 yuan and the impoundment of their vehicles. In its first traffic white paper, released a month ago, the city government
said it would act to lower the numbers of two-wheeled motor vehicles and expand areas where they are not welcome. Police said yesterday they were considering letting bikers swap their license plates for car plates without charge. Details of the proposed exchange are under discussion with the Shanghai Development Planning Commission.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Hi all!

could enyone give ditails on travel from Pakistan(KKH) to Kazahstan(or Kyrgistan Tajikistan) trough Xinjiang
Is it posibile?
What about rideing a moped(49.9cc)aka bicycle with a engine or 125cc?Would that make eny diference?

Costs,expenses,licence,guides,jeeps..etc???

BeWell

jondoe

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cheers

jondoe

I believe any motorcyclist is some kind “out of law”. So some times you have to ignore rules and do it on your own risk.

I travelled in China in July-August 2001. Started in Moscow (I am Russian and live there), than Irkutsk, Ulan-Baator, Beijing, Shanghai, Luoyang, Xian, Shenyang. 7000 km in Russia from Moscow to mongolian border, 1000 km crossing Mongolian Gobi and 9000 km inside China. I liked it very much.

Yes, crossing Chinese border by motorbike is illegal. So I used a Mongolian truck (actually it was russian ZIL truck Driver was so kind that i loaded my bike on Mongolian side of border using a rampant and we unloaded it on Chinese side of border using 20 local people. No money, just one ride together with driver.

Yes, my driver license, even international, is illegal in China. But not many policemen know about it because they had NEVER seen a foreigner.

On the border I wrote a kind of declaration with VIN and plates, to avoid custom charges when I will return. A customs officer sad that he knows about two German bikers who crossed the border in train.

Yes, using highways in China is prohibited for a motorbiker. Nevertheless, I used it. Barriers in the tall-gates are short enough to let me in )) Of course i was stopped by police many times and it took me a lot of time to communicate with them. Two times they were going to put me in jail for using highways and more likely for not stopping in tall-gates. However, i never paid any fines.

Yes, centers of Beijing and Shanghai are officially forbidden for motorcyclists. But I drove there, and was stopped only once. It was enough just to take off helmet and show my nice European face ))
In Beijing neighborhoods you can see even japan motorbikes. There is
even a small motorbike market near the airport with different types of
bikes. No Harleys
Usual local roads are opened for bikes and bikers. No problemo.
The people there always crowding around me all the times i stops.

Here is the link to my photos. They can say more than any story
written http://www.fireworks.ru/moto/albums/china/index.htm

Sorry for my English.

Wish you good luck and welcome to Russia.

Im going to work in China for the next 2 years and im shipping my bike to Dalian. I'll be living in Shenyang. Now up until this point I have never heard of these restrictions and im glad you guys have posted your expieriences here. Esp the Aussie from Shanghi.
I took my Bike to South Africa No problem the goverment diddnt care I diddnt even need plates! I drove around there on a Yamaha Bstar 1100 like that for a year.
Do you guys know. If I am getting a residence Visa (greencard) Can I get the licenses mentioned by Adam at china motor travel dot com? ANy feedback would be greatly appreciated.

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RIch Wright

Hello fellow riders, I've just stumbled upon this page and am delighted. I have somewhat of a similar but opposite problem to what is being discussed here. I am presently living and working in Cheng du Sichuan. I bought a 92 cbr250rr last year, and yes it's illegal, I have been stopped 3 times in a year with nothing resulting from it. I am planning to ride to Bangkok in june of this year but require some sort of paperwork to get the bike into Laos and Thailand. Can any of you recommend how I can go about this? I am not particularily concerned about legalities, only that it works. I am willing to take my chances with the interprovincial travell alone. Any and all comments are welcome.
Thanks in advance.

Oh yeah just to let you know, the bike has Guang dong plates but I never recieved any paper work other than a hand written paper saying that I bought and how much I paid.

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riding underground...what a view!!

[This message has been edited by smiley (edited 09 May 2003).]

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riding underground...what a view!!

Smiley,

you amy have a problem with the documentation - normally to cross any border you need good-looking documentation/registration that shows your name address and serial number of the bike and essentially says you own it.

Then there is the carnet - search the website and HUBB for:

carnet thailand

and

carnet laos

and see what the current situation is on that.

(Will probably take a lot of reading - its a big subject)

If a carnet is required - and I THINK it is for Laos but not sure - you will need to get it - and I don't think you'll get it from China. China MAY have a border treaty with Laos, but I'd be surprised.

I don't think you need a carnet for Thailand, but you will definitely need good docs.

Good luck, I think you may need it. But it's amazing what some people have managed that isn't supposed to be possible...



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Grant Johnson

Seek, and ye shall find.
------------------------

One world, Two wheels.
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

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Grant Johnson
Seek, and ye shall find.
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Inspiring, Informing and Connecting travellers since 1997!
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

Thanks for the input Grant, I'll ckeck on the carnet. From what I've read already, I think I remember someone stating that they used their carnet to enter laos, but as you say I'm not 100% on whether it's required. I'm thinking that if I get a visa for Thailand at the same time as for Laos then the Lao border dudes may go easier if I show my intent to transit Laos. Who knows but for me it's gonna be worth the effort as I can't for the life of me sell this bike here in Cheng du and that means walking away from it when I have to go. So if I don't make it at least I'll have the adventure of riding through Sichuan and Yunnan.

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riding underground...what a view!!

don't know anything about this BUT, if you try to register in taiwan ( which china considers its own) you may be ble to get it into china. just a thought. i lived in taiwan for a year and a half and with my resident visa from there, i was able to make use of all things as a local in the mainland. hong kong may be an option too.
like i said, just a thought!

hiya

Just to let you know i have just been through Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Malaysia and no one has asked to see my carnet, which i do have. I flew from kathmandu into bangkok then headed into Cambodia via the crossing near siam reap then through cambodia and crossed into laos in the south at the "there is very little there" border crossing between cambodia and loas, someone told me this was not open to foreigners but all went well and there was no real customs there anyway. Then back into Thailand at the friendship bridge near Vientianne and down south to Malaysia.

Hope this helps.....

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Will

Some day so soon....

Yes thanx, I realised after browsing the trip papers page that a carnet is optional in most SEA countries. Now I just have to get the reggy paper and DL here in China, got a few leads so here's hoping...I'll keep ya posted.

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riding underground...what a view!!

G'Day,
Find pictures at: http://photos.yahoo.com/rdmc_shanghai from our recent Chengdu (Sichuan) to Kunming (Yunnan) ride.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Hi Butch,
Great shots, and I have been thinking about your trip. I especially enjoyed your shots of our Shanghai to Urumqi Trip. We had a great time. Carol broke her foot out of Korla back to Urumqi. But then that happens in the road ditches!! And yes, John got that BMW fixed after the other accident. Thanks for all you assistance in making the trip fun and getting to see the F1 race!!I love that little camera you have.
Allen(03-18).

G'Day Allen! (@Allen Naille)
good to hear you enjoyed the trip from Shanghai to Urumqi.
we had our fair shares of troubles as well (myself two rear flats and a broken off cockpit bracket, various bits & pieces coming of the BMW LT K1200, one front flat on the Honda and trouble with a Harley battery) but overall a great trip.
thanks god did not take Harley Heritage Softail on this trip, we learned the hard ("funny / strange") way that cruiser type (big bikes like BMW K1200LT) are not the right choice going offroad (actually we were on PRC National Highway #108). that little casio exilim camera came in handy many times, really recommend it (point & shoot). as you know, its a small world and we might meet again somewhere over a or F1 race.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Hi Guys,

China by motorcycle - forget all the plates and guides and what ever the official requirements are. We've done it succesfully, just by our own and spent almost 3 month and 9000km in China. I guess the most difficult part is to get in, but if you ones in, we had not even one single problem with the police riding in the streets. The people are increadible friendly and interested, but to get used to this unbelivable (no rule) traffic, it really takes a while. Even if the PSB or the police where checking our documents while camping, they never had any questions concerning the ride by ourselfs on the bike through the country.

To read the whole China story (and more will come soon) have a look on our website at: www.lomo-expedition.de

See you on the road.

Lo