Originally Posted by Alexlebrit

When I was planning the now aborted buggy trip to China, I found out a bit about driving quands on the roads. All across the European Community it was no problem if your quad was road legal and registered in the country of origin. Quads are classed as "Heavy Quadricycles" under EC law and as long as they fit within the legal definitions, one of which is no more than 20hp output, you can ride them.

When you leave Europe it all gets a bit hazy. A lot of the former Soviet states are now hoping to enter the EU and so have begun harmonizing their laws in readiness, so the regulations might be changing as we speak. Russia seems to allow quads and Mongolia seems to allow anything, but finding out is almost impossible.

The next question is insurance, have you checked to see if any insurer will cover you? I found it really difficult to find an insurer that would let me spend more than a few weeks out of my country of registration, but if you search here for "Quads Across Africa" they might be able to tell you more.

Do you have any ideas of the make of Quad you're after? As a lot of your route will probably be on the road it make sense to get one with a differential to avoid excessive tyre wear. I only know of the Polaris range that have a locking diff, they call it turf mode. I did get in contact with them and they do seem interested (or did before the crash hit), in supporting users in adventures, I rang them direct in the US and spoke to the marketing director and she put me in touch with local marketing. That said the downside to a US marque is US fuel consumption (they drink petrol). There are diesels around, but they tend to be slow, but if you're giving yourself a year that's probably not an issue.

And finally (I left the worst till last) China. A quick search on here will reveal the nightmare that is China. First there's the whole registration thing, then the expense of a guide, and as you're considering a quad your guide will need their own transport, pillion is almost certainly out. I got a quote of $6000 and that was for a direct dash from the Mongolian border to Beijing, I think it was six days!!

But having thrown a bag of spanners in the works I'll say good luck, I'm sure it's all possible, and please feel free to get in touch and I'll copy/send you all the stuff I researched.

Alex (a bit jealous)

Originally Posted by doosey

hi

about your bank, i travel allover the world with work and initially had a similar problem, i went ballistic and moved all my accounts to the halifax told them the exact nature of my job and travel and bingo never had a problem since(they do charge for withdrawls oversea though) dont be shy it is your money not theirs,
ive offered my help to a few others on here regarding kazakhstan as i worked out there and am married to a kazak so if you need any help on that bit let me know ( my wifes friend is deputy editor of one of the news papers there so many be that could help)

good luck and all the best

Originally Posted by doosey

Hi

I could well be in Atyrau myself in nov with work,im flying out for a week from the 14th sept so will spread the word that you are about to invade their country i live near to richmond

Originally Posted by scarecrow57

Anyway to more inportant things.......You are right about insurance. I am finding it impossible to find anyone who will insure me, but I am still working on it..........another problem is banking....my bank will not let stay out of the country for longer than 3 months otherwise they will close my account down.........evedentally it is something to do with fraud law......it is bl**dy ridiculous......I told them that I would inform them on a weekly basis as to where I am, but I am getting nowhere with them at all.........................any ideas??? surely all you guys that travel do not have the same problem............if you do how have you overcome this???[/COLOR]

Originally Posted by Alexlebrit

Hi Carole, I'll go through each bit at a time.



I'm sure that insurance will be OK. In the end I got my insurer Credit Agricole (so not much use to you) to issue a European Insurance Document which would cover everywhere within the EU. Now it would also cover Russia. As for beyond, well a look around on here usually reveals that you can buy insurance at the border. While they might scratch their heads a bit, maybe the paying of a small additional "fee", might help.



I can't say I'm an expert in quads, we were looking at off-road buggies and side-by-side vehicles, but I picked up a bit of an idea hanging round too many fora. The HUGE problem with quads is their truly appalling fuel consumption, some of them will only average 10-15 mpg. If you think you might be doing 12,000 - 15,000 miles that's more than 1000 gallons of fuel. In places petrol stations are few and far between, so you'll have to carry plenty of spare, which will eat into your luggage space, add loads of weight to pull out if you get stuck, and no doubt lead to more potential breakages.


There are a few diesels though and although they're possibly a bit slower, it's all about taking in the sights, isn't it? Roush do a converted Cam-Am, which might be interesting, but probably expensive. Arctic Cat do their Super Duty Diesel, both of which are FAR more economical than petrol and both are good brands. Sadly neither has a lockable rear-differential, so your tyre wear will go up, and of course you'll have tail out fun on wet roundabouts. Still they're both well-known brands so spares (including tyres) should be easier to find.




This forum is littered with threads detailing the Chinese problem. Basically, you can't drive in their country without Chinese registration and a guide, and that's VERY expensive.



Actually we had several, they were all devised to avoid Ewan & Charley. I favoured going via Scandinavia, ferry from the UK to Norway then up across the top of Sweden, Finland and into Russia stopping at St. Petersburg, Moscow and then across, down to the Altai and into Mongolia that way. I just thought many people take a more southerly route, and I love Scandinavia.

.

The most important bit seemed to be what time of year do you want to be in Mongolia? People have driven the "Trans-Siberian Highway" in winter and said it's OK, but Mongolia in -40° conditions, no thanks. So the idea was to get there around June/July and get out and down to China by September/October


Of course, and that will add even more to your fun.



Merci à toi aussi (but really I'm an ex-pat Brit.



Lack of money and time, and the thought of wrestling with the Chinese. Oh and being lured away by the allures of young ladies on motorbikes (well one anyway) and having my head turned towards Africa. I will do it one day though, but probably by bike or slightly ill-suited soft-roader.



Alex

Originally Posted by scarecrow57

Hi again Alex,

Thanks for your speedy reply

I was told that diesal is not easy to come by.....is that not correct?

In the Roush would that be a RoTax engine do you think?

China.........That should not be too much of a problem 'cause I intend to donate the Quad somewhere in Mongolia as a quick response vehicle as I will be taking medical supplies with me.....in a trailer.....

I will check yourr route but I raelly would like to spend a wee bit of time in France.....I will be leaving UK mid November.........and just taking my time as this is not meant to be a race........God knows where I will be for Christmas!!

You men are always sucked in by beautiful young ladies on motorbikes!!!


You said in an earlier post that you could possibly send me the stuff you had researched I would be very grateful if that was still possible.

Warmest regards

Carole

Originally Posted by majorbumsore

hey, Scarecrow.
I've got the same prob with PM I can read but not send. pm your number and I'll give you a bell.
Ian.