Europatrading - Excellent value for me : eBay Guides

I won an X-dirt 200cc bike from Europatrading in an ebay auction. I paid a grand total of £530 including delivery registration and tax!! They were slow to deliver but the bike that arrived was extremely good value for the very little money that I paid. It is clear that some people have had unfortunate experiences BUT YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!!! Anyone expecting first class support, rapid turnaround on parts etc should really spend the extra £2000 and buy a Honda, Suxuki or Kawasaki. I did my homework before buying so I knew exactly what I was getting - a cheap Chinese motorcycle which would probably not be very well put together or finished. However, spares are plentiful and cheap (the X-dirt 200cc is just another version of the ubiquitous GY series and parts for GY125 and GY200 fit fine) and the bike is easy to work on. I have done several hundred miles on mine so far with no problems. It does 75mph (after a front spocket change) and looks quite good. I only wanted it as a cheap runabout and I am more than satisfied. With regard to Europatrading - they are obviously a small company working on very small profit margins so it is hardly surprising if they aren't as efficient as one might hope for. However they were very polite and helpful when I contacted them by phone ove a couple of details and I was very pleased overall with the service that I got. I would not recommend ANY very low-cost chinese motorcycle to a complete novice. For a start it will need some assembly as it will arrive in parts a crate without clear instructions. Putting the front wheel on the wrong-way round for example, could easily lead to brake and speedometer cables binding or breaking. Then there is the simple fact that, as it is cheaply made, it is likely that some parts will need replacement from time-to-time. Anyone who lacks mechanical knowledge or aptitude is likely to have diffculties. However, even if I have to spend as much as I paid for it in replacement parts over the next few years I will still have got a bargain compared with the £2500 or so I would have needed to spend to buy a quality Japanese equivalent so I am perfectly happy.