Funny you should mention them as I went to their shop just a few days ago. I remember going there a bit before they officially opened (they had signs outside and were renovating the insides) and was excited at the prospect of a new "cheap" bike. Once they opened I was slightly disappointed as the TXM I had my eyes on wasn't as "aggressive" as I'd hoped for. Since then I've been back maybe twice. I'm slowly shopping around for a new ride, but I'm not exactly sure what I want. I've been to virtually all the decent shops in the past two weeks. I need a good long-distance bike, so I'm eyeing DRZ-400s (proven reliability), but I also like light-weight bikes for trail riding (which I've pinpointed down to a WR250F or maybe a KTM). Basically, I've come to the realization that there's no bike that can do it all and I have to choose. I plan on doing a big tour late this year (~6000km) so want enough power and comfort to take me and some luggage around. I've since thought about buying a DRZ/XR650L or even a Transalp for the sole purpose of my big trip, then selling it off to buy a smaller dirt-oriented bike.

Then I thought about the Keeway. For under the price of most of these used bikes, I could buy a brand new Keeway. Sure, it's a bit underpowered for a big trip, but would still be possible. There are several good reviews on the Thai forums, as well as several South American websites. I'm talking people clocking 30 000km with few issues besides chain rattling/stretching and a bit of trouble finding neutral when the bike is hot. It's worth noting that Keeways are now sold all over Europe, so they can't be total shit. I'm heading back there in a few days to do a test drive of both the TXM and perhaps the cruiser one they have (forgot the name). The TXM's seat felt surprisingly comfortable when I sat on it (very wide) and surprisingly not too small for me (I'm quite tall). Sure, the dash looks a bit cheap, but then again, so do most modern Thai-made Japanese bikes (CRF and KLX). They look a bit better, but not that much. It's also worth noting that those 200cc bikes are essentially a reverse-engineered XL200 engine. The Chinese have perfected this one and it's known to be very reliable. I have a Chinese bike with probably 45K+ km on it. I've literally been all over Cambodia 3-4 times with it and it's never let me down. It essentially has the same engine as the Keeway, and it has cost me less than my friends' DR/XR/DJEBELs in repair costs and as such, I'd say it's been just as good if not better reliability-wise. The compression on those engines is quite low and they have a long stroke, so they're pretty bullet proof and you can travel quite a ways with them since they have a 1L oil capacity. What will break first on any Chinese bike will be other components: blinkers, mirrors, odometer... Pretty much everything around the engine, lol. But all of those are cheap and easily replaceable with aftermarket parts.

Anyways, for 2250$ I'm considering it. I'm going to take one for a test drive in the coming days. I'm curious about the acceleration and general smoothness of the bike. Only problem would be resale (if I intend to sell it quickly). I'm guessing I could only sell it for around $1400-1600 if I sell it back a few months after purchase. Then again, it's small enough for the city so I could keep it once I got back. Not sure how well it would fair in the mountains though... Sloooow is what I'm guessing.

AE86 wrote:Chinese build quality with Italian influence, I can't think of a more reliable combination.

Lol.

You want a little more power and a comfortable ride? Buy a good used Honda TA200 Phantom. Should be anywhere from $1200 to $1500. Engines are almost bullet proof. I know as I am hopping one up as a rainy season project to 230cc, 11-1 piston and hot BBR motorsports cam (and all new internal parts as I have a great parts source in Bangkok.)

Use the extra money you save buying the Phantom to add extras from Chiang Rai Saddlebags such as their Saddlebags, hard sided box's, duel exhaust, windshield, crash bars, etc (a good site/people, they take paypal and ship EMS) Good bike for around town and great on the open road. There must be 50 or more Phantoms in Snookyville. Always some for sale for under $1500. A friend just got one for $950. that's in decent shape. The old German owner was leaving the country.

I haven't seen a Chinese motorcycle that I would trust and/or buy. Shitty chroming and workmanship.

Sailorman wrote:You want a little more power and a comfortable ride? Buy a good used Honda TA200 Phantom. Should be anywhere from $1200 to $1500. Engines are almost bullet proof. I know as I am hopping one up as a rainy season project to 230cc, 11-1 piston and hot BBR motorsports cam (and all new internal parts as I have a great parts source in Bangkok.)

Use the extra money you save buying the Phantom to add extras from Chiang Rai Saddlebags such as their Saddlebags, hard sided box's, duel exhaust, windshield, crash bars, etc (a good site/people, they take paypal and ship EMS) Good bike for around town and great on the open road. There must be 50 or more Phantoms in Snookyville. Always some for sale for under $1500. A friend just got one for $950. that's in decent shape. The old German owner was leaving the country.

I haven't seen a Chinese motorcycle that I would trust and/or buy. Shitty chroming and workmanship.

phantoms are great bikes, i was going to buy one in the uk before moving out here

I'd do the Phantom project if I was looking for a tourer. Similar to my old Shadow Classic VT750.

Just a quick update: I stopped by the Keeway dealership last Tuesday and test drove two of their models. One was the TXM 250 dual-sport looking model, the other was their 300cc sport bike.

[Not my pics:]



The TXM was extremely quiet. It feels more like a powerful scooter than a motorcycle. Very smooth acceleration and despite having a rather large turning radius (the handlebars lock “early”), it's quite nimble because of the small 17” wheels (kind of like a Super Motard). The tires are fine but perhaps a bit slick for Cambodian roads. The bike's 1st and 2nd seemed a bit lackluster, but third had some oomph to it. The bike doesn't seem to like being lugged around, it gets more power at high-end revs. Either way, 3rd seemed like the “go to” gear. I went up and down a bunch of curbs (~15-20cm) both sitting and standing at lw speed and the bike's suspension felt alright. I wasn't able to hit a pothole at speed, but managed to hit one or two going 35-40 and it handled them well. The front is still too soft for any serious bumps, but should be fine for general use and a bit of abuse. The rear felt a bit better. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get past 4th gear because of traffic. The odometer showed around 65-70km/h if I recall correctly. The controls and odometer display are nice and it's cool to have a “passing” index-finger-controlled high beam flash. The handlebars felt unnecessarily wide, but not overly so. The seat is surprisingly comfortable, even if you're tall. Not sure if it would be too soft for a long ride, but there's plenty of space for two people to sit comfortable, and the rack is nice and large (plus they sell cases for $25-35).

The bike is air-cooled, but has an “air” oil-cooler.

Plastic skidplate:


I'm wondering if it would be possible to uncork the exhaust (baffle in there). The exhaust had rivets instead of screws, but it got me wondering if toying with the exhaust would be an easy way to increase the bike's power. Having a quiet ride is kind of nice though...

One thing I found weird: the engine is extremely wide (physically-speaking). Meaning both my shoes were touching the cases. Not sure if this would become an issue when the engine is really hot after a day of riding (I almost burned my ankle, which is what made me notice the lack of space). Would take a bit of getting used to.

One of the bikes in the showroom had a bit of a “Friday afternoon” weld to it. Not an important part, but something to look out for nonetheless. The other bikes looked fine.



I also tried the 300cc sport bike they had. Not being a big sports bike connoisseur, it took me a while to realize that power came when you really revved it out. Definitely more juice than the 200cc bike, but not really for me. I didn't bother with the cool-looking 200cc cruiser as it's a bit too small for me, but I've heard it cruises on highways at a slightly higher speed than the TXM.

Oh, and I asked about parts availability and prices. They assured me that they had all the spares. Not sure how compatible the basics are with other bikes (brake pads, sprockets etc). I assume they shouldn't be an issue. They do give a two-year free service (you pay for parts) “warranty”. When asked about the price of a piston, they said they didn't know as no one had ever come in for a new one. Since they've been open over a year and have sold roughly 500 bikes, I'd say that's a pretty good sign.

Agreed BKL, nice review.

The TXM is also really quite nice looking too. I really like the blend of "new sport" and dual sport utility look to it, I think it's suits it well. Sure beats the hell out the KLR, haha.

Nicely detailed review, good job.

Haha fair enough, it's an oil cooler or whatever you wan to call it. What's the advantage vs bikes which don't have one? Slightly better cooling vs standard air cooled bikes, but not as much as a liquid-cooled bike?