Thread: Retrobikes.com...BEWARE!!!

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If the bike actually came from Hooper, you might contact them directly regarding the paperwork. They indicated to me that their bikes do come with the proper documents needed to get them licensed. I have not purchased from them, but they seem to have a decent rep.

Too bad on your experience. I would definitely do the reports to the agencies, but by posting here you probably do more good!

I'm sorry for all your misfortune.

My dad is a dealer for Hooper Imports, and they are a good business, I guess that retrobikes screwed you, and I'm sorry, but I have to defend the very bikes I am trying to sell out of my shop right now. These bikes DO NOT come ready to ride, it takes a little while to get them going on the road. I know they come with minor damage, all of ours did too, its just part of shipping, think about how far these little bikes have to travel to make it here, its crazy. I wish they could be perfect, but they never will, they are to cheap to be any where near it, just have to try and make the best out of em, I know I do everyday

I'm not ready to start lobbing bricks at Hooper, due to insufficient information. It sounds like the seller, Retrobikes, is a scamster. The main problem, I believe, is the whole "race to the bottom" that's taken hold, largely abetted by ebay where the PRC clones are concerned. As the prices get lower, the quality follows. Chinese manufacturers are bound by the same realities as those in any other country...you get what you pay for (unless someone rips you off). While Honda still made CT70s, the bikes weren't sold on the basis of price alone and they arrived on our shores intact. Of course, they cost a lot more than current crop of knockoffs, too.

The earliest clones were really rough, initially. But this improved somewhat after the initial production runs. The Jincheng bikes were relatively reliable. They were, of course, beset with minor failures of small parts and finish quality wasn't the greatest either, but for the most part they ran and the brakes worked. There was even some parts support. Jincheng, is also know as Suzuki of China. Over the past 2-3 years, it seems like the bottom is dropping out. I recently attended a huge bike meet where the number of CT70s & clones was amazing. I saw at least 50 people riding CT70s, most of which were Hondas. I also met with a number of dealers, nearly all of whom said the same thing...the quality level has dropped-off precipitously. Most of them are no longer selling clone bikes for the reasons you mentioned. They used to sell Jincheng, Dirt Dobber, Redcat, Rupp and other monikers until the `05 season when the problems became serious for a dealer with a hands-on customer service presence.

Personally, after just seeing vintage Hondas and at least three generations of clones parked side-by-side, the whole PRC bike picture isn't very encouraging. The only aspect that's improved (at least outwardly) is the finish on the engine cases. The smoked chrome finish on some of the Lifan engines looked pretty nice. However, along with the paint runs and generally rough finishing I noticed that this time around even the frames had visible warpage...as assembled Even my wife commented on the crude-appearing workmanship(!)

At this late date, I have to wonder if any of the bikes built to a higher quality standard are even being imported into the US. The best of the clones, circa 2001, retailed for close to $2K. It's hard to imagine that such bikes would fare very well on ebay, for example, against similar-appearing bikes that frequently sell for 3-figure prices. No one in his right mind is going to invest money into an unprofitable product. (The $300 CT70 of 1969 would cost better than $3K in 2006.) I know it doesn't do much good to say this, but it really is buyer beware. Certainly, this thread will help avoid the known shady sellers. There's also an engine service life thread elsewhere in this forum that will consist of people's actual experiences with various models over extended mileages and that should help separate the wheat from the chaff over time.

When I was a kid in the 60's and 70's, I don't remember CT70's on the showroom floor with dents and paint scratches after the trip from Japan. When a dealer gets a product that has damage, it usually gets rectified. That's just the cost of doing business. MG (I have one of these toys too!) had an entire department devoted to product rectification to fix such damage before presenting the cars to the public for sale.

My thought is that a company that purports to sell you something brand spanking new and sends you a damaged product without saying so or adjusting the price is fraudulent.

Originally Posted by moonz

It would be pretty hard to defend your Dad's company's complicity in this matter. Why does your dad's website claim to be out of stock to the public on this CT70 110cc motorcycle, and yet Retrobikes can get one from you shipped to me? Why did your dad's company ship the bike with no manufacturer's certificate of origin?...no bill of sale?...no paperwork whatsoever? Is this the normal way you sell the bikes? I bet not. This means you shipped me the bike in an guarded arrangement, beneficial to yourself and Retrobikes, but certainly not benificial to me, the customer. If I want to sell the bike at some later date the fact that there is no paperwork will make it very difficult. A prospective buyer would most likely shy away from a bike that has no prospect of titling or registration.

This is a very poor way to do business, and really opens you all up to potential lawsuits. I would not bother pursuing such a thing, but someome else might else may. Surely you can't make enough money on such an under-the-counter collaboration to be worth fighting a lawsuit over.

Allowing Retroibikes to buy from you without my knowledge, have you ship the bike to me without their name even being mentioned, and then letting them charge me 583 dollars more for your bike than you normally sell it for on your website is not exactly honest...is it?

Hardly.

Retrobikes led me to believe I was paying a premium price a superior bike. The bike they resold me without my knowledge through your dad's company is far from superior, as you've just admitted.

Business must be pretty poor for your dad to a agree to such shady tactics, and risk bad publicity, just to sell one bike.

Somehow I believe Retrobikes chumped us all.

Whoa, hold on a sec!

My dad is a dealer for Hooper Imports, he is NOT the owner and we have nothing to do with what just happened to you and your situation. We just get a few bikes here and there and sell them here locally in Kansas. So I know it sucks that you got screwed by retrobikes, but we had nothing to do with it. I am in no way related to the owner of Hooper Imports, my dad is just the Kansas dealer and thats it, wow.

No problem.

We are trying to get rid of the remaining bikes we have got from Hooper and we are only gonna order when people wanna buy em. I had a lil pitbull bike 70cc sitting out by the street last night, and there is a huge park down the street from me and football practice has started for the little kids, I had 3 people stop and take a look, very high traffic, so I hope I can sell em all this month. But I am sorry about what happened to you.

I bought a Redcat CT w/90cc from a guy just outside of town 2 yrs ago, it was my first repo. Got it for $765, I was in love I rode it 1300 miles and the carb. choke flap screw fell loose into the motor and locked it up (while I was going to work) and my dad got me a 110cc Lifan for real cheap to replace the 90cc, but other than that it has been a awesome bike, just little stuff here and there, I recommend putting a fuel filter on right away cause these tanks are metal and crap gets in the bottom of the tank.

Originally posted by:moonz
Sorry about the accusations against your dad...it was not obvious to me from your post that you were not actually claiming your dad was the owner of Hooper Imports. Of course your dad has no say in Hooper Import's policies if he just buys from them, so he had absolutely nothing to do with this matter.

The issue is not with Hooper Imports products , it is with Hooper Imports policy.

The bikes they offer aren't great quality, but I don't see them making any false claims on their website, like Retrobikes, and they are not outrageous on their prices.

But, in this situation, Hooper Imports knew that they were shipping a bike to an address of someone who had not ordered a bike from them. They were doing it because they had an agreement with Retrobikes. An agreement that let Retrobikes add $583 dollars more to the normal Hooper Imports retail selling price of the bike.

While this is probably not illegal, it is certainly unethical, so my brick stays lobbed. I will never buy another thing from either company, nor wil I recommend that anyone else does. Dishonesty...even minor dishonesty, should not be rewarded with indifference.

Valid points on all sides, with one exception. I doubt that Hooper Imports had knowledge of Retrobike's exact pricing or business practices. Drop shipping is common practice these days. Retrobikes could, conceivably, have gone to Hooper on a one-shot basis to fulfill your order. No telling what effect, if any, this had on the unit cost of your specific bike. It just seems to me, based strictly on what's been said here, that Retrobikes bears the responsibility for misrepresentations & questionable ethics. It was their hype to which the product didn't live up to. In your shoes, I'd probably be even angrier but, (dis)credit where it's due. If I believe the Kia dealer who tells me that his cars are better quality than Lexus, it's not Kia Motors with whom I have a dispute, it's the specific dealer. In this example, just as with your personal experience, the actual supplier of the product is, effectively, an outside third party to the transaction, regardless of the quality of the product. I agree, dishonesty should not be rewarded at all, just that retribution should be directed toward the guilty party alone. Even though it appears to be a longshot, I do hope you receive some compensation.

Where is a good plcae to buy a 110CC bike - I communicated with Hooper regarding registering one of their bikes if I bought one, and they were very repsonsive and sounded fine.

credit cards offer much protection against this sort of thing..You call them and get your money taken off the card.. I have a $1.300. piece of crap in the barn that the company wouln't even Pay to have it sent back! I got my money back and have a crap bike. Many credit cards double manufacters warrenties on anything purchased.. Bottom line is that you are supposed to be pleased with what you spend your hard earned money on.