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How far can China-registered bikes go?
Has anyone (resident or non-resident of China) the experience of taking a China-registered bike (with proper documents) to another country? Heard that crossing the border into Laos and subsequently into Cambodia or Thailand should be rather hassle-free? How about Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines? Seems that Myanmar is off-limits anyway, and probably also Vietnam? Would a carnet be required and where to get it from (home country or China)? I guess a Hong Kong-registered bike wouldn't be of much advantage, as you won't get it overland into anywhere.
Thanks, Michael |
G'Day,
Some of our crew have gone Shanghai - Mumbai (Chang-Jiang), Shanghai - Munich (Chang-Jiang), Shanghai - Berlin (Chang-Jiang), Shanghai - Rome (Yamaha Virago 750) with China registered bikes. They did not carry any carnets, just China registration booklet and insurance papers. Some years ago a group of 5-6 Brits went Tianamen / Beijing - Trafalgar / London with Chang-Jiang bikes as well. Best regards, BUTCH |
Pretty cool trips from China I think! And even more so considering, how complicated it sounds to be able to get any foreign bikes _into_ China! I´ve actually thought I might want to travel there, and buy a bike, then see where it could get me inside China. Might not be that straightforward, but could still save me a lot of hassle (and money!)
Malaysia & Indonesia are carnet countries, but Malaysia did not seem so strict about it, so I wouldnt know for sure, but maybe you could enter without it. Indonesia DID seem like a big problem for many bikers (even if they had the carnet, which I must say, was surprising!) So it seems its a good idea to find out carefully, which ports of entry you should use. I can recommend Belawan in Sumatra, and have heard about serious problems trying to enter at Dumai, Jakarta airport and Surabaya seaport. In Belawan, we had no problems at all (with the carnet, that is). Burma will probably remain 100% closed for all vehicles. Vietnam is very tough to get into, at least for all foreign-registered bikes, but some claim they´ve done it, and I´ve actually tried several times at different borders, with a scooter (Thai plates)... didnt work, but we probably had too many big, hairy farangs on our group, so who knows you might get lucky, if you go by yourself, or have just a small group. It all seemed to depend on the mood of the higher-ranking officials at each border. You´re most likely to be rejected, but still can be worth a try. Thailand, Laos & Cambodia I would think could be possible on Chinese plates without a carnet, but the last two, I´d be be prepared for some time-consuming hassle, and some small ´donations´ made to the loyal servants of the respective countries at the border. |
I had Chinese registration for my bike when I brought in a Honda Transalp in 1994 ,... rode with the chinese plates all the way to London ... then took the bike back to Australia, kept the chinese plates on it for 2 more years.
All in all, 3 years of ticket free motoring. Once I had got out of China, no-one would waste their time writing a ticket for a chinese registered bike. I only took the registration plate off in the end cause I was worried someone might nick the number plate. |
Crossing from China to Laos with a Chinese plated bike has been done many times by different riders and should be no problem.
Vietnam forbid bikes with more than 150cc. |
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