Sinnis Apache 125

I got my bike second hand and am currently working on uprating some aspects e.g. better air filter etc...

This is my first bike and i love it, it looks really cool like a more powerful bike and it sounds like a much bigger bike it makes a nice sound when you rev it especially with custom exhaust.

The bike is very well made and for the money i don't think you could possibly buy anything better.

Awesome!

So, recently bought my new apache 125 and immediately noticed a few errors, such as chain having tight spots and a few nuts not being done up.HOWEVER, I spoke to Sinnis and I have to say, these guys have the best customer service I could have ever asked for, so polite and were doing everything they could to help me. I wasn't too mad about the errors of the new bike because I know things can sometimes be overlooked by accident etc. They have picked up the bike from me and are correcting the errors as well as doing a full check of the bike, seriously amazing customer service. The bike is very good, the engine is very reliable, overall build quality is very decent for what you are paying for. The bike is a very stylish commuter which packs enough punch and responsiveness to nip to work and back. Plus, just so you guys know, a lot of motorcycle garages wont touch Chinese bikes, so bear that in mind when buying any Chinese bike.

Owned since march 2014, started out as a good bike but after 6 months and 4000 miles things are falling apart. Chain snapped, loose spokes, Rpm gauge doesnt work. Exhaust rusting (bike has even been covered in acf50) Back caliper seized twice. Speedo drive broken. And numerous petrol leaks from carb and inlet manifold also the electics are very temperamental. Dont believe the Warrenty all the dealers will shy away and try saying its wear and tear or neglect. Service intavals are silly at every 2000 km. Gearbox is notchy and engine rough (not a suzuki engine more like a very cheap copy). It may sound very tempting at £1600 brand new but id rather have put my money into a Japanese quality product. Have a long hard think before you throw away your money on a bike not fit for purpose........

I've owned my Apache for around a year, its kept outside in all weathers without a cover. Some might say that's silly but I WD-40 it when needed, oil the chain and clean when necessary. My point being its never let me down, it starts goes stops any time of the day.

I cover around 6,000kms a year on it and ride in all weathers. I have found the tires are fine as long as you are sensible. If you go mad in the wet that's up to you. I've had a few moments in the wet but it was solely my doing. live and learn!

Great in twisty lanes and a bit of mild green laneing. The ride is great, its a taller bike than it looks. The brakes are good, the clocks are fair but the headlight is a little dim and needed adjusting.

A few niggly bits:

I had a rev counter issue (warranty).

No fuel gauge.

Tires could have been better.

The headlight could have been brighter.

The gearing is kinda geared towards a motor crosser style as it lacks top end without you over revving it.

All kinda minor things, i changed the front sprocket to help with the gearing but for the money you pay you wont find a better bran new bike with a two year warranty.

Dan.

Not all chinese bikes are the same and Sinnis try hard to ensure quality in the bikes they sell. I have never had a problem with mine and would happily recommend the bike to others. It is a tall bike though so be sure to try one on for size.

Top speed is about 65mph, it can do 70 depending on the weight, size of the rider, gradient of the road and wind direction.

It's great on fuel economy, it uses so little petrol I haven't even bothered to work out the mpg.

It's cheap, I paid around £1800 on the road and that included a 2 year warranty from Sinnis.

Finally it's easy to ride for a beginner, just remember that supermoto styles have a high centre of gravity so leaning like a sports bike is not a great idea.

So Sunday 18th August I did a 200 mile ride on my Apache. I've had this bike for 2 weeks so this was the first decent ride I have managed to get out on....So thought I’d write a detailed review on it.

So I run a local motorbike forum, 337 members to date. A few of us decided to head to the Plymouth mega ride….We started off in Exeter, and headed to Lee Mill, Ivy Bridge, Devon, to take part in the Mega ride.

The route we took was over Dartmoor...."nice" I hear you say....NO.... I couldn't even see the second bike in front of me, I think I'd have had more visibility if I had ridden my Apache through a waterfall wearing a blindfold being face hugged by a monkey. Huge puddles... Lots of sheep, ponies and other wildlife to avoid too. Most of which were alive, which is more than could be said for the poor cow at the side of the road. Boy must have had a heavy Saturday night.

The ride started off damp but got worse and worse. I have to admit as much as I love riding I had my motor cross helmet on and my goggles, not the best choice for a downpour but I think I’d have been dryer riding naked.

As the only 125 in the group riding to Lee Mill (of about 15-20 of us) the Apache definitely held its own, the speed and how it handled the hills, the corners (most of which weren't sharp enough to enjoy) the puddles, the wet....just brilliant. Didn't shudder, didn't miss a beat, didn't scream for help, kept up with the other bikes, didn’t even have to twist the throttle to the max to get through it either. I was riding behind a Yamaha Fazer most of the time but I had to overtake him up hill in the end. This bike has a quick reaction when you twist the throttle and even when in the top gears will give you enough power to do some over taking.

I have a DEP exhaust on this little number, and it sounds great. A lot of people didn’t expect me to tell them it’s a 125 when they asked the engine size. Loud pipes save lives and all that. And this really sounds like a bike….you know those 125 supermoto’s that sound like the start of that annoying crazy frog song…. Not this one, the exhaust has given this bike more power, extra grunt and I get a kick out of revving it.

Then we got to Lee Mill.....thousands of bikes.....THOUSANDS!!

We had to head up and then back down the dual carriageway to Plymouth....I think the Apache got to a top speed of 80mph at one point....(or 70mph for law abiding reasons.) Riding down the dual carriageway with all those other bikes and only a few cars on the road, weaving in and out, the road was most definitely ours for those couple of hours. The reaction of the throttle even at top speed had me impressed. Even at 60mph I didn’t have the throttle twisted to max, which meant to hear the extra roar of the exhaust and overtaking other bikes and cars I still had scope there to open it out, although it’s great to go fast, it’s also important to be able to get yourself out of trouble if you need to, I’ve had a few scary moment on an old bike that caused me nearly sucked into a motorhome, if I could have accelerated out of the situation it certainly would have stopped me needing to change my underwear when I got home.

We got down to the hoe in Plymouth, made new friends, saw lots of bikes up close and had a great day.

There were 3 of us that decided to ride back together, one on a Honda NC700 and another on another Honda 600. For quickness we decided to ride back the dual carriageway rather than the way we went to get there over Dartmoor. So the bike stayed at a steady pace all the way back really. It was about a 45 mile journey. There was a few long hills on the way back and I have to be honest that’s what I was worried about when riding back, not only will I feel like I’m a danger on the road going too slow…like an old lady in a Micra with her nose pressed against the steering wheel sat on a booster seat…but I’d also feel like an idiot and embarrassed and my ego would be tarnished and I would want to make sure my pink hair was tucked into my helmet so nobody knew it was me! BUT…what a pleasant surprise not once did it drop below 65mph, which for a 125 on a dual carriageway, heading up hill for about half a mile is definitely a most welcome and my ego is very grateful and unbruised…I suppose because this bike isn’t loaded up with unnecessary junk that ultimately, is only going to slow you down and is just there to change the appearance of a bike, the simplicity of the designs of these bikes make them quicker, lighter, easier handling and you can literally throw them around.

Had a couple moments where it could have been scary but I’m not the sort of person to be unhinged by a little unplanned drifting session. Coming off onto the slipway, as I was doing my blind spot check, my front wheel slid on a drain cover and jolted me about a bit, but the riding position of the bike meant it didn’t really have much effect on the back end, and the lightness of the bike made it easy to keep under control anyway. The second moment was my own fault, getting carried away with the speed on the dual carriageway seeing what this thing can do, everything was slowing down in front of me so I had to break pretty quickly…guess what happened….at 60mph the back end decided to slide around underneath like a wet fish trying to get back into water, but the bike handled it fine, straightened up right away and didn’t affect the front end at all, neither did it affect my heart or my blood pressure. This bike put me at ease straight away.

As soon as I got on this bike I was instantly confident in it, I know I can corner on a bike, I knew my old bike cold corner but putting me and a new bike together it’s like learning to trust each other. And with the Apache it was just there, I got on and I wanted to push the boundaries and my comfort zone. I was totally comfortable on this bike.

When me and my buddies got back to Exeter we went to the local motorbike dealers to have a coffee and chill out before separating and going home. By this point I was all dry except for my but which has been firmly on the bike the whole way back. The guys with their Hondas were very complimentary of the bike, they felt it did really well, they didn’t feel that I was holding them up or the pace was too slow, they were both pleasantly surprised on the speed and how the bike handled and even both witness my involuntary drifting episode, both gave me the thumbs up and laughed, I think they secretly know I would make a great Evil Knievel. The NC700 is a fairly quiet bike and my friend even made a remark on the noise from the DEP exhaust with a big smile on his face. This bike has great fuel consumption. I put £15 in an empty tank I did exactly 200 miles, lots of that was at high speed, and I still had fuel left when I got back.

Verdict is….I love this bike. Awesome 125, fast, handles great, doesn’t grumble when its monsoon season, easy to regain control if road conditions are bad, or emergency stops have to be made, comfortable, fuel consumption is amazing. £17 to tax it for the year, insurance can be fairly cheap however it’s an idea to get extra security fitted to bring insurance down a bit, without it, it can be a bit hefty for a 125, but that’s down the fact it’s a well wanted bike. For around £1,600ish brand new on the road, no mot for 3 years and warranty, this is such an affordable bike, before you all cry, ‘but it’s Chinese rubbish, it won’t last 5 minutes’ I’d just like to point out that these engines are made in the Suzuki factory. I also believe this bike was used to do a 10,000 mile rally without a support vehicle and made it from the UK to Mongolia and didn’t let the rider down once, even with all his gear aboard as well, I also believe that the guy made the finish line 8 days ahead of schedule.

Everybody needs an Apache. Get one….you know you want to.

So Sunday 18th August I did a 200 mile ride on my Sinnis Apache. I've had this bike for 2 weeks so this was the first decent ride I have managed to get out on....So thought I’d write a detailed review on it.

So I run a local motorbike forum, 337 members to date. A few of us decided to head to the Plymouth mega ride….We started off in Exeter, and headed to Lee Mill, Ivy Bridge, Devon, to take part in the Mega ride.

The route we took was over Dartmoor...."nice" I hear you say....NO.... I couldn't even see the second bike in front of me, I think I'd have had more visibility if I had ridden my Apache through a waterfall wearing a blindfold being face hugged by a monkey. Huge puddles... Lots of sheep, ponies and other wildlife to avoid too. Most of which were alive, which is more than could be said for the poor cow at the side of the road. Boy must have had a heavy Saturday night.

The ride started off damp but got worse and worse. I have to admit as much as I love riding I had my motor cross helmet on and my goggles, not the best choice for a downpour but I think I’d have been dryer riding naked.

As the only 125 in the group riding to Lee Mill (of about 15-20 of us) the Apache definitely held its own, the speed and how it handled the hills, the corners (most of which weren't sharp enough to enjoy) the puddles, the wet....just brilliant. Didn't shudder, didn't miss a beat, didn't scream for help, kept up with the other bikes, didn’t even have to twist the throttle to the max to get through it either. I was riding behind a Yamaha Fazer most of the time but I had to overtake him up hill in the end. This bike has a quick reaction when you twist the throttle and even when in the top gears will give you enough power to do some over taking.

I have a DEP exhaust on this little number, and it sounds great. A lot of people didn’t expect me to tell them it’s a 125 when they asked the engine size. Loud pipes save lives and all that. And this really sounds like a bike….you know those 125 supermoto’s that sound like the start of that annoying crazy frog song…. Not this one, the exhaust has given this bike more power, extra grunt and I get a kick out of revving it.

Then we got to Lee Mill.....thousands of bikes.....THOUSANDS!!

We had to head up and then back down the dual carriageway to Plymouth....I think the Apache got to a top speed of 80mph at one point....(or 70mph for law abiding reasons.) Riding down the dual carriageway with all those other bikes and only a few cars on the road, weaving in and out, the road was most definitely ours for those couple of hours. The reaction of the throttle even at top speed had me impressed. Even at 60mph I didn’t have the throttle twisted to max, which meant to hear the extra roar of the exhaust and overtaking other bikes and cars I still had scope there to open it out, although it’s great to go fast, it’s also important to be able to get yourself out of trouble if you need to, I’ve had a few scary moment on an old bike that caused me nearly sucked into a motorhome, if I could have accelerated out of the situation it certainly would have stopped me needing to change my underwear when I got home.

We got down to the hoe in Plymouth, made new friends, saw lots of bikes up close and had a great day.

There were 3 of us that decided to ride back together, one on a Honda NC700 and another on another Honda 600. For quickness we decided to ride back the dual carriageway rather than the way we went to get there over Dartmoor. So the bike stayed at a steady pace all the way back really. It was about a 45 mile journey. There was a few long hills on the way back and I have to be honest that’s what I was worried about when riding back, not only will I feel like I’m a danger on the road going too slow…like an old lady in a Micra with her nose pressed against the steering wheel sat on a booster seat…but I’d also feel like an idiot and embarrassed and my ego would be tarnished and I would want to make sure my pink hair was tucked into my helmet so nobody knew it was me! BUT…what a pleasant surprise not once did it drop below 65mph, which for a 125 on a dual carriageway, heading up hill for about half a mile is definitely a most welcome and my ego is very grateful and unbruised…I suppose because this bike isn’t loaded up with unnecessary junk that ultimately, is only going to slow you down and is just there to change the appearance of a bike, the simplicity of the designs of these bikes make them quicker, lighter, easier handling and you can literally throw them around.

Had a couple moments where it could have been scary but I’m not the sort of person to be unhinged by a little unplanned drifting session. Coming off onto the slipway, as I was doing my blind spot check, my front wheel slid on a drain cover and jolted me about a bit, but the riding position of the bike meant it didn’t really have much effect on the back end, and the lightness of the bike made it easy to keep under control anyway. The second moment was my own fault, getting carried away with the speed on the dual carriageway seeing what this thing can do, everything was slowing down in front of me so I had to break pretty quickly…guess what happened….at 60mph the back end decided to slide around underneath like a wet fish trying to get back into water, but the bike handled it fine, straightened up right away and didn’t affect the front end at all, neither did it affect my heart or my blood pressure. This bike put me at ease straight away.

As soon as I got on this bike I was instantly confident in it, I know I can corner on a bike, I knew my old bike cold corner but putting me and a new bike together it’s like learning to trust each other. And with the Apache it was just there, I got on and I wanted to push the boundaries and my comfort zone. I was totally comfortable on this bike.

When me and my buddies got back to Exeter we went to the local motorbike dealers to have a coffee and chill out before separating and going home. By this point I was all dry except for my but which has been firmly on the bike the whole way back. The guys with their Hondas were very complimentary of the bike, they felt it did really well, they didn’t feel that I was holding them up or the pace was too slow, they were both pleasantly surprised on the speed and how the bike handled and even both witness my involuntary drifting episode, both gave me the thumbs up and laughed, I think they secretly know I would make a great Evil Knievel. The NC700 is a fairly quiet bike and my friend even made a remark on the noise from the DEP exhaust with a big smile on his face. This bike has great fuel consumption. I put £15 in an empty tank I did exactly 200 miles, lots of that was at high speed, and I still had fuel left when I got back.

Verdict is….I love this bike. Awesome 125, fast, handles great, doesn’t grumble when its monsoon season, easy to regain control if road conditions are bad, or emergency stops have to be made, comfortable, fuel consumption is amazing. £17 to tax it for the year, insurance can be fairly cheap however it’s an idea to get extra security fitted to bring insurance down a bit, without it, it can be a bit hefty for a 125, but that’s down the fact it’s a well wanted bike. For around £1,600ish brand new on the road, no mot for 3 years and warranty, this is such an affordable bike, before you all cry, ‘but it’s Chinese rubbish, it won’t last 5 minutes’ I’d just like to point out that these engines are made in the Suzuki factory. I also believe this bike was used to do a 10,000 mile rally without a support vehicle and made it from the UK to Mongol and didn’t let they rider down once, even with all his gear aboard as well, I also believe that the guy made the finish line 8 days ahead of schedule.

Everybody needs an Apache. Get one….you know you want to.

Best bike I ever had top speed I have is 71 mph do have a problem with the starter cluth but every easy to fix the wheels that come with it don't keep them on as they are no good at all no grip with them as I fond out .

Also put a k&n air filter and up the jet to 100 the one that in it is a 95

You will get more power and the back box to

Had this bike for 15 month and done 29000 trouble free kilometres on it. Build quality is on par with any jap or Italian bike and ive had a fair few. Not the fastest thing on the road but will happily do 65mph all day. At 1600 brand new it really is a steal and the dealer I bought it from gave 5 years unlimited mileage warranty. The tyres are fine just dont try taking roundabouts at 50 in the wet. Bike does over 110 mpg. Service her well and she'll serve you well.

Had apache 125 for about six months to be honest ride quality is pretty good- plastics are flexy alot better than pulse adrenaline. Its let down by very poor electrics (problems caused by cheap wires and connections) original tyres are slippy in the wet. Rear brake disc bolts snap at the slightest hint of abuse (this can be quite exciting)

I also had problems with gearbox but it was cheaper to replace complete unit rather than have it split and repaired. These bikes are not meant for off roading other than riding on a very smooth lawn.If I knew then what I know now I would not have bought this bike but hey everyone makes mistakes,by the way I lost quite a bit of money when I tried to sell it. I now own a suzuki which I should have bought in the first place