Built around a 450cc, water-cooled, DOHC single-cylinder engine, the RX4 is a baby adventure bike with rather more potential than most of its Chinese rivals.
Zongshen has long been one of the more outward-facing Chinese firms, and one of the best engine builders. It’s recently done a deal with Norton to mass-produce its upcoming 650cc parallel twin, and the RX4’s 450cc single looks every bit as good as a Japanese or European motor in terms of its design.
Zongshen first revealed the engine a year ago in its NC450 competition bike, which was built to compete in the Dakar Rally. The firm entered five of the bikes in the 2017 Dakar in January this year. None of them made it to the finish, but that was almost to be expected given the fact it was the first attempt with a new machine.
These official images of the new Zongshen show that it’s a handsome, if somewhat derivative, ADV-style design. The aluminium frame looks like it’s from an enduro bike, which bodes well for some real off-road performance, while the styling is very much in homage to BMW’s GS models. The lopsided headlights are a little too close to the BMW look, making it seem that Zongshen hasn’t got the bravery to attempt a unique design.
Spec-wise, the bike gets a USD fork, twin front discs with radially mounted four-pot calipers and a multi-function digi-dash.
Zongshen is also well known for supplying engines to other companies, so there’s a strong chance we’ll see the same 450cc single showing up in different machines under other names.
The new engine makes a claimed 30kW at 8000rpm and 37Nm at 7000rpm and drives through a six-speed transmission. It gives the bike a claimed top speed of over 160km/h. The firm puts the kerb weight at 204kg, which is a bit on the chubby side for a 450, although Chinese-made machines are typically somewhat heavier than their European or Japanese counterparts and there’s a notably large fuel tank – 20 litres – to take into account as well.
By Ben Purvis
