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Generalno o skuterima / Odg: Zontes 368G (2025)
« Zadnji post balki 29 Kolovoz, 2026, 09:04:55 »Od 15:50 šturi osvrt na 552G.
Znači spremaju ga za ovu zimu i tikom proljeća bi se mogao pojaviti u EU.
Za sada su mu sve tehnikalije kako sam napisao, osim da ipak ima mokri kuplung.
Ovo što kaže da je manje spremište pod sicem od 368 je vjv radi smještaja airboxa.
https://youtu.be/GcsUUiJkzcY?is=LVRSVsjexJjNC46E
Naletio i na izjavu Zontesovog CEO na Weibo:
https://m.weibo.cn/status/5329761454788011
...i još malo njegovog promišljanja iz kojeg se vidi da ozbiljno i temeljitim isteaživanjem dolaze do rješenja:
For a long time, many motorcycle enthusiasts have asked me why, after unveiling the 501G at the Milan Show in Italy several years ago, there has been no further news about it.
The success of the 368G led us to orient our design toward a single-cylinder engine with strong low-end torque, aiming to enhance off‑road fun. Although the engineers pushed the 501 single‑cylinder engine to the limits in terms of weight reduction, the instability caused by its substantial unsprung mass remained unresolved.
This instability isn’t the kind you feel when speeding and the car starts to wobble; at normal high speeds, it’s barely noticeable. It only becomes apparent on bumpy, uneven roads or when cornering over potholes—then the rear end feels as if it’s sliding on ice.
The principle is similar to this: when you jump rope with your legs at a high frequency, attaching a sandbag to each leg immediately slows your pace. The rear shock spring works like those legs—when the heavy engine hanging beneath it makes the assembly too cumbersome, the spring can’t oscillate quickly enough; it doesn’t have time to compress and extend fully. As a result, before the wheel even touches the ground, it’s already pushed back up, leaving the rear wheel airborne. This creates a feeling of instability and slippage, making you hesitant to accelerate. Simply put, the spring can’t respond fast enough and loses its damping effectiveness. See the video for an explanation: compare how the rear wheels land in clips 501 and 552. With the top case installed, the bouncing becomes even more pronounced.
Could it be fine-tuned through the shock absorber? We’ve tried removing the damping and making the spring extremely stiff, which solved the issue of rapid extension—but what about compression? We’ve exhausted every approach and concluded that, by its very design, this problem is unsolvable. Moreover, a high unsprung mass can easily trigger the ABS: on uneven surfaces, the system intervenes almost immediately because the tire briefly lifts off the ground, resulting in an abrupt, instantaneous stop.
With a heavy unsprung mass and a single rear shock, high-speed handling and cornering are significantly better than with a dual‑shock setup; on mountain roads, even the taillight of the 368G is out of sight when cornering on the 501G’s dual rear shocks.
Perhaps there are differing views on how to define unsprung weight standards; even the 501G can be ridden once it’s on the market—just take it slow on rough roads, and not every user will necessarily notice the difference.
I disagree. Accidents often happen at a shell crater or a sharp turn. Even though we’ve completed all the designs and secured a stack of orders at the Milan show, I refuse to saddle our customers with this intractable safety hazard. We’d rather walk away and start over.
The 501G also taught us a lesson: the centrifugal‑clutch shoes wear out far too quickly. Even if you set the initial torque to be very low and smooth, it still can’t compensate for the limited friction area, which leads to poor durability—especially when tackling off‑road climbs, where the clutch bell burns out in no time. Yamaha’s TMAX, Honda’s XADV, and other high‑displacement scooters all use a wet, perimeter‑sprung clutch, fundamentally eliminating clutch slippage, clutch‑bell burnout, and shoe‑pad scorching.
Wet multi-plate clutches are significantly heavier than centrifugal‑roller clutches, reinforcing our resolve to abandon the integrated engine‑transmission layout in favor of a separate powertrain configuration for large‑displacement scooters.
We’re also glad to have demonstrated that 368 cc represents the displacement limit for an all‑in‑one engine. We’ve tested it: even when we bored the cylinders out to 400 cc, the life of the centrifugal clutch was cut in half. As you can see in the video, the difference between a centrifugal clutch and a wet multi‑plate clutch is substantial.
After navigating numerous pitfalls, we’ve identified three key factors: building on the 368 platform while increasing displacement. First, a wet‑clutch multi‑plate design is essential; second, separating the engine from the wheels significantly reduces unsprung mass; and third, a single rear shock absorber must be used.
Based on our calculations, to fully capitalize on the ADV scooter’s low-end torque characteristics, a 550cc parallel-twin is the ideal displacement—on par with the TMAX560. However, we don’t want to adopt the TMAX’s shaft‑drive‑independent‑engine layout: it results in an overly long wheelbase and excessive weight, and the engine forces the rider’s legs wide apart when parked, making it virtually unrideable for shorter riders.
The 552G is an upgraded version of the 368G. To retain the 368G’s characteristics—lightweight, agile handling, ample storage space, and stable high-speed performance—we had to decouple the gearbox from the main body. Note in the video that the 552’s engine head and cylinder block, as well as the muffler and air filter, do not sway with the gearbox; they are fixed to the frame and remain stationary.
Moreover, by eliminating the engine cradle, the powerplant can be mounted further forward, shifting the center of gravity closer to the vehicle’s mid‑section. The wheelbase is 40 millimeters shorter than that of the 368G, and the unsprung mass is less than one‑third of the 368G’s—on par with the TMAX560’s secondary drive system. Top speed, as measured by GPS, starts at 165 km/h, with exceptional stability in high‑speed cornering and lane changes. The 552G boasts a 1,520‑mm wheelbase, a curb weight under 210 kg, a seat height of 780 mm, 120/70‑17 front and 160/60‑15 rear tires, a maximum power output of 38 kW, and a peak torque of 56 N·m, along with electronic throttle control and cruise assist. I honestly can’t think of how it could be improved further—what feature does the TMAX560 have that even comes close to matching the 552?
Everyone is eager to know the launch date of the 552 scooter. I’ve already adjusted the timeline, bringing it forward from the original plan, but the official starting point will still be the announcement from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
Znači spremaju ga za ovu zimu i tikom proljeća bi se mogao pojaviti u EU.
Za sada su mu sve tehnikalije kako sam napisao, osim da ipak ima mokri kuplung.
Ovo što kaže da je manje spremište pod sicem od 368 je vjv radi smještaja airboxa.
https://youtu.be/GcsUUiJkzcY?is=LVRSVsjexJjNC46E
Naletio i na izjavu Zontesovog CEO na Weibo:
https://m.weibo.cn/status/5329761454788011
...i još malo njegovog promišljanja iz kojeg se vidi da ozbiljno i temeljitim isteaživanjem dolaze do rješenja:
For a long time, many motorcycle enthusiasts have asked me why, after unveiling the 501G at the Milan Show in Italy several years ago, there has been no further news about it.
The success of the 368G led us to orient our design toward a single-cylinder engine with strong low-end torque, aiming to enhance off‑road fun. Although the engineers pushed the 501 single‑cylinder engine to the limits in terms of weight reduction, the instability caused by its substantial unsprung mass remained unresolved.
This instability isn’t the kind you feel when speeding and the car starts to wobble; at normal high speeds, it’s barely noticeable. It only becomes apparent on bumpy, uneven roads or when cornering over potholes—then the rear end feels as if it’s sliding on ice.
The principle is similar to this: when you jump rope with your legs at a high frequency, attaching a sandbag to each leg immediately slows your pace. The rear shock spring works like those legs—when the heavy engine hanging beneath it makes the assembly too cumbersome, the spring can’t oscillate quickly enough; it doesn’t have time to compress and extend fully. As a result, before the wheel even touches the ground, it’s already pushed back up, leaving the rear wheel airborne. This creates a feeling of instability and slippage, making you hesitant to accelerate. Simply put, the spring can’t respond fast enough and loses its damping effectiveness. See the video for an explanation: compare how the rear wheels land in clips 501 and 552. With the top case installed, the bouncing becomes even more pronounced.
Could it be fine-tuned through the shock absorber? We’ve tried removing the damping and making the spring extremely stiff, which solved the issue of rapid extension—but what about compression? We’ve exhausted every approach and concluded that, by its very design, this problem is unsolvable. Moreover, a high unsprung mass can easily trigger the ABS: on uneven surfaces, the system intervenes almost immediately because the tire briefly lifts off the ground, resulting in an abrupt, instantaneous stop.
With a heavy unsprung mass and a single rear shock, high-speed handling and cornering are significantly better than with a dual‑shock setup; on mountain roads, even the taillight of the 368G is out of sight when cornering on the 501G’s dual rear shocks.
Perhaps there are differing views on how to define unsprung weight standards; even the 501G can be ridden once it’s on the market—just take it slow on rough roads, and not every user will necessarily notice the difference.
I disagree. Accidents often happen at a shell crater or a sharp turn. Even though we’ve completed all the designs and secured a stack of orders at the Milan show, I refuse to saddle our customers with this intractable safety hazard. We’d rather walk away and start over.
The 501G also taught us a lesson: the centrifugal‑clutch shoes wear out far too quickly. Even if you set the initial torque to be very low and smooth, it still can’t compensate for the limited friction area, which leads to poor durability—especially when tackling off‑road climbs, where the clutch bell burns out in no time. Yamaha’s TMAX, Honda’s XADV, and other high‑displacement scooters all use a wet, perimeter‑sprung clutch, fundamentally eliminating clutch slippage, clutch‑bell burnout, and shoe‑pad scorching.
Wet multi-plate clutches are significantly heavier than centrifugal‑roller clutches, reinforcing our resolve to abandon the integrated engine‑transmission layout in favor of a separate powertrain configuration for large‑displacement scooters.
We’re also glad to have demonstrated that 368 cc represents the displacement limit for an all‑in‑one engine. We’ve tested it: even when we bored the cylinders out to 400 cc, the life of the centrifugal clutch was cut in half. As you can see in the video, the difference between a centrifugal clutch and a wet multi‑plate clutch is substantial.
After navigating numerous pitfalls, we’ve identified three key factors: building on the 368 platform while increasing displacement. First, a wet‑clutch multi‑plate design is essential; second, separating the engine from the wheels significantly reduces unsprung mass; and third, a single rear shock absorber must be used.
Based on our calculations, to fully capitalize on the ADV scooter’s low-end torque characteristics, a 550cc parallel-twin is the ideal displacement—on par with the TMAX560. However, we don’t want to adopt the TMAX’s shaft‑drive‑independent‑engine layout: it results in an overly long wheelbase and excessive weight, and the engine forces the rider’s legs wide apart when parked, making it virtually unrideable for shorter riders.
The 552G is an upgraded version of the 368G. To retain the 368G’s characteristics—lightweight, agile handling, ample storage space, and stable high-speed performance—we had to decouple the gearbox from the main body. Note in the video that the 552’s engine head and cylinder block, as well as the muffler and air filter, do not sway with the gearbox; they are fixed to the frame and remain stationary.
Moreover, by eliminating the engine cradle, the powerplant can be mounted further forward, shifting the center of gravity closer to the vehicle’s mid‑section. The wheelbase is 40 millimeters shorter than that of the 368G, and the unsprung mass is less than one‑third of the 368G’s—on par with the TMAX560’s secondary drive system. Top speed, as measured by GPS, starts at 165 km/h, with exceptional stability in high‑speed cornering and lane changes. The 552G boasts a 1,520‑mm wheelbase, a curb weight under 210 kg, a seat height of 780 mm, 120/70‑17 front and 160/60‑15 rear tires, a maximum power output of 38 kW, and a peak torque of 56 N·m, along with electronic throttle control and cruise assist. I honestly can’t think of how it could be improved further—what feature does the TMAX560 have that even comes close to matching the 552?
Everyone is eager to know the launch date of the 552 scooter. I’ve already adjusted the timeline, bringing it forward from the original plan, but the official starting point will still be the announcement from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
