Honling Navigator 50 scooter review

Advantages and disadvantages of a scooter

When purchasing Honling Navigator, you need to pay attention to details such as:

• brake system;
• steering wheel location;
• seat.

The brakes have a minor drawback - immediately after purchase, when driving at high speed, they work late. This happens when you need to brake sharply before turning. In this case, it is necessary to wait a certain time for grinding to occur.

The scooter seat is very comfortable and provides the driver with maximum freedom. However, there is not enough free space for the rear passenger. At first, after purchase, vibrations sometimes occur while driving. Most often, at idle engine speed.

One of the noticeable advantages is the convenient necks through which fuel is poured into the tank. The downside is that there are some exposed areas that spoil the appearance of the moped. Unlike some other models, the Hongling Navigator 50 has one more advantage - the steering wheel, due to its special location, does not interfere with the knees.

(HL50QT-7D), scooter

Model year 2007

/ engine
50 cm h
/ maximum power
3.5 hp
/ dry weight
100 kg
/ estimated price
39,000 rub
.

HONLING Titan 50

(HL50QT-17), scooter

Model year 2008

/ engine
50 cm h
/ maximum power
3.5 hp
/ dry weight
98 kg
/ estimated price
39,900 rub.
HONLING Prestige 125

(HL125T-5), scooter

Model year 2008

/ engine
125 cm3
/ maximum power
6.5 hp
/ dry weight
97 kg
/ estimated price
47,000 rub
.

HONLING Flagman 150

(RY150T-3), scooter

Model year 2008

/ engine
150 cm3
/ maximum power
7.0 hp
/ dry weight
97 kg
/ estimated price
49,900 rub.
Of the scooters presented in this review, the new one in the Honling lineup is the Titan 50. Although, in essence, this is a “re-facing of the Polt” - the same Honling Viking, only with the “turn signals” that have migrated from under the steering wheel to the upper panel. All “stools” have characteristic lateral extensions of “beaks”, which, it seems to me, has become a feature of the season: scooters from the brands Jianshe, Nexus, Patron, RM, Sagitta, Sachs and Sonik are similar in their design. And all of them are “spied” on the popular Yamaha Aerox. To be honest, I’m not thrilled with this “architecture,” especially after I hit my shin on the protruding plastic a couple of times.

A few more words about the new one. While the Titan 50 really stands out with its trim design and bright colors, the instrumentation is very ordinary. I won’t say “bad” - the numbers on a white background are readable, the arrow indicators are clear, but there is no individuality in it - something that is increasingly found in Chinese scooters.

12-inch alloy wheels and wide tires, disc front brakes. At the rear there are two non-adjustable shock absorbers, although with variable pitch springs. Ski jumping will show that these simple mechanisms cope with shock loads and give the driver the comfort that shock absorbers without hydraulics can generally provide. However, how many “Chinese” are there with full-fledged hydraulic shock absorbers, in which everything is “to the point”?.. Judging by the rigidity of the chassis and the loose fit, you feel that this is a full-fledged two-seater car, which probably has (or is possible) 125- and 150 -cc modifications.

Another “fifty dollar”, Honling Caper 50, has been in service for the second season. He was one of the victims of last year's cross-country "murder" attempt. The lot fell on him to travel around the capital clogged with traffic jams (as it turns out later, this test will turn out to be worse than the first). Externally, the “Sea Robber” (as the name of the model is translated) looks quite distinctive, primarily due to the “bug-eyed” look of the two lens-type headlights. At first glance, you can’t tell that this is a restyling of the popular Joker model, which was produced for three years. The engine and chassis are the same as the Titan, except that the front fork offset is slightly greater.

Two new Honling models, Prestige 125 and Flagman 150, although they have different names, are essentially the same thing. Moreover, the prototype is the same type of mopeds that it introduced to the Russian market back in 2004 (Galaxy 125). Later, many people took the “base” as a model - AVM, Futong, Huatian, Irbis, Jialing, Lifan, Loncin, Meiduo, Reggy, Vento and YinXiang. If you forgot someone, don’t let them be offended. Such a widespread use of the model can be explained simply: customers liked this large scooter because it provides a relaxed driving position for the driver and comfort for the passenger. The car looks very solid and sits on low-profile 13-inch tires. The brakes are straightforward: disc-drum, as on most scooters of “yellow” origin. Except that there are two-piston clamps with pressure regulators installed at the front.

HONLING Flagman 150

Nevertheless, the attentive reader will find “ten differences” between “Flagship” and “Prestige”. First of all, the “Flagship” has one large headlight and a carrying case as standard. But even someone who likes to tinker with their brains won’t understand (and equipment sellers don’t understand) what the inscription on the front fender of scooters means – ISS Intelligent Supension Systems (that’s how it’s written – with three grammatical errors). If we mean a “smart suspension system,” then it is not at all clear what its intelligence is... Other features of the models are a “glove holder” in the front shield, a two-color seat. As for the rest, Honling has been stingy: if competitors' cars have such baubles as fancy devices, sports "saxophones" or aluminum mufflers "for forward flow", metal floor coverings, mirrors with built-in "turn signals", then the "Prestige" and "Flagship" have in this regard, everything is poorer and more boring.

HONLING Prestige 125

Let’s finish: let’s get down to the most intriguing part – killing the experimental “stools”.

First, the test pilots annealed the vehicles at the karting track. One session was enough to evaluate the stability and controllability of the scooters. The cars cornered confidently and handled adequately, largely thanks to Kenda tires. At least here the Chinese manufacturers did not skimp - they purchased and installed rubber that “holds up” normally under heavy braking. The pressure regulators of the front discs do not allow the wheels to skid - surprisingly, these valves really work* Another test exercise - wheeling, or, in Russian, goatwork. The 150cc machine performed it best - after all, it has more power than the others.

We moved on to optional tests for this equipment - an off-road test. Frankly speaking, it wasn’t possible to let it get hot and have fun – the wet cross-country track after the rain was poorly tolerated by the road tires. But I managed to perform several jumps. The first joy of the monster testers: the plastic floor of the Titan burst - first blood! “Prestige” - it could not withstand the torture at all and almost self-destructed: suddenly the engine stalled. But we are not blind to it either - we discovered that the terminals had jumped off the reels. Then, no matter how much we tried, it was not possible to inflict serious injuries on the equipment - it went to the “base” under its own power... But I got my revenge on the “Kaper”, on which I “wound” more than 650 km around Moscow.

HONLING Titan 50

I bought this scooter with zero mileage and covered almost 70 km on the first day. The most vivid impression was that while driving, the trunk fell off with a roar (accompanied by the squealing of the brakes of expensive foreign cars driving behind). I wasn’t upset: it prevented me from “seeping” between cars in traffic jams - it touched the car mirrors... From the very first seconds, the engine of the “stool” struck me with sluggishness (well, it happens, but not to the same extent!) - this engine at least installs a throttle instead of a throttle dual-mode switch - idle/full throttle. Even after warming up at the start, it responded to turning the right handle with a delay of up to four seconds - even if you push with your feet! And in terms of speed, the “Kaper” is by no means a rocket: its normal speed is only 45 km/h, its “maximum speed” is 50-55, downhill and with a strong wind you can accelerate to 75. It’s as if the scooter was coded to be accurate complied with Russian traffic regulations. However, not even Russian ones: 45 km/h is the speed limit in Europe and America. Here is proof that Honglings are now equipped with engines that are not increased to 62 cc, but “honest” “fifty kopecks”. You wanted it - you got it!

But I suspected that the speedometer was underestimating the speed. Nothing of the kind: testing with a GPS navigator confirmed the accuracy of the device! The engine, I won’t go back on my words, was incredibly sluggish, but completely devoid of vibrations, and if you’re not in a hurry, it’s a pleasure to drive, but the “fuel meter” behaved strangely.

I would call it not a fuel level indicator, but a retroactive statator. The sensor has two positions: there is gasoline / there is no gasoline. In general, you can immediately throw away such a device: the speedometer is of no use (why look at the shameful 55 km/h? - it’s just frustrating), and the numbers are small. And the fuel level indicator is lying and confusing.

Not to justify what was just noted, but for the sake of fairness, I will note that the trunk is convenient. Yeah, you remembered that the trunk fell off. So it’s not his fault, but the frail brackets (made of steel 0.8 mm thick). And one more thing: there was a lot of space under the saddle - more than many other scooters.

The standard tool is made with high quality: the jaws of the open-end wrenches are made exactly to size, which pleasantly surprised me, having seen enough of frail Chinese consumer goods. Another thing is that with the help of the “on-board” tool kit it is impossible to even replace the spark plug - the “8” head is not enough to unscrew the bolts securing the “toilet bowl”, and without this you cannot get close to the engine.

The “privateer” holds tight in corners and on wet roads. And it handles decently: it has a slightly increased fork offset, which increased the sensitivity of the “stool” to the tilt of the driver’s body. Again, it’s a pity that the engine is sluggish and reacts with a delay to the movement of the throttle: after all, when tilting the scooter, you expect to straighten it with the gas... But screw you!

The “Sea Robber” is a completely flawed character. Many little things that you always pay attention to are somehow... unfinished, or something. I already wrote about the inconvenient gas tank neck, the brake disc has very small holes - you can’t insert an anti-theft lock into them, the rubber mat is pressed to the floor solely by the force of gravity. Fasteners - darkness! At least Grover's washers: being springy, they should prevent the screws from unscrewing, but after the first tightening they became flat and turned into primitive washers. Self-tapping screws are cheap: both the steel is “not right” and the manufacturing precision... Judge for yourself: the screw put on the screwdriver does not sit tightly on the cross and tends to come off.

On the front panel, the brake expansion tank is covered with a flap, and when you remove it, you see that the inspection window is... on the wrong side! Some kind of nonsense!.. But the “jambs” are completely unpleasant. I had already come to terms with the fact that removing the rear wheel was not easy because the second support was in the way. A design like this is justified only on heavy scooters, which cannot do without two shock absorbers or if the brakes have discs. But here everything is much more prosaic! But to get to the wheel, I had to unscrew five bolts, a self-tapping screw, and also use a handy drill to move the pendulum. The question is, why the hell does an accordion matter?..

And here is the apogee of design thought! After finishing the 15-minute procedure of getting to the wheel, I encountered a technical sophistication that I had never encountered in my entire almost 40-year motorcycle practice and that, in principle, would never occur to anyone: you can remove the rear wheel only after... you let the air out of the tire ! Otherwise, the crankcase mounting ear will not allow it to be removed.

From the category of “grand schools” - an ambush with headlights. You expect a lot from them, because the light is provided by powerful 25x25 W double-filament lamps for scooters: these are a pleasant rarity, as you would expect, for “fifty kopecks.” And here’s the bummer: the “high beam” shines “on airplanes,” but you can’t lower the headlight – you won’t believe it, it’s not adjustable. “Nearby”, you can’t say anything, it shines normally.

When, at the end of the test, I naively believed that all the bad things were behind me, something happened. In the courtyard of my house I passed a “gelding” (not a horse - he would have remained indifferent, but a car with a three-pointed star in the emblem). The car alarm went off due to the shock caused by the sounds from the “stool”. And - damn! – in unison, a similar system at “Private” immediately worked. At the same time, the ignition turned off - and the scooter “died”. And when I received the scooter for testing, I didn’t take the anti-theft control panel, so as not to succumb to the temptation to use a system that I don’t trust. I definitely didn’t count on this death of the “stool.” What a circus it was! It’s good that the awkward situation happened in a place where I was not suspected of stealing a moped with a blaring alarm. I had to call the salon, and they enlightened me on the nuances of how to neutralize the anti-theft device. As an honest person, I won’t describe which ones. But as an honest person who feels responsible to users, I can’t help but mention another killer joke of the security system: if the battery runs out, you won’t be able to start the device even with a kick. “The stool” took revenge: in response to my attempts to kill her, she answered me in kind.

Thank you

for help in organizing the test,

as well as scooter killers Korney KRONGAUZ

and Alexander KHRZHCHANOVICH.

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