Chinese Motorcycle Maker Xianglong Reveals JSX500i

It draws inspiration from the TVS Zeppelin Concept.

By: Enrico Punsalang

Jun 28, 2021 at 2:02am ET

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Chinese motorcycle manufacturer Xianglong has unveiled a new muscle cruiser in the Chinese market. Dubbed the JSX500i, this cruiser is definitely a head-turner thanks to its sporty and aggressive styling. It is, however, interesting to note that it bears a rather striking resemblance to the TVS Zeppelin—a concept bike which is expected to debut sometime this year.

Now, it isn’t uncommon for Chinese motorcycle manufacturers to, well, borrow the design elements from other more established brands. However, the Xianglong JSX500i is quite possibly one of the first few bikes to have been inspired by a bike which has yet to make it into production. Subsequently, this begs the question: does it make you less of a copycat if you copy a design which has yet to make it to production? My answer would be yes—and while there are a few differences in the overall design, there’s no denying that the JSX500i has taken more than just a few styling cues from the Zeppelin.

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On paper, the Xianglong JSX500i’s spec sheet is adequate at best. It’s powered by a 471cc liquid-cooled parallel-twin engine which pumps out a decent 44 horsepower. Eagle-eyed observers would notice that the 471cc parallel-twin engine is a rather common sighting in Chinese-made bikes. It is, in fact, an engine found in other brands like Bristol and Loncin, and bears similar architecture to Honda’s parallel-twin engine found in the CB500 range of bikes.

On the feature front, it isn’t exactly clear what the Xianglong JSX500i brings to the table. However, we do know that it gets a full LED headlight, a digital instrument panel, as well as dual front disc brakes, a sporty side-mounted exhaust pipe, and a beefy inverted fork. As far as pricing and availability is concerned, Xianglong has yet to reveal the official pricing for this bike. However, its availability will likely be limited to the Chinese domestic market, at least for now.