BY TOM INCANTALUPO
8:36 AM EDT, August 21, 2007
Digg Del.icio.us Facebook Furl Google Reddit Spurl Yahoo Print Single page view Reprints Reader feedback Text size: Cars from China probably still are a year away from being available in the United States, but Long Islanders need travel no farther than Islip or Centereach to find street-legal motorcycles made in that Asian nation.
Suffolk County Choppers in Islip and Hustedt Eurospeed in Centereach -- the latter related to Hustedt Chevrolet/Hustedt Hyundai -- have begun retailing two 300 cc motorcycles imported by a Corona, Calif., company and produced in Wenzhou, China.
Both models, the 300 Spyder and 300 Raptor, retail for $3,995.
Art Costello, a partner in the California company, Johnny Pag, says the Chinese manufacturer, Li Feng Group Co. Ltd., has been selling the Raptor model in Asia and Europe for about 18 years. Pag designed the new Spyder model, made a few changes to the Raptor model, and has been importing both since June of last year, Costello said.
Pag's Web site lists dealers in 26 states and Puerto Rico. Costello says about 2,000 units have been sold so far.
Owner Frederic Bianculli of Suffolk County Choppers, which manufactures custom motorcycles, says he's sold "a lot" but won't disclose a figure.
Hustedt has been marketing the machines for only about a week out of a storefront on Middle Country Road opposite Hustedt Hyundai that had been a motorycle shop for many years under different owners, said Shep Rappaport, manager of the cycle operation. He said he has sold about a dozen of the China-built motorcycles so far.
8:36 AM EDT, August 21, 2007
Digg Del.icio.us Facebook Furl Google Reddit Spurl Yahoo Print Single page view Reprints Reader feedback Text size: Cars from China probably still are a year away from being available in the United States, but Long Islanders need travel no farther than Islip or Centereach to find street-legal motorcycles made in that Asian nation.
Suffolk County Choppers in Islip and Hustedt Eurospeed in Centereach -- the latter related to Hustedt Chevrolet/Hustedt Hyundai -- have begun retailing two 300 cc motorcycles imported by a Corona, Calif., company and produced in Wenzhou, China.
Both models, the 300 Spyder and 300 Raptor, retail for $3,995.
Art Costello, a partner in the California company, Johnny Pag, says the Chinese manufacturer, Li Feng Group Co. Ltd., has been selling the Raptor model in Asia and Europe for about 18 years. Pag designed the new Spyder model, made a few changes to the Raptor model, and has been importing both since June of last year, Costello said.
Pag's Web site lists dealers in 26 states and Puerto Rico. Costello says about 2,000 units have been sold so far.
Owner Frederic Bianculli of Suffolk County Choppers, which manufactures custom motorcycles, says he's sold "a lot" but won't disclose a figure.
Hustedt has been marketing the machines for only about a week out of a storefront on Middle Country Road opposite Hustedt Hyundai that had been a motorycle shop for many years under different owners, said Shep Rappaport, manager of the cycle operation. He said he has sold about a dozen of the China-built motorcycles so far.
