A couple of months ago, we shared the news that a relatively new motorcycle manufacturer, ZXMOTO, was surprising folks around the world with its impressive performance in the World Supersport (WSSP) championship. Amazingly, the bike wasn't just a flash in the pan, as it proved with rookie Valentin Debise racking up a total of five wins so far this season.
Let me pause for a second to acknowledge the weight of that statement. A rookie rider, on a machine from an OEM that's only existed since 2024, coming into the World Supersport championship and just ... winning five races? In a year when they really just meant to be testing before launching a true championship bid in 2027?
Is this real life?
While the mentality of "win on Sunday, sell on Monday" is perhaps not as strong among the general motorcycle-buying public as it once was, it does clearly still matter to some fans. That's especially true when the ZX 820RR retails for the equivalent of around US $6,400 in its home market in China. Sports fans will instinctively understand this analogy; if your home team is winning so hard right now, don't you immediately want to proudly wear the merchandise and join the crowd to offer your support? New York Knicks fans, I am looking directly at you.
It's totally understandable, then, that folks rushed out in droves to place their orders. How many orders? At least 5,000 were placed before something serious happened, though only 286 had reportedly been delivered into customer hands.
So, what happened? Catastrophic engine failure on one bike, and you can see a video clip in the full-length video above. ZXMOTO, to its credit, immediately dove in to diagnose the problem. And then, in a move that's practically unheard of, company founder (and crucially, actual motorcycle mechanic, not just some business school suit) Zhang Xue opted to recall all 286 bikes that had already made it out into the wild to address the issue head-on.
That's right; no months (or even years) of dragging things out, or perhaps gaslighting customers before finally admitting there's a problem, and that the customers weren't imagining things. Instead, just a company founder issuing an apology, saying they messed up, admitting the problem, and working to solve the problem and do right by their customers.
From a rider's confidence perspective, that's worth a whole lot more than the incredibly low amount of money ZXMOTO is charging for these machines. Then again, if you've been following Zhang Xue's motorcycle industry career so far, it's clear that this is just who that guy is.
Don't forget, this is the same head of a company (!) who personally took to social media to offer a heartfelt and emotional apology after Mason Klein's Dakar dreams were dashed in 2024 thanks to engine failure that Zhang Xue felt was 100 percent due to mechanical error.
At the time, I asked "who DOES that?" repeatedly. While it's true that taking extraordinary action to own up to and fix a problem that you believe you've caused, as a company, doesn't happen often; apparently, it's just par for the course if your name is Zhang Xue.
And honestly, it's a breath of fresh air. While the company and its products might be a little rough around the edges, refinements can surely happen over time. What's more difficult to grow when you're a new company is customer trust.
Moves like this, well, they're kind of extraordinary. Unheard of, even.
As a customer, isn't it how you'd like to be treated? I don't know if any other companies will rise to the challenge of offering this level of proactive customer service if and when things go wrong, but here's hoping.
