1. A 13-year mandatory scrappage rule for motorcycles in China, designed for the workhorse bikes of the 1980s, is increasingly clashing with a modern market of high-quality recreational vehicles [para. 1][para. 4][para. 7]. Enthusiasts like Li Xiaoli, whose 2013 Triumph Scrambler has less than 11,000 km, refuse to comply with the law, preferring to keep their machines as treasured mementos [para. 2][para. 3].
2. The fixed-term system emerged in the 1980s for trucks and buses when motorcycles were mainly rural cargo haulers [para. 16]. An initial standard in 2002 set limits of 8-10 years or 100,000 km, replaced in 2013 by a universal 13-year age limit for motorcycles, mirroring commercial vehicles while private cars were exempted entirely [para. 18][para. 19]. ZXMoto founder Zhang Xue argues the rule was reasonable for older models but is now outdated [para. 5][para. 6].
3. The market has transformed dramatically, with annual sales of large-displacement recreational motorcycles soaring from about 13,000 in 2013 to over 950,000 in 2025 [para. 9]. Manufacturers like Loncin, which builds engines for BMW, and ZXMoto, which beat Ducati and Honda in World Championship racing, now produce bikes capable of running reliably for over 20 years, making a simple age-based cutoff an obstacle [para. 20][para. 21]. The industry advocates for condition-based assessments [para. 8].
4. Economist Li Daokui proposed a major reform in 2022, calling for annual safety and emissions inspections with scrapping only required after a failure to repair [para. 22][para. 23]. He also suggested purchase-price-based subsidies to encourage turnover [para. 24]. Li noted that major motorcycle markets like Japan and Germany do not scrap bikes on age alone, relying instead on rigorous periodic inspections every two to three years [para. 25][para. 26]. Despite this proposal, China’s regulations have yet to be updated [para. 28].
5. Riders are personally conflicted by the rule. Liu Qing, a former student who scrimped to buy his Haojue Suzuki, plans to keep his well-maintained bike as a memento [para. 10][para. 11][para. 12]. In contrast, Zhong Fei, whose trouble-free second-hand bike has 76,000 km, feels forced to let it go purely due to the impracticalities of storage and upkeep for a legally scrapped vehicle [para. 13][para. 14][para. 15].
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