Looks like the Japanese OEMs—Honda, in particular—are going to get some increased competition in the ADV market, at the very bottom end of the spectrum. Voge, a made-in-China brand, is spreading its 300 Rally across Europe now.

Who is Voge?

Voge is another offshoot of Chinese manufacturer Loncin—a name that in-the-know ADVers should immediately recognize, due to its long partnership with BMW. Currently, Loncin manufacturers BMW’s F750 and F850 series engines. The partnership goes all the way back to the early 2000s, when Loncin manufactured the G650 engines. It’s a company that understands quality control and western standards, and Voge is intended to be its in-house premier brand, made to sell to the west.

What’s the Voge 300 Rally?

The Voge 300 Rally is a small-cc adventure bike based on an earlier machine, the Voge 300DS Adventurer. When ADVer @Paolo first saw the machine at EICMA, he said “Voge … seemed more focused on building an exact copy of the Honda CRF Rally 300, most likely at a fraction of the cost.” That might be an exaggeration, but the machines are certainly similar. The Voge’s liquid-cooled 292cc single-cylinder engine (Euro5-legal) makes 29 horsepower at 6,500 rpm; it weighs 158 kilos (wet weight, we understand) and rolls on 21-18 wheels. Top speed is around 130 km/h.

You can see a Euro dealership unpacking and revealing the bike below:

Why buy the Voge Rally 300?

Depending which country you’re in, the Voge Rally 300 offers significantly lower pricing than the Japanese competition, with a bike that appears to be of very decent quality. While many riders may express hesitation about doing business with Chinese manufacturers, the reality is that if you’re riding an F-series BMW (or one of the C-series scooters), you’re effectively buying a Loncin anyway; obviously, BMW has enough confidence in the company to do business with it, and that lends some credibility towards its Voge sub-brand, you’d think?