Words: Séan Hendley, Kyle Lawrenson
Pics: Kyle Lawrenson
Voge is taking the European market by storm, which says a lot about a Chinese manufactured brand. They are meeting all the EU homologation requirements and, in Europe anyway, they have chucked in a 5-year warranty. Imported by SA Motorcycles, the Voge brand hit our shores a couple of years ago. Over that time, we have been suitably impressed by every model thus far. When we came across the 300 Rally on S.A.M.’s stand at the NAMPO show we liked what we saw and asked for a ride.
Who is Voge?
They are part of China’s Industrial giant, Loncin, which produces around 2.5 million motorcycles a year for brands like Honda, MV Agusta and BMW. They also do bits and bobs for a bunch of car brands. The Voge icon is their own in-house “Premium” brand.Their association with the aforementioned brands speaks to their commitment to quality and EU standards.
Let’s chat a bit about the 300 Rally.
Powered by a 292,4cc single cylinder, DOHC, liquid cooled four stroke mill, The Rally delivers 19 kW at around 8,500 rpm and 25 Nm of torque at 7,000 rpm through its 6-speed gearbox. Overall weight is 158 kg. Starting is via a happy button and the tank holds 11 litres of old school fossil fuel. Voge is claiming around 3.2L/100 km on fuel efficiency which equates to about 31,25 km’s per litre or about 340 km’s on a tank of fuel. The bike features Nissin brakes, KYB forks and a Bosch ABS system. What will surprise you is how rideable it is and how user friendly the power really is.
How big is it?
So, we can tell you this, it feels very off roadie and very rally oriented. It’s pretty tall with a 915mm seat height and 280mm ground clearance – exactly what you want from a ‘Rally’ machine. It’s all balanced on 41mm inverted KYB suspension with 205 mm of travel up front on a 21” front wheel. Out back you’ll find an OEM shock with 80mm’s of travel on an 18” rear wheel. Wheelbase is 1,430mm and the overall length is 2,107mm from pointy end to pointy end. It feels narrow. It kinda reminds us of Hondas CRF300L Rally with a smattering of KTM 690 rider position and stance.
How well equipped is it?
It has a very easy to read digital display with speedo, rev counter, fault indicator, low fuel level warning, trip and odometer as well as a USB port. Lighting is fully LED and is really, really bright, with a very modern angular twin headlight design. Hand-guards are standard equipment as are the engine protection bars and a basic bash plate. A lot of equipment is not usually standard in this capacity or price range. The foot pegs are serrated as is the rear brake pedal. They also give you a handy rear carrier. This all stacks up to be a fairly reasonably spec’d, well equipped and sexy looking off-road machine…
How does it ride?
Kyle and Séan took it out on the tar, to a secret quarry that could have been in the middle of Saudi Arabia and put it through its paces, came back again and had this to say:
Séan says:
Let me just say off the bat, this bike really does look the part with its eye-catching and very distinctive yellow and grey paint scheme, bi-colour rims and aggressive modern styling. Swinging a leg over the tall seat only serves to reiterate this Voges Rally, aggressive off-road focus. It is tall, and that is coming from a 2-metre-tall rider.The initial feeling on the suspension is firm with sag very akin to a competitive rally machine. The handle bars are wide and very sport focused, the tank and chassis are narrow, the foot pegs are proper off-road units with plenty of grip. This bike really does remind me quite a bit of my own WR250F, or the CRF300L.Looking at the dash, the digital display is easy to read and very uncluttered just displaying the essentials. I do like the USB charging port as standard.
At this point I would like to make a comment that might get me into a bit of trouble: Some really cool features like the USB charging port on this machine and in Hero’s X-Pulse 200’s case the point-by-point navigation displayed in the corner of that dash are being made available on entry level bikes. I don’t understand why all the manufacturers don’t offer this as standard. In this modern age of the smartphone, google navigation etc., one might imagine it would be a no brainer, we all have smart phones and all use Google maps or some form of navigation more regularly than not.
The rest of the cockpit is as you would expect it with all the switches, levers, bits and bobs exactly where you would expect to find them and all with a really good quality feel to them. Hitting the happy button, the little single cylinder brings the whole lot alive, I wouldn’t call it a thumper but maybe like a serious hammer drill. Slipping it in first gear, hitting the gas and dumping the clutch gets the Rally off the mark quite spritely, it pulls well through the gears making it a whole lot of fun to ride, particularly in the tight and twisty stuff. The suspension and chassis work great together and respond well to rider input. I rode this bike mostly on tar and my 2m/115 kg bulk wasn’t ideal for the EU strangled motor, I would’ve liked to spent a bit of time with the Rally and my tool box to sort out its somewhat asthmatic air-box and exhaust and higher gearing at the top end of the speedometer for the freeways and long-distance touring. This was the homologation model and we are assured that the retail bikes, (which are on the water as we publish), will have this all sorted out by the time they hit dealership floors.
The bike is extremely fuel efficient. We filled the bike up halfway through the day and it only took a few litres, on the way back to drop it off I stopped off to top off the tank, (just good manners to return a bike with a full tank), and it had barely used 2 litres of fuel to the 70 odd kilometres back to S.A.M.’s office and I was riding hard through the Magalies mountains to get there before closing time. Other than the top end speed, I can’t fault the Rally 300 by Voge… in fact I am quite suitably impressed by it.
Kyle says:
I was given the bike to play with in the dirt, and I have to say that I was very surprised at first. The bike has a good quality feel and has some nice gadgets that I like, especially the USB charging port on the dashboard.
Sitting on the bike, the bike feels tall and relatively light. Not a big cumbersome bike to move around when it is stationary. A nice rider triangle makes for an exceptionally comfortable seating position as well as an aggressive standing position when you hit the trails. The bars are nice and wide so you have more control over the bike, with a comfy seat for when you are cruising along. You are not slouched over the tank in any way and the digital instrument cluster is very easy to read.
This might not be the fastest bike on the planet but it is one of the most enjoyable in the dirt. Just point in any direction, tar or dirt and off you go. The Rally also feels like it can take a hammering. It will jump off pavements and more importantly it will race through single track and give you the Toby Price feel. This Rally has a nice bottom end to get you off the line and help climb those tough challenges and the Rally’s tall stance with good suspension soaks it all up, front and rear. Whether you are hitting a speed bump at 100kph or racing through the whoops the suspension keeps the rubber down and you feel very comfortable while on the move. Like Séan, I am really impressed by this Voge Rally 300 and can imagine it doing very well in our market.
In summary:
Over all the Rally looks the part and rides the part. This was the homologation model we rode, and referring back to our comments about speed, we are told that the retail version of the Rally will push out more power and speed, which could change this bike from being good to really great.
Go to https://www.samotorcycles.co.za/voge-motorcycles to find your closest stockist.
Motor Type: Single cylinder, 4 stroke
Cylinder Capacity: 292cc
Cooling System: Liquid Cooled
Performance: 21kW/28.6BHP
Transmission: 6-speed
Dimensions:(L|W|H): 2107mm/877mm/1405mm
Wheel Base: 1430mm
Seat Height: 915mm
Dry Weight: 158Kg
Tire Size (FR|RR): 3.00 – 21/5.10 – 18
Brake System (FR|RR): Disc/Disc
Colours Available: Silver/Yellow
