Chang-Jiang 750 BG (with sidecar) 1992 — Specifications

In 1992, as the two-wheeled world chased performance, the Chang-Jiang 750 BG with its sidecar looked like a living fossil. It's a machine that looks you straight in the eye and asks if you really need to go faster than 110 km/h. With its 27 horsepower drawn from a 745 cm³ flat-twin, it’s unlikely to give you adrenaline rushes, but rather a lesson in mechanical humility. Its boxer engine, copied from the pre-war BMW R71, turns with the placidity of a village clock, displaying a compression ratio of 7:1 which says a lot about its moderate ambitions.

The announced weight of 350 kilograms all full, for a final transmission by shaft and cardan, imposes a radically different driving philosophy. You don't ride this motorcycle, you negotiate it. Braking, ensured by modest drums on the three wheels, is more a matter of intention than immediate action. You have to anticipate, plan, and accept that stopping is a process rather than an event. The 3.75-19 tires, narrow and with a soft carcass, are designed to follow the imperfections of the roads, not to fight with a hairpin turn.

This Chang-Jiang 750 BG is much more than just a sidecar; it's a moving piece of history, a Chinese replica of German technology from the 1930s that has survived decades. Its 24-liter tank offers respectable range, perfect for journeys where the goal is the journey itself, not the destination. The sound of its twin, its military vehicle appearance, and its total lack of electronic sophistication make it a raw object of fascination.

It is aimed at the patient collector, the adventurer who prefers dirt roads to highways, or the one who seeks an authentically analog riding experience. In a world of sensors and electronic injections, riding this motorcycle is reconnecting with the fundamentals: a carburetor, a contact, a kickstarter sometimes, and a direct relationship with every noise, every vibration, every assumed slowness. It's an antidote to speed, and a lesson in humility on wheels.