hi
i had a 00 jincheng panda sitting around and not being used much except to give the kids a ride around the yard. then i got a wild hair and bought a 138cc lifan engine from ebay. to be honest it was a shot in the dark. i didnt know how it would work. i bought a xr dirt bike pipe when i bought the engine too because i was pretty sure the stock one would never fit (it will with modification). i got the engine and in about 2 hours of wrenching and wiring was riding it around. lots of power and much more fun. i turned in my mso and got licence the next day and started drivng it to work. it seemed like the perfect commuter/town bike. then it happened.....bad sounds with just enough power to keep it running...
...a friend with a truck brought me home. then i started to disassemble. my first thought was a ring broke and was causing drag and making the squeeking noise. took the head off, then the cylinder. to my surprise it looked great. piston was like new. cylinder looked freshly honed. i slowly turned the crank while holding the rod to feel for bad bearings. fine. then i looked at the head. dry. not good. the cam was scored and the rockers were bluing from heat and wearing into the lobes. no oil was getting to the head. now i knew there was oil in the engine so i thought the pump wasnt woking. nope. it turned out that upon assembly the oil galley to the head was mostly plugged by the o ring between the head and cylinder. a 5 cent part. i got ahold of the sales person i bought it from. first he offered to replace the head so i sent it in. he claimed he couldnt see any dammage. i dont think he knew what he was looking at but he offered to replace the whole engine. done. now this story doesnt seem like a glowing endorsement for lifan engines but remember this engine went almost 100 miles with next to no oil getting to the head. the o ring was, a stupid, yes, simple mistake. being able to see the quality of the internal parts impressed me enough to check into becoming a dealer myself. if anybody wants to make their z50 a real motorcycle that isnt dangerous to drive in town from lack of power to get out of peoples way, find a good dealer and do it. i is again a great town bike.
to make first gear usable i bought a bigger counter sprocket. a 17t. if i find a 18t ill try it. top speed id say is least 50 mph. i weigh 160+. if i used a 110 engine with an auto cluch i think the stock pipe would work with minor mods (different pipe to frame mount and larger diameter exhaust tip)save some money and be quieter (a sleeper). if anybody wants to know which wires from the engine go to which wires from the harness on a jincheng panda, just ask.
with the orignal 50cc engine i drove 111 miles on .7 gallons of gas. the 138cc lifan still gets a little over 100mpg. they are fun, fast (in town), green, inexpensive, honda designed, eazy to work on, take up less space than a bicycle in the garage (or living room) and a great way of meeting people, if you find a good dealer that is.
later.
