Lifans, Love em or hate em

[skadamo]

http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=542569

Good points from this thread.  Most of the negative posts do seem to be from people who don't own a lifan.  They say they owned a Chinese bike...

• many of the hate 'em group have never owned one
• they're not top of the line but, if your looking for some cheap fun get it and to hell what others think/say
• the thing runs great for her and it runs pretty good with me on it. I did have to put a new motor in it after she had run it through this 3' deep water hole all day long and ended up disinigrating the transmission in it, So after months of searching for parts or a motor i ended up calling Lifan In China to get a motor for it. The motor was so cheap $125.00 i bought two of them and the second one is still in the crate. She has about 1000 miles on it now and it still runs great for he rtype of riding. Hope this helps
• been beating it up pretty well for the last year and have had no problems with it
• I have bought a couple of these for my kids for riding around socal deserts. They are just fine. I've only replaced levers and grips on these bikes. Everything else is ok for kids.
  

[shogun]

my 2 cents.
the design is 100 percent honda sound. (on the trail an mini)
the metalurgy, machining and fit are 85 to 90 percent honda.
the fininsh is 75 percent honda.
the price is 70 percent honda (if that).
lifan will continue to improve because its just plain makes business sense to fix the simple problems than to replace whole engines. if people buy from dealers with warrantees the dealers will send back problem engines or whatever back to the company. that cuts into profit for lifan. cant sell junk with a warrantee. not for long anyway.
i think though lifan needs to have better quality control and better finish for americans. spend 10 percent more on that and charge 10 percent more. a better fit and finish will bring in more people than the 10 percent increase in price will drive away. lifan will still be alot less expensive than a big four motorcycle.
ive been looking at some z50 and 90 trail sites and quite a few of the zealots dont like the "copys". mostly because they want to be special and have what is an expensive limited quanity babyboomer toy that is to be looked at, polished and never used. they also think it will cut into the value of their honda orignal. others like the fact they can take a basket case and make something fun and use it like it was intended without having to spend a small fortune.
there are quite afew people that swear by their lifan and have had no problems at all. if a person has no problems with thier lifan isnt that just as good as a honda with no problems?

ps  i own 5 hondas 3 yamahas 1 kawasaki 2suzukis 1lifan engined 138cc z50 "copy"
later

[skadamo]

Great info!  Glad to hear from an owner. 

The sacrifices on fit and finish may be enough for some customers who would rather get a cheaper entry fee.  Sounds like you are happy with yours.

You are probably right that as Lifan gets more name recognision the fit and finish details will improve.  Right now, they probably need as low a price as possible to stand apart from the big four.

How is Lifan on warrenty replacement?  Have you heard from any Lifan owners who had a warrenty claim?

[shogun]

well when i bought my motor off ebay the seller said no warrantee since it was a high performance engine. after i had the problem with the o ring i asked, didnt insist, to the repalce the head. after i sent the head in he told me to send the rest and he gave me a new engine. (his name in ebay is motorfreak. id recommend him even though he doesnt seem to know much about engines. he thought the head looked fine even though the rockers were melting to the cam lobes. he stands behind his stuff.)  im breaking it in right now. im fiddling with the low speed jet to get better response off the line. it seems to hesitate after the clutch is ingaged. just a little bit. after its warmed up its pretty wild. 2nd and 3rd gear wheelies. just throttle. the town i live in is surrounded by a big hill and when i go to work i drive up the hill. before the engine swap it was a 50. i would be going about 15 mph by the time i got to the top and in 2nd gear. better than my bicycle yea, but im used to driving an SV1000s so.....i wanted more. now up the hill in 4th and it can be going 30....just wick the throttle and the pace picks up now. a bit loud for my taste right now. has a visous rap to it.

[skadamo]

2nd and 3rd gear wheelies. just throttle.

  Sounds like fun!!

What do you think is the weakest link of the whole setup?  Do you think the sprockets and chain will last?  Are the brakes up to the task with the higher speeds?

[shogun]

the paint is ok  the rubber ok  chrome is a little thin. blinkers crapola, mirrors toy like. yes chains are cheap. i soaked mine in oil for a day and put it on. hasnt stretched much. im looking for an o ring chain. most of what ive researched was mostly older stuff. ignition problems, coils....but i think its getting better. well to stay in business in the usa they have to. people in general take the time to write something when somethig goes wrong but if alls well thats that. its what people are used to.
if it was a honda it would be better. no lie. but it would cost twice as much. at least. if you like to tinker buying a lifan is a better idea. just put in a big engine repaint the bodywork and repalce the smaller cheep stuff. if you like stock buy a restored honda and take good care of it. dont let your kids or relitives drive it. EVER.