lifan 06 gy5 review.....

[mdsuave13]

So i clocked about 50 miles on the bike today.(and didnt even make a dent in the gas tank) Took her out for her maiden street voyage. It was about 60 degrees, so it had to be today...

Bike corners very well for what it is. Braking is good in the rear but front brakes arent very great (no stoppies for me) The Cheng shin tires provided plenty of street grip (more then i expected actually) i had a blast on the normally slippery traffic circles of doom Bike is easy to toss into corners and feels very stable, provides plenty of confidence for a new rider or even someone who has been riding for a while.

bike cruises great at 55-60 mph no problem, topped out at around 75mph (indicated by buddy pacing me in honda accord) 75mph in real life equates out to 80ish on speedo(don't expect to get there very fast either) The exhaust note is really nice when you are down low in the rev's very bassy and gurgley. Made lots of people take a gander as i passed.

Odometer is in km. Bike is very fun to ride and with the intake/exhaust mods, gets up and goes decently enough for a 200cc engine. Not really a good merging vehicle, or for a quick pass on the highway, but around town, nice and zippy.

Bike runs smooth, no strange noises, except for the chattery engine (which i'm used to from my old xr's)

Overall performance for the bike = B-/C+.
Value = A
Brakes= C
Engine= B (not comparing to other bikes, just my thought on this one)
Ride= B
Suspension=B-/C+
Comfort=C
Economy=A

I am happy with the purchase overall and just happy to be on two wheels again. I do think i will have the "itch" to get another bike at least 600cc's for the adrenaline rush. But for cruising around, this bike is great. got lots of looks, lots of compliments at the gas station and people seemed to like it mainly because its not a common sight around here to ride a dirt bike type bike.

The things i would change if i could: I would want at least 5-10 more HP. Maybe a 250cc with at least 10:1 compression would cure this bike of performance woes. I may have to look into this myself on this bike.. (NOTE: the new 250cc enduros that are starting to pop up are just 250cc, they dont have a stroked crank and they dont have a high compression. So they arent going to have the huge advantage over the 200cc like you would assume.) Also, the front brake needs more OOMPH. Its pathetic really, i can almost grab the front handle tight and not get a lockup.. I dont know if its the fluid, the anemic pads or the tires not providing grip.. either way they are pretty lame. ALSO i would add a 6th gear. I kept trying for it, even tho i could see i was in 5th already.. (i dont want a 6th for more power, i want 6th to drop revs when cruising at 50-55mph. Thats about it... OH and a headlight that isnt useless would be nice..

So i am going to try to sort some of this stuff out, see what i can fix, see what i can improve.. i mean i spend 2000 dollars less on this then a comparable japanese bike of the same standard.. so i have some room to play with.

I will let you know..

[ambassador]

Wish I had a headlight that I could trust to see if it had a 6th gear, Needs both, my only complaints...

[FMYStreetRacer]

if i ever get around to it i'm going to try to fit a HID kit into my Roketa. i have everything sitting here, i just need to put it in.

[gyjoe]

Originally Posted by ambassador

Wish I had a headlight that I could trust to see if it had a 6th gear, Needs both, my only complaints...

A common refrain with these bikes.

[pumpkin]

md with my rear brakes locking up all ive been using are my fronts and they work very well.

[mdsuave13]

lucky!!! mine eat it big.. i think i'm going to bleed them this weekend while its raining, plus do my oil change, tighten and lube the chain...

[ambassador]

Suave, you still got the restrictor/ABS/gonna get ripped of first time you hit it a branch on yours???

[mdsuave13]

yes.. when i bleed the brakes this weekend, im going to take that crapper off and see what gives.... the back brake stops about 100000 times better then the front one.. it makes me wonder if that front abs thing is the culprit.. cause my old honda had similar puck style pads in the front and it would stop on a dime (almost too well, i broke many a brake and clutch levers on it..)

[jeffhei]

With all the complaints about rear brakes that I've seen, I have been hesitant to use my rear brakes hard. My front brakes work good so far.

[Savage]

Did you put on 50 miles or 50 kilometers? I think I put on 20 kilo today just driving to work and it's only like 12-14 miles. lol
Makes me wonder if people are getting 80 mpg gallon or 80 kpg?

I forget how to do the calculation? So if I get 200 kilo per tank, how many miles would that come out to be?

Let me know how your front brake goes. I have to pull mine real hard so I don't lock up the rear.

[mdsuave13]

i went out for another ride with the new spark plug in and after my oil change and clutch adjustment. Still as good as it was before, seems to rev a little more freely...

I found that if i yank on the front brake it will initially bite good, but it fades out pretty quick.. I tend to ride about 10-15 mph over the posted speed limits (they tend to be around 35-40 on the streets i mainly ride on) so i may just be used to riding very aggressively like i did on my zx6r.. i'm still trying to adapt to the small engine and poor brakes, but i mean i still enjoy the bike, its fun to cruise around and just enjoy the nice weather.. i still plan on upgrading to a much bigger bike (1200cc inline 4) in upcoming months.. but i dont think i would get rid of the lifan. its a good all around commuting toy.

[ambassador]

Savage, 200km=125 miles, 0.6 per Km=1mph...

[Savage]

Ah, thank you.
If my riding times out OK, I'll see how many miles I get to my tank.