Lifan Cross and X-Cross

[papa al]

^^ Papa, my Keeway 200 has the 163FML pushrod engine and it is 1 down, 4 up.

I hope you know that a Lifan 163FML engine is not the same as a Keeway 163FML engine, the 163 in the model number tell you that it has 1 cylinder, and a bore class of 63mm (which can be true 63mm up to 63.5mm). You can find 163FML engines or even 169FML or other numbers from many Chinese manufacturers as it's a sort of Chinese way to indemnification number

Helloooo Richard, thanks for that clarification.

It has been suggested in older threads that you have insight into the 5-down ==> international-shifter-pattern conversion.

papa at loggerhead on this prob so....

Edited April 3, 2015 by papa al

[BSJ]

A friendly Chinese bike thread.....who would have thought!

[papa al]

I'm told Cross is good seller in China, Africa, SA, S/W Asia.

[Richard-BKK]

^^ Papa, my Keeway 200 has the 163FML pushrod engine and it is 1 down, 4 up.

I hope you know that a Lifan 163FML engine is not the same as a Keeway 163FML engine, the 163 in the model number tell you that it has 1 cylinder, and a bore class of 63mm (which can be true 63mm up to 63.5mm). You can find 163FML engines or even 169FML or other numbers from many Chinese manufacturers as it's a sort of Chinese way to indemnification number

Helloooo Richard, thanks for that clarification.

It has been suggested in older threads that you have insight into the 5-down ==> international-shifter-pattern conversion.

papa at loggerhead on this prob so....

If you open up the engine it should be clear how you can change the gearing pattern, if you don't see the logic I would recommend that you not experiment. Most Lifan 200 Cross sold outside Thailand have the regular (1 down – 4 up) gear selection. The part that you have to order from Lifan HQ is 1L2PQT001

The engine of the Lifan 200 X-Plorer is identical to the one used in the Lifan 200 Cross, the two motorcycles even share the same Lifan internal model number LF200GY-5a.

The gear ratio for the Lifan 200 X-Plorer is a bit different because of other wheel size... But I will not call the Lifan 200 X-Plorer more power or less powerful...

Another thing if you're opening the engine to look how-to change the gearing, you can also consider replacing some bearings. The standard bearings in the Lifan engine are pretty good, but for a few hundred THB you can have the best bearings money can buy... If you really want to overdo it, you can even replace the standard bearings with ceramic bearings. This is possible because Lifan only uses industry standard bearings which can be bought from any shop who sells bearings...

[seedy]

Thanks for that Richard.

[papa al]

Sir Richard, papa knee before ya.

I'll be contacting HQ with that datum.

Good idea on bearing as I received from China a $100 "250 big bore kit"

Opened box to find a 212ml jug.

Bitched.

"Yes it's 212 but we call it 250"

Chinese!

He told me to return it on my dime for refund, or keep & he'd give me 20% discount.

Papa too lazy to take to post office so imona go for the 7% increase in displacement.

[thaiguzzi]

^^ Papa, my Keeway 200 has the 163FML pushrod engine and it is 1 down, 4 up.

I hope you know that a Lifan 163FML engine is not the same as a Keeway 163FML engine, the 163 in the model number tell you that it has 1 cylinder, and a bore class of 63mm (which can be true 63mm up to 63.5mm). You can find 163FML engines or even 169FML or other numbers from many Chinese manufacturers as it's a sort of Chinese way to indemnification number

Helloooo Richard, thanks for that clarification.

It has been suggested in older threads that you have insight into the 5-down ==> international-shifter-pattern conversion.

papa at loggerhead on this prob so....

If you open up the engine it should be clear how you can change the gearing pattern, if you don't see the logic I would recommend that you not experiment. Most Lifan 200 Cross sold outside Thailand have the regular (1 down – 4 up) gear selection. The part that you have to order from Lifan HQ is 1L2PQT001

The engine of the Lifan 200 X-Plorer is identical to the one used in the Lifan 200 Cross, the two motorcycles even share the same Lifan internal model number LF200GY-5a.

The gear ratio for the Lifan 200 X-Plorer is a bit different because of other wheel size... But I will not call the Lifan 200 X-Plorer more power or less powerful...

Another thing if you're opening the engine to look how-to change the gearing, you can also consider replacing some bearings. The standard bearings in the Lifan engine are pretty good, but for a few hundred THB you can have the best bearings money can buy... If you really want to overdo it, you can even replace the standard bearings with ceramic bearings. This is possible because Lifan only uses industry standard bearings which can be bought from any shop who sells bearings...

I like this post, bar the ceramic brgs bit. What is a ceramic brg? Used in a 200cc single please? I am a machine shop engineer and motorcycle mechanic with over 30 years in the trade.

BTW, i own two large motorcycles here and am pretty keen on getting the Cross 200 for a bit of off road fun. Air cooled, carb and PUSHRODS. Especially after watching a You Tube video of adjusting valves on a CRF250L. Put me right off...

[Richard-BKK]

If you open up the engine it should be clear how you can change the gearing pattern, if you don't see the logic I would recommend that you not experiment. Most Lifan 200 Cross sold outside Thailand have the regular (1 down – 4 up) gear selection. The part that you have to order from Lifan HQ is 1L2PQT001

The engine of the Lifan 200 X-Plorer is identical to the one used in the Lifan 200 Cross, the two motorcycles even share the same Lifan internal model number LF200GY-5a.

The gear ratio for the Lifan 200 X-Plorer is a bit different because of other wheel size... But I will not call the Lifan 200 X-Plorer more power or less powerful...

Another thing if you're opening the engine to look how-to change the gearing, you can also consider replacing some bearings. The standard bearings in the Lifan engine are pretty good, but for a few hundred THB you can have the best bearings money can buy... If you really want to overdo it, you can even replace the standard bearings with ceramic bearings. This is possible because Lifan only uses industry standard bearings which can be bought from any shop who sells bearings...

I like this post, bar the ceramic brgs bit. What is a ceramic brg? Used in a 200cc single please? I am a machine shop engineer and motorcycle mechanic with over 30 years in the trade.

BTW, i own two large motorcycles here and am pretty keen on getting the Cross 200 for a bit of off road fun. Air cooled, carb and PUSHRODS. Especially after watching a You Tube video of adjusting valves on a CRF250L. Put me right off...

With the Lifan 200 Cross or X-Plorer you will never get near the stress levels a ceramic bearing can handle that is for sure... maybe that's why I said “If you really want to overdo it”.

The nice part is that you can actual replace the bearings with any quality bearings you want, for instance the crankshaft uses two different bearings one 6303 and a 6203 bearing. This bearings are widely used and can be bought at any mechanical store that sells bearings.

[AllanB]

ktmjeff,

next time i'm in the Lifan shop,i will have a look at the engines, up until now, i was under the impression they all used the same 163FML-2 engine. Could be wrong.

Me being a Luddite, i personally prefer a pushrod motor for robustness and ease of maintanence. What is a PX 250?, What are they sold under and have you got a pic? Thanx.

I am with you on that pushrod point Luddie, low tech, easy adjustment and no chain works for me every time, worth the 0.1hp loss.

They should have put that engine in the Phantom, instead of that flimsy piece of crap.

I always thought the Phantom was a reliable cruiser? Since when is it considered crap? Maybe you should better change your mechanic

Mine was unreliable and the mechanic not good at all, that when I started doing work myself and found the engine quite flimsy. There was very little torque especially for such a heavy bike and handling was pretty dreadful, so maybe crap was a little harsh.

Let's say mine wasn't a great bike and the model was built down to a price. I found a solution a little too late, a 400cc Suzuki conversion, as the bike was quite comfortable 2 up and the Suzuki twin, quite smooth.

[thaiguzzi]

Papa al, looking at that manly man pic of you, can you tell me your height, re in relation to you sitting on the bike and the size? Ta.

[papa al]

1.73m.

I can 'heels-down' with 2-3cm to spare.

Lifan is tall but not too tall.

I'm wanting to take this bike to southern Laos for Songkran if I can get some new tires fitted.

No green-book from dealer/LTO yet, so hope can pass frontier.

[thaiguzzi]

Aah. Damn. The bike's size suits you. I'm 1.93...

[Rolo Tomazi]

Lifan, the worlds largest bike maker, manufactures the 200cc crossdressers in Thailand.

People who have actually owned and ridden these seem well pleased, and find them a good value.

Proven engine.

Basic technology.

Easy to deal with.

Get some Lock-tight.

1/3 the price of a CRF250M

Much more than 1/3 the bike.

But some people are stuck in their groove, like a snakes belly in a wagon rut.

I like my rut, its much nicer than yours, will be worth something on re-sale, will do more, will out perform, is far less likely to break down, will require less maintenance, looks betters, has more aftermarket parts, large dealer network, and

doesnt draw looks of pity.

But go for it, but not to hard.

Don't know what you ride or what you paid, assuming you bought Japanese though; you only will have a higher resale value because you paid a lot more to begin with. I bought my Lifan cross 4 years ago for 46k, my wife is encouraging me to sell it now because I only ride my quad these days. I bet I get 25k for it. That would mean my 4 years of ownership cost me a mere 21k, not including some slight mods.

A little more than 5000 baht a year. Lots of folks spending more than that to have a fancy logo stamped on their exhaust can.

Let's say you bought a CRF for 125k, how much do you think you would get for it in 4 years? Maybe 75k. That would mean your four years of ownership cost you more than the sticker price of mine. And each year cost you more than double the Lifan,12.5k annually.

And to top it off I only had to layout 46k, leaving a bunch a cash in my wallet for other toys.

So I wouldn't be too excited about the higher resale value. It is not realistic.

How many km have you ridden in these four years and has the bike been trouble-free?

[papa al]

papa has been states for three months.

Back, Lifan X fired up fine on battery.

But the front brake was sticking/dragging.

Original is a laughably poor single-pot caliper.

Mechanic cleaned, adjusted but still bad.

Had dual-pot caliper from a KLX installed.

B1800, including adapter bracket and labor.

Good now.

Looking for dirt riding partner.

[canuckamuck]

I tried to find an after market replacement for the front brake on mine. Thanks for the tip about the KLX part.

[AllanB]

Been following this thread from the outset and have yet to here a bad word about the Lifan, well from people who have one, or know someone who has one. I especially like the low tech simplicity of the engine and, of course, the price.

If I could find a way to mod it to take two in "reasonable comfort" I might go for one, the power is a bit on the low side to 2, but I am not in much of a hurry. We rode a 100cc Wave 2000km in VN and thinking about roughly twice that power/weight sounds okay to me.

We plan on going to Laos this winter too and whilst the old Honda NV400 is now working okay, it is a bit dodgy on the loose surfaces (with me driving), a nightmare in the mud at 200kg and on road tyres.

A mate of mine has a Shineray 200, so I could use it on the many local tracks, even in the rainy season.

It is just the two-up situation.....how strong/firm is the rear suspension?

[papa al]

See post 79.

Avoid hiway 13 north of Luang Probang.

PCX would be best for your trip.

A cosmetically poor second-hand one would serve fine.

Not expensive.

Edited October 2, 2015 by papa al

[MAZ3]

Just brought a 4 year old Cross,anyone tried two up for a longish trip? and may need more power. My other half won't even sit on it yet(too low so?[emoji51]),but I'll keep trying.

[apetley]

Just brought a 4 year old Cross,anyone tried two up for a longish trip? and may need more power. My other half won't even sit on it yet(too low so?[emoji51]),but I'll keep trying.

Put a couple of Ducati decals in the tank.

[papa al]

Just brought a 4 year old Cross,anyone tried two up for a longish trip? and may need more power. My other half won't even sit on it yet(too low so?[emoji51]),but I'll keep trying.

See post 79.

[MAZ3]

Good tip about the front caliper Papa,has anyone managed to change the gears to 1 down,4 up?. Seems crazy it's different here to the rest of the world!(cost saving?). Cheers

[AllanB]

Just brought a 4 year old Cross,anyone tried two up for a longish trip? and may need more power. My other half won't even sit on it yet(too low so?[emoji51]),but I'll keep trying.

Been considering that too, perhaps a mod to the bike?

I have been told it is not that great comfort wise, but we are nearly always two up on the 110 Wave and never had an issue with power. Can do 80kph and that is enough for me.... hills? well it is going to be slow, we did some mountain roads in VN on a 100 Wave and I don't recall needing 1st gear, maybe once....lots of 3rd though.

If you want to do 100+ kph it is the wrong bike for you and 'er indoors.

Let us all know though...how much did you pay?..is it a good'un?

[canuckamuck]

Has anybody done a seat mod to their Lifan? I am thinking of getting some more padding in there, particularly towards the back where there is none

[papa al]

The vent/mesh seat cover, like all my bikes.

B250.

Adds 1cm of cool dry cushiness.

I recommend having it stapled on rather than relying on the elastic and Velcro.

The guys will appreciate it.

[MAZ3]

Just brought a 4 year old Cross,anyone tried two up for a longish trip? and may need more power. My other half won't even sit on it yet(too low so?[emoji51]),but I'll keep trying.

Been considering that too, perhaps a mod to the bike?

I have been told it is not that great comfort wise, but we are nearly always two up on the 110 Wave and never had an issue with power. Can do 80kph and that is enough for me.... hills? well it is going to be slow, we did some mountain roads in VN on a 100 Wave and I don't recall needing 1st gear, maybe once....lots of 3rd though.

If you want to do 100+ kph it is the wrong bike for you and 'er indoors.

Let us all know though...how much did you pay?..is it a good'un?

I paid 20,000,it's 4 years old with 12,000K on it.

Just had a service,new pads,front and rear,new intermediate tyres,new plastics,just taxed and has a green book. Came with a spare rear road tyre,I brought via TV Classifieds from a nice chap.

All it really needs is the fork gaiters replaced,sounds good,I agree with Papa about the looks etc.

I'm 6'1'' and over 18stone,so it's like two up for a lot of people!.

I've only done 40 kilometres on it,being a Cross could maybe do with another gear or different sprockets,but it's not a roadster.

Cheers

Edited October 5, 2015 by MAZ3

[MAZ3]

[speedtripler]

Lifan, the worlds largest bike maker, manufactures the 200cc crossdressers in Thailand.

People who have actually owned and ridden these seem well pleased, and find them a good value.

Proven engine.

Basic technology.

Easy to deal with.

Get some Lock-tight.

1/3 the price of a CRF250M

Much more than 1/3 the bike.

But some people are stuck in their groove, like a snakes belly in a wagon rut.

Get a 2nd hand crf or klx

Cost effective and still Japanese reliable

[AllanB]

Are all these Lifans fitted with a pushrod engine? I read on other forums there are other configurations, shorter stroke and OHC engines?

By all accounts the original pushrod engines are the best, most think bulletproof and a little less bhp, but with a bit more low rpm torque.

Oh and Maz how much were the intermediate tyres?

"Get a 2nd hand crf or klx
Cost effective and still Japanese reliable ..!.. You will still pay 100k baht for good one that hasn't been ragged, they are complicated and judging by the CB300s, not that reliable. Have scoured the internet trying to find someone with a 200gy gripe, can't find much at all.

Edited October 7, 2015 by AllanB

[thaiguzzi]

ImageUploadedByThaivisa Connect1444055048.655010.jpg

Nice deal.

[MAZ3]

Are all these Lifans fitted with a pushrod engine? I read on other forums there are other configurations, shorter stroke and OHC engines?

By all accounts the original pushrod engines are the best, most think bulletproof and a little less bhp, but with a bit more low rpm torque.

Oh and Maz how much were the intermediate tyres?

"Get a 2nd hand crf or klx

Cost effective and still Japanese reliable ..!.. You will still pay 100k baht for good one that hasn't been ragged, they are complicated and judging by the CB300s, not that reliable. Have scoured the internet trying to find someone with a 200gy gripe, can't find much at all.

The tyres were already fitted,but might be able to ask.

He brought a CRF250L for 95,000,better bike?.

Yes of course,but nearly 5 times better?.