Lifan LF200-2D New Lifan Sport Bike.

[forchetto]

That looks superb. However Honda have just released their fuel injected CBF125 with a very atractive price. I know that this Lifan is a 200 but they'll have to release a sleeved-down 125 version to compete in markets where there's a 125 cc learner limit.
They'll have to be very careful with the pricing otherwise people won't think twice and go for the Honda.
In the UK market, for example, the Honda sells for only £370 more than something like current model LIFAN 125 with its Jurassic state of engine development, poor importer and dealer back-up, worthless guarantees and so on.

I also notice that the LIFAN is still carburetted. This will not pass European legislation. The Chinese will have to pull their finger out and introduce fuel injection and 3-way catalytic converters soon or they'll wave goodbye to the considerable EU market.

A similar thing happened years ago with Russian LADA cars. They were simply unable to reduce emissions levels and had to withdraw from the western European market alltogether. We're not talking about a backdoor enterprise, but with a massive company that, at the time, employed over 137.000 people and not one of them could get their engines updated to comply with coming regulations. But that's Communism for you.

I fear many Chinese makers might suffer the same fate. At the moment only Jialing with their JH600 (using European technology) have injection systems. Regal Raptor have at least one model (the DD250E-9BF) on the market with injection, but apart from those honourable exceptions there's nothing else coming as far as I can see.
Over the border, Kymco and Hyosung in South Korea, have had fuel-injected bikes out for quite some time. The Indians are introducing an updated engine with injection in their Royal Enfields. They both move quicker than the Chinese dinosaurs.

There seems to be light at the end of the tunnel with US help in the shape of Electrojet, a Brighton-based company that has invented an economical fuel injection system that they're hoping to sell to the Chinese for their motorcycles. Read all about it here:

http://abclocal.go.com/wjrt/story?se...cal&id=6398722

And here, where it says that DAYANG have already adopted this American device:

http://www.reuters.com/article/press...008+BW20080811