DF150TKB or MC_D150TKB - Instrument Cluster to MPH

[sscheitel]

ok....so I have owned this reverse trike for about a month now...and thankfully I believe that I got one that was not made on a Friday or Monday. I did the most basic of PDI inspections when I got the bike.
- Tightened up all the bolts, nuts, screws and clips that were visible
- Loctite [Blue] on all
- checked all electrical wiring an made certain that all snapped in.
- the bike came somewhat aligned....not too bad. A little shimmy at 60+ MPH....but not bad for a 150cc rev'ed up and max'ed out bike with a 240 lb fatty on the back.
- So far pretty happy with the investment I made and what I received.
- I read all the comments about scooter depot.us prior to ordering and I knew what I was getting myself in to. BE PATIENT with them...and believe it or not, they were not that bad. I found that Liz in sales and Josh in parts are great to deal with and they can get stuff done!


ok...so the gauge worked on day one....after that.....it stays on E and doesn't move...not even a little...to let me know that power is at least getting to the gauge. I called scooter depot and had them send me another sending unit. I received this unit and unplugged the old sending unit from a connector under the seat. After connecting the new sending unit...no good. could it be a grounding issue?

My real question is....can I swap out the original instrument cluster, that is currently in KM/h for one that is MPH. Jonway uses an identical cluster of instruments on their 150T-2....except that one is in MPH....BUT it does not have the tilting light and sensor on the cluster. Can this simply be popped out and added to the new one?

I called scooter depot and they told me that the bike would need to be re-programmed in order to swap out the instrument cluster....does this sound right?

You can find the replacement speedometer cluster unit in this page:

curtisparts.com/Moped_Web/Moped_Jonway150cc_150T_2_Electric.htm

What is everyones thoughts on this?

I have about 200+ miles on this thing and let me tell you...it is a pisser to drive. I love it.

I plan on doing the Big Guys PDI in the next week or two...hoping that by unconnecting and reconnecting some of the connectors will resolve the issue.

Other than that....the bike is pretty reliable....I will share that it is hard to get at the fuel mixture adjustment and any thoughts on making this easier would be greatly appreciated.

Is there a way for me to align the front end of this bike on my own? Although I don't think it is that far off. I heard balancing these tires is a waste of time and money, from more than one mechanic.

I have been everywhere with it...and folks ask me what I paid for it...I ask them to guess...most say between $8k-$10k

When I tell them t was $2375....Delivered to my front door...they have a hard time believing me.

You do get what you pay for...and it says right on the scooter depot website that the PDI and some maintenance will be necessary throughout the life and ownership of the bike.

I mean...a CAM-AM is $18k to start...Piaggio MP3 is $6500 to start...I paid well below this. So with a little work and friends like the folks on this board.,,,The experience is the same as these other folks as soon as the engine turns on and my feet come off of the ground....except I still have change left over...and I will use some of this money to ensure that the bike is safe...but heck..I enjoy working on the bike as a hobby so to me it is a win/win

[sscheitel]

even though I hooked up a new one that they sent me?

[sscheitel]

I will, however, put the collar with set screw in place now to avoid the common issue that you brought up before. Why now? Whilst I have it all apart

[sscheitel]

another silly question....should there be any play in the throttle grip? I have about 25 degrees of twist that is in play before the cable becomes taught enough to move the throttle lever on the carburetor. Is this normal...or should it be taught where even the slightest twist of the grip has the bike responding? It might be a preference thing, which is fine, I just wanted to see what the consensus of the group is.

[mnfitz]

Apr 11, 2012 23:10:04 GMT -5 sscheitel said:

another silly question....should there be any play in the throttle grip? I have about 25 degrees of twist that is in play before the cable becomes taught enough to move the throttle lever on the carburetor. Is this normal...or should it be taught where even the slightest twist of the grip has the bike responding? It might be a preference thing, which is fine, I just wanted to see what the consensus of the group is.

I had a lot of slack and tighted up the cable a little. It can be done on either end of my throttle cable.

[mnfitz]

I aligned mine by having a friend measure between the groove in the middle of the front tires at it's furthest forward and backwards points WITH ME ON IT. I set it to be the same front and back (0 toe-in). You'll notice if you get on and off the trike, the toe-in changes slightly.
Make sure to adjust both sides equally (turn the tie rods the same amount).

[cliftonc]

The speedo on mine is in mph, but is so far off true reading that it doesn't really matter. I ended up compensating by taking the portable GPS and marking the dial at 30, 40, and 50 mph by the GPS, then putting little 1/2" pieces of 1/16" pinstriping tape on those marks, and I use that to judge the speed. Most of the roads I ride on here in town have speed limits of 25, 30, 40 or 45 mph, so that gives me what I need.
Oddly enough, the odo is dead on. One mile indicated is 1.02 mile on the GPS! ;D
I don't know they would mean by programming - as far as I can tell, they all use the same drive puck for the speedo drive. Maybe it is the odo they are talking about.

[mnfitz]

My chinometer was so far off it was reading 60 when I was only going 45. The nut that drives the cable has since messed itself up by unscrewing and stripping out the threads, so I now use a bike speedometer that is very accurate now that I have the right wheel size entered. Mine tops out at 51.5 mph at over 8,000 rpm so that's about the highest I can go without doing something to change the gearing.
By the way, mine wants to start to shimmy at 45 (actual).
I understand it's common for the odometer to be accurate while the speedometer is wildly optimistic. They drive off the same cable, but the odometer is geared to it while the speedometer uses an inductive cup/magnet arrangement that is not very accurate.