Motorized Bicycles – Performance Upgrade
You probably have a thing for speed, to have a better performance, or you are just curious about all the fancy gadgets that are out there. We will be digging a bit deeper and investigate some of the other performance upgrades that are available for motorized bikes.
When you are dealing with these simple, Chinese 2-stroke motors, it is great to make changes gradually. You might need to make multiple adjustments so you can achieve your desired results. Let us take for example, increasing compression may require you to increase the intake of fuel. The main purpose of this article is not to talk about the science of motor tuning advanced mechanics, but we will be sharing some thoughts on the common performance upgrades and what you can expect from them.
Sprockets/Gearing
Having to adjust your gear ratio is one of the most effective ways to boost the performance of your motorized bicycle without you needing to tinker with your motor. It does not matter whether you want to go faster or have an easier time tackling the hills, you can just swap out your rear sprocket for a different tooth count. More teeth is equal to more mow end torque, lower top speed. Less teeth is equals to top speed, meaning less torque.
You most probably do not want to sacrifice too much of one for the other, so it is good to be moderate. The standard tooth count is 44, so you should consider staying 6 teeth of that on both ends unless you wish to compensate in other areas.
Expansion Chambers/Performance Exhausts
High Performance/Speed Carburetors
NT Speed Carburetors
These carburetors are basically NT carbs, but with a brass slide with larger cutaways and they can be recognized by a red plastic air filter. These carbs are as close as you will come to “plug and play,” enabling easy adjustments of the slide needle settings. NT carb jet kits are also available for more fine tuning if you need to. You can also get one for around the price of $25.
CNS High-Performance Carburetors
These can be recognized by their handlebar-mounted choke lever, CNS carburetors used to come standard in many motorized bicycle kits about 2012, however, it is nice to see that there are less and less of them in the market.
The purported benefit of a CNS carb is its ability to b fine tuned as well as its ability for increased fuel and air flow. But what you might get is a difficult to fine tune carb, and once they are setup, they usually aren’t user friendly. And for these reasons, it is not recommended as a performance upgrade.
