Yet the B1 will remain a part of his life and a feature of Tainan’s streets, as Liao said he plans to keep repairing loyal customers’ bikes out of a small workshop. “If I were still young, I could take out a loan and work for a while longer, but I should learn to say goodbye.” He was reluctant to close Lian Cheng after so long, but to Liao, it was time to part ways. Often considered the best of the factory turbocharged bikes fastest in the quarter mile, highest top speed, most sporting, best real world power the Kawasaki 750 Turbo was as rare as the rest of the puffers. Now the eldest is a medical researcher while the other is an engineer.Īfter 33 years in business, Liao last month decided to close his shop after the landlord sold the property and the rent went up. This was old school meets high tech, and the confluence was as awesome as could be expected. When Liao was just starting his business and his youngest son was born, the family of four was living in the cramped and leaky second story of his shop.Īt that time, his greatest point of pride were his blackened hands that were able to raise two sons. Still, there are many young motorcycle enthusiasts who come through his shop to keep him young, he joked. Many subcontractors still produce B1 parts, although Liao said that the industry is not what it used to be. The B1 has a simple and sturdy design that can last for a long time with regular maintenance, which is the reason many gas companies still use them to make deliveries, he said.Īlthough production of the B1 was discontinued in 2003, it remains in wide use for its practicality, Liao said. Just like the motorbikes he constructs from scratch, Liao built his business with next to nothing, using only NT$3,000 in capital to start Lian Cheng Motorcycle (連成機車行). In 1985, Liao, then 33 years old, redirected his energies to starting his own business. Whenever Kawasaki introduced a new model, Liao was called to Taipei to study the latest electronic systems from Japanese technicians.Ībout a decade later, Liao remembers being told by Yuen Foong that it would soon no longer manufacture Kawasaki products, giving him and other technicians a chance to change course. Just 23 years old at the time and fresh from completing his military service, Liao took a job as an apprentice at a Yuen Foong dealership in Tainan. To facilitate this growth, Kawasaki sent engineers to local dealerships to train mechanics, Liao among them. Recognizable for its slightly tapered fuel tank perched behind its handlebars, egg-shaped indicators flanking a circular headlight and seamless exhaust pipe, the B1 quickly took over as the vehicle of choice for delivery drivers.
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