Getting a scooter for the first time. This isn’t my area of knowledge. Anyone have any suggestions, suggested reading, ect?
Basically what I’m looking for in order of importance:
Safety\handling, I really don’t wanna wipe out! ouch, possibly morto
Fuel economy, that’s the whole point of getting a scooter, hoping for 60 mpg atleast.
Reliability, don’t wanna end up walking the thing 500 miles away from home.
Speed, I can get a motorcycle license, so over 30 mph is okay and I’ll need to take it on the super highway sometimes. So aiming for 60 mph. In the country back roads where there’s few 18 wheelers I’ll prolly go 30ish cause I’m a chicken about road rash.
Cargo, some kinda trunk that’s water tight I can keep my laptop and school books in.
and in distant 6th, style, if it looks cool and makes other people get one that lowers the cost of gas for us all.
Also is there a good place to find a reputable safety course?
Incorrect, on both counts. Larger scooters, some with engines as large as 500 cc, are perfectly legal on highways, can easily exceed 60 MPH, and generally require a motorcycle license to operate. This, in contrast to small scooters with engines under 50 cc, which either require only a normal driver’s license or no license at all in most jurisdictions–a few do require a motorcycle license for these, as well. Those small scoots are classified as mopeds and aren’t allowed on interstate highways, and there are other restrictions which vary from state to state.
I dunno if it’ll help poor silnus, but I was thinking this one looks pretty good. It says it’s street and highway legal everywhere but California.
Course I’ll prolly try and find it a local dealer. It’s just more comforting to have someone to go gripe at\get support if there’s trouble.
It does require a motorcycle license, but the design looks more suped up scooter then cycle. The price is cheap enough I can jump through a few hoops to get licensed.
One review I read of it said Eagles were generally low quality, so I’m kind of concerned about that.
I’d be very wary of those Chinese-made scooters if I were you. And I do mean all of them, regardless of brand. If you’re spending less than about $2500 for a 125-150 cc scoot, you’re buying a piece of shit. Unless you’re very mechanically-inclined and enjoy working on small engines, you’ll be very disappointed.
Anything that can actually do highway speeds is classified as a motorcycle regardless of how it operates. I technically have a scooter, but it weighs 525 pounds and has a 638cc 2 cylinder engine. Suzuki Burgman 650 with a top speed well over 100mph. For sissies they sell a 400 model.
IMHO anything that can’t easily keep up with traffic is dangerous on the road.
Forget the Chinese scooters. They advertise Honda GY6 engines but they are reverese engineered with shit tolerances. No one and i do mean NO ONE will work on them, parts are impossible to find and I have seen numerous examples of scooters coming off crates with forged DOT paperwork which can’t legally be titled or driven on the street in the US.
Buddy, Kymco, Vespa, Honda, Piaggio are all extremely good brands and will serve you well. I personally think the Kymco People 150 is an excellent starter scooter.
Here’s the most important part: A Sccoter is a Motor Cycle! The ground does not get any softer if you fly off a 150cc Honda or a 1200cc Harley Softtail. Wear a full face helmet, armored jacket, jeans at the minimum, ankle high boots and ALWAYS wear gloves. All The Gear All The Time ATGATT is the mantra. You see morons riding in shorts and flip flops and I shudder.
If I was buying another scooter, I would look for an old Honda Elite 150 or 250 in nice condition.
They were amazing in the day and are incredibly reliable with a good online support community and pretty easy to work on. For instance I rebuilt the engine in my HOnda 150 over the winter having never done anything so complicated in my life helped along only by a service manual.
150cc is about as low as I would go, MAYBE 125cc in a Yamaha Riva but probably not.
I prolly would have thought I was getting a good deal. Ima write those brands and models down and take my (pedal) bike into town and see what they have. I wanna buy local to avoid traps like that, get in writing a guarantee it’s highway legal, and get a mechanic friend to look it over.
The dealership I work at sells chinese made scooters. I wouldn’t have one for free. Nearly all of them don’t run right out of the crate. Most of them have warranty work done on them before they are sold.
We used to sell Aprilia scooters. Like most scooters they are a pain in the ass to work on, but they were way ahead in terms of quality and reliability. I would have bought an Aprilia Scarabeo 50cc scooter back then if I knew gas prices were going to get this high. I still might get one, if I can find one at a good price. Piaggio and Vespa are also good quality Italian scooters.
I am also looking at scooters. I was in one shop in PDX that did not have what I wanted and they recommended the Buddy’s that were in another shop. The owner had no axe to grind and nothing to gain, so I took that as a good sign.
I went ahead and updated my profile. I am in just south of Kalamazoo, MI. Good idea on craigslist! There’s prolly a motorcycle equivalent of auto trader to check too.
There’s a Bajaj on the Flint CL MC page that looks like a nice scoot. They are really reliable and parts can be found EVERYWHERE as they are a clone of the Vespa PX series.
I’m reading up on it, I think I wanna go with a used Kawasaki Ninja 250 if I can find one in my price range. It’s a full blown motorcycle, but reading up on it Michigan provides a training course for $25. Can’t beat that.
The new Yamaha Zuma looks pretty sporty. It gets 123 mpg, and from what I have read is pretty speedy for a 49cc engine- I think it maxes out in the mid to high 50 mph range. It has those bulky knobby tires for better traction and I like the dual headlight. It can ride double and has lots of stoway space under the seat and a cargo rack on back. Looks pretty darn shibby.
I initially was going to write here days ago to tell you to get exactly what you’ve now just mentioned - except you wanted storage space. There is none. You can buy saddlebags for it though. the ones I have cost $100.
I have a Ninja 500 which is much more comfortable at highway speeds than the 250. the 250 is lighter, but the lighter you are, the more you can get blown around on the highway. Be careful though. Even a Ninja 250 can do 100 on the highway.
All the necessities add up though, and they are the things you must absolutely not skimp on. If you want to get a cheapie helmet, etc you might as well stay in your car and off the road. Let me put it this way:
Joe Rocket Jacket: $150.00
Joe Rocket Pants: $150.00
Gloves: $30.00
Helmet (HJC): $100.00
Boots: $100.00
Joe Rocket Bag: $100.00
Total: $630.00
(Not that I like Joe Rocket or anything )
Now you could get away with just a backpack instead of the saddlebags, so you could knock off $100. But that’s still $530 before you even turn the key. Plus the bike, registration, insurance, etc.
If you decide to ride without any of the items listed above, let me know, so I can keep an eye on the obits. I won’t ride to the store down the street without the above items.
I have two sets of gear; one for warm weather and one for cool/rainy, and I’d recommend doing the same. So, add another $300. Now we’re at $930.00 for gear alone.
BWAHAHAHAAHA! The BWS (which is what the Zuma is called everywhere but the U.S.) has a top speed of 65 kmh. Going downhill. I know, because it was the first non-bicycle vehicle I ever bought.
Throwing a passenger on there is quite doable, and won’t affect speed too much unless you’re a) heavy or b) going uphill.
Now it is possible to bore out the engine, or throw some modded pipes on there to increase your top speed, but those mods are generally unlawful unless you have a motorcycle license.
In general, for anyone looking to move to two wheels, go with a 50 cc scoot if you’re planning on staying on city streets. Any of the major brands (Honda, Yamaha, Aprilia) are great to buy used. Personally, I’d buy a new Kymco, but not a used one yet. Avoid chinese stuff because it’ll only cause you grief.
If you want anything bigger (ie highway capable), you need a motorcycle license, and you need real training. MSF is a beginner’s course.
When you do buy one, remember that it is a small motorcycle, not bicycle with an engine, and learn to handle it accordingly. Practice, practice, practice emergency braking and other maneuvers.
Riding with a backpack is tiring, so if you can bungee it to your seat or rack.
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