Scooter Rookie

[Tape rocket]

Hey all,

So I just bought a used 2007 Buddy Italia. I've always wanted a scooter but am starting at ground zero in terms of knowledge and experience. The Buddy only has 800 miles on it and the previous owner said he changed the oil every year. What other maintenance is necessary at this stage? The bike seems to start and ride fine. Should I bring it in for some type of tune up and how much would be a reasonable cost for said service? The owner hasn't ever had the bike serviced and did the oil changes himself.

Sorry for the rookie nature of these questions and any guidance would be much appreciated!

[Throwback7R]

with only 800 miles and if it "starts and runs" than i think your good until next year or at least until 2000 miles.

the only other thing i would check is the tires.. if they are in good shape and inflated correctly.

[tortoise]

Sorry for the rookie nature of these questions and any guidance would be much appreciated!

So many queries are just "too lazy to search" slackers exploiting others!
service manual
video guidelines

[MrChet]

I change all the fluids on any used bike I bring home no matter what the PO says was done. Did the PO change the tranny fluid every year too?

If it never had the 600 mile checkup, I'd also do the items in the video:

Check belt and rollers
Check valve clearance

A 2007 would also be due for a brake fluid flush.

[Dooglas]

One oil change in 6 years would be less than I do with my bikes regardless of mileage. I would do a complete minor service at this point if it were mine. Six years is also a long time on the original tires and battery. Examine the tires closely for checking and don't be surprised if the battery seems weak.

I've always wanted a scooter but am starting at ground zero in terms of knowledge and experience.

If you have not done so already, taking the Basic MSF course would be an excellent way to jumpstart your knowledge as a rider.

[LunaP]

One oil change in 6 years would be less than I do with my bikes regardless of mileage. I would do a complete minor service at this point if it were mine. Six years is also a long time on the original tires and battery. Examine the tires closely for checking and don't be surprised if the battery seems weak.

I've always wanted a scooter but am starting at ground zero in terms of knowledge and experience.

If you have not done so already, taking the Basic MSF course would be an excellent way to jumpstart your knowledge as a rider.

+1

If you're interested, I recently took the course and gave a detailed writeup here.

Get gear. Gear can be expensive, but scour the interent for bargains if you feel it would be prudent. My personal everyday bare minimum: an armored and/or tear resistant jacket of some kind, knee/shin guards (MX guards can be found as cheaply as 15 bucks for a pair), a helmet that's at least 3/4, and full-fingered gloves with some kind of knuckle protection; along with long pants and shoes that aren't flip flops.

I know gear can be a touchy subject and spark debates, but that's my personal opinion; it doesn't have to be anybody else's... but in the interest of preventing what happened to me from happening to anybody else, I tout the value of gear to anybody that will put up with it (especially new riders open to advice). I've learned the hard way.

Lastly... they will teach you differently in the MSF course if you take it, but I learned a really good trick that I still use today; that is to only pull your front brake with 2 fingers. Getting into that habit helps keep people, especially new riders, from panicking and making the rookie mistake of grabbing a handful of front brake and making yourself go down... it's saved me before. Also, just research target fixation and be aware of what it is.

That being said, congrats on the new Buddy and happy riding!

[TVB]

So many queries are just "too lazy to search" slackers exploiting others!

No one's forcing you to play Sourpuss Welcoming Committee, you know.

[LunaP]

So many queries are just "too lazy to search" slackers exploiting others!

No one's forcing you to play Sourpuss Welcoming Committee, you know.

+1

Also, I have always found our search function really inefficient... just saying.

[jmazza]

Sorry for the rookie nature of these questions and any guidance would be much appreciated!

So many queries are just "too lazy to search" slackers exploiting others!
service manual
video guidelines

Excuse tortoise. He acts that way with everyone and yet for some reason we let him stay around.

Great find on the '07 Italia and welcome to Modern Buddy!

[CapnK]

Welcome aboard, Tape Rocket! I am fairly new myself, you are going to love scootin', and the folks here are great.

Luna - is there a particular thread with "your story" in it? (Edit: Never mind, see below. )

Regarding anemic forum software search capabilities, it is possible to use Google in a site-specific manner to aid a search, like so:

Code: Select all

site:modernbuddy.com search_terms_here

For example, double-checking my code before posting, I just used:

Code: Select all

site:modernbuddy.com lunap crash

and found this thread: LunaP crash relief finally online. which right at the top had a link in it to Lokky's post about the crash Luna was in, thereby answering my own question almost before it was asked by trying to share a tip...

What a recursive post *this* has been.

[LunaP]

Welcome aboard, Tape Rocket! I am fairly new myself, you are going to love scootin', and the folks here are great.

Luna - is there a particular thread with "your story" in it? (Edit: Never mind, see below. )

Regarding anemic forum software search capabilities, it is possible to use Google in a site-specific manner to aid a search, like so:

Code: Select all

site:modernbuddy.com search_terms_here

For example, double-checking my code before posting, I just used:

Code: Select all

site:modernbuddy.com lunap crash

and found this thread: LunaP crash relief finally online. which right at the top had a link in it to Lokky's post about the crash Luna was in, thereby answering my own question almost before it was asked by trying to share a tip...

What a recursive post *this* has been.

Hey, that's pretty neato! Thanks!
Yeah, I have tried to find my own thread that I posted after my settlement came through with all the details and stuff, and the search through a fit at me, I ended up going back manually through all the forum pages to find it (and have bookmarked it so I never have to again). Of course, before responding to a thread earlier today, I searched 'top case'... and my thread was on the first page of results

[PeteH]

Multi-word searches using MB's searcher do indeed work, but you have to put 'AND' between the words, otherwise it treats it like 'OR' and you get way too many returns.

The Google method is nice and consistent, and it applies some intelligence to the returned results.

[ericalm]

We actually have search tips in our Modern Buddy & Forum Help FAQ:
topic10748.html

tortoise, go read the Posting Guidelines, lay off the caffeine and chill out. Why waste energy behaving like a jerk?

[chloefpuff]

^fear the mighty fist of Eric, almighty administrator!

[Tape rocket]

Thanks for all the genuinely helpful and friendly responses. After doing some more research, I'm planning on doing an oil and gear oil change, oil and air filter change, and spark plug and magnetic oil cap swap to ensure that I'm starting off solid!

Now for a name, I was thinking Ramis...