Modern Buddy

I have CONSTANT carburetor issues with my '17 Buddy50. Granted, I don't ride it every day. I probably drive it about once a week. They tell me that the problems occur because I don't ride it enough. They say that I need to at least turn it on 2-3 times a week. Is my scooter really that high maintenance? What about vacations and winter? The girl I talked to in the shop today said, "Oh, you shouldn't need your carb cleaned out again. You must need a new one." At most, my carb is 6 months old. Any tips? I'm not super handy, so I've been afraid to clean it out on my own. I'm really over this and ready to try to DIY if someone can recommend a good instructional YouTube video! I don't expect to drive it much this winter. How do I store it without ruining it? I already have a battery tender. My scooter is currently stored under a cover in my parking lot, but I can keep it in a family member's garage for improved protection from the elements. It's a trade-off, though. If I leave it at someone else's house, I won't be driving it. I'm not going to drive over to my parents' house 3x a week just to drive my scooter, especially when it's cold outside. I love my scooter, but if that's really what is required, I may just sell the thing. Someone please tell me that there is a better way!



Background - I drive a 49cc scooter because my license was medically suspended. For obvious reasons, I take a break from driving my scooter if there's any flare-up that might impair my driving ability (seizure, blood sugar drop, illness, etc). I had surgery last winter, and my health has been steadily improving as they adjust the device they implanted to manage my health. Lord willing, I will get my driver's license back this winter. If I am capable of driving a car, I will definitely choose a car over a scooter every freezing day of winter!

As always, thank you so much for sharing your wisdom and experience! I am incredibly grateful for this community. You have really been a huge help to me on this journey of scooter ownership!

Questions commence:

What issues are you having with the carburetor?
Are you running regular, or premium gas?
Any additives in the gas tank?

The quickest I've heard of gas gumming up a carb is a about a month. They change the formulation from season-to-season here in Virginia (Welcome, fellow Virginian) so it varies. Still, it doesn't go bad in a week. Something else is up. Stanza above is asking some questions to try to determine what the symptoms are so we can try to help you figure it out.

Carbs aren't magic, but they're not stone-ax simple either, especially to the uninitiated. Here's a diagram of the internals of your carb so you can get a feeling for what you're looking at. There are a lot of common problems. Jets get clogged when trash from the gas tank gets in the float bowl, same deal if said trash clogs up an internal "circuit" in the body of the carb, the CV diaphragm tears or isn't seated properly on initial assembly, or the carb isn't seated to the manifold properly so that air is leaking in, the electric enricher goes south, and so on...

My 98 Zuma 50cc will sit for up to 5 weeks without being started or anything and it always starts with no issues. I suspect something is either out of adjustment or there is some "trash" in the carb. My friend has a Buddy 50 (early small headlight model) and hers sits for months without being started and has never failed to start when needed. I have a feeling I know were you got the Buddy and who you talked to. They have told me some crazy stupid stuff to. What exactly is the Buddy doing? Oh, and welcome fellow VA resident!

On a two stroke ethanol is your enemy. If you don't ride often add a little anti-ethanol treatment such as seafoam or stabil to each tank.

Using Ethanol-Free fuel only will solve all carburetor issues.

Problem is you don't seem to have a place to store a gas can. Personally I keep three 5 gallon cans and a 2.5 gallon can with the fancy nozzle for filling bikes. Everything I own except my trucks and Miata get ethanol-free fuel. As long as the cans seal very well, Ethanol Free gas has a long shelf life. Months before it's even a concern.

I was sold after my old edger started after sitting for 4 years with ethanol-free gas. All the fuel had evaporated and no gunk was left behind.

How often are you driving 100 miles or enough to empty the tank? every 2 months it would be good to run all the fuel out and put fresh in.