Modern Buddy

I've acquired a slightly beat up 2018 Buddy 50 and am bringing it back to life. One of the previous owners disconnected all the wiring under the front panel ("windshield") and after sorting that all out, I've discovered it has no horn. But I also know from all my previous scooters that the standard horn goes "meep meep" and really doesn't get attention when you need it most from cars. I've read all the old posts about horns and can see at least back then everyone was all about upgrading to the Stebel Nautilus, but I'm not crazy about the extra installation steps. Can I get away with say a Stebel Magnum or the equivalent without the extra wiring and fuse? I want a better horn, but I have a lot of other stuff to tackle on this Buddy 50 without adding more stuff to the list. Thanks in advance!

I replaced the stock horn in my Buddy 50 a year ago with this one, and it works well without additional wiring:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000DINKPQ

This is the low-pitch version, which seems to be more popular as a stand-alone. A high pitch version exists too. Some install both, but it won’t work reliably on the stock wiring - there’s too much voltage drop, and the switch isn’t designed for it either. It isn’t too difficult to run a relay and an extra set of wires from the battery, though. I have a Stebel compressor horn on my Vespa run this way, and it is LOUD.

The horn tenders shows is similar to the stock horn on a roughhouse or 170i. Pretty damn loud w/ no need for a relay. I have that horn on both my scooters now. Makes a big difference.

tenders wrote: ↑Mon Mar 08, 2021 1:12 pm I replaced the stock horn in my Buddy 50 a year ago with this one, and it works well without additional wiring:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000DINKPQ

This is the low-pitch version, which seems to be more popular as a stand-alone. A high pitch version exists too. Some install both, but it won’t work reliably on the stock wiring - there’s too much voltage drop, and the switch isn’t designed for it either. It isn’t too difficult to run a relay and an extra set of wires from the battery, though. I have a Stebel compressor horn on my Vespa run this way, and it is LOUD.

That's exactly what I wanted to know, thanks! I've seen good reviews for that horn, but never for something like a Buddy 50 and even scooter parts websites generally don't include anything like that -- they usually jump straight from the basic horn to the Stebel Nautilus. And I've read a few places Stebel quality control is lacking, so I'm happy to use a different manufacturer.

DeeDee wrote: ↑Mon Mar 08, 2021 9:49 pm The horn tenders shows is similar to the stock horn on a roughhouse or 170i. Pretty damn loud w/ no need for a relay. I have that horn on both my scooters now. Makes a big difference.

Very encouraging info, thanks!