SOLVED - Scooter pricing

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greginisn
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SOLVED - Scooter pricing

Post by greginisn »

I have located a new 2013 50cc Lemonhead, the dealer wants a bit over $2000 out the door. Is that a fair price to me? It seems a bit much. Especially since I live almost 500 miles away and still have to pay for shipping to my area?

Thanks, Greg
Last edited by greginisn on Sun Feb 04, 2018 10:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
luckyscroller788
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Post by luckyscroller788 »

Id say yes, its way overpriced! I don't think its really one that should be considered as a collectors item, especially if you want one to ride, and not to just look at. By me, my dealer is selling new 2017 2018 buddy 50s and roughhouses for $1699. A new 2013 should have new rubber put on it as them tires are probably deteriorating from age and sitting.
skipper20
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Re: Scooter pricing

Post by skipper20 »

greginisn wrote:I have located a new 2013 50cc Lemonhead, the dealer wants a bit over $2000 out the door. Is that a fair price to me? It seems a bit much. Especially since I live almost 500 miles away and still have to pay for shipping to my area?

Thanks, Greg
Think bigger. Think 125cc or more. A bit over $2000 will buy you a LOT more than a 50cc scoot. Check your local Craig's List ads. If you shell out $2000+ for a 50cc scoot and decide you want to go faster than 35 mph, you'll be lucky to get half your original purchase price back.

Bill in Seattle but wintering in Tucson
'15 170i Hooligan (AZ scoot)
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Dooglas
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Post by Dooglas »

I'm with Bill. Unless there is really some reason why it has to be a 50, the 125 is the sweet spot in the Buddy line-up and a heck of a scooter for the money.
KooK
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Post by KooK »

I own a 50cc roughhouse. I agree. 2k is too much for anything used. And i also own a vino 125. That little extra make a huge drivability difference. My scooters are mostly commute to work through New Orleans. No speed limits over 35. But wirh the vino I can go on some bigger roads to make it easier to get around. If you need drivability in traffic. A 50 more than likely won't live up to its expectations. Look for a 125 and have peace of mind. And make no mistake. I like my roughhouse more than the vino, but drivability, the 125 wins!
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sc00ter
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Post by sc00ter »

Dealers always ask high to begin with and seem to think they can get more for something considered "rare". I would look local and see what you can find unless you really want a Lemon Head. I ride both my 200 Burgman and 50cc 2-stroke Zuma on a regular basis and both have their strong and weak spots.
greginisn
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Post by greginisn »

Thanks guys for all your input. I will not be buying that scooter. I'll be calling the Buddy thing off and ride what I have now.

I understand how you feel about the 50cc scooters but in my little town I can get everywhere I need and want to go on my current 50cc scooter. My little town really still is little and the traffic tends to maintain the posted speed limits which is a real good thing. I have no need or reason to go faster than 35mph and my scoot will do that now.

I hesitate to write this but I am over 70 yrs old and don't want to hassle with getting the "real scooter" license. So if and when my 50cc cashes out I may rethink this a bit but until then, Thanks again for all your responses. You made good points but my situation is probably a little different than you might have expected.

Greg
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Post by sc00ter »

I have never figured out why everyone seems to tout the "No replacement for displacement" argument when a 50cc is mentioned. My commute is 16 miles each way on a 45 mph road, and I do just fine when I take the 50cc stock Zuma. I hits 38 mph max. Yes, I have to be extra aware of my surroundings but I enjoy riding it just the way it is.
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Christophers
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Post by Christophers »

sc00ter wrote:I have never figured out why everyone seems to tout the "No replacement for displacement" argument when a 50cc is mentioned. My commute is 16 miles each way on a 45 mph road, and I do just fine when I take the 50cc stock Zuma. I hits 38 mph max. Yes, I have to be extra aware of my surroundings but I enjoy riding it just the way it is.
I think people mention it because it's true - and for anyone just getting into scooting it's a good thing to hear.

Yes, in some cases a 50 cc scooter is a totally sufficient, a totally viable, and a completely fun way to get around, BUT it's a lot easier to say that when one also has a larger scooter as an alternative for when the 50 cc just isn't enough. For those people only relying on only one scooter, and in the majority of circumstance, it probably is better to go for a larger displacement scooter, even more so if that one scooter is one's sole means of transportation.

My first scooter was Honda Metro (a 50 cc scooter). It was woefully under powered for urban commuting in Los Angeles. Throw in even a slight hill and one became an obstacle hoping that the speeding drivers behind would look up from their phones in time to notice me before hitting me. With a Buddy 125 all of those worries completely disappeared. Night and day.

In California a 50 cc scooter requires a full MC endorsement just the same as a 125 cc Buddy 125 or a 1800 cc Harley-Davidson, so in some circumstances there really are no reasons to go for a 50 cc scooter when an almost identically sized 125 cc option is available instead. I think this is one of the reasons that this is brought up, and I am glad that it was brought up so often and repeatedly mentioned here when I was getting into scooting. It was encouragement and advice that brought me to a good solution quickly.
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vintagegarage
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Post by vintagegarage »

I guess I second what Christophers is saying. I have several 50 CC Honda scooters, and prefer driving them when conditions are right, because they are light and fun, and you can zip around at WOT. In my small town, I can get to Winn Dixie, CVS, Walgreens, three major Banks, the swimming pool supply store, the Dollar Tree, O-Reilly's Auto Parts, my insurance company, a Great Clips, a Publix, a Burger King, and a few other places all on streets with a speed limit of 30 or less. I have one 45 mph road in town, but I can cross it at a stop light, and then access the stores on the other side of the road by other 25-30 mph back streets that parallel the main highway. There is generally no need to use the main highway.

I can take a 35 mph scooter relatively safely to Walmart if I want to. It is three miles away down the 45 mph four lane highway. The highway is not limited access, and has two lanes in each direction, so people can pass me fairly easily if they want. However, frankly, I am in the way when I do this, and it isn't being a very good citizen. Same for when I want to go to the scooter dealer, McDonalds, or Advance Auto parts, and other stores. For those trips, I use a 125 cc or larger scooter, not so much to be safer for me, but to be more polite to my neighbors.

In Florida, you can register and ride a 50 cc scooter with just a regular drivers license.. no motorcycle endorsement is required. Getting a motorcycle endorsement in Florida is very well done, and low pressure. For around $150, you take a class at the technical college in town, or most any of the motorcycle dealers. The class supplies the motorcycles, and some have scooters you can use instead if you don't want to learn to shift gears. The class consists of many hours of classroom training, and then many hours of practice riding. At the college, classroom is done Thursday night, and the riding is done the following Saturday and Sunday, pretty much all both days. Some of the motorcycle dealers combine the classroom and riding into two long days, Saturday and Sunday. The classes are fun as there are other students like you in class. At the end of the class, you are given a certificate that you take to the DMV (called the Tax Assessor in Florida), and for about $30, they take a new photo, and print you a new drivers license with a motorcycle endorsement. You don't have to take a driving test in front of an officer at the DMV, as the class certificate is all that is required, so by the time you go to the DMV, you have already passed the class, and it just comes down to paying the fee to reprint your licence... no pressure at the DMV.
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DeeDee
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Post by DeeDee »

I have a Vespa GT200, Burgman 400, and a 50cc Yamaha C3. If I had to keep one, it would be the 50cc. It can do an honest 45mph on a long straight away, and costs $5.85 every 3 years to license. It gets 115 miles to the gallon and can get anywhere I want to go. I don't see much of a challenge getting places on a 35 horsepower scooter. It's fun to be sure, but not much of a challenge getting places on my Burgman which is way faster than a Honda Civic.
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vintagegarage
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Post by vintagegarage »

I can get anywhere I want to on a 50cc scooter too, and with reasonable safety to me and others. My point however, was that if you are going less than traffic speed and are in the way, you aren't treating others as you would like to be treated. IMO
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Christophers
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Post by Christophers »

vintagegarage wrote:I can get anywhere I want to on a 50cc scooter too, and with reasonable safety to me and others. My point however, was that if you are going less than traffic speed and are in the way, you aren't treating others as you would like to be treated. IMO
I completely agree. I didn't elaborate earlier, but in addition to being a traffic hazard to other drivers by traveling at less than half the speed of traffic on the stretch of Wilshire that traverses the Los Angeles (Beverly Hills) Country Club (not to mention putting myself in a hazardous situation) when I was commuting by 50 cc scooter (be it when I was doing so by Honda Metro or by Buddy 50), vintage has it absolutely correct that in situations like these it can actually be kind of rude to impede the normal flow of traffic in an already congested thoroughfare just because I want to ride a 50 cc scooter. (In my case I never wanted to do this commute by 50 cc scooter, but was only doing so because a larger displacement scooter was not available to me.) In other situations the 50 cc can be extraordinarily fun - putting around the local neighborhoods, etc. - even more enjoyable, in a way, than riding a larger displacement scoot on the same roads.

Yes, one can get just about anywhere on a 50cc scooter, but back to original point, it is worth pointing out to people that a 50cc scooter, in a lot of cases, is not always the best choice. Yes, it can be a guilty pleasure, but it is not always the best tool for the job, and it is often not, especially if one is relying on it as one's sole means of transportation.

Also, here is California, not only does one requires a full M1 motorcycle license to ride a 50 cc scooter, but the DMV registration fees are equivalent to any other bike. I think I paid $89 last time to register my 50 cc scoot for a single year. :(
If this is your first day with PSYCHO, you have to ride.
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