170i Question

HK-47 · Post by **HK-47** » Mon Feb 06, 2012 6:41 pm

Hi everyone. I’m still a newbie in the market for a first scooter. I’m considering the 170i, but I had a few questions. Hopefully it’s not a beat subject. I tried doing a search of the forums but didn’t find what I was looking for.

I’d like to use the scooter for cruising mostly, but I would also like to commute to the train station once and a while during the week.

My question is how much power does the 170i have? My only prior scooter experience is with the rentals you find at the shore, which don’t seem like the greatest pieces of machinery.

My commute would be about 7 miles or so of half back roads with 2 main roads, but with 3 or 4 large/long hills. None of it involves highways and the speed limits are from 25-50. Is the 170 a good choice for something like this or do I need to look for something bigger? I didn’t want to get too big of a scooter, especially with just starting out, but I didn’t want to be holding up traffic either.

Size might be an issue too. I'm about 200 lbs, but with a 28" inseam. I can sit comfortably on the Buddy, but I think the Blur might be too tall. Not 100% sure though since the local dealer didnt have any Blurs in stock.

Any helpful info is appreciated.

Thanks!

Raiderfn311 · Post by **Raiderfn311** » Mon Feb 06, 2012 7:12 pm

The 170i can take care of your needs. Have you ridden a scooter before?

Uncle Groucho · Post by **Uncle Groucho** » Mon Feb 06, 2012 7:27 pm

I don't own a 170, but your specs are close to mine. When you add in riding gear, that number only goes up. For your commute, anything from a 125-150 should be more than sufficient to tackle those hills.

I usually do 6 miles each way on a 50cc; yesterday I did a 60 mile round trip on roads zoned 35-55 and lots of hills kept coming up; though I survived and wasn't exactly holding up traffic, I wished I had a 125 or 150 under me.

But from what I recall, the consensus appears to be if you can afford the 170, go for it.

AWinn6889 · Post by **AWinn6889** » Mon Feb 06, 2012 9:25 pm

This is pretty much the kind of commute that I use my 170 for, so you should be just fine. While I am a little bit smaller than you, I still have extra throttle to spare when I am riding down the 55mph hilly back-road to my job... and my scooter isn't fully broken in yet.
It's a great bike, and all three are down right purty.
One more thing... if your commute is only 7 miles, you should definitely look into getting a battery tender, and/or taking a little bit longer route to and from your destination, just because the scooter needs a little bit longer of a trip to fully recharge the battery.

jonlink · Post by **jonlink** » Mon Feb 06, 2012 10:27 pm

As a 170i owner I totally agree with what everyone has said here. Not adding much to the conversation, but I just wanted to back the smart folks up.

HK-47 · Post by **HK-47** » Tue Feb 07, 2012 3:13 am

Well that's great news all around! Thanks for all the input.

quicksilver1983 · Post by **quicksilver1983** » Thu Feb 23, 2012 1:47 am

AWinn6889 wrote:This is pretty much the kind of commute that I use my 170 for, so you should be just fine. While I am a little bit smaller than you, I still have extra throttle to spare when I am riding down the 55mph hilly back-road to my job... and my scooter isn't fully broken in yet.
It's a great bike, and all three are down right purty.
One more thing... if your commute is only 7 miles, you should definitely look into getting a battery tender, and/or taking a little bit longer route to and from your destination, just because the scooter needs a little bit longer of a trip to fully recharge the battery.

You need a battery tender if your commute is under 7 miles? Even if you ride it every day?

viney266 · Post by **viney266** » Thu Feb 23, 2012 2:07 am

170i...Now to pick a color

uncleralph · Post by **uncleralph** » Thu Feb 23, 2012 2:09 am

quicksilver1983 wrote:
You need a battery tender if your commute is under 7 miles? Even if you ride it every day?

I have commuted 1-1/2 miles for the last 4 years. I don't have a battery tender and have not had a battery go dead.

jijifer · Post by **jijifer** » Thu Feb 23, 2012 2:47 am

quicksilver1983 wrote:
AWinn6889 wrote:This is pretty much the kind of commute that I use my 170 for, so you should be just fine. While I am a little bit smaller than you, I still have extra throttle to spare when I am riding down the 55mph hilly back-road to my job... and my scooter isn't fully broken in yet.
It's a great bike, and all three are down right purty.
One more thing... if your commute is only 7 miles, you should definitely look into getting a battery tender, and/or taking a little bit longer route to and from your destination, just because the scooter needs a little bit longer of a trip to fully recharge the battery.
You need a battery tender if your commute is under 7 miles? Even if you ride it every day?

if you warm up your scooter before riding it's not as crucial. My commute is about 6.5 miles. I have my original battery from 2008, 23k miles on it with never a tender. I let it warm up 2-4 mins every time before I ride it. Works for me

PeteH · Post by **PeteH** » Thu Feb 23, 2012 3:56 am

Actually, at idle, even a high idle, you are barely charging your battery. In fact, you could be at a deficit, when you consider your engine electrical load plus your lighting and anything you've got jacked into the 12v socket. It needs to run up at rolling speeds/RPMs to accumulate a good charge.

You could conceivably discharge your battery with an extended idle, depending on your load, idle speed, and the anemic stator. I'd love to hang an ammeter in there to determine the break-even RPM.

A plug-in charger is just insurance for those of us who have weather that actually changes

Slink · Post by **Slink** » Mon Feb 27, 2012 7:46 pm

I commute 55 miles a day on my 170i. and I go over a pretty big hill. I killed my chinese scoot on this hill and finally upgraded to the 170i. I know cruise over the hill at 55!

KABarash · Post by **KABarash** » Tue Feb 28, 2012 1:16 pm

quicksilver1983 wrote:
AWinn6889 wrote: One more thing... if your commute is only 7 miles, you should definitely look into getting a battery tender, and/or taking a little bit longer route to and from your destination, just because the scooter needs a little bit longer of a trip to fully recharge the battery.
You need a battery tender if your commute is under 7 miles? Even if you ride it every day?

I'm no expert but I too would concede to this fact, my daily commute was about 5 miles on country roads and my battery was really showing the strain of not getting a 'proper' charge. I would take a 40-50-100 + mile ride every weekend just for the heck of it to 'AMP' up my battery, now even that doesn't work. A 'tender' would be easy insurance.
FYI: My new job has me commuting 25 miles each way, yesterday morning I needed to kick start, no battery response, yesterday afternoon leaving work the battery did it's thing, go figure,

I still think I need to replace that battery.

Slink · Post by **Slink** » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:55 pm

So I take it back. Save your money and get a 125. Doesn't sound like you need all the 170i can offer. but if you have extra money and feel the need to get the 170i go for it. But truth be told the 125 or 150 is more than enough for what you need.

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