Poor Roads - Bigger Wheels and Tires?

skipper20 · Post by **skipper20** » Fri Feb 05, 2016 10:25 pm

The side roads and some of the main roads in the northwest Tucson area I'm staying in this winter are long overdue for repaving. My 2012 Buddy 170i Italia with its small 10" wheels and tires gives me bone jarring shocks every time I'm on the road what with all the uneven and cracked pavement. I'm wondering if my Hooligan with its larger 12" wheels and tires plus dual rear shocks would give me a better ride. I'm back home in Seattle for 2 weeks and will be going back south later this month. My Hooligan is my Seattle scooter but I'm thinking I might take it south with me to try out those bumpy roads. Do any of you think it might make for a more comfortable ride? I'd hate to take it all the way down there and find there's no difference in riding quality. TIA,

Bill in Seattle
'12 170i Italia (AZ scoot)
'14 170i Hooligan

avescoots1134 · Post by **avescoots1134** » Sat Feb 06, 2016 3:31 pm

It rides significantly better over rough roads than a Buddy, yeah.

sc00ter · Post by **sc00ter** » Sat Feb 06, 2016 6:55 pm

I would think so also. Bigger wheels and dual shocks are a plus on bad roads.

az_slynch · Post by **az_slynch** » Sat Feb 06, 2016 8:40 pm

skipper20 wrote:The side roads and some of the main roads in the northwest Tucson area I'm staying in this winter are long overdue for repaving. My 2012 Buddy 170i Italia with its small 10" wheels and tires gives me bone jarring shocks every time I'm on the road what with all the uneven and cracked pavement. I'm wondering if my Hooligan with its larger 12" wheels and tires plus dual rear shocks would give me a better ride. I'm back home in Seattle for 2 weeks and will be going back south later this month. My Hooligan is my Seattle scooter but I'm thinking I might take it south with me to try out those bumpy roads. Do any of you think it might make for a more comfortable ride? I'd hate to take it all the way down there and find there's no difference in riding quality. TIA,

Bill in Seattle
'12 170i Italia (AZ scoot)
'14 170i Hooligan

Bill,

Are you up in the Marana / Oro Valley area, or are you in the Foothills? The city has been working on repairing some of the worst roads in town over the last year or so, but areas on the north side of the Rillito are county roads and some of them are flat-out atrocious.

Rather than swapping out the bike, consider taking your Buddy in and replacing the fork oil with some 10W or 15W oil. I had the Yager's replaced after the factory stuff was foaming on really bad roads; handles the rough stuff much better. Considering a full Bitubo suspension swap later this year. For the rear, if it's an adjustable shock, firm it up a notch so it won't bottom out so badly.

Scooterworks also has some beefier suspension bits for the Buddy.

Also, here's a good thread on the suspension.

Berner · Post by **Berner** » Sat Feb 06, 2016 10:58 pm

skipper20 wrote:I'm wondering if my Hooligan with its larger 12" wheels and tires plus dual rear shocks would give me a better ride.

Having owned both a Blackjack and a Hooligan in Chicago, with its uneven roads, potholes, railroad tracks, metal mesh bridges, and high winds, I can say for certain that the Hooligan is noticeably more stable and handles road hazards better than the Buddy-variants.

skipper20 · Post by **skipper20** » Sun Feb 07, 2016 12:50 am

az_slynch wrote:
skipper20 wrote:The side roads and some of the main roads in the northwest Tucson area I'm staying in this winter are long overdue for repaving. My 2012 Buddy 170i Italia with its small 10" wheels and tires gives me bone jarring shocks every time I'm on the road what with all the uneven and cracked pavement. I'm wondering if my Hooligan with its larger 12" wheels and tires plus dual rear shocks would give me a better ride. I'm back home in Seattle for 2 weeks and will be going back south later this month. My Hooligan is my Seattle scooter but I'm thinking I might take it south with me to try out those bumpy roads. Do any of you think it might make for a more comfortable ride? I'd hate to take it all the way down there and find there's no difference in riding quality. TIA,

Bill in Seattle
'12 170i Italia (AZ scoot)
'14 170i Hooligan
Bill,

Are you up in the Marana / Oro Valley area, or are you in the Foothills? The city has been working on repairing some of the worst roads in town over the last year or so, but areas on the north side of the Rillito are county roads and some of them are flat-out atrocious.

Rather than swapping out the bike, consider taking your Buddy in and replacing the fork oil with some 10W or 15W oil. I had the Yager's replaced after the factory stuff was foaming on really bad roads; handles the rough stuff much better. Considering a full Bitubo suspension swap later this year. For the rear, if it's an adjustable shock, firm it up a notch so it won't bottom out so badly.

Scooterworks also has some [url=http://www.scooterworks.com/ncy-pages-

Also, here's a good thread on the suspension.

You guessed it. I'm just a bit south of the Oro Valley city limits and west of the corner of LaCholla and Overton. They've been working on Overton east to La Canada so when they're finished with that stretch of road that may be my salvation. In the meantime, thanks for the tips. When I get back, I'll scoot down to Scoot Over and find out about that fork oil replacement. Actually, I really shouldn't be complaining. I'm able to ride my Buddy during the middle of winter here in Arizona whereas many of the Buddy forum members have their scoots stored for the winter and can only dream about riding. Hurray for Arizona!

Bill in Seattle but wintering in Tucson

thumper650 · Post by **thumper650** » Sun Feb 07, 2016 5:43 am

I sold my Buddy 170I because it handled bumps like a shopping cart.

My Kymco ag 50, and my friend's Roughhouse handle the bumps way better.

skipper20 · Post by **skipper20** » Sun Feb 07, 2016 4:43 pm

thumper650 wrote:I sold my Buddy 170I because it rode handled bumps like a shopping cart.

My Kymco ag 50, and my friend's Roughhouse handle the bumps way better.

Thank you for all of your inputs. My "closet" scooter is a 2013 Kymco Like 200i. I keep it at my family's summer home on the Salish Sea here in WA state. With it's bigger 12" wheels and tires. disc brakes front and rear, dual rear shocks and bullet-proof 163cc EFI engine, it definitely trumps the Buddy 170i. In fact, it's much closer to a Hooligan in specs and ride quality. I'll probably take it down to Tucson and give it a run at the bumpy roads. Assuming it works out, it will stay there and I'll bring the Italia 170i back and stow it at the summer home. Thanks again for all of your comments and inputs. Ride safe!

Bill in Seattle but currently wintering in Tucson
'12 170i Italia (AZ scoot)
'14 170i Hooligan
'

kmrcstintn · Post by **kmrcstintn** » Sat Feb 13, 2016 2:35 am

I have a shitload of bad roads where I ride...

bent the front wheel on a Buddy 125 a few years ago after hitting a drainage grate that was @ 3" below the road surface in the middle of an intersection; hit a dip in another town and the topcase came flying off...something in the locking mechanism bent and allowed the case to come loose;

things were a bit better on a Stella 2T that I owned for a short while but always found the bigger wheels/tires on my motorcycles to be more stable and can take more jarring without losing control or damage...

even though I miss the convenience of a scooter I am glad to have motorcycles for the shitty roads in my area...

wheelbender6 · Post by **wheelbender6** » Sat Feb 13, 2016 5:06 pm

The small wheels on the Buddy make it affordable and easy to park in a small space and keep the seat height low. I consider the Buddy's performance on rough roads to be a challenge that helps break up the monotony of long commutes (I have a lot of off-road motorcycle experience, though). If you must regularly ride rough roads, get something with bigger wheels.

skipper20 · Post by **skipper20** » Sat Feb 13, 2016 5:43 pm

wheelbender6 wrote:The small wheels on the Buddy make it affordable and easy to park in a small space and keep the seat height low. I consider the Buddy's performance on rough roads to be a challenge that helps break up the monotony of long commutes (I have a lot of off-road motorcycle experience, though). If you must regularly ride rough roads, get something with bigger wheels.

My thoughts exactly. That's why my 2013 Kymco Like 200i with its 12" wheels and tires will be strapped to the back of my Subaru when I head south again a week from now. Thanks!

Bill in Seattle

FromHereToThere · Post by **FromHereToThere** » Thu Feb 18, 2016 3:27 am

thumper650 wrote:I sold my Buddy 170I because it handled bumps like a shopping cart.

My Kymco ag 50, and my friend's Roughhouse handle the bumps way better.

Some people like the flickable attitude of the Buddy. I have to say, riding 60+ on my Buddy is scary fun, but it is what it is. A Hooligan at that speed is more "comfortable" so I've heard. It is probably more boring, though.

Ride what you want, but comparing a Buddy 170i to a shopping cart makes you sound soft. And totally out of touch with the scooter community I know.

sc00ter · Post by **sc00ter** » Thu Feb 18, 2016 4:07 am

The "Fun Factor" of the Buddy's at speed is what keeps my wifes old powder blue 125 around. The only time its not fun is on long open runs when traffic is doing 70mph, and the road is not even a interstate! Shopping cart? More like go-cart with two wheels! Might just ride it into work for the next two days, with all this talk of handling fun. Kitty Hawk, we head out that way a lot to play pinball in Grandy. Always leave the arcade to late to go further south though.

FromHereToThere · Post by **FromHereToThere** » Thu Feb 18, 2016 5:07 am

sc00ter wrote:The "Fun Factor" of the Buddy's at speed is what keeps my wifes old powder blue 125 around. The only time its not fun is on long open runs when traffic is doing 70mph, and the road is not even a interstate! Shopping cart? More like go-cart with two wheels! Might just ride it into work for the next two days, with all this talk of handling fun. Kitty Hawk, we head out that way a lot to play pinball in Grandy. Always leave the arcade to late to go further south though.

Sorry I was defensive. 70(WOT) on a Buddy with traffic is not fun. I traveled to work for 4 years(+) on a business corridor that was a four lane. Traveling on 50+ lanes taught me to either get past the big trucks or tuck in behind them. Honestly, 15000 miles doing that, I am lucky. I guess we all got to know eachother over the years.

Again, no offense meant.

Edit-If you ever get down to KH ring me. I love to drink beer and play pool.

sc00ter · Post by **sc00ter** » Fri Feb 19, 2016 4:58 am

Defensive? None taken! I love the Buddy scooters at speed, just not when the surrounding traffic is going waaaay faster! I used to take the interstate to work everyday on a Buddy 125, so I know what you are going through with trucks! I think its called "Scary Fun", like bungee jumping or sky diving. Now I do agree with bumpy roads sometimes sucking bad. I have upgraded the suspention to a price point, but would love to go all out one day with it. Wife and I love pinball but I dont drink much. Did get poo-faced at Port O Call Seafood Restaurant seeing Agent Orange awhile back. If we head out that way I will give ya a heads up. I used to be known as the "Fall Reaper"=meaning you ride with me you will fall, but I think I'm safe now as no one has fallen around me lately!

Argee · Post by **Argee** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 6:06 pm

My biggest concern with acquiring the Buddy 170i was that it would be unstable at high speed, especially if I had to slam on the brakes with 300+ pounds pushing. I used to go 50 mph on a moped, but the bike only weighed 100 pounds. So far (just tripped the odo over 1K), two things have happened:
1) I put a shorter rear shock on the back, which helped a whole bunch in the steering geometry and smoothed out the ride, and
2) This thing only does 55, occasionally 60 real mph; there's no way I will ever take it on the freeway around here. This Buddy will probably never be exposed to the surprise traffic jam.

I have read good things on this forum about putting larger tires on the rims, that have better tread design and such. I think that's my next upgrade, since the good thing about these little tires is that they are cheap.

skipper20 · Post by **skipper20** » Fri Feb 26, 2016 3:55 pm

skipper20 wrote:The side roads and some of the main roads in the northwest Tucson area I'm staying in this winter are long overdue for repaving. My 2012 Buddy 170i Italia with its small 10" wheels and tires gives me bone jarring shocks every time I'm on the road what with all the uneven and cracked pavement. I'm wondering if my Hooligan with its larger 12" wheels and tires plus dual rear shocks would give me a better ride. I'm back home in Seattle for 2 weeks and will be going back south later this month. My Hooligan is my Seattle scooter but I'm thinking I might take it south with me to try out those bumpy roads. Do any of you think it might make for a more comfortable ride? I'd hate to take it all the way down there and find there's no difference in riding quality. TIA,

Bill in Seattle
'12 170i Italia (AZ scoot)
'14 170i Hooligan

OK, I did bring my Kymco Like 200i with its bigger 12" wheels and tires down here to Tucson. It's a marginal improvement at best but still an improvement. So, it's going to be my AZ scooter and I'll put the the Buddy 170i Italia in a Tucson CL for sale ad. If it doesn't sell back to Seattle it goes at the end of March. Anybody here in the sunny SW looking for a good deal on a low mileage (1321) like new '12 170i Buddy Italia? Free delivery within a 150 mile radius of Tucson!

Bill in Seattle but wintering in Tucson
'13 Kymco Like 200i Red (AZ scoot)
'12 170i Buddy Italia

Modern Buddy

Poor Roads - Bigger Wheels and Tires?

Poor Roads - Bigger Wheels and Tires?

Re: Poor Roads - Bigger Wheels and Tires?

Re: Poor Roads - Bigger Wheels and Tires?

Re: Poor Roads - Bigger Wheels and Tires?

Little wheels suck, get better tires

Re: Poor Roads - Bigger Wheels and Tires?