Modern Buddy

Got the word today that the ONLY Genuine/Vespa dealer in Central Oregon is going out of business. Good people. Great service. Rotten economy.

Things seem to be turning around down here in AZ, at least for scooters. Gas prices are rising steadily and Everytime I go in to Scoot Over, they have sold 2-3 more scoots. They are telling me that business has been good for the past couple of months. Maybe they shut the doors too early.

Howard

My dealer shut his doors too; I'm still looking for another one.

What are Buddy owners supposed to do for service when they can't find a dealer?

Unscientific polling shows a 300% rise in two-wheel parking in the structure I park at sometimes (from average of 2 last year to 6-7 this year).

Sadly, BMWs are apparently the ride of choice...

Most of the MC shops around here (central CA) have either closed or gone down the tubes. And this is CALIFORNIA!. I mean if an MC dealership can't make it in this state, then the economy is completely in the crapper. I'm glad some stealerships are gone, but the local shop was pretty decent and it folded. There are a couple of Genuine dealers with 50 miles of me, so no problems, yet.

bendbuddy wrote:Good people. Great service. Rotten economy.

Should be: Good People. Great service. Flawed business plan.

oops

LuvMyScoot wrote:My dealer shut his doors too; I'm still looking for another one.

What are Buddy owners supposed to do for service when they can't find a dealer?

Definitely go to Scooter Centrale/Vespa Hartford in Plainville.

bendbuddy wrote:Got the word today that the ONLY Genuine/Vespa dealer in Central Oregon is going out of business. Good people. Great service. Rotten economy.

Sad! I've driven past that dealer before and was pleasantly surprised to see Buddy's lined up in front. For a very long time Vespa Portland was the only dealer in Oregon.

Find a shop that services Honda or Yamaha scooters. The Buddy's GY6 engine was designed as a joint venture between Honda and Yamaha back in the 80's and most modern scooters use it. The engine in the Vino and Zuma are nearly identical, as are some of the older Honda Elite and Helix models(though not all) so they should have know problem finding their way around the Buddy.

iwabj wrote:Electric scooters are the only way we will be able to resurect this economy

WHY SC00T3RS ARE RED?!

Damn trolls.

This is why it's best to buy from your local dealer whenever possible. Chances are they have access to the same parts distributors that the place that's selling the item online does. It might take a little longer, or you might have to pay tax, but you'll be supporting your shop and not wondering if their doors will be open next month.

If your shop closes and you can't get to another one, well... you've got the Tech section, the FAQ, the forum, and... well the INTERNET (Spell check thought that should be all CAPS ). I think someone could get you straightened out. These aren't too difficult to work on with enough patience, etc. If you're completely mechanically incompatible with all things motorized, bribery can be the best tool ever! Beer is actually the absolute cheapest form of payment for physical labor possible; just an FYI.

LuvMyScoot wrote:My dealer shut his doors too; I'm still looking for another one.

What are Buddy owners supposed to do for service when they can't find a dealer?

when i bought my scooter 2 years ago my dealer closed shop two months later didnt even get the first service. just roll up your sleaves and get alittle dirty not to hard to work on

[email protected] wrote:

LuvMyScoot wrote:My dealer shut his doors too; I'm still looking for another one.

What are Buddy owners supposed to do for service when they can't find a dealer?

when i bought my scooter 2 years ago my dealer closed shop two months later didnt even get the first service. just roll up your sleaves and get alittle dirty not to hard to work on

That's fine if you are out of warranty or didn't care about the warranty when you made your purchase. Its a big deal if you aren't/don't want to be a mechanic and the warranty played a part in buying a Buddy.

I'm not bad with my hands and plan on doing the routine maintenance myself, but I certainly want my mechanic to do the 500 mi. first service and fix any "warranty-able" problems.

cheez37 wrote:

[email protected] wrote:

LuvMyScoot wrote:My dealer shut his doors too; I'm still looking for another one.

What are Buddy owners supposed to do for service when they can't find a dealer?

when i bought my scooter 2 years ago my dealer closed shop two months later didnt even get the first service. just roll up your sleaves and get alittle dirty not to hard to work on

That's fine if you are out of warranty or didn't care about the warranty when you made your purchase. Its a big deal if you aren't/don't want to be a mechanic and the warranty played a part in buying a Buddy.

I'm not bad with my hands and plan on doing the routine maintenance myself, but I certainly want my mechanic to do the 500 mi. first service and fix any "warranty-able" problems.

yep a catch 22 Im sure Genuine was not going to buy my scooter back its kinda a tough luck situation aye? I felt really screwed but I got over it . and found a love of doing my own work. its paid off now and if it blows up i will just get a new one.

The semi-local place I bought the Buddy went under sometime over the winter. Then I found out my second dealer of choice, no longer sells scoots.

I'm still one of the lucky ones because I'm maybe 20 miles from Scooterworks ... if only the traffic wasn't such a PITA at times.

Rob

[email protected] wrote:

LuvMyScoot wrote:My dealer shut his doors too; I'm still looking for another one.

What are Buddy owners supposed to do for service when they can't find a dealer?

when i bought my scooter 2 years ago my dealer closed shop two months later didnt even get the first service. just roll up your sleaves and get alittle dirty not to hard to work on

Definately don't mind getting my hands dirty, I mean absolutely filthy and greasy and all that good stuff. I know how to change my engine and gear oil but I know less than nothing about engines and without step by step instructions I'm in the crapper. I am planning on checking the valves thanks to a great tutorial on the tech page that I think was written by olhogrider.