How reliable is the new 170i?

[Lokky]

Hello everybody.
My girlfriend's car broke down for good recently and she is thinking of joining the happy crowd that uses a scooter as their only vehicle.

Now, I realize the 170 is fairly but I guess my questions really apply to all models.

She has a daily 30 miles round trip commute and, unlike me, she can't really afford to be late because her scoot left her stranded (Living 3 miles from college I can walk to my classes if my stella acts up )
I am also wondering what are the maintenance costs on a Buddy? Particularly how often and how expensive it is to have the belt and rollers replaced.
Finally, what is the life expectancy of the machine as a whole? She will financing it over 36 months and she won't be able to afford a second vehicle until after she'll have the scoot paid off.

Thank you for any input you may have

[Noogie2]

I have 660 miles on my 170 and so far have no complaints. It's fuel injected so no carb problems to worry about. I've heard that prolonged riding WOT makes the check engine light come on but that's about it. My commute is also 30 miles round trip and I average about 95 MPG. (I'm bad about adding my fill ups to fuelly)

[roblinx]

I just replaced my car with a 170i. My commute is just shy of 20 miles round trip. 450 miles on the odo, and it's running like a champ. I just brought it in for its first oil change, but otherwise no service issues. I'm hoping to have it carrying me around for many years to come!

[roobot5000]

I second what other folks have said already. I'm at 765 miles right now and I have not had any issues with it. In fact, I find it runs better and has better gas mileage after the first service. Although, I think that's typical for scoots.

I've heard others have issues with the check engine light, but it sounds as if that's only a problem if running it for extended periods of time WOT. For me, I average about 50mph on the outskirts of town and 30-40 in town with no problems. My daily commute is about 25 miles round trip.

Hope that helps!

[roblinx]

I wanted to add that Genuine gives you two years of roadside service for free with new scooters.

[Dooglas]

We've had our Buddy for 4 years. Haven't had to do anything to it but change the oil so far.

[jonlink]

I've got close to 1,000 on my 170 so far. No problems. I have a twenty minute commute, but I ride a lot. I also drove it about fifty plus miles from NH to Boston and back in one day. I had no a single worry the whole way. I ride on lots of backroads and probably go on average between forty and fifty MPH.

[desmolicious]

I have 660 miles on my 170 and so far have no complaints. It's fuel injected so no carb problems to worry about.

What carb probs should I be worrying about on my BJ 150?
It has run perfectly since day 1...

[Tocsik]

I have 660 miles on my 170 and so far have no complaints. It's fuel injected so no carb problems to worry about.

What carb probs should I be worrying about on my BJ 150?
It has run perfectly since day 1...

Absolutely none if it is running well. There are no consistent carb problems reported on the 125's or 150's.

I have over 22,000 miles on my 150. I had a stuck needle valve early on and that was a simple repair.
Fixing or replacing FI components is much more expensive!

[pproducts]

If you stay below 50(GPS) the bike is rock solid. Get above 50(GPS) and you could trip the engine light.

I have over 1000 miles on mine. Currently in the shop to find a way to prevent the engine light from comming on.

Greg

[Len]

another member of this forum named BONEGIRL had a Buddy 150 on which she put 40,000 miles in 3 years. In fact it was so IMPRESSIVE that Genuine Scooter company wanted HER SCOOTER to put on display at their headquarters in Chicago: So they gave her a brand new Blackjack 150 for free. I believe she has almost 20,000 miles on her NEW Blackjack at this time.

Reliable? Yes I guess they are reliable.

[jrsjr]

If you stay below 50(GPS) the bike is rock solid. Get above 50(GPS) and you could trip the engine light.

I have over 1000 miles on mine. Currently in the shop to find a way to prevent the engine light from coming on.

Pugbuddy ran into the same problem. Nobody wants a 170i more than me, but I just can't recommend buying one until this gets sorted. Sorry.

P.S. On the plus side, I hope that it won't be too much longer before there's a fix, maybe just a reprogram for the computer.

[Len]

another member of this forum named BONEGIRL had a Buddy 150 on which she put 40,000 miles in 3 years. In fact it was so IMPRESSIVE that Genuine Scooter company wanted HER SCOOTER to put on display at their headquarters in Chicago: So they gave her a brand new Blackjack 150 for free. I believe she has almost 20,000 miles on her NEW Blackjack at this time.

Reliable? Yes I guess they are reliable.

[ericalm]

So far, there are 2 issues we know about with the 170s: the engine light (above) and occasionally bogging down if ridden over 60mph or WOT for long periods. It's still not a freeway scooter.

Longevity, hard to say on a new model like this but in general, a good scooter can last for 50K or more. The keys are keeping it properly maintained and keep it stock.

When going carless, it's important to keep in mind that NO vehicle is 100% reliable and that problems such as flat tires and so on can happen. So, first, it's important to have a good local dealer and a good relationship with them. Find out what the turn around times are for normal maintenance (oil changes and 4,000 mile "big maintenance"), tire changes, belt changes, etc.

Weather should also be a concern. That's a long commute in the rain and the dead of winter.

[Alexbv200]

The only issue with the 170, although not mechanical at all, is the location of the oil cooler and oil filter ahead of the battery box.
Go down a curb or over a curb and you WILL hit it.........

[desmolicious]

If you stay below 50(GPS) the bike is rock solid. Get above 50(GPS) and you could trip the engine light.

I have over 1000 miles on mine. Currently in the shop to find a way to prevent the engine light from coming on.

Pugbuddy ran into the same problem. Nobody wants a 170i more than me, but I just can't recommend buying one until this gets sorted. Sorry.

P.S. On the plus side, I hope that it won't be too much longer before there's a fix, maybe just a reprogram for the computer.

That makes the 170 unuseable on routes I ride my BJ, Stella etc like the PCH from Santa Monica northwards.
Seems like a step back from the 150. I can cruise at 55 on that w/o issues.

[Lokky]

As far as the engine light coming on, does it stay on or does it shut itself off after a while? While she is going to stay on normal roads first to gain some confidence she is planning to take it on the local interstate, which has been paved recently and has posted limits of 55 and 60 in the section she will be doing.
Of course no vehicle is 100% reliable, but for example she is not going to get a Stella simply because we have seen so many little things go wrong over the eight or so months I have owned it. I love my Stella and swear by it, but I have the patience and time to take care of all those little defects, while she is probably going to be too busy and will have our dealership handle maintenance for her, we live not six miles away from Scoot Richmond and they are great.

[pproducts]

As far as the engine light coming on, does it stay on or does it shut itself off after a while? While she is going to stay on normal roads first to gain some confidence she is planning to take it on the local interstate, which has been paved recently and has posted limits of 55 and 60 in the section she will be doing.
Of course no vehicle is 100% reliable, but for example she is not going to get a Stella simply because we have seen so many little things go wrong over the eight or so months I have owned it. I love my Stella and swear by it, but I have the patience and time to take care of all those little defects, while she is probably going to be too busy and will have our dealership handle maintenance for her, we live not six miles away from Scoot Richmond and they are great.

If it is like mine she will not be able to do 55 or 60 for more than a few minutes. You have to pull over and turn the key on and off for the light to reset.

[Noogie2]

I tested out my 170 today for the first time going WOT. Once there and at 60-65 I liked it so I stayed there for a few exits and got off. I then went the other way at the same speed. The engine light did not come on once!

I don't know much about the light issue but it would not surprise me if it has something to do with ethanol blended gas (E10) as it burns hotter. I was SPECIFICALLY TOLD NOT to use any gas with ethanol by the dealer as the computer cannot compensate for it like a fuel injected car. Currently I'm running pure gas at 91 octane. I love my 170.

[pugbuddy]

I'll chime in since I first reported the "check engine light" issue. I only had the problem when I ran the scooter at 70mph+ (per the optimistic Buddy speedometer) for over an hour (in my case, two days worth of riding). When I slowed it down and rode in town (usually at 50-ish mph or less), there were no issues at all.

I think, if you don't push it for long periods of time, the scooter is very very reliable. I regularly push my 125 by riding WOT (65-70 on the Buddy speedo) and it has never broken down or had issues.

I don't think you can do better, from a reliability standpoint, than buy a Genuine. Just my opinion!

[RobbieD]

I've got 3600 miles on my 170 and I have yet to experience any problems. Never had the engine light come on. I ride 40 miles a day and parts of it I ride 60+ for long stretches at full throttle. I don't do highway ridding so I'm at full throttle for ten min or so at a time on mountain roads. It has been totally reliable thus far. I never want to drive a car again.

[KABarash]

11,000 miles on my Buddy, my only problem has been wearing out tires!!!

[jonlink]

I have 660 miles on my 170 and so far have no complaints. It's fuel injected so no carb problems to worry about.

What carb probs should I be worrying about on my BJ 150?
It has run perfectly since day 1...

Absolutely none if it is running well. There are no consistent carb problems reported on the 125's or 150's.

I have over 22,000 miles on my 150. I had a stuck needle valve early on and that was a simple repair.
Fixing or replacing FI components is much more expensive!

Interesting. What components are you talking about? What do they cost? I haven't seen a breakdown of the replaceable parts and their costs, but I haven't looked. Now I'm curious.

[Alexbv200]

As far as the engine light coming on, does it stay on or does it shut itself off after a while? While she is going to stay on normal roads first to gain some confidence she is planning to take it on the local interstate, which has been paved recently and has posted limits of 55 and 60 in the section she will be doing.
Of course no vehicle is 100% reliable, but for example she is not going to get a Stella simply because we have seen so many little things go wrong over the eight or so months I have owned it. I love my Stella and swear by it, but I have the patience and time to take care of all those little defects, while she is probably going to be too busy and will have our dealership handle maintenance for her, we live not six miles away from Scoot Richmond and they are great.

If it is like mine she will not be able to do 55 or 60 for more than a few minutes. You have to pull over and turn the key on and off for the light to reset.

This issue affects also the Blur 220, fyi.....

[Lokky]

Thank you for the input everybody, we have discussed the details and I have gotten a better grasp of the maintenance costs thanks to the always awesome Chelsea at Scoot Richmond.
We are going tomorrow so she can see them in person once again and decide on the color (Oxford green is her first choice, but moka is a fair contender) and perhaps see if we can get a seat/tires swap done (she loves the idea of a white seat to go with the white stripe on the green and I am thinking those whitewalls are gonna be replaced with some proper tires )

[roobot5000]

Thank you for the input everybody, we have discussed the details and I have gotten a better grasp of the maintenance costs thanks to the always awesome Chelsea at Scoot Richmond.
We are going tomorrow so she can see them in person once again and decide on the color (Oxford green is her first choice, but moka is a fair contender) and perhaps see if we can get a seat/tires swap done (she loves the idea of a white seat to go with the white stripe on the green and I am thinking those whitewalls are gonna be replaced with some proper tires )

If you do change out the tires, let us know what you decide on and how they end up holding up. I'm in the process of figuring out which tires to replace these stock Prima's. Leaning towards the S83s.

[Lokky]

Hello all, an update!
We picked up the buddy yesterday, the girlfriend wasn't confident driving it through the downtown traffic so she had me ride it back to my apartment building.
What a fun ride! It turns on immediately even in the cold purrs like a kitten and has none of the shakes I'm used to on my stella! I did try and twist the left handlebar for a few seconds before remembering I don't have to shift I had a ear-to-ear grin pasted on my face the entire time.

We decided not to change out the rear tires and I did not feel any traction problems. I did notice it wobble under me at lower speeds but that's probably me adjusting to a bike that isn't right-side heavy and has a slimmer floorboard.

The girlfriend is absolutely in love with it, she jumped right on it and was riding round the parking lot in a matter of seconds. We decided to brave some roads that she is more familiar with and she was doing great in traffic.
She did end up dropping it just before a low-speed curve. Turns out there was some sand on the ground and she says she grabbed too much front brake. Luckily she is completely uninjured and the bike only has minor scratches (the centerstand and the left brake lever) and a little dent on the chrome headline visor. Surprisingly no damage to the actual panels and she was right back on her feet and riding it immediately, very glad that it hasn't scared her off.

Her dad saw it and while he originally thought it was a bad idea, especially for winter transportation, he couldn't stop talking about how much he liked it and went down a trip in memory lane, telling us of his motorcycle days.
He now wants to borrow my gf's buddy to take his motorcycle test and get his MC license back

[AWinn6889]

Hello all, an update!
We picked up the buddy yesterday, the girlfriend wasn't confident driving it through the downtown traffic so she had me ride it back to my apartment building.
What a fun ride! It turns on immediately even in the cold purrs like a kitten and has none of the shakes I'm used to on my stella! I did try and twist the left handlebar for a few seconds before remembering I don't have to shift I had a ear-to-ear grin pasted on my face the entire time.

We decided not to change out the rear tires and I did not feel any traction problems. I did notice it wobble under me at lower speeds but that's probably me adjusting to a bike that isn't right-side heavy and has a slimmer floorboard.

The girlfriend is absolutely in love with it, she jumped right on it and was riding round the parking lot in a matter of seconds. We decided to brave some roads that she is more familiar with and she was doing great in traffic.
She did end up dropping it just before a low-speed curve. Turns out there was some sand on the ground and she says she grabbed too much front brake. Luckily she is completely uninjured and the bike only has minor scratches (the centerstand and the left brake lever) and a little dent on the chrome headline visor. Surprisingly no damage to the actual panels and she was right back on her feet and riding it immediately, very glad that it hasn't scared her off.

Her dad saw it and while he originally thought it was a bad idea, especially for winter transportation, he couldn't stop talking about how much he liked it and went down a trip in memory lane, telling us of his motorcycle days.
He now wants to borrow my gf's buddy to take his motorcycle test and get his MC license back

AWESOME!
I hope mine comes soon so I don't miss this nice fall weather!

[Mulliganal]

Did she get the green or the mocha?

[Lokky]

Oh right, she got the green, we'll be taking pictures as soon as we don't have downcast skies~

A quick question by the way, is the first service at 300 or 600 miles? I have heard the two numbers thrown around at the dealership but friday was rather caothic.

[roblinx]

A quick question by the way, is the first service at 300 or 600 miles? I have heard the two numbers thrown around at the dealership but friday was rather caothic.

The sticker on the scooter says "300 km", which is less than 200 miles and seems a little soon to me. Scooterworks Chicago told me "no more than 500 miles" to first service. They call it "the 500 mile service".

I brought it in at 450... if anything, it runs better now. They do minor tweaks in addition to the oil change.

[roobot5000]

I brought it in at 450... if anything, it runs better now. They do minor tweaks in addition to the oil change.

I agree, mechanically mine has been running even better since my first service. I'm quickly headed toward service number 2 at this rate.

Love my Buddy!

[jonlink]

...Scooterworks Chicago told me "no more than 500 miles" to first service. They call it "the 500 mile service".

I brought it in at 450... if anything, it runs better now. They do minor tweaks in addition to the oil change.

Same at my dealer. Except they only did an oil change, which was annoying because I could have done that. The Genuine website says there is more to the first servicing... I don't know about my scooter shop. They are nice though.

[Howardr]

Met with a friend today who recently purchased a 170. On two occasions now, he has honked the horn and it short circuited the electrical system.

Weird

Howard

[viney266]

The only issue with the 170, although not mechanical at all, is the location of the oil cooler and oil filter ahead of the battery box.
Go down a curb or over a curb and you WILL hit it.........

^^^ At least they put a "bash plate" over those parts ...I"m sure this is where the official guy says " don't go over curbs"...I can hear my grandmother saying it now....As I go over the curb !!! LOL

[viney266]

Hello all, an update!
We picked up the buddy yesterday, the girlfriend wasn't confident driving it through the downtown traffic so she had me ride it back to my apartment building.
What a fun ride! It turns on immediately even in the cold purrs like a kitten and has none of the shakes I'm used to on my stella! I did try and twist the left handlebar for a few seconds before remembering I don't have to shift I had a ear-to-ear grin pasted on my face the entire time.

We decided not to change out the rear tires and I did not feel any traction problems. I did notice it wobble under me at lower speeds but that's probably me adjusting to a bike that isn't right-side heavy and has a slimmer floorboard.

The girlfriend is absolutely in love with it, she jumped right on it and was riding round the parking lot in a matter of seconds. We decided to brave some roads that she is more familiar with and she was doing great in traffic.
She did end up dropping it just before a low-speed curve. Turns out there was some sand on the ground and she says she grabbed too much front brake. Luckily she is completely uninjured and the bike only has minor scratches (the centerstand and the left brake lever) and a little dent on the chrome headline visor. Surprisingly no damage to the actual panels and she was right back on her feet and riding it immediately, very glad that it hasn't scared her off.

Her dad saw it and while he originally thought it was a bad idea, especially for winter transportation, he couldn't stop talking about how much he liked it and went down a trip in memory lane, telling us of his motorcycle days.
He now wants to borrow my gf's buddy to take his motorcycle test and get his MC license back

^^^AWESOME! especially the part about Dad!...And maybe that little spill got her over that and she will be fine now. Sometimes thats all it takes...And no front brake in sand and gravle

Get her some good cold weather gear, it will keep you both happy and keep you riding ...

[Lokky]

hehe yep, she got over her spill quickly and she has been doing her 15 miles commute without needing an escort!
I passed down to her some nice alpinestar gloves that I used last winter, they are a bit big on her so that she can fit some knit gloves in there. I am planning to get myself some higher-end leather gloves.
Riding year round, I use a tucano urbano termoscud to keep warm and dry, they don't make one for the buddy but corazzo has something similar that fits on them so we ordered it for her. She already has a windshield on hers, I just ordered a tall shield for myself to cover my hands as well as my body, and a reinforced centerstand so wind won't kick it over with the shield on... might cut it down a smidge once it gets here.

She has already put 300 miles on it since last friday and we are going for her first service tomorrow, hopefully they will have her white seat and black handgrips in for her



on a side note, I do believe her buddy has won me over to the concept of 4stroke twisties... so now I gotta fight the urge to buy myself a GTS300

[LunaP]

Uhhh.... HI EVERYBODY lol... I'm the girlfriend XD

Thought I'd chime in with an update after reading all that... my spill was no biggie- beginner's disagreement with the front brake. I was honestly expecting one at some point, so there was no reason not to just laugh it off.

I've taken Sailor Scoot, as she's been dubbed, 50+ and up to 60 (as indicated by the speedometer, I know they're usually happy) for 5+ miles without any problems with the engine light. It could be gas- we both put Supreme with an ethanol-combating additive in our scoots. It could also be colder weather- I think we've only had one or two days here that were above 65 since I got it... it was suggested to us that some of the engine light problems came from running it long and hard in heat. Or maybe there were just a couple of bad batches and they will eventually do a recall... who knows... but I don't seem to be having any problems and I have almost 600 miles on her already.

We are having some trouble finding some winter gear- my dealer thought she found me a Corazzo skirt, but that didn't pan out... and she's hesitating to order me the generic one from Scooter Works because she says the generic ones don't fit well onto any scooter. Any suggestions? I'd rather not have to buy one that fits onto me- if I have to buy something that fits onto me, I'd really rather have my neighbor line some old jeans with fleece and buy some rain pants from Wally World for like $15 instead of paying 50+ for something that would annoy me way more than a skirt that attaches to the scoot and can stay on the scoot.

I also need some better wind and water proof winter gloves, and a way to mount my gps... so if anybody has any suggestions, I'm open... I am starting a new thread for the gps question, that's actually why I originally got on here haha.

Anyway, I'm waiting on my black handles and my back rack, I'm picking them up this week, and then she will be complete and we'll post photos

[2wheelNsanity]

I to am a new Buddy 170i owner . My only complaint is lately after running 55mph GPS or 65 Buddy speed (WOT, or keeping up with traffic) the scooter "lurches". The engine seems fine and the engine light does not come on. It feels more like it is associated with the rear wheel. This started at around 550miles on the OD and happens only if I WOT for more than 5 miles. I don't know if its engine or CVT related.

Taking it to the dealer is a little hard because where I bought my Buddy is 150 miles away. When I bought the scoot I thought my local Honda dealer would service it but they won't. Their quote to me was "No way are we going to touch a piece of Chinese junk, we only service Hondas!"

With that said the Buddy is a great intown scooter, very quick from light to light, with the ability to do an occasional highway blast. However, sustained 55mph (GPS) is not what this scooter does. That is why in the spring I will be getting a larger cc (300 - 500) scoot due to my commute is 40 miles of posted 55 highway which means if I don't do 60 I'll get run off the road.

[/url]

[desmolicious]

IWhen I bought the scoot I thought my local Honda dealer would service it but they won't. Their quote to me was "No way are we going to touch a piece of Chinese junk, we only service Hondas!"

You should mention to them that the Honda PCX125 scoot and CBR250 bike now sold in the US are made in China too (actually Republic of China/Taiwan like the Buddy).

[scootavaran]

IWhen I bought the scoot I thought my local Honda dealer would service it but they won't. Their quote to me was "No way are we going to touch a piece of Chinese junk, we only service Hondas!"

You should mention to them that the Honda PCX125 scoot and CBR250 bike now sold in the US are made in China too (actually Republic of China/Taiwan like the Buddy).

That actually makes a BIG difference in quality.

[AWinn6889]

I to am a new Buddy 170i owner . My only complaint is lately after running 55mph GPS or 65 Buddy speed (WOT, or keeping up with traffic) the scooter "lurches". The engine seems fine and the engine light does not come on. It feels more like it is associated with the rear wheel. This started at around 550miles on the OD and happens only if I WOT for more than 5 miles. I don't know if its engine or CVT related.

Taking it to the dealer is a little hard because where I bought my Buddy is 150 miles away. When I bought the scoot I thought my local Honda dealer would service it but they won't. Their quote to me was "No way are we going to touch a piece of Chinese junk, we only service Hondas!"

With that said the Buddy is a great intown scooter, very quick from light to light, with the ability to do an occasional highway blast. However, sustained 55mph (GPS) is not what this scooter does. That is why in the spring I will be getting a larger cc (300 - 500) scoot due to my commute is 40 miles of posted 55 highway which means if I don't do 60 I'll get run off the road.

[/url]

Didn't you also just recently post that you found a load of gear oil all over the rear bits of your scooter? Sounds like a CVT problem of some sort to me, perhaps you missed something when you were servicing it yourself? Doesn't seem to be a common complaint among the other 170i owners here so far anyway...

I haven't had a single problem with my 170i and I've had it up to 80 bmph for more than 10-15 minutes at a time. No CEL, no lurching, no twitchiness, no problems whatsoever. Maybe you didn't break it in "properly," who knows... but 40 miles of 55+ highway is not really what this scooter was made for anyway, and I wouldn't even attempt that until after the first service, and having it be broken in at ~1000 miles or so.

[Lokky]

I to am a new Buddy 170i owner . My only complaint is lately after running 55mph GPS or 65 Buddy speed (WOT, or keeping up with traffic) the scooter "lurches". The engine seems fine and the engine light does not come on. It feels more like it is associated with the rear wheel. This started at around 550miles on the OD and happens only if I WOT for more than 5 miles. I don't know if its engine or CVT related.

Taking it to the dealer is a little hard because where I bought my Buddy is 150 miles away. When I bought the scoot I thought my local Honda dealer would service it but they won't. Their quote to me was "No way are we going to touch a piece of Chinese junk, we only service Hondas!"

With that said the Buddy is a great intown scooter, very quick from light to light, with the ability to do an occasional highway blast. However, sustained 55mph (GPS) is not what this scooter does. That is why in the spring I will be getting a larger cc (300 - 500) scoot due to my commute is 40 miles of posted 55 highway which means if I don't do 60 I'll get run off the road.

[/url]

Didn't you also just recently post that you found a load of gear oil all over the rear bits of your scooter? Sounds like a CVT problem of some sort to me, perhaps you missed something when you were servicing it yourself? Doesn't seem to be a common complaint among the other 170i owners here so far anyway...

I haven't had a single problem with my 170i and I've had it up to 80 bmph for more than 10-15 minutes at a time. No CEL, no lurching, no twitchiness, no problems whatsoever. Maybe you didn't break it in "properly," who knows... but 40 miles of 55+ highway is not really what this scooter was made for anyway, and I wouldn't even attempt that until after the first service, and having it be broken in at ~1000 miles or so.

I do agree, the 170 shouldn't lurch just from running at 55 (GPS) for a while.
We recently went on a trip right as Luna had about 1000 miles on hers, we took the interstate, about 150 miles round trip. I rode WOT the entire time with indicated 60-62 MPH on the stella, Luna said from glancing to her GPS that we were hauling ass at a real 55 MPH.
Her buddy rode perfectly the entire day, she was not WOT to sustain 55 and she often had to slow down to avoid hitting me (those hills don't agree with the stella ) on the way back she rode in front (it was night time and I have extra bright LEDs in the back so I took the rear) and she'd often leave me behind while I was WOT, sometimes just to have some fun and see how fast she could go .
I should note that she was carrying our saddlebags that were full of the apples we picked that day, and her scoot rode without a hitch.
Wish I could say the same for mine, first my speedometer went bonkers, fixed itself, then went crazy again, and then the spring to my reinforced centerstand snapped while doing 55 on the interstate! Oh the fun, only had 200 miles on that one spring, good thing Luna had a bungee cord to rig it up

[2wheelNsanity]

Yes I did post an overfill issue, I put the 90cc of gearoil in it however I don't think I warmed it up properly. It appears I overfilled by 20cc.

The problem I described "learching" started about a week ago and that is why I changed the gearoil. I should have measured what came out before I put new in.

As far as my commute I don't do it with my Buddy, I wanted to once I broke it in but now I don't think so.

Wow on hitting 80 bmph, the highest I have gotten to is 70bmph but now it will only do 65 bmph.

As far as breaking it in properly there seems to be as many opinions on the proper way as there is scooter riders. I treated it like a baby for the first 300 miles never going over 40 - 45bmph, after that I have driven it normally, I currently have 750 miles on it.

If I can get the use of a pickup I am going to take it to the dealer for a complete service.

[AWinn6889]

That's why I said "properly" in quotes.
Babying it is definitely not one of the ways I have heard as a good break-in though... I've heard ride it like you plan to ride it once it's broken in (which idk, it makes sense, but mechanically it's not the most logical choice) and a couple other even less logical ways.
Personally, I go with the vary the speed, rpms, lots of stop and go, but still have those points where you need to/can do higher speeds for periods of time type break-in. I live in a small town surrounded by 45, 55, and 65 mph windy-country roads with lots of random stop signs and traffic lights, so I really have to do this whenever I go somewhere outside of town anyway. I got it up to 80bmph on one of the larger 55 roads (where there aren't any places for cops to hide) just to see how fast I could get it to go, and how long I could hold it for, which I could have kept going if I didn't get to a red light. I am also only 5' 2" and 130-ish pounds so it shouldn't be too hard for the 163cc put-put engine to haul my ass around especially when I don't have any stuff on the rear rack, when my 6' 2", 220-ish pound boyfriend rode the scoot, he only got it up to about 60-65 bmph.
Apparently when it comes to a Buddy, size matters!

[KABarash]

I'd really rather have my neighbor line some old jeans with fleece and buy some rain pants

I've been wearing flannel and fleece lined pants and jeans for years, (LL Bean seem the best) on the scoot with a pair of nylon wind pants over them in the colder and/or wet are the 'trick' for comfort for me.

[LunaP]

@2wheel- I would definitely have it looked at, mine has never lurched. Also- don't give up on it... I have heard rumors that once they are fully broken in at around 1500 miles they gain around 5-10 mph (indicated) in top speed. (If that turns out to be true, I can let you know- I will hit 1500 in the next week or two and test her out again)

I consistently use my Buddy for a 30-mile (that's round trip) commute to work, at least 5 days a week, plus whatever other driving I decide to do- hence it hitting 1000 in a month. When it started getting VERY chilly here and I still didn't have proper cold gear due to various holdups and hiccups, I started taking the highway home at night- once I learned to fight the wind gusts instead of let the blow me around, and be more confident on the highway, I was fine. For sure, the 170i is a light bike and not ideal for highway- but it's plenty capable as long as you get up to speed quickly when the need arises and you aren't trying to cruise a 70mph highway. Here, the highway is 55mph through the city, everybody goes between 60 and 65 anyway, and I stay in the right lane- nobody really bothers me.

@KABarash- I'm willing to get those- but since I don't wear jeans to work and would still have to change, and would also still have to worry about the rain in them, I'd still rather get a lap cover. The update on that is that we think we have found a Tucano Urbano that fits the Buddy, we're pretty excited. If it turns out that is the case, there will be a whole new thread dedicated to me bragging and squeeing about it. If not, more than likely I'll be ordering this lap apron.

I have yet to take a good set of really awesome photos, and make a flickr or photobucket account, but so far the amazing gear I DO have are:
a totally rad waterproof backpack that holds everything AND the kitchen sink, these foot pegs (in black to match the rest, of course) so my passengers are more comfortable**, and this GPS mount made of ABSOLUTE WIN.

Other neat tricks I have learned? To keep my ethanol additive, Plexus, etc, upright in my pet carrier- I have the cardboard from an empty 6-pack. I always have towels on hand, microfiber for helmet/windshield cleaning, and rags for wiping water off stuff. Bungees. Always with the bungees.


[**sn- terribly uncomfortable for the driver, they totally get in the way and I have bruises from them poking me... but they proved their use the other day because I've been lazy and haven't taken them off to store them yet, and a stupid driver cutting me off made me short stop and take the bike down to avoid hitting them... laying down on its side at a slow speed, since the rubber peg extends out by about an inch or so it hit the asphalt instead of the bike, so yay!]