Modern Buddy

i know this has probably been asked before ,how to change oil on a 2009 buddy 50 cc

There is no oil change on a buddy 50cc scooter.Because it is a two stroke Oil injected system. The only oil you need to change is the gear oil. every so often. The drain and fill are located at the back of your scooter on the transmition side. But that is it. Good Luck
Smiley

Okay. I went to check the oil in my new 50cc buddy and where is the dipstick? I take the cap off and there is no dipstick to check anything with. How do I know if I have enough oil or not? What should I be seeing. I looked in the manual and what it looksike there is not what I am seeing on mine. Help ???

Mutt the Hoople wrote:Okay. I went to check the oil in my new 50cc buddy and where is the dipstick? I take the cap off and there is no dipstick to check anything with. How do I know if I have enough oil or not? What should I be seeing. I looked in the manual and what it looksike there is not what I am seeing on mine. Help ???

(I'm assuming you're asking about engine oil, not gear oil, as explained above.)

There's no dipstick, because the oil tank on an oil-burning 2-stroke is more like a gas tank than it's like the oil reservoir in a car. That is, it isn't a matter of "too much" or "too little", which needs to be measured; you just need to have "some" oil in the tank. This oil gets mixed with the gas as it's fed to the engine (unlike a lot of other 2-stroke engines, which require you to premix them).

When the scooter is close to running out of oil, a red light will come on, on the left side of the speedometer. This is the same light that comes on briefly when you turn the ignition key to "on", and (confusingly) looks a bit like the handle of a gasoline pump. When it comes on, there's room for a quart of 2-stroke oil in the tank. I haven't kept track, but a quart will last well over 500 miles, probably closer to 1000.

I always keep a quart of oil at home, so I've never gone more than a few miles with the warning light on, so I don't know how far you can go on the red light before it actually runs out. If you want to be super-sure of never running out, you can top it off every 500 miles or so (just watch for it to reach the top, like you do refilling the gas tank).

Don't the people who sell these things do a walk through with new buyers? Honestly, the first question to a new owner of a 50cc scoot is; Are you familiar with two strokes and the need to check oil level every fill-up and put the proper oil in at regular intervals? It's simple with these scoots. The oil bag is right there with the fuel tank. Open up the rubber stopper and look in there.

wow, words really don't express just how useful that r
Previous comment was.
1) I was AT a service station, getting ready to put in my second tank of gas.
2) Having READ the service manual I was also checking the oil.
(noting that in the illustration the little oil plug was on the left of far from the gas cap). Just in case one isn't bright enough to grasp that, they even put a STICKER just below the oil plug to say what kind of oil is needed.
3) I actually HAVE the proper kind of oil that the manual says that I need.
4) I open the plug but UNLIKE the photo in the owners manual there is no dipstick attached to my plug... Just a plain plug.
5) Therfore, if your oil is supposed to be between HERE AND HERE... With at THIS POINT it is TOO LOW, or DO NOT fill it above THIS point, without some kind of mark or gauge to determine those points, how do you check it properly to know to add oil or not to add oil?
6) What am I supposed to be seeing? Is the photo in the manual not correct for a 50cc? Does a 50cc not have a dipstick attached to the plug? If no dipstick, are there marks or lines in the resovoir where the oil goes.

I drove my Honda Prelude for about 340,000 miles and my Civic for 270,000 and both were still running great with their original engines when I sold them. If I did not understand the concept of checking and maintaining the oil and fluids I doubt that they would have lasted anywhere near that long.

I would very kindly appreciate a helpful response to my question. If you for some reason can't refrain yourself from a snarky and condescending answer, please don't be a prat and instead let someone who is willing to be helpful answer the question.

Thank you.
P.S. I teach metalsmithing and jewelry. I teach advanced students as well as complete beginners. If after doing a torch demo I had a student questioning me how it was done again, and why they were not able to get their torch lit, I would check just what they were doing. If I note that they seem to be going through all of the right moves but nothing is happening I check the striker. If I notice that the flint is worn to nothing I show them the difference between a worn flint and a new or good one. I do not just make them wrong in front of an entire class, no matter how obvious it might seem to be. It should be obvious to me. I have been a metalsmith for 28 years. I don't think my classes would be full if I answered beginners in the same manner that my question here was answered.

The place where I purchased my scooter is closed on Sundays and Mondays and I would like a helpful answer. Thank you. Most of the people here have been very kind and helpful.

I wasn't ragging you, I was ragging the people who sold it to you. If they would have run you through the procedure, you would have known that there wasn't a "stick" to check oil levels, and you wouldn't be left making guesses about what you should do with a basic procedure like checking your oil.

I see what you are saying. But I need to know what to do. I did need to add oil, which I did, but I am afraid I could still be low. The indicator light did not come on or anything but I never rely on those. I do not want to overfill it as that can cause problems as well. Plus, where did the dipstick go? Was it never there or did it somehow end up in my oil resovoir??? If that happened can that cause a problem or damage? Am I safe to ride it on Tuesday to where I bought it for them to check it out (it's maybe dive or six miles from where I live), or should I call roadside assistance and have it taken there. I love my new scooter and plan on riding it for a long time. I don't want it to get messed up because something was not quite right when I got it.

Mutt the Hoople wrote:I see what you are saying. But I need to know what to do. I did need to add oil, which I did, but I am afraid I could still be low. The indicator light did not come on or anything but I never rely on those. I do not want to overfill it as that can cause problems as well. Plus, where did the dipstick go? Was it never there or did it somehow end up in my oil resovoir??? If that happened can that cause a problem or damage? Am I safe to ride it on Tuesday to where I bought it for them to check it out (it's maybe dive or six miles from where I live), or should I call roadside assistance and have it taken there. I love my new scooter and plan on riding it for a long time. I don't want it to get messed up because something was not quite right when I got it.

Well, you could start by reading what I wrote in response to you.

There's nothing wrong with your scooter. It never had a dipstick because you don't need one.* If you put oil into it, you cannot be "too low" on oil. You can't "overfill" it (unless it's spilling out the top). Forget what you know about car engines, because this is not like those. Treat your engine oil just like your gas: fill up the tank (by eyeballing it as you pour) then refill it before it gets empty. You can either wait until it's close to empty (watch for the light) or top it off periodically. That's all there is to it.

*It just occurred to me: you might be looking at pictures in the manual describing how to check oil on the 4-stroke 125cc Buddy.

Yeah, I just looked at the online copy of the manual. Page 18 has the oil instructions for both the 2- and 4-stroke engines, and the page layout, which could be improved, has the picture of the 4T dipstick just a little too close to the 2T reservoir instructions. So the dipstick drawing applies just to the 4T engine - no dipstick on the 2T cap.

As TVB said, 2T oil is a consumable, and the warning light on the speedo will tell you when you're getting low. I don't think there's a high point - you can probably top the reservoir all the way up, assuming it doesn't leak around the cap. Based on what I've read here, a lot of 2T riders keep a container of good two-stroke oil under the seat.

Ah. Got it. Then I'm fine. I could be adding a bit more as I didn't want to overfill it and was being overcautious. The picture in The manual really threw me off.

Sorry if I sounded paranoid. Back in my college days I had to share a car with my mom. It was not an old car but it was hers and on school days I had to take here to work, go to class, pick her back up and the rest of the time it was hers. I always checked the oil when I filled it but she NEVER DID. She was a prima donna to say the very least and felt she. Ever had to do anything she didn't feel like doing, even though she went to a full service gas station. I told her to check it and I got screamed at for having the nerve to tell her what to do. When I heard a noise developing I said it should be looked at ASAP and I got screamed at again and told that going to the garage cost money and I didn't know the value of things. Oddly enough her money was never in short supply when she wanted to shop at Sak's Fifth Ave. The inevitable happened on my way to class and I limped to school but had to tow the beast to the garage. My dad had a cow and because I was the one driving it when the engine crapped out I caught hell and had to pay for half a new one with babysitting money. I has no money for almost a year. Mom denied that I ever mentioned anything to her until she did it again when I wasn't using her car.
That whole thing really traumatized me and I tend to be maybe overly cautious about oil changes/maintenance etc. to the point where I trusted no one and learned to do it myself. Not because I wanted to become a mechanic but because I could not afford a new car if something happened.

So I appologized if I seemed either paranoid or stupid. That thing with mom's car really freaked me out and I never really got over it. The plus side is that I get lots and lots of miles out of my cars. I want to do the same for my scooter.

Thanks.

PeteH wrote:As TVB said, 2T oil is a consumable, and the warning light on the speedo will tell you when you're getting low. I don't think there's a high point - you can probably top the reservoir all the way up, assuming it doesn't leak around the cap.

Yes, you can, even up to the point where it does go all the way to the brim. I wasn't paying attention and... "tested" this once.

Is there a sight glass into the 2T oil container that would let you see how close to low you are?

The oil tank is translucent, so if you crouch down far enough, and have a good light, you can make out roughly how much oil is in it by looking at it from below.