Modern Buddy

so this is my first post as im new to scooting and i dont know very much about them. ive been looking for a buddy 125 and found one thats a bit older, has a cracked front fender, a small tear in the seat and 8000 miles on it but only costs 700 bucks. how many miles do the buddys typically run? what questions should i ask the seller? im not worried much about the fender or the seat as i would have both replaced immediately. just worried about the engine crapping out on me as it has 8k miles on it but then again i dont know what is considered to be high mileage on these things, PLEASE HELP? http://tucson.craigslist.org/mcy/2949736419.html << url to the buddy im looking at. should i buy it or spend the extra on one with less issues?

i would say good deal

Its kinda weathered, a bit beat. If that doesn't mean engine neglect, its good to go.

If you invest $200-$300 more to get it "as new" as possible, even better. Just have it looked at and serviced if needed. It could need a "big" service. Or not...

It's a good deal, all things being equal. What will the scooter be used for?

A halfway decent chinese scooter with no miles (Znen built) and delivered to your door with comparable specs will run you around $1300-$1400, delivered. And even the crappiest ones made will run you around $800-$900.

So, you decide. I know what I'd do

Looks like a pretty good deal to me. It might be in need of some maintenance, so that would cost you a little bit unless you're able to do it yourself. But my opinion about used scooters is that more mileage is actually better. If you browse through all of the posts from about the past month, you'll find a whole bunch of "I left my scooter sitting all winter and it won't start now" and "I bought a used scooter with 50 miles on it and it won't start" posts. But you won't find a "a bought a used scooter with 8,000 miles on it and it won't start" post. These scooters are happiest when they're regularly ridden. BTW - I'm on the cusp of 9,000 miles on my 150 and it's still going strong. No signs that it's going to give out any time soon.

It's definitely been beat up a bit. Obviously been down and had some plastics replaced; you can tell by the mismatched colors.
It would make me concerned about two things:
1. Is the frame bent? If it went down hard, the frame or the forks could be bent.
2. If the owner was that rough on the exterior, was he equally rough on the motor? Maybe didn't replace fluids regularly; who knows?

But, if the engine is sound and the frame is not bent, it's a great deal. 8k miles is nothing for a Buddy.

it will be used for transportation to and from work and generally enjoying being outside and riding for the fun of it. ive never owned a motorcycle or scooter before and have only ridden once so im thinking im going to buy it tomorrow depending on how it runs. i found a new low profile seat and new fender for 150 bucks, the cheapest ive found on craigs list is 1500 so it seems like a great deal all things considered. what would you consider to be high mileage on a buddy?

how would i know if the frame or forks are bent? what should i look for?

I don't think anyone has really hit high mileage on a Buddy*. There's the legend of Bonegirl and the 40k miles she put on hers. Genuine gave her a new Blackjack in exchange so they could show off her mileage. Who knows how many miles she'd have on it now if they hadn't done that?

I don't have much input on inspecting for bent stuff. However, now that I look at the pictures (somehow missed those), I will say it's pretty beat up. It's definitely been down more than once. So at best, it's a beater. Still, as a first scooter, if it's mechanically sound, the price is decent. It would allow you to get your feet wet. I also purchased a used scooter that had cosmetic damage. Expect that just about every panel on there, in addition to the mirrors etc, it damaged. If you're okay with that and if it's mechanically sound, then it'll serve you needs.

* edit: meaning, we don't know yet, not meaning that they're not capable of high mileage

The seller will be important here. Give the scoot and seller a visit and see if it all adds up for you.

It is CHEAP for a 125 Buddy. But it has been somewhat beat. You'll want to ask its history to say the least.

Also you can replace every panel for around $300 down the road. Brand new looking scooter. Or just paint them. Look what this guy did to his "Buddy Beater":)

topic20203.html

Looks like the post has been deleted....

Could it be TS now has a new...used Buddy Beater? Let's hope so!

I would be tempted to buy it to make it my frankenstein scoot. Big bore kit, paint it, etc.

Joker219 wrote:how would i know if the frame or forks are bent? what should i look for?

I would ride it to a scooter shop and have it inspected.
As for mileage, my 2008 150 has just over 26,000 miles and runs great!

I agree...the thing to do would be to first check with Shelby at Scoot Over there in Tucson and see if she's familiar with the scooter and if she's not, ask her to have Ron look at it. It might cost you a couple bucks, but would be worth it inn the long run.

Tocsik, 26000 is impressive! Not to make this an oil thread, but what motor, gear oil do you use?

Raiderfn311 wrote:Tocsik, 26000 is impressive! Not to make this an oil thread, but what motor, gear oil do you use?

Don't know about that dude but I know Bonegirl uses Mobil 1 10w-30 or 10w-40

She told me so

She has 40,000m on one and 30,000m on another and her husband has 23,000m on a kit'd to 161cc 125.

Wow! She's been busy!

I knew about the 40,000 mile one...had no idea she's already put 30,000 miles on the new one!

I know, _7728! Isn't that crazy?

I think she rides lot's of long, rural roads. She also posted the only real repair done on her scoots besides general maintenance and minor incidentals were clutches.

Which she said was another story all together. Still, it bods well for the scoots in general imo.

When did she say that she's done 30k on her second scoot? I missed that completely.

Right here in this thread. It's a short one so no long search is required. Just scroll down a bit:

viewtopic.php?p=272822&highlight=#272822

I was off, it is actually 26,760m. But I rounded up as I could not remember the exact mileage, just that it was near 30,000m. Unless complete failure occurs, well, it's there.

I also got the oil weight wrong. She uses Mobil 1 5w30 or 10w30. Sometimes 10w40.

Just for accuracy sake....