Modern Buddy

Those of you who know your stuff, tell me straight. My buddy 125 had an oil leak somewhere that I didn't know about till this weekend when her cylinder locked up on me, a very low oil reading on the dip stick. Does this mean that I have a lawn statue now, or can the engine be mended?

I'M IN MOURNING.

-Rehjee

Ouch! It's a horrible feeling to have a scoot's engine give out.

The good news is that, yes, the engine can be mended. The bad news is that you may require several spendy bits to mend it, depending on the nature of the failure.

Were you at-speed or idling when the engine stopped? Also, did the engine stop immediately, it did it spin down to a stop? Finally, were there any unfamiliar (and possibly unpleasant-sounding) mechanical noises coming from the motor prior to it locking up?

I'll let more informed experts give advice, too.
But if the crankshaft isn't bent, you can possibly get by with only a top-end rebuild. New cylinder, pistons and rings. It's a good excuse to go big bore .

I was riding at about 45 and I started loosing rpms. I pulled over and then the engine stalled altogether. I guess spinning down is a good way to put it. Pressing the ignition only made bothersome noises.

Blech!

Tocsik has identified several of the parts that could be affected by oil starvation. To add to his list, there are two roller bearings, one on either side of the crank, as well as a needle bearing on the big pin that holds the crankshaft and connecting rod together. The camshaft has roller bearings on it as well which require oil to keep running.

The fact that the engine spun down gradually is a bit more encouraging. Hard stops tend to be more catastrophic.

When you say "bothersome noises", does it sound like the engine is turning while making said noises, or does it simply make clicking or groaning noises? Have you tried turning the engine over by using the kickstarter? If so, does it make the same bothersome noises?

Sadly, no way to know without tearing it apart but if it stopped the engine, you're probably looking at least at a top end rebuild.

Was there any smoke?

If you are going to have to pay shop rates for a mechanic to do the repairs, you may be out of luck because the labor costs may exceed the cost of buying another used Buddy 125. There are some folks here who have the skills, tools, shop space, time, and other resources (like alternate transportation) to do a complete engine rebuild themselves. However, lots of folks here, myself included, do not have the resources to pull off a complete engine rebuild. You should carefully research the costs involved before you proceed with that project. A possible alternative would be to swap in a used motor from a crashed scooter. That would involve a lot less labor cost (again, assuming you are going to have to pay shop rates for a mechanic to do the work).

I'm really sorry about your scooter. I just don't want you to throw a lot of money away unnecessarily.

(EDITed to clean up my extremely poor grammar)

yeah, I think a new engine is almost 1000.00
I know a stella engine is about 1500.00
plus shop fees to swap them.

VinylDoctor wrote:yeah, I think a new engine is almost 1000.00
I know a stella engine is about 1500.00
plus shop fees to swap them.

Pretty sure a stock lml engine goes for about 1k new. I just sold a mildly used one for 600 bucks.

rehjee wrote:Those of you who know your stuff, tell me straight. My buddy 125 had an oil leak somewhere that I didn't know about till this weekend when her cylinder locked up on me, a very low oil reading on the dip stick. Does this mean that I have a lawn statue now, or can the engine be mended?

I'M IN MOURNING.

-Rehjee

Where abouts do you live? Folks might be able to steer you towards scooters for sale, or other solutions better with that info.

I'm sorry you are going through this....it really stinks.