Modern Buddy

Hi,
I am a complete newbie to the moped world and this will be my FIRST motorized vehicle. (I had my drivers C permit for 3 years but never took the test) So I am off to my second year at college and I want to take a moped up. I was thinking of getting a 150 because the insurance costs are the same for 50cc and 150cc, but I don't know which to get. Is BMS better than a Lance. I tried doing some research, but work, school, volunteering, etc got in the way . I gathered that Lance is one of the best Chinese brands, but I couldn't pull up that much about the BMS. Is the BMS worth $600 more. ::atgatt:

Are you mechanically inclined? If not, is there any dealer support for these models in your area, or at at least a knowledgeable mechanic? If the answer to all three of these is "no", then I'd avoid both of them. This is especially true for the '08. Lances of that vintage are particularly crappy. Truth is, most of the mainland stuff is junk. Just take a stroll through your local Craigslist and see how much of that stuff is being dumped.

How much are you looking to spend? A used Buddy or other Genuine product will most likely serve you much better than these things. Whatever you save on the purchase price for these China scoots will probably be more than surpassed by future repair costs and aggravation.

If you really want some pertinent info, try this site:

http://itistheride.boards.net/index.cgi

It's the reincarnation of the old scootdawg forum, and is very heavily tilted towards Chinese mainland products.

BTW: "Scooter", not "moped"

You are on the Modern Buddy website after all . Don't be surprised when I tell you that I think a Buddy 125 is a better choice than either one. And, if the price is still a problem, then a used Buddy 125 is a better choice. I say this because I have had a Buddy 125 in the garage for 6 years. It runs as well as the day it was new and has never needed anything but routine maintenance.

When researching last year I was going to go with the Heritage before discovering the Buddy. It seemed that out of all the Ship-To-You scooters out there the brand (Znen scooters, which is BMS) had decent reviews. Never looked at Lance at all so can't speak to that.

Another lower priced brand that has some actual dealer support in my area is Puma. The Juliet looks just like the Heritage. Anyone that I have spoken to says that they are decent machines.

i would stay clear of the lance even if no miles on the odo. the bms heritage has a solid rep among chinese scooters. bms offers a parts and labor warranty on new scooters sold at an authorized dealer. its said distributors like bms get better quality chinese stuff. true? idk, znen makes all their scooters and does so for many others, also. including shipping scooters as znen's to large drop shippers. i just know the heritage is popular and i see quite a lot of them or something like them around. was going to get one myself and have a goofy pic of me sitting on one at a dealer. now, i don't like 'em much at all. too much chrome and what not. BUT it is a scooter, after all (not a moped!). so it is what it is. its a popular "first" for many it would seem

any other bms 150 should be just as serviceable, more or less. if you get what some get in a chinese scooter , less

how much these scooters cost, your lance and bms?

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Is it true that, at least for current models, Lance scooters are being built by Sym?

lance is importing and selling a few SYM models, yes. the Cali Classic and Havana are both sold as the SYM Cello in other markets and the "new" PCH is a SYM SYMply 2

Lance hasn't dealt in chinese scoots for a few years

Dooglas made a good point. Have you looked for a used Buddy. I have never owned on, but I know of more than a few people who have put 30,000, 40,000 miles on their Buddys. An occasional poster, BoneGirl, has put 40k+ on TWO different Buddys.

If you can't find a used Buddy, unlike JHScoot I would pick a new Lance over a new BMS - as long as there is a local dealer for both. SYM is a well-respected brand, Znen will build to whatever quality the importer wants.

yes yes, a NEW Lance. but op is inquiring about a '08

no way, i say. and i do think a little used name brand scooter at a competitive price would be best, but try convincing a scooter newbie of that!

we gotta be gentle with 'em, ease 'em into the process

JHScoot wrote:....and i do think a little used name brand scooter at a competitive price would be best, but try convincing a scooter newbie of that!

Good advice!

JHScoot wrote:yes yes, a NEW Lance. but op is inquiring about a '08

no way, i say. and i do think a little used name brand scooter at a competitive price would be best, but try convincing a scooter newbie of that!

we gotta be gentle with 'em, ease 'em into the process

Guess it helps to comprehend the thread title, eh?