Hello, new buddy50

Bilw85 · Post by **Bilw85** » Wed Jul 31, 2013 5:04 pm

Hi everyone. I'm a new buddy 50 owner in northern Michigan. I've had the scooter for about 2 weeks now and its been great. I have the lemon head buddy. It's technically mine and my wife's, so she really liked the color scheme, yellow seat and rims. I like it too and will probably just take the stickers off of it once I quit babying it.

I have a few questions about upgrading it a little and accessorizing.

Now I bought the 50cc on purpose, so I don't intend on doing the 70cc bore or anything like that, I just want to know if there are any suggested performance enhancements that a typical buddy50 should do? small affordable jobs that make the buddy run a few mph more or enhance the efficiency. right now the buddy tops out at 40-42 with me on it(I'm a big guy).I'm also not a mechanic at all, but can figure out small projects pretty easily. So I'm hoping for some upgrade suggestions.

also I took my buddy through some sandy trails believe it or not, and it didn't do too bad, so I was wondering if anyone had ever put knobby tires on it for better performance on dirt roads or anything.

Well thank you in advance for any help.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Wed Jul 31, 2013 5:25 pm

Did you buy that at Bayside Cycles in Frankfort? Good shop.

If you're already passing 40bmph* I assume it's been derestricted? That's the simplest and cheapest way to improve speed. If that isn't enough, there's a kit that includes an exhaust pipe that's engineered for better performance, plus a spring and rollers that are supposed to give you more speed. Never took that step myself.

I've ridden my Buddy on some dirt roads, but avoid them because the bike's suspension (and mine) really isn't ideal for it.

*Buddy Miles Per Hour are slightly slower than the real kind. The speedo on the Buddy typically reads about 10% faster than you're really going.

Bilw85 · Post by **Bilw85** » Wed Jul 31, 2013 5:31 pm

Actually it was mega power sports in Gaylord.

Scooter49 · Post by **Scooter49** » Wed Jul 31, 2013 5:52 pm

I am still new to the Buddy scooter myself, but I can tell you I have developed an opinion of them already. They are amazingly fun. My wife picked out the Tangerine Buddy50 and I have been helping her break it in. We have it derestricted, and I have had it up to 45 on the inaccurate speedometer. She can get it to go a little faster with her lower body weight.

I love the platform so much, we are getting a second scoot for me in a couple of weeks. I decided to go with the much larger 170i Buddy for myself. I will be riding the same 45mph or less streets as my wife, but I found that I was using way too much wide open throttle to keep it up with traffic on those 45mph roads.

For reference sake, I am around 250 pounds and 6' tall. Of course, the 50cc "Tangerine Bullet" as I call it, is not broken in yet. But I feel it's not the machine for me. And since we will be taking the Motorcycle Safety Foundation course in September, I will qualify for my motorcycle license. So I figure why not upgrade?

Scooter49 · Post by **Scooter49** » Wed Jul 31, 2013 5:54 pm

One more thing. Please don't peel the Lemonhead stickers off the Buddy. I think it's a shame to have a limited edition scoot and deface it like that. Just my opinion but I think it ruins the benefit of having one. It's a special club to be in, and once you pull the stickers you just have a white buddy with a yellow seat.

PeteH · Post by **PeteH** » Wed Jul 31, 2013 6:25 pm

Yeah, I nearly snuffled when I saw an Atomic Fireball Stella that had been repainted.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Wed Jul 31, 2013 9:07 pm

Bilw85 wrote:Actually it was mega power sports in Gaylord.

Ah: the other Genuine dealer in northern Michigan.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Wed Jul 31, 2013 9:20 pm

Scooter49 wrote:One more thing. Please don't peel the Lemonhead stickers off the Buddy. I think it's a shame to have a limited edition scoot and deface it like that. Just my opinion but I think it ruins the benefit of having one. It's a special club to be in, and once you pull the stickers you just have a white buddy with a yellow seat.

That means more to some people than it does to others. To me a scooter is transportation and recreation, and whether it's a limited edition or not isn't going to stop me from customizing it to my tastes. I added stickers to mine (which isn't otherwise "special") because... it's mine. Personally, I'd leave the "Lemonhead" stickers on, because I think they'd be fun... but that'd be my choice, and anyone else is free to make their own.

Bilw85 · Post by **Bilw85** » Thu Aug 01, 2013 12:08 am

Ok I'll leave them on, lol...How about any upgrades you guys did though?