Modern Buddy

It seems to have been quiet on the 4T side so I was wondering how many miles you guys and gals have ridden on these new scoots.

About 2800 here.

Ride is getting better and better- still loving it.

Only 700 miles. Still waiting to be convinced of its longevity, considering the early on issues I've had--maybe I wasn't ready for a mechanically needy scooter. Nonetheless, it's still fun to ride (except for the minor accident last week), and I'm hoping to put more miles on it in the coming year!

monkeykat wrote:Only 700 miles. Still waiting to be convinced of its longevity, considering the early on issues I've had--maybe I wasn't ready for a mechanically needy scooter. Nonetheless, it's still fun to ride (except for the minor accident last week), and I'm hoping to put more miles on it in the coming year!

Why not just ride it? If it's going to break, break it while under warrantee. I have had a few issues, and they've been taken care of for me right away.

Mechanically needy in what way? The design is old but the engine is fairly modern. In any case, small four stroke motors have had pretty good longevity for decades.

So what sort of issues have you had? I ask because I continue to be interested in the Stella, although I wish it could grow at least another 50cc bigger.

Also for those with a 4T, how is the mpg and what is the best cruising speed?

About 850 so far and I too have noticed it getting smoother all the time. I initially had electrical problems as well and they were taken care of right away under warranty.

Tom wrote:Why not just ride it? If it's going to break, break it while under warrantee. I have had a few issues, and they've been taken care of for me right away.

I do ride it, just not as much as I hoped. I'm primarily a bicycle commuter. I agree that the warranty helps enormously--I've gotten 3 new carburetors under the warranty!

Southerner wrote:Mechanically needy in what way? The design is old but the engine is fairly modern. In any case, small four stroke motors have had pretty good longevity for decades.

Southerner, it seems that there are several people who have had no problems with their Stella whatsoever. I'm not sure how to attribute it to anything except bad luck on my part. For all the times it breaks, it just makes me want to have a Buddy or an automatic Vespa, so that I have something that is in my garage that is reliable for the days my Stella doesn't start.

991 miles so far. The only problem I've had was with the shifter side grip slipping. A little Pro Taper grip glue fixed that. Cruises @ 50mph with some throttle left with my top speed 58mph on the Magellan gps. I love riding my Stella. Sometimes wish it was faster but I have to tell myself this is not my WR 450 so don't try to ride it like one.

THREE carbs? You HAVE been have unusual problems. Don't blame you for being gunshy.

per Fuelly I have ridden at least 1289 miles, but I didn't start tracking it right away

Southerner wrote:...Also for those with a 4T, how is the mpg and what is the best cruising speed?

the MPG is great! (check out my fuelly account in my signature, but take it with a big grain of salt- the "fuelly process of tracking mileage" is NOT a science)
I have found that WOT is (as expected) not the best gas milage.
From my experience, the best cruising speed for MPG is about 55 mph. in Colorado, when I am riding (180 lbs). that gets me an average of 110 mpg, a full wallet, bragging rights, and a big head.

@ OP: you are correct. I have been posting less and riding more

I've got you all beat by thousands of miles:

6000 miles. Since May of 2011.

With my 'cage' getting 18mpg, I've commuted 20 miles/day since May, gone on many solo and group rides, and just rode it cuz I can.

Vespa Motorsport confirms of all the Stella's they have sold, I have ridden the most miles. My scooter is almost like their Petri dish: they avidly await my visits to keep tabs on what might befall a Stella 4T, mechanically, after a given time.

Warranty items fixed so far:

- busted speedometer (yay..I have 10 miles on it after picking scoot up today)
- broken headlight high/low switch
- busted welding holding exhaust pipe to engine (sounded like a baby Harley, with a flu..lol)
- <insert next electrical issue here>

I will be selling the poor thing come Spring, since it is an utterly gutless, albeit goodlooking, scooter.

I have 473 baby miles on mine. I got it at the beginning of September and didn't take it out in traffic until the middle of December. I wanted to be sure and comfortable on it because I love my Stella. No, I am in love with her. It's honestly all I think about now.

My longest ride was back from the dealer last week because I had a short in my horn and a little problem with the clutch cable. At this point I don't care what my mpg is, I'm so happy, but I do want to check to see if my odometer is accurate-- I have a feeling I'm really under 470. I've only gone as fast as 50 mph, and that felt like it was too much for me not Stella.

I have a little over 6K on 2 different Stellas, plus several hundred on NoHo's shop scooter which they loaned me for group rides when my scooter were down.

Should be a LOT more, but between totaling the first one and then having the second knocked over in a parking lot, I've been without a Stella for some periods of time. ALL TOO LONG.

In fact, finally getting my 4T back today after many months of waiting on paint & body. Glad to have her back.

One wiped out and a second pranged while parked? Between you and Monkeykat, I'm beginning to wonder if Stellas are cursed.

I wasn't thew first person to crash a US Stella but I was the first to total one! Yay! I'm #1!

But I'd have totaled any scoot in that instance.

And, previously I've totaled a Buddy.

And my Vespa was knocked over while parked once, too.

So it's not the Stella. It's just scooter ownership. And LA drivers.

The truth remains that if you ride on two wheels, you gonna fall.

I don't envy you that LA traffic, though.

I'll contend that my Stella may be cursed.

I've been trying to stay positive about it--ride it and get out the issues while under warranty; however, after my crash 2 weeks ago, now my boyfriend is vehemently against me riding it anymore. He *really* thinks it's cursed and claims he will lay under it to keep me from riding it again. Who knows how long it'll be in the shop, maybe he'll forget by time it gets back.

Fortunately, he isn't against scooters altogether, just the Stella. And I, too, have been thinking maybe a Buddy would be better for what I want right now. I don't like the guessing game of when it will or won't start--something I would be ok with for a vintage, but not something new.

No, it's not cursed. It just sounds like it had some issues.

As for the wreck, I don't know anything about the circumstances, but it happens to pretty much all of us.

monkeykat,

The Stella is not cursed. it is a fine quality MachineMobile. and even if you are not sold on that statement, It has a 2 year warranty from one of the only scooter companies to actually make good on their warranties (ie, have a US presence) and 2 years roadside assistance.
However the very act of riding on 2 wheels in traffic with a slew of 4 wheeled vehicles, certainly has a history of some bad news. not ALL bad news, not even HALF bad news, or 3/4 bad news. but that has to do with other drivers and honestly us as scooterists.

Not that you asked, but I recommend you ask your boyfriend to either:

1. buy you a new scooter
2. buy you all new rad armored gear and a Reevu helmet (or something)
3. pay for and take a motorcycle safety course with you (it'll be romantic )
4. or kindly keep his trap shut. but say it lovingly.

sorry to heard about your accident.
"guessing game of when it will or won't start"? seach this site for some easy ways to get it to start regularly. (mine rarely starts with the 1 kick, but it's cold here and I don't expect it to )

Southerner wrote:The truth remains that if you ride on two wheels, you gonna fall.

+1

Mine had electric starter problems after a bit (and a problem where the shifter was cutting into some wires for the headlamp- which resulted in no low beam when above 2nd gear)- but both problems were quickly resolved.

In the meantime while the starter was out (and before I finally took it in to get fixed) I got used to the kick start which just felt 'wrong' to me being used to a two stroke kick start. No problems since.

Lovelandstella wrote:monkeykat,

Not that you asked, but I recommend you ask your boyfriend to either:

1. buy you a new scooter
2. buy you all new rad armored gear and a Reevu helmet (or something)
3. pay for and take a motorcycle safety course with you (it'll be romantic )
4. or kindly keep his trap shut. but say it lovingly.

sorry to heard about your accident.
"guessing game of when it will or won't start"? seach this site for some easy ways to get it to start regularly. (mine rarely starts with the 1 kick, but it's cold here and I don't expect it to )

Thanks for the advice. I did take the MSF course, although I would take it again just to get him to do it. Strangely, I have felt more safe on my scooter *in traffic* than my usual form of transportation--my bicycle. But since I've been commuting by bike for so many years, it's much less stress than scootering at this point. More miles on the scooter will remedy that.

If I had said a piano fell out of the sky onto my scooter, then I think I would have a case for calling it cursed. However, I locked up the brakes when someone was backing out of their driveway. I wasn't even going that fast, but I panicked. Lesson learned. I think I'll be picking up some knee pads when I go get my helmet replaced.

Back to the original topic, it's good to hear everyone's experience; thanks for all the advice

ericalm wrote:I have a little over 6K on 2 different Stellas, plus several hundred on NoHo's shop scooter which they loaned me for group rides when my scooter were down.

Should be a LOT more, but between totaling the first one and then having the second knocked over in a parking lot, I've been without a Stella for some periods of time. ALL TOO LONG.

In fact, finally getting my 4T back today after many months of waiting on paint & body. Glad to have her back.

Eric, I am a bit surprised you didn't get some Prima/Vespa chrome crash guards, considering how prone to tipping our Stella's are.

I have the Prima chrome front fender, leg shield, and rear cowl guards on my 4T. Stupidly, I left my scoot on side stand I had installed at the time and jaunted into BevMo to take advantage of their 5 cent wine sale, only to come out and find the Stella on it's side. After picking it up, I could barely see the minute scratches on my chrome.

That tip over event was worth the price of the chrome, IMO.

DirtyRAT wrote:

ericalm wrote:I have a little over 6K on 2 different Stellas, plus several hundred on NoHo's shop scooter which they loaned me for group rides when my scooter were down.

Should be a LOT more, but between totaling the first one and then having the second knocked over in a parking lot, I've been without a Stella for some periods of time. ALL TOO LONG.

In fact, finally getting my 4T back today after many months of waiting on paint & body. Glad to have her back.

Eric, I am a bit surprised you didn't get some Prima/Vespa chrome crash guards, considering how prone to tipping our Stella's are.

I have the Prima chrome front fender, leg shield, and rear cowl guards on my 4T. Stupidly, I left my scoot on side stand I had installed at the time and jaunted into BevMo to take advantage of their 5 cent wine sale, only to come out and find the Stella on it's side. After picking it up, I could barely see the minute scratches on my chrome.

That tip over event was worth the price of the chrome, IMO.

I just don't have the scratch for the guards right now.

Any (small-wheeled) scooter left on a side stand is prone to tipping! Side stands are more trouble than they're worth.

This is a little surprising to me. Maybe, like some motorcycles, they just need a longer stand, preferably with a wide foot. Note how Harleys, which don't come with a centerstand, have such a long sidestand, as well as how far forward it's mounted.

Having looked at the center stand with those two tiny feet, I would be concerned about how well the Stella's centerstand works. I suppose it's fine for hard, flat surfaces, but I would be concerned if I ever had to park one on the grass somewhere.

Center stand works great! If anything it's erred on the TOO good side- being so high that it's hell to get off the stand sometimes. I've often thought about cutting it down a little (I know some folks have) but decide in the end to leave it since it's so darn stable compared to my Vespa which has a much easier centerstand (and is easier to 'bump' off the stand as well).

I cut both of my Stella center stands down, by about two centimeters, but no more. Really helps with frequent off/on city pit-stops on the scoot.

Southerner wrote:This is a little surprising to me. Maybe, like some motorcycles, they just need a longer stand, preferably with a wide foot. Note how Harleys, which don't come with a centerstand, have such a long sidestand, as well as how far forward it's mounted.

Having looked at the center stand with those two tiny feet, I would be concerned about how well the Stella's centerstand works. I suppose it's fine for hard, flat surfaces, but I would be concerned if I ever had to park one on the grass somewhere.

Centerstand is way more stable. I think it's a matter of weight and center of gravity. Scooters carry met of their weight in the back, too, which causes problems. We've got dozens of stories on MB of scooters falling, rolling or being blown off the side stand.

Can you imagine trying to get a Harley on the center stand? I have a GL1100 with a center stand it it was impossible to use.

Must be the weight distribution thing again. My bike weighs about 640 pounds and getting it off is easy.

Getting it on would be impossible if I didn't hold the left bar and the passenger grab rail at the same time. I just don't like that dance holding it by those two while trying to mash the "stomp peddle" . Always afraid I'm going to drop it.

I keep forgetting that scoots have the engine pushed further back.

ericalm wrote:

Can you imagine trying to get a Harley on the center stand? I have a GL1100 with a center stand it it was impossible to use.

I never had an issue getting my Goldwing 1800 on the centerstand.
I only weigh 150lbs.
It's all about technique and the design of the stand. My Vespa GTS was much harder to put on the stand than the much heavier/bigger MP3 500.

desmolicious wrote:

ericalm wrote:

Can you imagine trying to get a Harley on the center stand? I have a GL1100 with a center stand it it was impossible to use.

I never had an issue getting my Goldwing 1800 on the centerstand.
I only weigh 150lbs.
It's all about technique and the design of the stand. My Vespa GTS was much harder to put on the stand than the much heavier/bigger MP3 500.

I could probably do it now, simply because now I know how to! Then, meh, I knew nothing. It's probably for the best that bike rarely ran and spent most of its time in a garage. It was given to me by a friend thinning his stable and I was still in that rather naive/stupid, "Oh, I'll just have it and ride it around some without a license or insurance or training or gear…" place. Ah, youth.

634 miles and today got my third tow back to the dealer-- less than a week after my first service. My clutch cable broke in the middle of a great ride on a perfect day. Sadness.

badbodhisattva wrote:634 miles and today got my third tow back to the dealer-- less than a week after my first service. My clutch cable broke in the middle of a great ride on a perfect day. Sadness.

3rd tow?
What were the other 2 for?

Clutch cable snapping at 634 miles is way way too soon. Sounds like it was misadjusted.

desmolicious wrote: Clutch cable snapping at 634 miles is way way too soon. Sounds like it was misadjusted.

+1
In 7400 miles I have only had the adjuster go bad, never the cable itself.

Some dealers who sell/setup the 4T Stellas choose to not use the stock cables and install better quality cables/housing.

I presume the premature broken clutch cable might be one reason why dealers might upgrade the cables.

I'm having trouble believing misadjustment. Too loose and it's slack, with no strain. Too tight and the clutch slips, and even then, worst case, it's not pulling any more than the normal spring load.

Betcha it's rubbing on something.

(My VW eats throttle cables the same way - rubbing on the steel housing entrance near the pedals, and I haven't made time to find and fix the jagged spot.)

3000 today!

I just hit 3,000 miles.
I've had a few issues that were taken care of under warranty:
clutch cable snapped (replaced with a motorcycle cable)
exhaust pipe welds separated at frame bracket (new exhaust)
headlight short (contacts cleaned - you gotta keep 'em separated)
clutch/throwout bearing (new clutch; may need a new throwout bearing)

Commute is about 45 miles roundtrip at 50-60 mph speeds, getting about 100 mpg. I've had it up to 65 mph; I think it's most comfortable at 55. It doesn't play well with hills but loves the twisties.

Ive got about 4000 miles on mine here and numerous trips to garage , mostly indicator problems , with twist shift the wires keep rubbing and wearing out my starter packed in over the winter although ive heard thats pretty standard on small engines.

Currently waiting on a new starter and using the kick at the mo , £5 a week to travel to work , happy days , the car used to cost £30 a week , just glad the scoots still under warranty or the savings wouldnt be so good after all the trips to the garage.

Think im on something a bit more reliable before the end of warranty.

Maybe you'll be getting the auto version over there before too long.

soulfool wrote:with twist shift the wires keep rubbing and wearing out

This is a very common problem that predates the stella itself.
I have had a switch added to my headset right on top of the instrument cluster for my headlight in order to completely bypass that issue.

I also had the shifter rubbing problem. They had to rewire it as when I'd shift past second, low beams went out. Not a problem for me because of the warrantee.

I failed to mention the ironic issue with having 6000 miles on my 4T stella: the speedo stopped displaying a constant, readable speed. The needle would bounce all over the place, making it impossible to know one's true speed.

Vespa Motorsport filed a warranty claim with Genuine, and had it replaced with a new odometer/speedometer cluster.

*sniff* there went my bragging rights!

I got 2100 beautiful fun filled, Utah winter miles on mine.

I've got a little over 2800 on mine since I bought it in September... not too bad... my mechanic was impressed that I've been riding it through the winter...

I've had them fix a stuck front brake lever light switch and replace the exhaust (broke at the first bend)...

taking mine on a 2000 road trip down and back up Hwy 1 along the coast in a few weeks...

Spiffy wrote:I've got a little over 2800 on mine since I bought it in September... not too bad... my mechanic was impressed that I've been riding it through the winter...

I've had them fix a stuck front brake lever light switch and replace the exhaust (broke at the first bend)...

taking mine on a 2000 road trip down and back up Hwy 1 along the coast in a few weeks...

How far down you coming?

I've got 106 miles on my stella.... she had 30 miles on her when i bought her new

1300 miles on mine, I bought it the first week of April.

mine has about 700km on it, whatever that is in miles.

probably just about 500 or so. I got it back in april

162 miles. No problems yet that I haven't been able to handle on my own (thanks to this resource). It's loosening up. Much easier to shift.
I suppose I'm loosening up too. It's been 35 years since I've ridden anything with two wheels.
I had some buyer's remorse at first but I'm beginning to love it. Hey, I wanted a manual shift, a kick start and (ohhh yes), that cool retro look.
No regrets.
I would like it to have a bit more oomph on hills though.
Scoot on!