2008 Buddy

[ryder1]

Did I miss this post on modernbuddy?
I found it on ScooterDiva forum

[Ken]

There was a link to an article on 2-Stroke Buzz.com that had this image within it posted to a couple of different threads about the Stella. The new colors are certainly pretty, I'll say that!

~Ken

[ericalm]

Yup, we had it:

topic2763.html

I'll be getting some better & bigger images of the '08s early next week.

[gt1000]

Yup, we had it:

topic2763.html

I'll be getting some better & bigger images of the '08s early next week.

Um...ryder1 posted in the thread that ericalm linked above.

Time to adjust the dosage maybe?

[Drumwoulf]

Did I miss this post on modernbuddy?
I found it on ScooterDiva forum

I dig the creme and red combo. And that certainly looks like a nicer all-orange... (To me, that is! -Don't want to piss off alla current orange owners here...)

[ericalm]

Yup, we had it:

topic2763.html

I'll be getting some better & bigger images of the '08s early next week.

Um...ryder1 posted in the thread that ericalm linked above.

Time to adjust the dosage maybe?

Ha, well, we hadn't posted the actual image here yet because I was waiting to talk to Genuine so I could get more info.

[Buddy_wannabe]

And that certainly looks like a nicer all-orange... (To me, that is! -Don't want to piss off alla current orange owners here...)

... WHAT ??? NICER ORANGE !!!!!!

[Ken]

Anybody but me notice that the headlamp on the red-and-beige model appears substantially smaller than all of the others pictured? Think maybe they just photoshopped an image of an '06 Buddy to get that picture?

Edit: Also, it looks like the fender-mounted turn signals have actual orange lenses rather than the clear lens of the others.

~Ken

[jperkins]

Is that a black on black model/ have they done away with the black and silver?

[ericalm]

Is that a black on black model/ have they done away with the black and silver?

Yep. No more black and silver. All new non-special editions are single color with black interior panels, seats and grips.

Not only does this probably save Genuine money, it also makes the special editions a little more special.

[anderson]

Not only does this probably save Genuine money, it also makes the special editions a little more special.

Wouldn't you also think that it might be a relatively inexpensive way for us to give our bikes a facelift, should we so desire? You know, "Tired of red [no, I'm not, but....]? Then buy seafoam body plastic and switch."

[Ken]

Hmmm...that makes me wonder if anyone's ever done a "Franken-Buddy"; a Buddy with a different color for each of the plastic body and fender pieces. I can't imagine that it would be "pretty" in the strictest sense, but it would certainly be distinctive!

~Ken

[ericalm]

Not only does this probably save Genuine money, it also makes the special editions a little more special.

Wouldn't you also think that it might be a relatively inexpensive way for us to give our bikes a facelift, should we so desire? You know, "Tired of red [no, I'm not, but....]? Then buy seafoam body plastic and switch."

It is and you can swap the panels off the special editions.
Those panels are all pretty inexpensive and, from what I hear, very easy to paint using Krylon Fusion.

[ryder1]

Anybody but me notice that the headlamp on the red-and-beige model appears substantially smaller than all of the others pictured?

Do you think that could be a 50cc with the smaller headlight?

Or did the 50cc come with a bigger headlight too in '07?

[vaderscoot]

Anybody but me notice that the headlamp on the red-and-beige model appears substantially smaller than all of the others pictured?

Do you think that could be a 50cc with the smaller headlight?

Or did the 50cc come with a bigger headlight too in '07?

all the 07s came with the big headlight

[illnoise]

you can't see it in the version I posted on 2sb, but the red one says "50" and the rest all say "125", even the 150s. There are subtle differences in the position of the bike in each photo, and from my experience as a designer, it doesn't appear that they were just photoshopped, and as has been noted, the "Pamplona" is an 06 model (with amber signals and no rear mudguard) so I'm guessing these are actual photos of bikes, but probably older bikes that were actually painted in the new colors, not the final product. I don't imagine there'd be much difference from the '07s other than what was mentioned in the story.

Bb.[/i]

[sunshinen]

It always amazes me that Genuine never updates there website.

[illnoise]

It always amazes me that Genuine never updates there website.

Well, they haven't announced these models yet, they'll probably be announced in February after their dealer meeting at DealerExpo. They (unlike Piaggio) know it's best to wait until shortly before scooters ship before you announce them, otherwise, no one's going to buy a Genuine between now and then. It's the scooter bloggers' sworn mission to thwart that perfectly reasonable plan, by leaking out the info way ahead of time.

I agree that it's wise for a company to have some sort of revolving content on their site to keep customers coming back, whether it's a blog, or occasional news stories, and they do a little bit of that, but they're a pretty small operation, and the management knows its limitations, so I think they prefer to leave the direct customer interaction up to their dealers, a grassroots approach that seems to work well for them. They seem to give their dealers the tools they need to sell the brand, sell sheets, advertisement designs, signage, good training, etc. Maybe the Scooterworks redesign means we can expect a Genuine redesign soon, too.

Piaggio, on the other hand, has world domination on their mind, and has about a billion people on their payroll, so they really should be doing more with their site since the bait shops and fashion boutiques that sell their scooters don't seem to be particularly well-outfitted to sell and market scooters, ha.

[ericalm]

I agree that it's wise for a company to have some sort of revolving content on their site to keep customers coming back, whether it's a blog, or occasional news stories, and they do a little bit of that, but they're a pretty small operation, and the management knows its limitations, so I think they prefer to leave the direct customer interaction up to their dealers, a grassroots approach that seems to work well for them. They seem to give their dealers the tools they need to sell the brand, sell sheets, advertisement designs, signage, good training, etc. Maybe the Scooterworks redesign means we can expect a Genuine redesign soon, too.

Piaggio, on the other hand, has world domination on their mind, and has about a billion people on their payroll, so they really should be doing more with their site since the bait shops and fashion boutiques that sell their scooters don't seem to be particularly well-outfitted to sell and market scooters, ha.

Genuine is getting a new site. PJ (designer) told us about it months ago. I figure they're waiting to go official with the new models and Stella info before switching to the new design.

In a lot of ways, Piaggio doesn't act like a company bent on world domination... Their marketing, US distribution and dealer relations in the US pretty much suck all around. They could actually be selling many more scoots if they only had their crap together and put a little more effort into doing the things a sensible company would do to, you know, SELL scooters.

[louie]

i've heard from someone who sold both and worked with both companies as well with other big name bikes, say Genuine is the best company they've ever dealt with while vespa the most difficult.

[sparty]

I wish I can say the same for my dealer. They had a terrible experience with genuine. apparently a customer's scoot broke down in the summer and they couldn't get parts from genuine. The owner wrote a letter to phil and never got an answer. He's not too happy about the experience. Oh well. I love my 06 Buddy but it doesn't look like I will be getting another one.

[ericalm]

As promised, larger pics of the 2008 Buddy lineup. I posted them in the Scooter Gallery here:
topic2787.html

I hope to have more info tomorrow and will of course share anything I learn.

[Drumwoulf]

And that certainly looks like a nicer all-orange... (To me, that is! -Don't want to piss off alla current orange owners here...)

... WHAT ??? NICER ORANGE !!!!!!

Well, at least this new orange doesn't look like wot a cat with diarrhea leaves in her litter box!!
Swap it for a 'creamer' if you get the chance. Besides being better looking and faster, the 'creamers' are obselete now and so should become collector's items earlier..!