Top 10 reasons not to buy a used scooter

[motorhead]

10. Why is a one year old bike with less than 1K miles being sold already?

9. The mileage is probably higher than what's on the dash because the bike was run extensively without the speedometer cable connected.

8. because the bike is slow in traffic it was run at WOT 100% of its life and the engine now has a much shorter life expectancy.


7. because the cheap skate you bought it from uses family dollar oil in it.

6. The horizontal scratches came from crashing the bike while it was moving very fast.

5. Even a bandaid will stop a bullet wound from bleeding for a while. Cheap bikes usually get cheap fixes. Ask me about the putty I found acting as an intake gasket.

4. The painted JB weld holding the panels together makes it hard to get the panels off without breaking them more.

3. The bike probably doesn't have the performance parts to match all the malossi and polini stickers on it.

2. "It probably just needs the carb cleaned" turns into "You definitely need a new crank" when you get it into a shop.

And the top reason to buy a new bike instead of used is...

1. Because it will start up for your test ride and run strong because it was probably loaded with starting fluid right before you pulled up.



Caveat Emptor - Buyer beware folks. Used bikes are good for experienced scooterists who already do their own repairs and have been baptized in sludge. If you are new to scoots, I recommend you buy New also.

[drawkward]

Haha, good list.

However, buying a used one is what got me where I am with my skill level. The issues are what forced me to learn different aspects, until I understood every single component. It has been only about a year and half since I got my first scoot, and didn't even know what rollers where, or how a carb worked. Now I'm confident enough to take my scooter apart down to every single nut, bolt, bearing, gasket, etc. Every part. I can recognize and understand it's purpose and know how to solve problems associated with it. I attribute all of that to the fact that I bought a used scooter the previous owner claimed "only needed a carb cleaning", and our incredible group here at 49ccScoot.com for answering all of my questions along the way.

Buy used - you'll definitely learn something. Buy new - it'll run well without having to do fixes, at least for a while...

[motorhead]

In 2007 I bought a new 06 Verucci. It had problems right out of the crate. The way I feel is that a new bike's components will fail 1 by one and give a newb a gentle learning curve. If the internet was not around, having a chinese scooter would be a different story. .

[90GTVert]

Buying used can definitely be tricky. It really doesn't pay to buy used if you want something hassle free. Unless you are very lucky and get an honest seller, there's usually more to it than you know. You can get incredibly lucky sometimes if you are willing to take a risk though. I got my 90cc Triton on eBay for $62.50 with a damaged engine. The fuel system wasn't hooked up. The bottom end lasted me another 7,000+ miles. Sure, the panels were junk and there was a lot of shady work and what not, but it had a good chassis and engine. I paid $1460 for my first scoot, the 49cc Triton. I had to do very little work to it (did have issues new that the dealer wasn't competent to fix in some cases), and it was clean and all that. I'd take the $62.50 90cc beat ass scoot any day over it though. lol Sometimes you luck out, and sometimes you get screwed. It's definitely a gamble and you should definitely be very prepared to learn or already know what's up.