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Post by rcq92130 on Jul 16, 2015 0:20:01 GMT -5
These things are all good profit margin items for you (or should be) and can easily double what you keep from the sale of a scooter - and they should be pretty easy things to convince most customers about at the time of sale (if they have cash). What's cool about being able to offer financing is that the lender will typically allow for "hard adds." The upsells you're talking about are easier when they finance because they don't cost a whole lot, but add real value to the bike and the banks will allow them in the loan. I was really surprised that the tach wasn't included in the Heritage cluster. It is on the 260, I'm almost positive. Your lights look GREAT! I was looking at an aftermarket trunk that had lights built in earlier. T'was on eBay, I'm pretty sure. I'll look in a little while and see if I can't find the link. But the BMS scoots come with a trunk (depending on the model). Mine did. The standard ChinaTrunk is a 2-piece clamshell (upper and lower) joined in the middle with little screws. A plastic chrome stirip goes around the thing to cover the screws (and the i9ndernt where the 2 pieces meet). I couldn't find an aftermarket LED strip and had to make my own. An LED strip from a china supplier (about $15 deliverd to USA). Then a piece of clear vinyl tubing from Home Depot, cut into 2 shells lengthwise. The LED went into a shell and clear silicone was added. Then the OEM chrome strip was pulled off (just 2-sided sticky tape) and the LED assembly glued on. Maybe $20 plus labor - if you hired a college student you could make up 50 or 100 in a day's work. I think this would be a GREAT dealer add-on - something you could easily charge $50 to $100 for and tell the customer "it just might save your life" (and mean it). Oh - and the flasher is $20 your cost. I think a dealer should have a bunch of these on hand, plus a showroom model so you can show on a real scooter how they work. Hard for me to imagine many would pass the thing up. So, if you are making $300 on a scooter sale your profit just went up by 1/3 or so. Same with air horns. The financing idea is an out-of-the-ballpark winner. |
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Post by shantyhag on Jul 16, 2015 9:27:16 GMT -5
The standard ChinaTrunk is a 2-piece clamshell (upper and lower) joined in the middle with little screws. A plastic chrome stirip goes around the thing to cover the screws (and the i9ndernt where the 2 pieces meet). I couldn't find an aftermarket LED strip and had to make my own. An LED strip from a china supplier (about $15 deliverd to USA). Then a piece of clear vinyl tubing from Home Depot, cut into 2 shells lengthwise. The LED went into a shell and clear silicone was added. Then the OEM chrome strip was pulled off (just 2-sided sticky tape) and the LED assembly glued on. Maybe $20 plus labor - if you hired a college student you could make up 50 or 100 in a day's work.
I think this would be a GREAT dealer add-on...
Same with air horns. I think you're 100% correct on all fronts. As a practical matter, I have a question. My wife and I closed our restaurant after 5 years on the first of this year. It was a good thing, prefacing a move to San Diego and our intent to open a new one downtown. That has been delayed due to one thing and another and we're doing this now... we're really excited about this! But I digress. Our restaurant was a stand-alone building tucked back in the corner of a poorly lit parking lot as part of a daytime office mall. The landlords, notoriously cheap, refused to fix the ballasts in our sign and instead tried all forms of lighting tricks to illuminate it externally rather than pay to actually make it work. Finally, we got tired of hearing from customers that they couldn't tell if we were open by looking at the building and we bought enough bright LED ropelight to outline every corner, rail and eave of the exterior. We joked when we'd finished that it was the only spot in the mountains that you could see from orbit (except for a forest fire... when you live under constant threat you can get a pretty macabre sense of humor about some things). But over time we started to hear the same complaints from customers again. The lights had grown dim. Whether it was yellowing of the plastic tubing or dimming of the bulbs or, it seems more likely, a combination of the two, the LED lights didn't last for us long term. Have you noticed your lights getting dimmer over time, whether from UV exposure or simply bulb quality? We paid for and thought we had received about the best ropelight we could buy. Spent many hundreds of dollars on the things, only to have them not last long term. |
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Post by rcq92130 on Jul 16, 2015 12:19:44 GMT -5
Have not.
BUT
LED lights are notoriously unhappy about "dirty" voltage, such as that produced in a scooter by the stator and crappy chinaRegulator. I think it should be ex[ected that they will not see as long a lifetime in a scooter as they would in a car (with better charging system). Also - my brake lights only come on when the brakes are on - a small eprcentage of overall riding time.
I was more concerned about the vinyl tubing I used as a housing, or the clear silicone to fill around the LED strip. I DO think the silicone has yellowed a bit, but that has not affected the light output as far as I can tell. If you were to actually "invent" this as a commercial product for sale to your customers I'd suggest something other than the vinyl tubing. Best would be something that is lightly "chromed" - enough to conceal the LEDs inside but transparent enough so the light from the LEDs would shine thru. I didn;'t do an exhaustive search for that but looked and came up empty - but such a thing surely exists.
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Post by scooter on Jul 16, 2015 16:14:02 GMT -5
The standard ChinaTrunk is a 2-piece clamshell (upper and lower) joined in the middle with little screws. A plastic chrome stirip goes around the thing to cover the screws (and the i9ndernt where the 2 pieces meet). I couldn't find an aftermarket LED strip and had to make my own. An LED strip from a china supplier (about $15 deliverd to USA). Then a piece of clear vinyl tubing from Home Depot, cut into 2 shells lengthwise. The LED went into a shell and clear silicone was added. Then the OEM chrome strip was pulled off (just 2-sided sticky tape) and the LED assembly glued on. Maybe $20 plus labor - if you hired a college student you could make up 50 or 100 in a day's work.
I think this would be a GREAT dealer add-on...
Same with air horns. I think you're 100% correct on all fronts. As a practical matter, I have a question. My wife and I closed our restaurant after 5 years on the first of this year. It was a good thing, prefacing a move to San Diego and our intent to open a new one downtown. That has been delayed due to one thing and another and we're doing this now... we're really excited about this! But I digress. Our restaurant was a stand-alone building tucked back in the corner of a poorly lit parking lot as part of a daytime office mall. The landlords, notoriously cheap, refused to fix the ballasts in our sign and instead tried all forms of lighting tricks to illuminate it externally rather than pay to actually make it work. Finally, we got tired of hearing from customers that they couldn't tell if we were open by looking at the building and we bought enough bright LED ropelight to outline every corner, rail and eave of the exterior. We joked when we'd finished that it was the only spot in the mountains that you could see from orbit (except for a forest fire... when you live under constant threat you can get a pretty macabre sense of humor about some things). But over time we started to hear the same complaints from customers again. The lights had grown dim. Whether it was yellowing of the plastic tubing or dimming of the bulbs or, it seems more likely, a combination of the two, the LED lights didn't last for us long term. Have you noticed your lights getting dimmer over time, whether from UV exposure or simply bulb quality? We paid for and thought we had received about the best ropelight we could buy. Spent many hundreds of dollars on the things, only to have them not last long term. I am using waterproof LED strip lighting on my scooter. They sell the large 50/50 type on ebay for about $1.25 per foot, or about $20 for a 15 foot roll. I think the power is about 1/2 to 1 amp per meter if I'm not mistaken. They are quite bright but I can't tell you how long they will last. I would use a good regulated power source for them if possible. They should last several years. These waterproof ones have silicon over the lights, but if you have a waterproof enclosure, you can get ones without the silicon and they may last longer, being able to dissipate heat better perhaps. I would not put the lights in a tube or tight enclosure if I could help it, as it may cause heat buildup and lead to premature failure. There are also smaller lights that use less power per meter of length, but I don't know if that would make them last longer or not. These strips are interesting in that they seem to have some protective circuitry built in. There's no math, no installing resistors, or anything else to worry about. If you hook them up backwards, it doesn't blow them up or anything, and the same strip that lights up with a 12v car battery will also light up, not as brightly, on a little 9v battery. I use the 9v for testing during installation. You want to stick with the proper voltage, 12v. Just saying, these seem to be well designed light strips and they are cheap. You can also buy solderless connectors for them. |
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Post by scooter on Jul 16, 2015 16:36:52 GMT -5
What we want to do is to find a way to differentiate ourselves from the internet guys. We are in an area with several colleges, where scooters can be ridden almost every day year round. We'll be able to provide financing, even some after-market F&I products like warranties and roadside assistance. But, man, it looks like the cream of the crop provide some great PDI work. We want to be those people. So, I'm looking at the stuff that can really make a difference. It seems you already have the right idea. I am writing a care pamphlet to note the importance of regular maintenance. |
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Post by rcq92130 on Jul 16, 2015 16:45:12 GMT -5
I think you're 100% correct on all fronts. As a practical matter, I have a question. My wife and I closed our restaurant after 5 years on the first of this year. It was a good thing, prefacing a move to San Diego and our intent to open a new one downtown. That has been delayed due to one thing and another and we're doing this now... we're really excited about this! But I digress. Our restaurant was a stand-alone building tucked back in the corner of a poorly lit parking lot as part of a daytime office mall. The landlords, notoriously cheap, refused to fix the ballasts in our sign and instead tried all forms of lighting tricks to illuminate it externally rather than pay to actually make it work. Finally, we got tired of hearing from customers that they couldn't tell if we were open by looking at the building and we bought enough bright LED ropelight to outline every corner, rail and eave of the exterior. We joked when we'd finished that it was the only spot in the mountains that you could see from orbit (except for a forest fire... when you live under constant threat you can get a pretty macabre sense of humor about some things). But over time we started to hear the same complaints from customers again. The lights had grown dim. Whether it was yellowing of the plastic tubing or dimming of the bulbs or, it seems more likely, a combination of the two, the LED lights didn't last for us long term. Have you noticed your lights getting dimmer over time, whether from UV exposure or simply bulb quality? We paid for and thought we had received about the best ropelight we could buy. Spent many hundreds of dollars on the things, only to have them not last long term. I am using waterproof LED strip lighting on my scooter. They sell the large 50/50 type on ebay for about $1.25 per foot, or about $20 for a 15 foot roll. I think the power is about 1/2 to 1 amp per meter if I'm not mistaken. They are quite bright but I can't tell you how long they will last. I would use a good regulated power source for them if possible. They should last several years. These waterproof ones have silicon over the lights, but if you have a waterproof enclosure, you can get ones without the silicon and they may last longer, being able to dissipate heat better perhaps. I would not put the lights in a tube or tight enclosure if I could help it, as it may cause heat buildup and lead to premature failure. There are also smaller lights that use less power per meter of length, but I don't know if that would make them last longer or not. These strips are interesting in that they seem to have some protective circuitry built in. There's no math, no installing resistors, or anything else to worry about. If you hook them up backwards, it doesn't blow them up or anything, and the same strip that lights up with a 12v car battery will also light up, not as brightly, on a little 9v battery. I use the 9v for testing during installation. You want to stick with the proper voltage, 12v. Just saying, these seem to be well designed light strips and they are cheap. You can also buy solderless connectors for them. This is what I used on the trunk - 2 strips with electrical leads already attached to each one (the 2 together were the perfect length): www.ebay.com/itm/2-x-50CM-Waterproof-SMD-5050-Red-30LEDs-Flexible-Led-Light-Strip-DC-12V-/350875231829?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item51b1cb2655And this is what I used for the daytime flashing driving light: www.ebay.com/itm/Vehicle-Car-H3-Xenon-White-68-SMD-LED-Headlight-Bulb-Fog-Light-Lamp-US-Ship-12V-/261508976451?hash=item3ce3264f43And oh by the way for the air horns: www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-12V-CHROME-Twin-Tone-Air-Horn-Dual-Trumpet-Train-Horn-Kit-w-Compressor-LOUD-/141545314837?hash=item20f4c21a15&vxp=mtrObnoxiously loud - as you would like. VERY obnoxious since they also go off when the alarm goes off. |
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Post by scooter on Jul 16, 2015 16:56:01 GMT -5
Those look great on your bike. The gauges are very cool too. Such a nice looking scooter. Very classy. What is "Buckeyes"? Is that a dealership? |
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Post by ghcoe on Jul 16, 2015 17:46:18 GMT -5
A common reason that LED's prematurely fail or fade is they are overrun with voltage. There are correct calculations that allow you to figure out at what voltage a LED or series of LED's run at. Most LED's fail early because they say they are rated for 12 volts. Vehicle regulators regulate voltage at 13.5 to 16 volts while running. If you have wired in a 12 volt LED system into the vehicle you are now overrunning the LED's while the vehicle is running. Even with the vehicle off you are still running the LED's at 12.5 volts with a full battery. For full LED life it is better to run at or under calculated voltage recommendations. LED calculator scriptasylum.com/rc_speed/led.html |
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Post by shantyhag on Jul 17, 2015 12:49:33 GMT -5
Those look great on your bike. The gauges are very cool too. Such a nice looking scooter. Very classy... Agreed! And at those decibel levels you're going to be heard over the loudest subwoofer. GHCoe... thank you for the LED calculator! RCQ... I hope sometime in the near future I can convince you to come over to the shop and let me see that beautiful machine in person. |
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Post by rcq92130 on Jul 17, 2015 15:06:02 GMT -5
Those look great on your bike. The gauges are very cool too. Such a nice looking scooter. Very classy. What is "Buckeyes"? Is that a dealership? Yeah, yeah, yeah, Scoot. Very funny! "Buckeyes" is THE Ohio State University, reigning National Champions. |
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