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I'm a huge Doctor Who fan and it took me forever to find a license plate holder that I liked that was also available in a motorcycle size.

I had problems with my scooter being hard to crank. It was the exact same as yours; I had to give it a little throttle while cranking or else it'd just sputter and die. I'd also have to hold the throttle a little bit back for a minute or two until the engine warmed up or it'd die. Had problems with it dying at stop lights too. I just needed a valve adjustment. I don't know how often they need to be done on a Kymco.

I like Ride-On tire sealant. There's several reasons to not use fix-a-flat; for one it's not a preventative. It dries up and hardens after you put it in the tire; it's like cement. It's also corrosive and will eat up your rims. It's probably fine to put fix-a-flat in and then drive it somewhere to replace the tire immediately. I've done that on my car before.

There is Slime, which can be used preventatively because it doesn't harden, but I've read that at speeds over 50 mph it causes a lot of vibration. In a small 50cc Slime would probably be fine. The good thing about Ride On is that it can be used to keep your tires balanced. Centripetal force will keep an even coating around the whole tire. Watch the video on the website. I use Ride On in my scooter and it made my ride a lot smoother and I also don't have to worry as much about running over a nail or something and having a sudden loss of air pressure.

So I'll probably spend next month looking around, and if I decide to get another scooter I'll probably do it around June. It'll be a birthday present to myself

There are 2 dealers here in Gainesville I'll probably be looking at. One is where I got my current scooter. They sell Vespas and Piaggios. They have a BV 350 in stock. The other dealer sells Kymco. There are a few different Kymco models that are around the same engine size I'd like to look at. The People GT 300i and the Downtown 300i. They also sell Sym scooters, and I'd like to check out the CityCom 300i as well.

I think it's because the retro looking scooters cost more. You get the same engine, but a different body, and it'll increase the price by $500 - $800. I personally really like the retro look myself.

This is exactly how I would have put it. The Vespas seem to have the exact same engine as what's in a Paiggio, but then they give it a retro look and charge $800 more. I like the Vespa look, but not for that much more.



I probably will at least check them out. There's only one dealer around that has them though and they have a really bad reputation. They are constantly posting on Craigslist about needing mechanics, and they have lots of negative reviews on various web sites. Here is their latest craigslist post for mechanics.

Right now I'm driving a Chinese 150cc. It's been working really well for me, but I don't have the mechanical know how to know how to maintain it. When something acts up, I gotta take it in to the shop to have it looked at. The only real problem I've had so far was the valves needing adjusting (I know... that's not really major, but it would have been for me to do it =D). But, I know that a Chinese scooter can be a ticking time bomb; anything can stop working at any time. For a lot of y'all that's not a big deal. You know how to diagnose and replace whatever is wrong.

I just got a new job! Yay for me! I'll be working in the IT department at a local hospital. My income literally just tripled (it's still fairly low, but before it was super low... lol). I was managing with what I had before, so I'm thinking of putting some money back every month for the next year or so and getting a scooter from a reliable brand. In the mean time, I have plenty of time to ask questions and gather information. One scooter in particular that I have been eyeing is the Piaggio BV 350. I want to get something that is capable of keeping up with 55 - 60 mph traffic with ease, but is not bulky and still easy to drive around town. A good balance between more power and good MPGs. I feel like the BV 350 fits the bill pretty well.

I do have a few questions though, about the "reliable" brands like Vespa, Honda, etc where you see people saying that the scooter will last forever if you take good care of it. For at least the first several years, I would really like to not worry much about maintenance aside from routine fluid changes. Is this a likely scenario or are scooter/motorcycles more prone to wear and tear since their engines are more exposed than a car?

How much wiggle room do you think dealers have with the prices of higher end scooters? I noticed that the local Vespa dealer has the same prices listed on everything as the MSRP on the Vespa web site. I looked around online at other dealers and they all had the exact same pricing. Would I be able to talk the dealer down on price similar to how you'd shop for a car, or the prices more set in the scooter world? The BV 350 is a fairly new scooter, how long before the prices usually start to drop some?

Thoughts on Piaggio in general. They are made my Vespa and seem like a good reliable brand to me. Does anyone here own one? I'd love to hear how you like it.