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Post by toddscoot71 on May 18, 2014 14:54:03 GMT -5
you can try shock extenders, common item at auto parts store for lifted trucks, not too expensive either. they will lift the rear of your scoot a little though. also are the shocks mounts the same top to bottom, if so you might be able to mount upside down. some shocks you mount upside down, some you cant. Shock extenders are a good idea but I'm not sure they would be the same size as the scooter mounts and I really don't want to raise the rear any more than it already is. Unfortunately these shocks can only mount one direction. You can't mount them upside down. I don't know, I'm kind of stuck not knowing which way to go. Maybe I'll try some aftermarket shocks. If anyone happens to know where to buy replacement upper shock bolts please let me know. |
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 18, 2014 12:33:19 GMT -5
Ok guys... I noticed one more thing that doesn't look quite right. The upper shock bolts have threads on the entire bolt and they're a bit sloppy in the shock's bushing. That would make the caps sit a bit higher since there's some play in the bushing.
I assume the bolts should have an unthreaded area that goes inside the bushing. That's the way it is on every other shock I've ever seen in my life.
Anyone know where to buy replacement shock mounting bolts? I can't seem to find any place that has them online.
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 18, 2014 11:02:54 GMT -5
The cap isn't bolted to the frame, the top (Rod End) of the shock is. The cap mearly serves as a stop for the spring and butts up against the rod end. It looks as though the cap is what's hitting the shock mount so moving that cap away from the mount would lessen the chance of the two hitting each other. If the spring were removed from the shock the spring cap should be free to move as well (slide away from the rod end). If indeed the cap is what's hitting the shock mount, by inserting a spacer between the rod end and the cap would put spacing between the cap and the shock mount. Truth be told, I don't know how your shock is put together, but if I understand your problem correctly, and my eyes are seeing your photo correctly, my theory is sound. No... The top of the shock (the part I keep calling the cap) is one piece. It has a hole in it where the bolt goes through to mount it to the frame. The shock's piston rod is screwed into the bottom of the cap. There's no way to put a spacer between where it mounts to the frame and the cap, it's a solid one piece part. |
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 17, 2014 23:31:40 GMT -5
The upper part of the shock with the attachment is not moving up and down. The center pin in the shock goes down into the lower part of the shock when it's compressed. The only way the top part could be moving up and down is if the bolt is to small. By the photo it looks like your cap has come loose and that it's not fitted to the spring, but I'm not sure... That's true, the upper cap on the shock doesn't move up and down but it does pivot when the suspension is loaded. When it pivots it hits the mounts on the frame. william42: Putting a spacer under the cap wouldn't help. The cap would still be bolted to the frame in the same location and would still pivot into the frame. |
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 17, 2014 9:36:30 GMT -5
here is a pic of some aftermarket shocks that I got off of ebay for 100 dollars . I have no clearance problems , i could also turn them around for more clearance. Your other option is just grind a notch out of your shock mount. I think if you dont want to modify or spend money on your scooter then just sell it. Go to yamaha and spend $3000 dollars on something with a warranty. Keep in mind these scooters are one third the price of "name brand" scooters.   Thanks for the info on the aftermarket shocks. That does help and I may go that route. Were they a direct bolt on? Actually, I just looked on ebay. They appear to be $89-$100 EACH. Ouch. Keep in mind that me posting this wasn't a shot at you personally just because you own a TaoTao Evo. I went into this whole Chinese scooter thing with my eyes wide open. I knew there would be a lot of stupid things to fix. But... I think having the shock mounts at the wrong angle, so much so that the stock shocks hit them is just plain crap quality. Obviously I have the option of getting rid of it and buying a more expensive scooter but that's not really the point. I've already spent a ton of money on the bike and spending money on it isn't the issue. I personally think I shouldn't have to modify a frame though. Again, thanks for the info on the shocks. It's good to know those have enough clearance since I'm pretty much guessing with the aftermarket ones without seeing someone that's already using them. I suppose the point of my posting this here is to see if there might be something else wrong with my scooter causing it. Maybe I'm the only one with the problem. |
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 17, 2014 6:24:12 GMT -5
My shocks on the rear have a chrome top and I see yours do not. Will have to wait for daylight and a chance to take a decent picture to share. Mine are chrome on the top too. That picture was taken when it was dark with a crappy cell phone so it's kind of hard to see. When the shocks are still on the bike you can't really see the grooves in the tops of them either but if you have very little clearance like my picture or the other one I posted: www.myedocs.com/onlinefiles/Scooters/photos/pump.JPG they might be doing it too. craisin: As for the seat breaking, that's not the problem. It's the top of the shock bumping the frame shock mounts. Weight doesn't seem to be the issue either. My wife only weights 125 lbs or so and it does it with just her sitting on the scooter. I also considered grinding the tab a bit and still might but I hate to alter the frame in any way. I would almost rather find some aftermarket shocks that have more clearance but I really don't feel like throwing more money at this thing right now. |
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 16, 2014 14:03:53 GMT -5
Ok, now I'm convinced I'm not the only one with this problem. I found a youtube video of someone assembling their evo and it looks like their upper mount is VERY close to the shock. I also found a post here from 2013 by scooterb that has pictures of his evo. Here is a picture where you can see his upper shock mount: www.myedocs.com/onlinefiles/Scooters/photos/pump.JPGSure looks to me like that one is hitting there for sure. I don't know, maybe it's not that big of a deal but it has to be stressing the shock and the mount on the frame since it can't pivot correctly when it hits there. I wonder if all the "hunter" style scooters have this going on or if it's just a TaoTao issue. |
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 16, 2014 11:04:37 GMT -5
I'm trying to figure out some way to fix this...
I know this is a long shot but does anyone make offset upper bushings for these shocks? I suppose it might be possible to make polyurethane bushings with an offset hole for the metal sleeve.
Is there any other adjustment that would pivot the shock away from that mount? Moving the entire motor/swingarm forward a little would probably do it too but I assume there's no adjustment for that.
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 16, 2014 10:05:29 GMT -5
2012 Tao Tao EVO 150. Upper mounts for rear shocks seem to be welded at a slightly wrong angle causing the top of the shocks to hit the mounts when the suspension pivots going over bumps. Don't see any real way to fix it and I assume it will eventually break the shock mounts or bend the shocks if it hasn't already. I now have a garage trophy to show how dumb my decision was to buy this thing.
Anyone want to buy a nice Tao Tao for parts? lol
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 15, 2014 19:23:20 GMT -5
Well, I took the shocks off hoping for worn out bushings. Nope, the bushings still look brand new.
The top of each shock has nice grooves worn into them from where they're hitting the mounts. Nice. What a piece of crap. Great design.
Well, enough of the ranting I guess. It's just very frustrating. My mistake for buying a cheap scooter. Live and learn.
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 15, 2014 8:20:35 GMT -5
I have a 2014 model TaoTao EVO ATM and I have not observed any issue with the rear and I am a big guy. I do notice that chug holes make the front headlight assembly rattle. Would a new set of shocks solve you issue? The shocks are adjustable, what about changing the setting? I've never felt any issues with this bike either and the rear suspension still seems to work fine. The rattle is slight and might not even be coming from the shocks. I don't think rider weight would be the issue here either. You can just barely bounce the back up and down and the top of the shock bumps that tab. I noticed this while looking around for the rattle. If you have a moment perhaps you can take a look at your upper shock mount. I'm wondering if they welded the tabs on the frame at the wrong angle on mine. It's the only thing that makes sense. Actually, I just thought of something. Could it maybe be the upper bushing on the shock? I suppose if the rubber was bad this could happen. I'll have to pull them off to take a look. |
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 15, 2014 6:34:16 GMT -5
do my eyes deceive me or is that shock bent? Your eyes do deceive you. The photo does kind of look like that but the shocks are straight with no damage. |
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Post by toddscoot71 on May 1, 2014 13:55:11 GMT -5
one of my customers finally got his scooter finished. Looks and sounds amazing!! That's the first gy6 scooter I've seen with NCY forks! Finally. Did you have a chance to ride that bike? If so how did the forks feel?  |
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Post by toddscoot71 on Apr 30, 2014 18:19:05 GMT -5
Really? No one on here has tried NCY forks on their scoot? Huh. That surprises me a little. I don't know how all of you are putting up with the terrible stock ones.
I decided to take a chance today and ordered a set. Should be interesting to see how they feel.
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Post by toddscoot71 on Apr 25, 2014 14:33:05 GMT -5
That's about what I was thinking too, was going to say $650. In this part of the country people try to get $900 out of every 150cc scoot you see on Craigslist. They sit on there month after month so I'm guessing they never sell. Modifications actually scare some people away. Unless it's someone in the know I don't think it helps the resell value. |
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