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Post by rockynv on Mar 14, 2017 23:17:15 GMT -5
Top shops charge up to $150 across the US while high volume dealers may be as low as $  an hour. Depends on how much they've invested in OEM training and tooling every year. It costs money to send your mechanics to Piaggio's training center for some weeks every few years to keep them all fresh and up to date. |
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Post by rockynv on Mar 14, 2017 12:10:40 GMT -5
So do I have rocker arms or valve shims in my 200? And what diff does it make to me who doesn't do the adjustments herself? 'gull, come on, go get this last BV rocky found. That's almost new, you know. Come join the Italian fleet! >'Kat Difference in paying for 30 minutes of labor at $150 an hour and paying for 2 or 3 hours labor for a valve adjustment. Newer Piaggio bikes have 4 valve heads so you are paying to have twice as many valves adjusted per cylinder compared to a GY6. I believe the BV200 has adjustable rocker arms. |
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Post by rockynv on Mar 14, 2017 4:20:50 GMT -5
Sometimes your best bet is to cleanup the old carb keeping as much original as you can. The old one was jetted and set up/tuned to work with your bikes engine, airbox/filter and exhaust while the new one could have been specific to a particular model or so generic that it won't work 100% right until you get everything matching your old carbs setup as close to 100% as possible.
On my previous bike when I rebuilt the carb I on principle replaced the slide and diaphragm however it was so different from the original that it didn't work right until I cleaned up the old diaphragm and put it back in.
Great to hear you've got it back on track.
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Post by rockynv on Mar 14, 2017 0:00:58 GMT -5
Here is another 2013 BV350. 1,350 miles on it for $2,950: fortmyers.craigslist.org/col/mcy/6035199307.html The only thing I really do not like about the 350 engine compared to the 250 and 500 is that it uses valve shims instead of having adjustable rocker arms. I believe I may have mentioned it a few times already that I hate having to buy shims and deal with close enough valve adjustments using valve shims. |
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Post by rockynv on Mar 13, 2017 23:52:08 GMT -5
My et4 was truly a hard time to work on,, for me anyways ,,I was not impressed and sold it as soon as I got it running decently , the Stella is a breeze comparatively speaking and will be in the stable for far longer than the vespa The Stella is basically a Vespa PX that was made in India by LML. The ET4 once you understand how to access things is no big deal to maintain. Both bikes are vintage Vespa designs. |
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Post by rockynv on Mar 12, 2017 23:41:11 GMT -5
I think if there was an easier way Pete would have found it. He isn't the only one I've seen complain about it. Modern Vespa is filled with gripes about service issues. As are most brand name scooter forums. It makes people take them to the dealer all the time. People who don't know do it the hard way all the time and gripe about it. On the ET4 its a 3 to 10 minute job and the tools to do it the 3 minute way are included with the bike. To make it even easier the tool storage area is built into the underside of the seat itself so you do not have to go digging for them. You don't even need tools to remove the seat bucket since it simply pulls right out once you open the seat. Had one guy griping about having to drop the engine to get at the carb on his ET4 and you should have seen the look of shock on his face when I reached down and pulled the seat bucket right out without removing any of its contents first and exposed the entire top of the engine along with the plate you open to get at the spark plug. Got to be one of the easiest bikes out there to work on. |
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Post by rockynv on Mar 11, 2017 8:54:34 GMT -5
Ask Pete how much he loathed having to drop his Vespa's ET-4 engine out of the frame simply to change the spark plug. My Kymco Like and CF Moto are the best ever for maintenance. You just pull the seat and everything is right there. You put it on the center stand, pull out the seat bucket with no tools required and remove one bolt on the shock absorber and the engine pivots to service the plug. You might have to put a wooden block under the center stand if your hands are big to get a bit more clearance. That's only if you don't want to use the supplied tool that came with the bike and the spark plug hatch which makes it about a three minute job on the ET4. Some folks make it much harder than it really is. No need to remove the engine on an ET4 just to change a spark plug. |
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Post by rockynv on Mar 10, 2017 19:05:37 GMT -5
It could be worse and they could have use shims instead of adjusters.
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Post by rockynv on Mar 10, 2017 13:49:03 GMT -5
You will see them with over 100,000 miles on them. Head gasket indicates an event of some kind though with the one I'd worry most about is overheating it. Could be from lack of flushing the coolant, a cooling fan fail and not shutting it down until it overheated or soft siezed. Price though is high for a 2013 with that many miles and an event that required the head gasket be replaced. 2013 BV 350 with 11,354 miles for $2,600: fortmyers.craigslist.org/lee/mcy/6010129996.htmlNo top case but does have the extra cost side stand.  Note that anything before 2015 is lowered in value now since they added ABS to the newer bikes. KBB Retail is $3,500 on a 2013 BV350 so private sale in excellant condition its only going to be about $2,800 max. With an engine incident like the one originally posted here its only worth about $2,000. |
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Post by rockynv on Mar 9, 2017 9:23:39 GMT -5
Bob says the new head gasket is leaking on the compression stroke now. I am almost leaning towards the new head being defective/not flat. This is one that I really wish was close enough to drive over to and take a look at.
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Post by rockynv on Mar 9, 2017 8:51:56 GMT -5
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Post by rockynv on Mar 9, 2017 8:42:07 GMT -5
You'd think those people wouldn't mind answering a question or 2...  They don't want savvy folks who ask questions and might bring a mechanic with them or be sharp enough to insist on meeting at a police station for the transaction. |
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Post by rockynv on Mar 8, 2017 23:50:49 GMT -5
The battery is near the back of the seat in the alternate fuel tank location. With the large flat front fuel economy is not very good at speeds over 30 mph so the 1.3 gallons only goes about 65 miles with a 150 powering it.
Same bike as my Lance Vintage. Top case latch is weak and tends to pop open if you ride over chatter bumps in the road.
Rear fairing tends to fail where it bolts to the metal scuff plates. Mirror mounts are a bit weak and tend to fail too. Almost forgot that the rear fairing tends to trap heat and make the bike run hot since it has to cool through a tiny vent behind the seat under the top case.
Bike is only really worth the asking price if it was in decent working order. With a blown engine its only worth about $75.
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Post by rockynv on Mar 8, 2017 23:18:32 GMT -5
Or is spoofing locations and just reposting images of older bikes he finds on the internet so he can scam folks. There have been a number of warnings from local police here about all sorts of Craigs List miscreants luring people who are easy marks with fake adds about rare or unusual bikes and getting them to show up with cash in hand so they can rob them.
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Post by rockynv on Mar 8, 2017 12:57:10 GMT -5
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an hour. Depends on how much they've invested in OEM training and tooling every year. It costs money to send your mechanics to Piaggio's training center for some weeks every few years to keep them all fresh and up to date.
