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Post by flclempire on Sept 22, 2013 14:37:55 GMT -5
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Post by flclempire on Aug 21, 2013 6:14:39 GMT -5
Welp, time to update.
I went to the dealer late monday and as soon as I mentioned "a sound from the rear exhaust area" he practically finished my sentence and suggested that it was a baffle making the noise. I started the scooter and made the sound and he confirmed it was most likely a baffle. He said its quite common for 150 taotao and from reading experiences from everywhere, that seems correct.
So the only real solution is to get an aftermarket exhaust at some point, and thats ok. I intended to do so at some point anyways.
I'm just glad it wasn't something more complicated. Now I can get to enjoying my scooter!
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Post by flclempire on Aug 18, 2013 10:30:06 GMT -5
Is the oil leaking? What are you checking for? It isn't like the engine oil. It can't go anywhere. But mine is full enough to start coming out the fill hole immediately. Yours should be too. If oil doesn't come out it is too low. No its not leaking, I was just wondering if there was a way to check without adding more oil. I just got my new scoot so I'm being paranoid mostly  I take it there is no special quick check, then? Its not a problem if there isn't, I just read that some (older?) scooters have a fill, level check, and drain bolt. I suppose the fill hole could double as the level check hole, but wouldn't that only work like twice before its perfectly level and nothing runs out of the hole? |
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Post by flclempire on Aug 18, 2013 9:38:22 GMT -5
Hi, I was just wondering if there is an easy method for checking the gear oil level. I'm pretty meticulous about checking my engine oil since it takes like 10 seconds. But the only way I can think of to check the gear oil is to add more gear oil to the fill hole and have it run out again, but thats obviously a pain in rear to do often!
I've read that some scooters have a separate bolt to check the level, but I read that in a book from '04 and I certainly see no such bolt on my scoot.
Thanks.
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Post by flclempire on Aug 18, 2013 9:23:59 GMT -5
The bike would usually be doing what is affectionatly known as a stand dance if the wheel was terribly out of balance however yours is not doing a stand dance at all so the rear tire and rim should be pretty close to balanced. What I do hear is a bit of gear whine and possibly an internal muffler rattle from a broken weld on a baffle. I would verify that the shipping oil was changed and replaced with a good quality lubricant before riding it any further and definately see what the dealer has to offer. If you paid much over the $900 on-line price then you are resonable to expect the dealer to take care of issues that they should have caught during their predelivery inspection and setup of the bike. From this other video it seems that they may have used the wrong length belt (too long) or old belts that would tend to slap too much and that some of the swing arm bolts are vibrating loose from it: I've seen that video before, and it was the first thing I thought to re-watch when I heard the noise from my scooter. I haven't taken off the cvt cover yet. That inspection is on my next-to-do list though. As for the oil, I replaced both engine and transmission oils after I got home from the dealer (10 miles driven). I payed $825 + tax btw. Gotta wait for them to open on Monday before I try to get them to look at it. The stand dance is good to know about. I've never read of that before. |
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Post by flclempire on Aug 17, 2013 10:56:30 GMT -5
gopd advice pitting pressure on the muffler while reving or riding go see if th sound is def coming from the exhaust. do the same with the header, they also go bad often. Check the first link I posted. Its a youtube video and I apply my foot to the muffler while revving. The sound doesn't change, but when the sound comes it *really* vibrates the crap out of my foot, which is on the exhaust. |
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Post by flclempire on Aug 16, 2013 19:24:54 GMT -5
[replyingto=rockynv]rockynv[/replyingto]"If you recently bought it from a brick and motor dealer then what about the dealer standing behind what he sells? If it is vibrating that bad then there is usually something wrong in the CVT case such as a bad belt, unbalanced clutch, variator with a thrown or missing roller, etc. Muffler vibration is usually a symptom of other problems. "
Unfortunately their shop is the *only* brick and mortar shop in town.
They seem pretty legit, but being the only shop in town will probably result in them charging for *any* service. I'll check with them tomorrow to see if they will inspect it for me if I can't service it myself.
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Post by flclempire on Aug 16, 2013 19:21:41 GMT -5
The sound I'm worrying about is the semi-high pitch rattle/vibration after I've given it some juice. At the 40-50 second mark of the video demonstrates the rattle quite well, in my opinion.
The wheel itself seems pretty good. I've only experience with true-ing bicycle wheels and this one seems pretty center and has minimal play (especially after I tightened the axle nut). It doesn't create any control problems with driving and breaking either.
If I try to tighten the muffler nuts, the opposite nuts (which I can't reach without removing the wheel) are able to spin in the un-tightening direction, negating any effect I apply. Maybe I can reach the opposite side nuts with my cruddy mid-sized adjustable wrench - just to hold it in place. I'll try that tomorrow. I'll also check for cracks in the arms themselves. I had not considered that.
If something inside the muffler has come loose, wouldn't it rattle before I applied significant acceleration?
Thanks for the replies. You guys are giving me lots of ideas for testing.
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Post by flclempire on Aug 16, 2013 15:00:59 GMT -5
Thanks for the reply. Thats what I first thought as well! But I actually removed that heat shield from the muffler on day 1 since its completely useless. As for the arm thing, are you talking about the swing arm plate or the little arm thing under the muffler in this picture? i161.photobucket.com/albums/t236/flclempire/scooter%20stuff/mufflerhubbolt.jpgHmm tightening while hot....thats an interesting idea, certainly worth a try. |
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Post by flclempire on Aug 16, 2013 12:34:50 GMT -5
Hi, I've recently purchased a taotao paladin 150cc from a brick-and-mortar dealer. Everything has gone well with it so far (I've only put 150 miles on it so far), but I'm getting this horrible rattle/vibration noise coming from the rear right of my scooter. I'm guessing its either the rear tire, or the exhaust/muffler. I'm not very mechanically inclined, but I'm quite devoted to learning. Here is a video of the noise. It occurs on road and on the center stand. I place my foot lightly on the muffler and produce the sound again. My foot holding it doesn't help at all, but the vibration goes nuts through my foot the instant the noise starts. It tickled  I've tried tightening up the nut that connects the muffler to the rear hub area, pictured here i161.photobucket.com/albums/t236/flclempire/scooter%20stuff/mufflerhubbolt.jpgYes its dusty atm from my garage  I've tried tightening bolts on what I believe to be the swing arm plate, but not the exact nuts that connect the muffler to the swing arm. The tire is very much in the way and there is no way I'm gonna risk my life removing the tire with my current lack of experience. In this pic, I could tighten the bolts directly above and under the engine oil input, but not the 3rd to the upper left. i161.photobucket.com/albums/t236/flclempire/scooter%20stuff/mufflerswingbolt.jpgI've also tried tightening the right side axle nut. I actually did manage to tighten slightly, but the muffler is in the way so I couldn't get too much leverage, also the tire was difficult to hold in place. And to remove the muffler I need to remove the rear tire, which I am not comfortable doing yet. When I tightened the axle nut, a slight sound went away that would only sound off when the bike was driving on the center stand. But it didn't help with the big noise at all. It looks like its awfully close to the end of the axle....but idk... i161.photobucket.com/albums/t236/flclempire/scooter%20stuff/axlenut.jpgAny suggestions? Do you suppose its the wheel itself, or the exhaust? Or both?! It seems to be riding perfectly safe, although the bike outputs vibrations at 45+mph, but I imagine thats normal for chinese bikes. Sorry for the large post, thank you. |
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Post by flclempire on Jul 29, 2013 23:06:57 GMT -5
Hi, I'm just wondering if anyone has any experience with the tao tao paladin 150cc. A local shop is selling it as its only 150cc at the moment because the powermax and evo150 are basically constantly sold out. I can't find *any* type of review or worthwhile mention of the paladin though. I found a single post somewhere about a guy who crashed on one, but thats not helpful. Hopefully someone here has at least seen one before  I'd be grateful for any input, thanks. |
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Post by flclempire on May 26, 2013 9:56:04 GMT -5
Awesome, ty. And thanks for the link.
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Post by flclempire on May 25, 2013 13:35:33 GMT -5
I'm going to be buying a new scooter soon and I'm still debating on buying a 50cc or a 150cc. One of the few considerations I have left to make involves maintenance. On a 50cc I think I've watched and read enough to know the basics, but I'm not sure about the 150cc version. I know the main difference in the machinery is the larger cylinder and piston and perhaps larger/better parts to accommodate them (right?), but are there any other significant repair/maintenance differences between a 50cc engine and a 150cc? If I know how to work with a 50cc (and its the only motor engine I'm familiar with) would I be fine with a 150cc, or are there additional parts I would have to learn about? Thanks |
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Post by flclempire on May 23, 2013 15:22:16 GMT -5
Is it the cy50-a? Aka, "VIP" or "Future Champion"?  % of the forum reviews of that particular model report similar constant problems. |
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Post by flclempire on May 23, 2013 15:21:09 GMT -5
Hi, I was just wondering if anyone has any experience with the TaoTao Speedy 50cc. It seems to be the newest, or one of the newest 50cc's they offer and I can't really find *any* feedback on it. A local dealer is offering it new for like $525 but I wanna make sure its not a sure-fail like the TaoTao cy50-a.
Thanks.
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% of the forum reviews of that particular model report similar constant problems.