Urban Sporty 150 - welcome home!

[suntyger]

Never one to do things the easy way, I had my first scooter-riding experience today, driving my Urban Sporty 150 home--35 miles!  So far, I'm extremely happy with it.  The acceleration is zippy (I pulled ahead of cars coming out of most red lights), the ride is comfy, and it really is a fun little ride.  I reached a top speed of 60mph on flat road with no trouble, and cruising along at 45-50 was nice and smooth.

So after putting about 40 miles on it today, my only complaint is that it doesn't really have a good place to store my helmet--the under-seat storage isn't tall enough, and the "trunk" is just slightly too narrow.  I can just barely get the helmet in there, but it's kind of wedged up against the lock assembly, and I have a feeling it'll end up scuffed.

I plan to be driving this thing to work at least three days a week, so I'll probably have more to say with further use.  Assuming I remember this forum is here.  Oh, and...hi, everyone!

[bbj500]

you had it up to 60? what about the break in? did you get it used?
i was told not to go over 40 or so for the first 300 miles..........
did they tell you something diffrent??

[suntyger]

No, I wasn't told anything like that (it's a new scooter).  That doesn't really surprise me, though, since I was also told that I could drive it with a class C license and that it got 80 miles to the gallon.  I'm glad I got suspicious and researched the license thing myself, and I wasn't really expecting the "80 mpg" thing to be true, so I wasn't too disappointed.  I'm happy with the scooter, but less so with the knowledge of the sales staff.

So is this "break-in period" thing true?  Should I be taking it easy on my Sporty for a while?

[Anonymous]

how about it JACAR, what do you recomend for a beak in??? i know the prociedure in my owners manual is a joke, 20-30 km per hour for 300 km then 30 -40 for 1000km then 40-50 got another 1000 km, and so on, by the time i got it broke in i will be dead of old age!.....lol i was told by my friend george from the how to assemble a tank report that for most small engines, the break in around 300 miles under or around 40mph with alot of up and down throttleing works well (stop and go), and let it stop when you can by using the motor back pressure instead of the brake.......is this true??  he worked in a small engine repair shop for several years. but i dont know. but i dont think going 60 right off the bat is a good idea......just my opinion

[admin]

Last year I contact the CHP because I wanted to register my Tank Urban 50.  They referred me to my local police and they told me to go by the station to purchase a bicycle permit that there was no registration required.  January 1st came along and there was a law requiring all motorized scooters to be registered with the DMV.  Then there were question on licensing.  DMV told us that 150 or below required no motorcycle license in California their site read that motorized scooters require no motorcycle endorsement.  CHP labels a motorized scooter as a go-ped, the one you stand or sit down.  You must be 16 and you must have a DL.  But scooters require motorcycle endorsement no matter what size it is...   Here is the kicker...  The code in the registration for scooters is MS (motorized scooter).  

The rules are not 100% clear here in California.  More police departments are getting more familiar with the scooter.  Many of them don't know what to do with us.  I asked LAPD and they say "yes" you are required a M endorsement.  CHP say yes also, DMV says no but their site says no to motorized scooters and yes to scooters.  

Here is my take.  I would get the license through the MSF class.  This class is a great way of learning techniques and what to do.  To me should be a requirement...   Get the endorsement...

Scooters with a side car does not require a motorcycle endorsement, neither does a three wheeler... Ain’t that crazy?

[bbj500]

how about the break in peroid on these 150s? read the last thread before your last responce. i would realy like to know

[suntyger]

The confusion on licensing comes from a simple logical error.  We call them "scooters," so one would naturally assume that regulations for "motorized scooter" would apply.  However, according to the DMV, they're actually classified as a "motor-driven cycle."  If you check the definition of a "motorized scooter" on the DMV web site, you'll see that a motorized scooter has "a floorboard that is designed to be stood upon when riding."  (http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d01/vc407_5.htm)  Unless you're recommending that I ride my Urban Sporty standing up, there's no way it can be classified as a motorized scooter.

Regardless of whether the police know it or not, these scooters are "motor-driven cycles" (any motorcycle with engine displacement less than 150cc is a motor-driven cycle) and therefore, all regulations that apply to motorcycles also apply to them.  They require a class M1 license, full liability insurance, and everything else required for motorcycles.

How about the breaking in period?  Any recommendations?

[admin]

Based on what we have seen a couple of hundred miles is more than sufficient for these engines.  I would also recommend an oil change at 200 miles.  

I think that this period will be long enough for you to iron out the wrinkles on your scooter.
 

[admin]

By no way, shape or form am I recommending that you ride your scooter standing up...  You would look silly and the cop will probably laugh at you as he writes you a ticket.

A motorcycle endorsement is required.  I was just talking about my experience with the registrations since last year.  It is very new to many people.

I recall early this year, DMVs across the state giving conflicting info, yes you need it, no you don't and us having to call DMV and pointing them to their website...  It is new and people are still learning...

[bbj500]

by the way in florida insurance on scooters is not required, unless your stupid enough to want to ride without a helmet. then you have to get some so your covered if your bare skull hits the road!

[suntyger]

Okay, it's two days later, and I have a few complaints.

1)  A coworker sat on the scooter today, and, not realizing the wheel lock was on, straightened the handlebars.  He's a big guy, but not overly muscular, and he wasn't struggling with it--just turned the handlebars, as if he was steering it.  I heard a "pop," and now the wheel lock is broken.  When I put the key in "lock" position, the handlebars still turn freely.

2)  The alarm is too sensitive.  Sure, I want it to go off when someone's messing with the scooter, but it was tripped three times today (that I know about).  Once at the local cycle shop, for who-knows-what reason, once at work when a coworker walked past it (he weighs maybe 200 pounds), and once when another coworker started his Harley next to it.  Further testing on my own shows that me, a 150-pound woman, stomping next to it (not even jumping, just stomping, one foot at a time) will set it off.  Now I can't set the alarm when it's parked at home, for fear of driving my neighbors crazy.  Combined with the broken wheel lock, there's really nothing stopping anyone from wheeling the thing off anymore.

3)  There's a persistent squeaking sound coming from the rear of the scoter.  Sounds like it might be a rubbing brake, maybe?  I'm slightly mechanically inclined, but I've never worked on two-wheeled stuff before, so I don't really know what to look for (plus, I live in an apartment, and have nowhere to work on the thing).

4)  There was dew on the scooter this morning (not even rain, just a normal morning dew), and when I opened the trunk, the Tank decal fell off.

Even for a cheap scooter, this seems like a lot to deal with in just two days.  What gives?

[bbj500]

well i see you waisted no time posting (chinese crap) on the scooterbbs, that said, i have been told that the alarm on my bike is a feature from the manufacturer that most dealers wish wasnt there. their realy touchy and cause more problems than not. i was never able to make mine work, it goes into alarm just setting it. so i dont use it. i didnt go on the bbs shouting, there are alot of bike alarms out there that protect the bike alot more than these factory ones. most come with a cable to go around the wheel and bike. theirs also one i have seen that clamps to the front brake rotor. i cant tell you much about the steering lock, im not a scooter teck but i think you should have called teck support or taken it back to the shop you bought it from to look at it.
bashing tanks on the bbs without giving the company the chance to see the bike and resolve your problems is not going to help anyone but the tank bashers on the bbs. And theres all ready alot of those. the squeek you hear is prob the rear brake, but there again if you have someone look at it from where you bought it, it may be nothin. as for the sticker...lol i took mine off as soon as i got the bike i think there ugly, and the bike still says tank on the seat and on the bottom body panel. however if your going to lose sleep over a 2 cent sticker im sure they will be glad to send you another. my point is try to get any problems taken care of by the dealer first before you start bashing tanks. i owned a honda elete 150 and know a few people that have honda helixs they got theres brand new and also had bugs to work out when they first got them, and hey they are 5000 dollar bikes.

[suntyger]

Who's bashing Tanks?  I'm just reporting my experiences--there are so many people over there asking about these new Chinese scooters, and nobody's saying much of anything about them.  It's hard to make an informed decision about buying a scooter when all you've got is the dealer's sales pitch to go on.  Whatever you've been told, the dealer really sold me on the anti-theft features--I may not have bought the thing so readily if it hadn't had the wheel lock and alarm, and so having them both be rendered useless within two days is pretty frustrating to me.

Of course I'm going to give the dealer a chance to fix it, and if they do make it all better, I'll post that, too.  Potential buyers deserve to know the full story.

[admin]

I think your findings are valid. I myself don't like the alarms systems and the remote starts on scooters. I have asked Tank to eliminate those alarms. But a lot of people like those darn things.

As for the rest of the problems that you are having, If your dealer is not responsive I would like to offer our assistance.  Please feel free to contact our mechanic. He is extremely knowledgeable and can assist you with your problems. We stock most of the parts in our warehouse so you can ask for John. His email is support@jacarmotorsports.com

[Cleat]

Isn't this an intersting article on break-in periods?

http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm

Lots of information that is somewhat contrary.  Since the decelleration is an issue in this article I am wondering how much this would apply?  IF his general theory is right side up then it probably would work out.  Seems there are lots of questions.  The last several vehicles I have had from new I just loaded 'em up and drove 'em like I normally would -- careful to change fluids often.  They have all been strong runners so it seems to correlate to the story.