Scooter Info Center - 50cc Scooters, 150cc Scooters, 250cc Scooters, Gas Scooters

What MPG Does a Scooter Get?

This depends mostly on the engine size. The smallest engines we carry are 49cc and they can get up to 90 mpg, depending on what type of riding you do and how much you weigh. We've seen up to 110-120 mpg for 49cc scooters when the rider was trying their best to drive economically. On 150cc scooters we've seen up to 85 mpg. With the larger engine sizes, 250cc, expect to get around 70 mpg traveling at legal highway speeds.

Scooter Assembly

WARNING, improper assembly can cause severe injury or death. It is your responsibility to make sure the person who assembles the scooter is competent to do so.

Warranties: You must have a professional mechanic (any small engine repair shop, motorcycle shop or local auto repair shop) or an authorized buylowpricescooters.com dealer assemble your new unit and do the prep work to assure your unit is in proper operating and running condition. You will need to provide proof of this when filing a warranty claim, so please keep all receipts. All warranties are in effect as along as the product has been operated and maintained according to the recommendations of the manufacturer (see owner’s manual).

If you are located in WI, and you are picking up from our retail store, you can choose to have your scooter fully assembled and inspected by our trained mechanics.

For orders shipped outside of Wisconsin your scooter will arrive secured in a steel crate inside a cardboard box.

The following information is provided for your mechanic or authorized dealer to assemble your scooter:

Will need to install front wheel, put handle bar in place, and install small front body piece. Very simple, should take 20-30 minutes to complete.

First remove the cardboard box. Then you'll need to take apart the steel cage by removing all the nuts and bolts holding it together. You may want a second person to help you by holding the scooter upright while you remove the last few bolts and wire used to secure the scooter to the base of the cage.

150 cc and 250cc scooters already have both wheels attached; you can roll it out of the case and set it on the center stand. 50cc scooters will need to have the front wheel attached.

Batteries are typically shipped "dry" with the acid in a separate container. Fill and charge battery per instructions in battery box. Use safety glasses, gloves, and protective gear. Battery acid is very corrosive and dangerous.

Once you put 91 octane (or higher) fuel in the tank it has to get to the carburetor and fill the float chamber before gas gets to the engine. Prime the carburetor by disconnecting the fuel hose from the carburetor and connecting it directly to a small funnel and adding a little gas, then reconnecting the fuel line to the valve and adding fuel to the tank. If you aren’t comfortable with priming, follow the instructions that came with the scooter.

The final point of assembly is to check everything. Check the tire pressures; check that every bolt and nut you can see is tight, especially the ones holding the exhaust and muffler - and the wheels! Look around for loose wires or rubber hoses that don't seem to be attached to anything. Expect to see one loose hose coming from the base of the carburetor float chamber. This is a drain hose. Some people prefer to drain the fuel if they expect the scooter will be stored for an extended period of time.

Scooter Break-In

Different manufacturers recommend different break in procedures. The speedometer is calibrated in mph and the odometer reads in kilometers. Most of our scooters manufacturers recommend the following:

0-100 miles maximum speed 20 mph
101-200 miles maximum speed 25 mph
201-500 miles maximum speed 30 mph
501-1000 miles maximum speed 40 mph

What we recommend is to use the "ride it like you'll ride it (but gently)" technique. That involves riding pretty gently for the first 25 miles (speed under 30 mph, revs under 4000 rpm), then changing the original Chinese engine and transmission oil. Replace the original oils with 10-30W in the engine and 80/90-gear oil in the transmission. For the next 175, keeping the speed down below 40mph or 5000 rpm, with no rapid acceleration then have the engine oil changed again. Since there is no real oil filter (the "filter" is just a mesh screen), changing the oil during the break-in period makes sense since it removes small metal particulates that the filter just won't catch.

During the break in period try to vary the engine speed as much as possible. This isn't particularly easy with a CVT scooter since they tend to try to keep the revs pretty constant and change speed by changing the gear ratio. It is good to speed up and slow down and not ride at a constant throttle setting for long periods. Also avoid rapid starts and let the engine warm up for about a minute before moving off when you first start the scooter from cold to allow the oil to circulate.

This is good advice even after the initial break-in period too.

It's probably not a good idea to use synthetic oil during the break in period. Synthetic oil may be too slippery and not allow the parts (mainly the piston rings) to "bed in" properly. We suggest sticking with the manufacturer's recommendation (typically 10-30W) until after the break in period of 500-1000 miles. Then you can switch to a synthetic blend. Some companies even make synthetic oil that they claim is specially designed for scooters.

Our break-in technique is to gradually increase speed over the next 300 miles (201-500) and at 500 miles gets another oil change. After break-in, the engine oil should be changed at least every 1000 miles as part of normal routine maintenance.

Scooter Repair

So you buy a scooter and something breaks. Who is going to fix it? Well, if you've bought it in person from our retail store in Wisconsin, we have access to parts, shop manuals and we will have mechanics trained to fix your scooter.

If you are located outside of Wisconsin, we have a few suggestions for you. You can try contacting local motorcycle (or better still, scooter) repair shops. Your repair shop can contact our tech support department directly. We will make sure they will have the easy access to our spare parts and the technical support they need. We carry a large selection of parts in our warehouse.
You might also get some help from a lawn mower repair shop. They are accustomed to working on small engines and the engine in a scooter isn't all that different from the engine in a lawn mower. You can also try snowmobile and ATV repair shops.

CVT (transmission) belt. Belt life is anywhere from 2500 to 10,000 miles
It's not a bad idea to keep a few spares (such as a spare spark plug and CVT belt) on hand, just in case you need them. It's a good idea to remove the CVT cover on your new scooter and read the number on the belt BEFORE you need to have them changed. Belt sizes vary, even on the same scooter model and by the time it fails, the size markings may have worn off! The belt size is usually three numbers such as "835-20-30". This would mean the belt is 835mm long, 20mm wide and has a cross section with a 30 bevel angle.

The best way to avoid needing repairs is regular maintenance, which means changing the oil regularly, changing the fuel filter and spark plug at the proper intervals, checking the CVT belt and air filter, checking the tires and going around the scooter at least once a month and making sure that all the bolts are tight (especially the bolts holding the muffler on). Use the recommended grade of gas (91 octane or higher) and add fuel stabilizer if the scooter isn't going to be driven for a while.

Though you won't find individual repair manuals for every different scooter, they are generally very similar. The following books may help; The Haynes guide (probably the best general reference), The "Complete Idiot's Guide to Motor Scooters" (very basic information).