Everything you ever wanted to know about mopeds/scooters, but were afraid to ask, can be found below. Please contact us if you have any further questions we can help you with. Thank you.
General Questions
Where are your scooters made?
Our scooters / mopeds, like most products, are made in China. They are made to our specifications by a major company that has been making scooters for more than a decade. Our mopeds and motorized scooters are built to the same high moped / scooter quality standards as name moped / scooter brand products such as Honda, Aprillia, Polaris, Yamaha, Vespa, and Kawasaki, but are usually priced at less than half the price of these Mopeds/Scooters! (Some are actually manufactured at the same factories as the name brands Mopeds/Scooters.)
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Which of your scooter models is the fastest?
The Turbo models are our fastest 49cc scooters. They top out at about 42 miles per hour.
Our 150cc scooter travels at a top speed of 65mph.
What are the main differences between your standard scooters and turbo scooters?
There are two main differences. First, our standard scooters go 25 to 30mph, and our turbo scooters go 40 to 42mph. Also, our standard scooters have a chain-driven transmission, and our turbo scooters are belt-driven with a CVT (constant velocity transmission).
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Are any of your scooters built for two riders?
Yes,.....designed to accommodate two riders.
Do you have to premix gas and oil for your scooters?
Our 2-stroke scooters have an autolube system. The oil compartment is separate from the gas, and the system injects the oil into the gas tank so that premixing is not necessary.
Our 4-stroke scooters have engines like a car and do not use injection oil.
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Why are your scooters so much cheaper than a Yamaha scooters or Honda scooters?
We do not have the overhead that bigger companies like Yamaha or Honda have, nor do we do the advertising they do. We also have modest margins on our products, to give our customers the best price possible.
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What is the difference between chain-driven and belt-driven transmission?
Rather than having a fixed set of gear combinations, or "ratios", the belt-driven CVT transmission allows an almost limitless combination of engine speed to vehicle speed ratios. Because of the smooth transition in gear ratios provided by the CVT transmission, the Turbo provides constant, stepless acceleration from a stop all the way up to cruising speed. This contrasts with the jerk of gear changes experienced with a typical automatic chain-driven transmission.
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How can I pay for my scooter?
We accept all major credit cards, checks, money orders and cashier’s checks.
Do you sell used scooters?
No.
Do you take trade-ins?
No.
Who handles the warranty?
GMI handles all warranty claims.
Do you sell larger than 50cc scooters?
Yes, our scooter is a 250cc scooter.
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Registration
Are these scooters legal in my state?
The scooters sold on this site are legal in most states. Please check with your local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) for state-specific requirements such as registration, age requirements and helmet laws before purchasing your scooter.
How do I get my scooter titled? Do your scooters come with titles?
We offer a Certificate of Origin and Bill of Sale, which you will submit to your DMV to get a title. Our scooters are not currently titled.
Are your scooters street legal?
Yes, as they meet the Department of Transportation's requirements for motor vehicles.
What are the age requirements to drive your scooters on the road? Do you have to have a license? Do you have to have the scooter tagged? Do you need insurance?
These are all questions that vary state to state, so it is best to find out your state’s requirements from your DMV.
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General Scooter
Battery Information
Your new scooter comes with a fresh 5 amp 12 volt battery. If set up properly this battery should last several years. Remember, batteries are not covered under your warranty so please make sure it is set up properly.
When preparing the battery make sure all of the electrolyte (acid) is completely added to the empty cells. Also, any remaining acid should be disposed of properly. You can neutralize any spill or remaining acid with some ordinary baking soda. After placing the electrolyte in the battery it is necessary to put a trickle charge of between 1 and 2 amps for a period of two (2) hours. This will insure the battery is at full charge!! It is very important to start off with the battery at full charge. Without the full charge the battery may last only months or even weeks. You can bring your battery to any gas station/repair shop to charge your battery. GMI suggests purchasing a battery charger and a battery conditioner. These are inexpensive items and can insure your scooter will be ready to start when you want it!
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What will insurance and registration cost?
Though this is an extremely common question, there is no simple answer. It depends first and foremost on how your scooter will be classified. If you have a moped, this will result in the lowest possible fees in all cases. It will also depend on your driving history, where you live and whatever other policies your insurance carrier will have with you. Most carriers discount for mulitple policies, as when several family members carry policies from them or when you carry both auto and scooter insurance together. It should be noted that in nearly all cases, you will either register and insure your scooter as a moped or as a motorcycle and not as a "scooter." Whenever in doubt, inquire at your local registration bureau (usually the same one that handles automobiles) and with your local insurance agent. It is especially difficult to predict insurance costs, and it is usually best to shop around for the best coverage at the lowest cost.
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What is a good "beginners" scooter to buy?
Almost by definition, all scooters are meant for "beginners" in that it's usually very easy to learn how to ride one. Typically, modern scooters are considered the easiest to learn, just because they have electric starters and automatic transmissions. They are essentially twist and go vehicles that take most people about 5-10 minutes to learn.
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What are "two-strokes" and "four-strokes" and how do they differ?
There is a very important technical distinction between engine designs in the scooter world. "two-stroke" engines burn the gas and lubricating oil together as part of the combustion process, which results in greater lower end torque, fewer moving parts and greater fuel efficiency. Unfortunately, this also means they pollute more, as unburned oil fumes exit the exhaust system. This is why two-strokes are being banned in many industrialized countries concerned with air quality. Virtually all classic scooters are two-stroke. The oldest models require "pre-mixing," which is simply pouring pre-measured oil into the gas tank when fueling. Newer models have eliminated this by adding oil injection systems that mix the oil and gas automatically. There are some very good online illustrated demonstrations of how two-stroke engines work.
"Four-stroke" engines are more closely related to car engines in that they keep the lubrication and fuel systems separate. This keeps emissions down considerably since there is no oil burned in the combustion process, unlike with "two-stroke" engines. Most modern scooters utilize four-stroke engines, though many modern scooters also use two-stroke engines, especially in 50cc models. One major disadvantage of four-stroke engines is that they are prone to overheating when run at maximum speed over several hours, leading to serious internal damage. Two-stroke engines do not have this limitation. Either engine design may be either water or air-cooled, though most two-strokes are air-cooled and most four-strokes are water-cooled
How long do the engines last?
A well cared-for scooter should be able to go about 25,000 miles before it needs a major rebuild. The 50cc two strokes work harder, so they should be overhauled by 15,000 miles. Some Honda Helix scooters have over 100,000 miles.
Showroom Shine Auto Center offers both 2-stroke and 4-stroke engines. In most cases, a 2-stroke engine will be the perfect engine for you. It has more power and more top speed. Our 2-stroke engines are auto oil/fuel mixing, so you don't have to mix the oil and gas. Just fill up with unleaded fuel and keep the 2-cycle oil container full.
Four-stroke engines get better gas mileage than 2-strokes, and their ride is a little smoother.
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Where did the gas-powered scooter originate?
History Of Gas Scooters
Gas scooters have come a long way over the past 50 years. They are functional, fun, convenient and cheap. What more could you ask for?
The first patents for scooters go back as far as 1921. The Razor scooter was later developed by Gino Tsai in Shanghai, Taiwan and became an instant hit with the public. It didn't take long for motor scooter popularity to expand all over the globe.
Even before 1950 there were as many as 110,000 scooters on the road in Italy alone. It has been just a little over 50 years since the Vespa-Douglas Corporation in the UK sold their first gas scooters. The Douglas corporation was on the verge of bankruptcy when they first began selling their gas scooters. It was a big hit at the 1950 Motorcycle Show and saved the company from possible financial ruin.
From 1950 to 1958 Vespa sold over 125,000 of their gas powered scooters in the UK. Why the great success? During this period the European countries didn't have a great deal of money and there was not much gas available to the public. Due to the scarcity of gasoline and the high gas mileage of the gas motor scooter it's popularity quickly escalated.
It didn't take long for the Italian models (the Piaggio from Vespa and the Lambretta from Innocenti) to branch out to other countries. In France they became so popular the French tried to get in on the boom by manufacturing their own. By the early to mid 1950s the sale of gas scooters climbed to about 1 million a year in France alone.
Other countries wanted to profit from the newest craze and tried to climb on the band wagon. While some were successful others were not. Germany began to manufacture larger touring models, but this did not satisfy the public in the way the smaller, cheaper and more fuel-efficient models from Italy and France did. These smaller models were extremely popular in the European market.
Tourist Scooters Manufacturers in Germany built some very strong and powerful versions and were the first to install electric starters. These larger versions were great for traveling, touring and even racing, but were not as popular as the smaller, cheaper, more efficient models used for traveling shorter distances around town.
Vespa began marketing a couple of very popular gas powered scooters from Piaggio, the GS 125cc and the GS 150cc. These were improved versions of the earlier models for several reasons. The biggest reason is probably because the heavy gear mechanism rods were replaced by smaller and lighter cables.
France's Roussey Scooters tried to one-up the Italian competition by coming out with a 175cc model. These were very nice vehicles and included the first water-cooled engines along with other new features, but because it had a pull-start it could not compete with the newer models from Italy that were already offering versions with electric starts.
As these wonderful vehicles have evolved over the years they have become increasingly more popular all over the world. Today they are everywhere. They are cheap to purchase, economical to operate, and are very handy and functional. These are not toys and are genuinely a lot of fun to ride. There are electric, gas powered, foldable, mobility and utility scooters.
The electric types are often used by kids and teens, but are also popular with the elderly and handicapped. Models for the handicapped are usually called mobility scooters. Folding varieties can be folded up and conveniently stored under desks, in closets or in other tiny areas and utility types are used for many different purposes. They are more popular than go karts, mini bikes or go carts. Scooters, sometimes called mopeds or go peds, are very functional, convenient and are here to stay.
Source: www.isnare.com
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