The Scooter Doctor says hi.

[motomech]

Hi,
I owned and operated a Independent Scooter shop from 1984 to 1991. It was situated near a large university in the South West. I had been a tech in a large, impersonal Honda dealership, which after they sold them, didn't want anything to do with them. I was a good opportunity to strike out on my own with out stepping on any toes.
I must say up front, I didn't get rich doing it. College students weren't the best customers(although, many were cute!), They don't have much money, scooter maintenance is not much of a concern and when it breaks, I was the Bad guy(a few were appreciative).Since they were inexpensive to buy('85 Spree-$499, Elite 80-$899, elite 150-$1499), they were pretty much considered disposable and I would dumpster drive at the end of the semesters.
Payed the light bills with the service work, but any real money I made, I made selling used parts(Avg. 1/2 price of new) and buying and selling used models.
I collected all the very cool Honda posters and decorated the shop with them.
For me, 1985 was the banner year for scooters, Honda specifically. Although, I consider the '83/'84 Aero 80's as the most reliable scooter ever made, my preferred rides were the '85/'86 Aero 50's and Elite 150's. The Aeros just flew and the side trunk was very handy. The Elites were stunning in their candy apple or Chevy SS blue metallic livery. And the way the back-lit digital dash glowed blue at night was too cool(at least til the clear plastic cover became obscure from the sun). The styling changes of '87 meant the end of the wonderful flat floorboards and beginning of uncomfortable slopping and stepped seats.
I did No-peds like the Express 50, the QT50(Yamahopper) and Suzuki's FA(*)50 since they were easy(A nice break from fighting plastic). I drew the line with Honda's Hobbit. That Belgian made POS was the worst thing that Honda ever put their name on.
Toward the late '80's/early '90's the scooter fad was petering out. The new model prices had risen to the point the students stopped buying them. Sad to think of it now, but I gave or threw away my used parts inventory and moved on to another vocation.
Many of the issues of scooters today, roller and belt wear, intake manifolds and mufflers were issues then as well(except the Aero 80, on which nothing ever broke). But electrical problems(with the exception of the Elite 125/150 pop-up headlite) were rare.
Well, i guess I will continue to lurk, maybe kibitz at bit and in general, reminisce.
Motomech

[duckcove]

Welcome aboard. I've been a lurker here for quite a while. Lots of good info! I'm sure that we will all enjoy sharing your knowledge. Duck

[Lunytune]

Gee Motomech, I wish you lived in my town. I'd spend all my time at your place. I pretty well have the total Honda/Yamaha scooter market tied up in our town of 4000, and only a handful of Chinese bikes in town.

If it hadn't been for this forum, I would have given up long ago. But it seems I can always find the answers here. Only two have not been answered. Nobody can tell me where the VIN is on my Dio, and I can't identify my Jog. Actually it's a Euro, but previous owner called it a Jog.

[motomech]

Well, I don't actually work on scooters any more, except my 70cc Eton Beamer, couldn't afford it!
In 2000, after 25 years as a Japanese Motorcycle tech, I switched over to heavy equipment mechanic.
The pay for M.C. techs became less and less over the years and the dealerships are just businesses(not very fair ones at that for the most part)for the owners. Long gone are the days when the owners were actual M.C. enthusiasts.

[sanjuro]

Nobody can tell me where the VIN is on my Dio, and I can't identify my Jog. Actually it's a Euro, but previous owner called it a Jog.

Are you kidding? If it is a 'real' Dio then take a look at the bottom center frame rail where the VIN should be:


...and Moto, I've seen you post your story on another forum before. Always loved your story about your Aero80.

[eliteguy50]

Always loved your story about your Aero80

please, do tell. link perhaps

Hi,

and welcome

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

And welcome. I enjoyed reading your post. You write well. I hope you find the time to contribute often. A pic or 2 of your Eton would be of interest, too.

[sanjuro]

Always loved your story about your Aero80

please, do tell. link perhaps

Hi,

and welcome

http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.p ... ro+scooter

[motomech]

From another post;

<<<<Aero 80, probably the most reliable scooter ever made, period.
When I had my shop, I saw 10,000, 20,000 mile and more units.
The crank and brg.s are robust and the top end is near seize-proof. The exh. port and pipe are big enough to not get clogged-up with 7-eleven 2stk. oil(mung and carbon).
I took a 30K(or there-abouts)unit, that had no plastic and made it into a "dirt scooter". We took it back to my (ex)wife's hometown in Mexico during a vacation. The kids in this little beach town , hot-wired it and rode it round 24/7 for the week I was there. When I left it there, it was still running.>>>>

The chassis and engine on the Aero 80 were so robust, that they woud outlive the plastic. In the '90's, the scooter really wasn't worth the price of buying the plastic(if available), so I had a few "naked models" laying around. So...I would mount those funky 4.00X10 rib-block tires and we would take them to the sand pits to thrash on.
They were kind of like the Yamaha XS 650 twin motorcycles of the '70's, couldn't kill 'em.

[sanjuro]

I restored the Aero bolt by bolt, panel by panel (bought them all new off of eBay or Ronayers.com). Sadly, I sold it a month ago since I had 5 other scoots to deal with.

[drizzle]

^that's the best looking aero 80 i've ever seen.

[motomech]

Always loved your story about your Aero80

please, do tell. link perhaps

Hi,

and welcome

http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.p ... ro+scooter

I had forgotten I had written that.

[Lunytune]

Nobody can tell me where the VIN is on my Dio, and I can't identify my Jog. Actually it's a Euro, but previous owner called it a Jog.

Are you kidding? If it is a 'real' Dio then take a look at the bottom center frame rail where the VIN should be:

A REAL DIO has the gas tank mounted under the floorboard, whether Japan or Canada. The only way to see the bottom center frame rail is to remove the gas tank. I'm sure the VIN is more easily accessible that that.
BTW, I've got 6 Honda 50's, and yes, the VIN is on that rail on all the others.

[sanjuro]

Here's another one of my bikes below. That red flange looking thing sticking through a slot on the underside body cover has the VIN stamped on it:


Do you have a pic of your bike? No disrespect meant, but I'm curious why the VIN isn't more accessible for you.

[Lunytune]

Here's another one of my bikes below. That red flange looking thing sticking through a slot on the underside body cover has the VIN stamped on it:


Do you have a pic of your bike? No disrespect meant, but I'm curious why the VIN isn't more accessible for you.

Could you show a picture of that "red flange on the underside? There is a plate on the left side of my scooter but it is a model number, not the VIN. Not enough numbers.