That Petrol Emotion

We often have to make a big decision on whether or not to go with the ethanol gas offered at the pumps. Most of us aren’t too keen on the idea after hearing many warnings about how the ethanol will eat through your seals and gaskets on our vintage bikes and in many parts of the country you really don’t have much of a choice what fuels are offered to you. It’s a good thing that there is a website like Pure-Gas to help you find a station near you that serves up some ethanol free gas.

Vespa/Lambretta Cable Lengths

One of the most super-helpful pages on the internet, SCOMO’s table of vintage scooter cable lengths.. Most cables you buy these days aren’t the right length, Confirming and adjusting the lengths can save big headaches and make your scooter work more smoothly.

ScootSafely.com

Oh, man, ScootSafely.com is looking great, keep it up, Alan. Anyone who shares my love for the Neon Yellow Scorpion Exo 700 is a friend for life.

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Check Engine?

Not quite scooter-related, and maybe a little crazy, but ultimately, a worthy quest: Check out Jalopnik’s campaign to ban the confusing “Check Engine” light and replace it with useful onboard diagnostics.

Libertarians, complain away, but it doesn’t make sense to have a computer, a million sensors and a text display (if not a video display) in your car, then hide the results from the consumer.

If you’ve ever paid a mechanic $90 to tell you that your gas cap wasn’t screwed in tightly enough, sign the petition before February 16.

Instant Club Hit

Who knew the Clubman exhaust was 30 years old? or who really cared? Well Mark Broadhust apparently does and has devoted a lot of time and energy into the exhaust. It’s no secret that Mark and his company MBDevelopments have come up with many quality performance parts for the Lambretta over the years but man, talk about information overload! Check out this dyno chart and picture filled facebook post of the history of the exhaust, how he has gone about improving them, and a sneak peak at a new version being made in collaboration with Scooter Center Koln.

Future Of The Past

Is a new slogan for Giannelli exhausts, or maybe just a poor google translation. The company is reintroducing many of its pipes for mopeds and scooters from 1980′s on the angle that if it was good enough 25 years ago it’s good enough for old guys with more money to relive their youth with now. Also appears the company will introduce a new exhaust for the 4-stroke LML Stella/Star. Living in the past not for you? Well then maybe the MyMuffler program from Polini is more your style. I’m sure you often thought “boy would I like my name emblazoned on the can of my exhaust” well now you can!

AMA: Include Motorcycles in Ethanol Studies

Hear hear, let’s get some real, unbiased data on ethanol use and put an end to the debates.

VINs Updated

We just updated our Scooter VIN database to catch up with a years’ worth of posts on This ScootDawg thread. Thanks for the tips, everyone, keep them coming!

Read more about scooter VINs and WMIs from Dr. Buzz.

2011 Gas-Price Scooter Frenzy Begins

POCPhil launches the 2011 gas price scooter media blitz. Fine, even Phil’s doing it*, I’m not gonna begrudge dealers for milking the gas mileage argument, scooter shops that lasted through 2010 really need the business, and I hope 2011 rivals 2008 for scooter sales. But if consumers do some research, they’ll see fuel prices are an excuse to buy a scooter, not a true justification.
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Book Review:
Vespa Scooters Essential Buyer’s Guide

Veloce Books is a British publisher focused mostly on vintage cars and motorcycles. They’ve released several scooter books, some reviewed here in the past, and all worth checking out. Their newest scooter-related endeavor is The Essential Buyer’s Guide: Vespa Scooters (subtitled “Classic two-stroke models 1960 to 2008“) by Mark Paxton. The word “Essential” in the title is not hyperbole, this book is truly a “must-own” for anyone considering the purchase of a vintage Vespa.
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#24: Dr. Octane

Today’s rather than answering a specific reader question, let’s rebuke a common misperception that comes up every few days on every scooter forum:

My (dealer and/or manual) told me to use premium gas in my Asian scooter.

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#23: Scooter Weights and Measures

Today’s question for Dr. Buzz comes from Ryan B. in Chicago, following a thread on CHIscooterList about protecting your cylinder while working on your engine:

……So a 12 oz can of beer fits perfectly in the cylinder of a P200, a shot glass filled with 2 stroke is the perfect mix ratio for a gallon of gas, are these coincidences or is there something going on here?

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#22: Bit by the Vintage Bug

Today’s question for Dr. Buzz (the “panel of experts” is still M.I.A.) comes from Katy D. in California. Katy owned a Honda Metropolitan in the past but…

…I always wanted a vintage Vespa but the price was not right. Now I can afford one, but am leery of venturing into unknown territory…

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49ccScoot.com

49ccScoot.com is a newish site focused on GY6 and Minarelli engine tuning and maintenance, with forums, videos, and more. If you’re looking for tips to hop up or fix your Chinese bike, this looks like a good place to visit to get an honest, reasonable answer without the snooty attitude you get from sites like, um, say, 2strokebuzz.

Via Jason Davis on Modern Buddy

#21: Parts is Parts

Today’s question for Dr. Buzz (his “panel of experts” has become more trouble than it’s worth) comes from Joe W. in Philly:

Does anybody there know how to contact ******** or whatever their corporate identity is this month? Their website lists a “dealer” in Westchester PA who had never sold one, never worked on one. I took my scooter there and unfortunately it needs parts. The dealer is unable to get anybody to sell him parts. The phone number is a secret so nobody can call, I get a grumpy response from some of the other dealers on their list – maybe it’s the same situation…

(updated 5/14 with more details)
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