Posts Tagged ‘Maintenance’

Let’s Talk About Pressure

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

Tire pressure is the most important pre-ride inspection point. At the very least you should try to inspect and fill you tires every two weeks in the winter and monthly in the Summer. Low tire pressure can cause a loss of control, flat tires, poor gas mileage, and low performance. Standard tire pressure on most scooters is 25-35 psi in the front and 30-40 psi in the rear.

How do you know for sure what the right tire pressure is? Look in your owner’s manual or on the sticker on your scooter. Where not to look? At the side of your tire. The pressure on the tire is the maximum you want to ever put in the tire, not the right pressure. The owner’s manual and sticker pressures are calculated by the engineers who engineered your scooter and are chosen for the right combination of performance, comfort, and safety.

Pressure can be personalized for a softer or harder ride and the rear should be raised by 5psi when riding a passenger to maintain performance characteristics. You are always welcome stop by Scoot Over for a FREE tire and pressure inspection. Compressed air can also be found at most gas stations and it is the same air hose your car uses. Unfortunately, they often charge for it and you will usually need an air pressure gauge (pick one up here for $4). Scoot Over also offers a huge selection of economy, performance, and whitewall tires to keep your scooter looking great, and performing well. Please call our team of Scooter Specialists at 520.323.9090 with any questions, or to schedule an in store service, scooter pick-up/drop -off, or Mobile Service.

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Care and feeding of your scooter’s battery

Saturday, January 23rd, 2010

Unlike my 1960s Lambretta scooters, modern scooters come equipped with electric starters powered by batteries, very much like a car. Actually one of my Lambrettas has a battery, but it is only 6 volts and only powers the brake light, horn, and parking light. No fancy electric starter on these old bikes.

We get a lot of calls from customers whose scooter won’t start. After making sure that the kill switch is set to on, we then ask how long it has been since the scooter was last ridden. If it is a long time, chances are high that the battery has discharged to the point that it 1) Doesn’t have enough power to run the starter and 2) Probably needs to be replaced. The lead-acid batteries used in scooters and motorcycles (usually) will not hold a charge if they are discharged too far.

Although scooter batteries are being constantly recharged while the engine is running, they are only receiving a ‘top up charge’. Scooter batteries are not rechargeable like mobile phone batteries, which run almost completely flat then can be recharged. Once a scooter battery drops below the level required to start the motor (usually around 12.4 volts), it means that the battery is starting to fail and is going to have to be replaced because it will no longer hold a charge. Unless you are a diehard scooterist who rides almost every day, you should get yourself a battery charger. (We sell them, of course. A great one costs only about $30.) The battery in your scooter will lose between 1/2% to 1% of its output PER DAY. The rate is very sensitive to temperature, too… The discharge rate at 95F is TWICE as fast as 77F and 130F is pretty much lethal. Our desert summer temperatures are very hard on batteries.

The best (and most fun) thing you can do to ensure a long life (up to 3 years) for your battery is to ride your scooter often. If you aren’t going to do that, your best bet is to get a charger.

Here’s a nice long article that goes a lot deeper into the chemistry and theory behind scooter and motorcycle batteries:

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