Tao tao 50cc scooter. Is it worth it or other suggestions
 

What do you think of the tao tao 50cc scooters before I buy two. Thanks in advance! Or which other ones?

Is that your budget? If so, then they are as good as you will get (which is actually better than it sounds). Are you mail-ordering?

BMS and SSR use Znen as their OEM, and they tend to be notches above most of the '$650-shipped' plain-jane scooters, but so are their prices. If you can figure out if anyone else uses Znen scooters, look at those first.

Taotao are a good, solid discount scooter, as long as you have no qualms wrenching. There are numerous videos of them on youtube (as well as numerous other brands, too, but they are all similar), and make sure you drain out the shipping oil BEFORE your first ride. Once you assemble the stallion, start it up with the shipping oil for a few minutes (this will thin the shipping oil for better draining), but resist the urge to ride for even a few feet. Once you throw in a quart or so (there will probably be some shipping oil left, so measure it to make sure you don't overfill, but the majority should be your first 'real' quart) then ride it around to initially break it in. I am not sure if there is a slightly different break-in for scooters vs. vertical 150+cc thumpers, but I have broken in a scooter by draining out the first 'real' oil after 100 miles. Then add another quart, ride another 150 miles, and drain again. Again, this is the suggested (loose interpretation) for what most of us own--thumpers, but I have used the technique for a friend's Chinese 50cc, and it ran great for over 3000 miles (a little over a year) before she got her second ticket as an unlicensed rider and parked her steed, and then her scooter got stolen out of her apt. parking lot before I could buy it. It was a Lintex branded scooter, but the engines are pretty much all the same (I have not heard anything about Taotao being inferior as compared to other Chinese bikes).

Watch youtube videos regarding Taotao, and take the negative ones with a grain of salt as I remember watching one a few years back when a guy bought one off Amazon, and rode it on the shipping oil, and then had engine failure (Duh!!). I saw one recently of someone having the same failure after buying one of Taotao's 80cc go-karts they coincidentally bought off Amazon and his video showed him running it right after unboxing. Set up is KEY!!

Keep in mind that when you assemble the bike, all the plastic might not fit as it should, but this is part and parcel the 'fun' of Chinese bikes across the board (okay, not with CSC's RX3 or SSR's XF250 which are 'premium' bikes and cost much more and are reported to NOT have much negatives with fit and fitment).

If you are purchasing from a dealer, they should know how to set up the bikes. What is your reasoning for a 50cc vs. a 150cc (if licensing--makes sense)?

Strictly for budget and I have a 110cc taotao 4 wheeler. 50cc for state laws that allow our youth to ride at 14. They are 612 shipped. Thanks for info. I do all my own wrenching and will assemble myself. Diesel engines with John deere is what I do for a living.

You will do fine with a Taotao. If I can put one together, then you as an actual mechanic will have no problems! Not to mention you already have a GY-6 engine in your 110cc Taotao ATV!! Like I mentioned, no reports of catastrophic failures with them (heck, any scooter) that wasn't the responsibility of the buyer (and I don't seem to recall ANYONE writing of major issues with a brand-new out of the box scooter no matter the brand that was due to defects here on Chinariders). I am of the belief that by buying a bike in a box, you as the buyer are essentially the dealer and are responsible for the PDI and whatnot. The mail-order companies (who are essentially distributors, not dealers) do not make this part clear, however, and then there are issues like you see on youtube or on sites other than here where buyers who are not mechanically inclined have issues they would not have if they had bought from a dealer

Well, thats ok, I THINK you will be able to handle the mechanical aspects of these complex machines.

This bunch I bought from made it very clear about the pdi etc. But I hear ya.

http://gokartsusa.com/

They are the exception, but they have also been around for as long as I remember--they must have learned something along the way! :tup:

The recent example I gave of the guy running a Taotao GK80 gokart right out of the box (right in his own video) claimed he boxed it up and got a refund from the Amazon seller. Not sure if that happened, or he wasn't given a new engine, or he was completely BS'ing and wanted to save face on the video, but as a seller of motorsports, it would seem to be par for the course to have literature available, in addition to what is on the posting (Ebay or Amazon or website) as to what is needed to be done BEFORE starting the engine the first time.

WHOA!! I just watched a video of a fella's Tao (I think thats what it was) sitting at 26,000 miles. The GY6 Engine is a very simple very reliable motor. You just have to maintain the thing. Just like with anything else.

Thanks guys! I was gonna use financing but not the best for a guy like me that my divorce has me down right now credit wise. I'll be waiting to pay for them upfront before I purchase.

I would say go for it, but also keep an eye out for a cheap fixer upper at a garage sale or Craigslist. Parts are dirt cheap.

There was a thread from 2014 on advrider about a father and son who were planning on riding 'scooters' from San Francisco to New York City using a predominantly northern route which seemed to not involve interstates. Actually, they successfully did the ride and had a very entertaining thread. I stated 'scooter' because the father picked up a CT70 replica from SSR (Skyteam) which was CARB legal, and is closer to a motorcycle, but since it has a 125cc/4 speed is legally a 'motor-driven cycle by definition in California. For the son, they looked around the Bay Area for an actual step through scooter, and found a 150cc BMS for $150. The bike wouldn't start, and as the father and son walked away, the guy dropped the price to $100, and the deal was made. Alas, all it needed (according to the father and son) was a battery, and the son rode that steed from SF to NYC with nary a problem.

Received both of my scooter in very timely matter! Question now is manual isn't even close. I was wondering if they took gear oil. Says they do in manual but I don't see a fill or drain? Help!

MSO recieved in lessthan a week from sending request!

Glad the purchase went well. How much assembly is required with these scooters?

Handle bars, front tires. Back cargo rack and battery. Have yet to assemble them. Just inboxes them.