Scooter – from GreenEarthScooters.com

There was some box damage…

So I was a little worried about the condition of the scooter inside.  Until I got at least one side of the box opened up.  They ship it in a steel frame!

After the box is removed and before you start cutting plastic, they have one last warning for you :

There are three bolts on each side of the steel frame that you will need to remove.  The scooter is attached to the frame by the front “axle” – so be careful and don’t lose the nut (not that you’ll need it again, lol). 
Something that will help a great deal right now – before unbolting the front arms – is getting a ratchet set, attaching and securing the handle bars – make sure it is tight and secure! ( look in the under-seat trunk for the bolt – scroll down )

At Least two strong people should get the bike down on the ground and propped up on the stand so that the bike can be rocked back onto the back wheel.  At this point, you want to get a strong helper – at least two people are needed to get the scooter off the pallet. You are going to have to put the front wheel on.  Good luck. 🙂 Before you go to put the wheel on :

Read the PDI guide.  Read the paperwork… yeah… it is in the trunk.  Under the seat… use the key… 

Along with the paperwork, manual, etc, there are tools and parts you are going to need.

Oh, and the rear-view mirrors are in there too. (You will have to torque them down real tight and use Loc-Tite!! – or some other thread locker.)  Oh! Get a ratchet set – much better than the wrenches!

There is a plug in the brake that you will need to remove :

It is a bit tricky to get the front tire on and takes some coordination and luck… and a big hammer.  Also something to note : the Nut that held the ‘axle’ on the shipping container is NOT the Nut to put on when the tire is attached.  To make sure you have the right nut, the same socket will fit both the bolt and the nut.

You will need to put on the front panel (after connecting the headlights), put acid in the battery, let that sit, seal the battery and charge it, put on the cargo rack, take the protective plastic off the lights, drain the oil, fill the oil, drain the gear-oil, fill the gear-oil, check the air in the tires, fill the tires to the specified psi, put on the rearview mirrors, put the charged battery in and you are ready to ride!  I’m not going to say any of that is just really easy, but follow the directions, read, follow, read… and you will be fine.

I found a great PDI (Post Delivery Inspection) Guide online.

I am 6’3″ tall, 280lbs.

I got the battery upgrade and a trunk.  The second time I opened the trunk, a bent metal piece fell out.  I soon discovered that it was the latch.  I tried using Gorilla Glue and a clamp to reattach it to the metal bar and am hoping that works to fix the latch.  There was also one bolt missing that has to be used to attach the trunk to the cargo rack, so I am browsing Home Depot to find a replacement – and I will be using some thread locker on those bad boys!!

I have had to adjust the idle, but that was fairly simple to do.  Had to take the under-seat storage out to access the carb adjustment, but not too bad there.  The other thing is that on my first long ride, I accidentally topped out – which you are not supposed to do in the break in period – and found that I could only get about 50 mph on the speedometer.  Not sure if there is a ‘real speed’ vs. ‘speedometer’ difference, but from some google searches it appears that the speedometer runs 10 mph high?? I hope not.  I am communicating with GES parts folks to see if I can get some more speed out of the scooter so I can use it for commuting to and from work – which is what the long ride was.  Will update with news. 🙂

The Ride – So far, riding the scooter is pure awesome!

Update on Trunk:
I got a new bolt.  The Gorilla glue didn’t work.  I tried some JB Weld Marine epoxy.  It seemed to work.  So, I attached the trunk.  One bit of advice here – despite what the pictures indicate, you have to take the plastic rack off.  There are six bolts holding it on.  You have to get down to the black metal base.  Attach the trunk to that – the bolts will reach then.  Anyway – I put the trunk on and closed it… broke the “L” latch off again :

I am at a loss on how to repair it, so asking GES for a replacement part.

Update 2:
Okay, I re-did the JB Weld a little bit more aggressively and it is holding.  I did move the top of the “L” down a wee bit on the bar.  That seems to allow it to close easier, maybe not as tight, but easier. GES Parts said they would send the top of a trunk (lid), including the latch as a replacement.  Hopefully I won’t need it… but when the JB Weld breaks down, it will be nice to have a backup.  I am getting higher and higher speeds – almost up to a little over 55 a few times now.

Oh! I saw online where the speedometer is supposed to be off – like 10mph faster than actual.  I had my girlfriend tail me and verified my speedometer is fairly accurate.  I suppose those people just damaged the speed sensor while putting on their front wheel.

I’ve got 169 or so miles on the scooter.  I bought a cable lock that I am using to lock my helmet to the scooter.  Also bought some gloves (from Home Depot) to use.  I am going to need some easy-on easy-off riding boots that can take the pavement.

Update 3:
I’m noticing that the cooler the temperature, the faster I can go.  I’m hoping that when I follow the PDI suggestions on replacing the Fuel lines & filter, Vacuum lines and Air Intake that I will get a few extra MPH.  There is also a lot of suggestions for re-jetting the something and re-calibrating something else… but I am going to get a small engine guy to do that for me. 🙂  322 miles!!  End of the “Break in” period.  I need to change the oil asap.