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I finally have enough time to start the Diamo Restoration Project that I talked of at the end of the Roketa Restroration Project thread.

Why restore a scooter that was made so many years ago?

These scooters offer the best the scooter world has, they are both hard and open top, plus they have nice trunks, as well as windscreens, wipers, washers, and CD Radios with 4 weatherproof speakers.

If you want to know more search the web or join the Diamo User Group on Yahoo. The gent that runs the group was a former Diamo dealer.

Because of my many years in the auto industry, I believe these scooters offer an exceptional investment opportunity as well as providing sound transportation for the owner. Their import manufacturing life was only 4 years, and there were several variations which provides ample opportunity to acquire a truly unique scooter.

These scooters were part of a movement that more or less failed, because of many things such as:

• Lack of manufacturing consistency.

• Lack of importing company capital to back their efforts.

• Lack of market acceptance at the time, even BMW had a problem with this.
• Lack of service & repair documentation.

Engine offerings started as a GY6 150cc, which was generally setup properly during manufacturing to yield adequate performance characteristics.

Of course many owners, complained of low power, just like most 50cc owners do today and the Chinese manufacturer responded with 2 different 250cc engines. One engine was the Honda Helix clone with 13" wheels, the other was the Linhai with a 10" rear wheel.

These scooters were plagued by electrical problems mostly caused by the alarm systems. This of course angered buyers who had to replace batteries far too often. A solution for this is easily addressed, but many did not know how.

I have taken some photos of the scooter in its current condition, looked it over, prelubed the cylinder and will attempt to start it soon. This first look is just to see that everything can or does work or what needs repaired. Fortunately, I just restored a Diamo with a Helix engine for a customer and found where many improvements can be made.

Later on, I fully intend to upgrade the engine and I think many of you will enjoy my research into that area.

The first look see:

The plastic floorpan is cracked near the center and will need welded and reinforced. The Front body & windscreen mount plate has several holes stripped. The front shock seals are bad and need replaced and shocks rebuilt. Most of the body bolts, screws, clips and nuts are missing. The fuel and vacuum lines have been replaced with the wrong size and quality. The battery is gone. Generally it is not too bad overall. The color I personally did not care for, but it is one of the extremely rare colors and may add to the collectable value.

Feel free to comment, ask questions, or flame.

Here are the starting photos (800x600 px):