Newbie here! Tao Tao Roman 150

nwscooterboy · 07-01-2014, 08:24 AM

I'm glad I found this forum. After a couple weeks of research I think I'm ready to jump in with both feet. I've checked out a lot of scooters and I think I've finally decided on the Tao Tao Roman 150. I really like the European styling and I think I have found a good vendor to purchase it from. The guy over at Scooter Madness won me over with his quirky maintenance videos and personality, ha ha, and the price seems very fair.

I've read a ton about Chinese scooters and how they can be less than perfect but I'm up for tweaking and preparing the scooter when I receive it and before I ride it. I really do need a hobby and I think scooters just might be it! At any rate, I just wanted to say hi and I'm excited to share my experience with the Roman once I receive it. I think I'll be getting the orange one though...

seamus26 · 07-01-2014, 09:11 AM

There was a nice write up on a Tao Tao EVO150 a little over a year ago.

Link

Very thorough.

Gimpdog · 07-01-2014, 09:23 AM

Glad you're here! Welcome!! Nice retro look on the scoot.
Make sure you do a thorough PDI when you get the scooter..

seamus26 · 07-01-2014, 09:36 AM

Oh, yes ... where are my manners. Welcome!

I wanted to share a personal experience. I purchased my ZNEN 150 last spring from a local dealer. I'm glad that I did rather than buying direct and having it shipped to my door. Here's why.

After the customary wait time - a little longer, actually - I received a call from the dealer. Bad news. My new scoot had arrived, but it had been crushed in shipping. Since it was shipped from China and there were multiple companies involved, there was little accountability. The dealer took the blow for it because it was shipped to him. The second scoot came in and was also damaged. Same scenario. The third one was passable.

The lesson for me was that if I had ordered direct it would have been up to me to deal with the hassle of compensation and returns and all of that headache. As it was, all I had to deal with was the wait. I don't know if Jason was compensated for the bad bikes, but I do know he's using at least one of them for parts.

The other advantage is that the dealer - who presumably knows much more about the product than the average consumer - is able to do a thorough PDI before you ever sit on the bike. I like that, too.

The Chinese bikes are, from what I read, much better than they used to be. I've been very happy with mine so far.

nwscooterboy · 07-01-2014, 10:21 AM

Thanks everyone for the welcome! Yes, I'll definitely do a PDI when I first get the bike. That's one thing that I love about the Scooter Madness guy...while he'd not local he DOES have a ton of documentation on how to do a PDI, videos on different things and just seems very customer service oriented. Much more then the mega Scooter sites. I'm not saying that the others aren't great places to order from but the one I like is a US company smaller from what I gather. He even provides a link to Tao Tao's suggested PDI procedure but maybe everyone that sells them does that? Not sure.

It seems like the more I read, the more that tweaking the scooter, PDI, etc and following the maintenance to the LETTER is what can really help these scooters in the long run. I got my wrenches, Loctite and I'm ready! ha ha

I apologize...it looks like I should've posted this in the newbie intro forum....oops. : ( Mod, feel free to move this if you want. My bad....

nwscooterboy · 07-03-2014, 07:23 PM

I ordered my "creamcicle" today! Not the manlinest of names but I got the orange and white one and that's what it reminds me of. I'm not the kind of guy that has ever had a lot of money. I'm a hard worker but have never really had a job that brings in tons of cash. The last new car I bought was in 1990. So to be honest it feels like I'm getting a new car with this scooter! I'm excited beyond belief and feel very blessed. Now my research is going to turn to helmets and putting together a "starter kit". They said the scooter should go out Monday.

nwscooterboy · 07-11-2014, 03:23 PM

Well I officially ordered my scoot on the third but I guess the $ didn't clear the bank until last Monday. Still...to see that it's still sitting in a truck on the shipping dock at Road Runner 5 days later is a little frustrating. I called them to see what the heck is going on and they said they got really backed up because of the holiday. It's supposed to be here by Monday but that ain't happening...I hate waiting.

07-01-2014, 09:11 AM	#2
seamus26 Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 46	There was a nice write up on a Tao Tao EVO150 a little over a year ago. Link Very thorough. __________________ Hey, look what that idiot said!
	0

07-01-2014, 09:36 AM	#4
seamus26 Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 46	Oh, yes ... where are my manners. Welcome! I wanted to share a personal experience. I purchased my ZNEN 150 last spring from a local dealer. I'm glad that I did rather than buying direct and having it shipped to my door. Here's why. After the customary wait time - a little longer, actually - I received a call from the dealer. Bad news. My new scoot had arrived, but it had been crushed in shipping. Since it was shipped from China and there were multiple companies involved, there was little accountability. The dealer took the blow for it because it was shipped to him. The second scoot came in and was also damaged. Same scenario. The third one was passable. The lesson for me was that if I had ordered direct it would have been up to me to deal with the hassle of compensation and returns and all of that headache. As it was, all I had to deal with was the wait. I don't know if Jason was compensated for the bad bikes, but I do know he's using at least one of them for parts. The other advantage is that the dealer - who presumably knows much more about the product than the average consumer - is able to do a thorough PDI before you ever sit on the bike. I like that, too. The Chinese bikes are, from what I read, much better than they used to be. I've been very happy with mine so far. __________________ Hey, look what that idiot said!
	0

07-03-2014, 07:23 PM	#6
nwscooterboy Join Date: Jul 2014 Posts: 43	I ordered my "creamcicle" today! Not the manlinest of names but I got the orange and white one and that's what it reminds me of. I'm not the kind of guy that has ever had a lot of money. I'm a hard worker but have never really had a job that brings in tons of cash. The last new car I bought was in 1990. So to be honest it feels like I'm getting a new car with this scooter! I'm excited beyond belief and feel very blessed. Now my research is going to turn to helmets and putting together a "starter kit". They said the scooter should go out Monday.
	0

07-11-2014, 03:23 PM	#7
nwscooterboy Join Date: Jul 2014 Posts: 43	Well I officially ordered my scoot on the third but I guess the $ didn't clear the bank until last Monday. Still...to see that it's still sitting in a truck on the shipping dock at Road Runner 5 days later is a little frustrating. I called them to see what the heck is going on and they said they got really backed up because of the holiday. It's supposed to be here by Monday but that ain't happening...I hate waiting.
	0