Brand new paperweight

[Dan k]

Hey guys new to the forum.
So the wife wanted a scooter so she didn't have to ride on the back of my motorcycle.
Started searching online and ended up buying a new one from a place in California. It's a Dongfang stg200. When it arrived I unpacked and started to assemble it. It came with the wrong owners manual one to a go-cart and no assembly instructions what so ever. I managed to figure it out okay and she was ready to ride.
The speedometer quit working after 64 miles. It ran great for about three weeks than suddenly died leaving her stranded. It starts and idols fine but whenever you give it gas it starts reving slightly than dies.
I figured a fuel problem so I replaced the fuel filter no help. I called the place I bought it from they said it sounded like the carburetor so they sent me a new one. I put it on but it didn't change a thing. Called them back they told me to spray out the fuel pump with carburetor cleaner. That didn't help ether. Now their telling me to take it to a shop but I live in a small town we only have four bike repair shops here and none of them will work on it because they never heard of the brand name.
I am out of ideals what to do. its been about two months. Its just taking up space now. Any ideals will be appreciated thanks

[BuddhaScoot]

Check the petcock for vac and make sure the gas cap vents? Maybe buy an aftermarket carb if the above check out.

[rks]

Chinese scooters don't come out of a shipping crate ready to roll. Doing a complete PDI is absolutely necessary. Here is a link to one on this site....http://scootdawg.net/showthread.php?t=55171 . If you google "scooter pdi", you will find others. It will take some time to do one properly. If you don't do it, you will have one problem after another, and never have a dependable scooter.

When mine arrived, it was in pieces for a week. Every bolt or nut got a drop or two of blue locktite, every electrical connector was unpluged, greased, and put back together, wires were re-routed, or insulated, to avoid rubbing on the frame, the cheap glass, main fuse was replaced with a blade type. The emissions system was removed, the fuel tank was removed and blown out with compressed air.......you get the picture.....it is not a one hour job.

Do a pdi, operate it the way it should be, and be religious about routine maintenance....you will be rewarded. I just crossed the 10,000 mile mark with my Chinese scooter.....and it is no where near worn out, I have never had a breakdown, roadside repair to make, or any other problem while riding. It has never failed to start, idle, or run properly.....and it still has the original spark plug in it.

[IMG][/IMG]

[rks]

Jezz, I sound like a preacher in the post above. Didn't really mean to come across that way.

You've replaced the carb and fuel filter....so your problem is probably something else. While you had either of those items off, did you check the fuel pump output? (you stated fuel pump, this means the tank is below engine) Check by placing the disconnected fuel line in a container and turning engine over with the starter. Should get a good flow while cranking the starter.

Do you have the air cleaner connected? Way too much air, like you would get with the air cleaner disconnected, would cause the engine to do exactly as you describe.....start and idle fine, but quit when throttle is applied. Check the vacuum hose that runs from the intake manifold to the fuel pump, or "petcock" if your tank is above the engine. Sometimes hoses are too long, and prone to being kinked or pinched off when re-installing body panels or the like. Sometimes they aren't pushed all the way onto the nipples as they should be.

I would certainly pull the valve cover off, and check the valve clearances. Mine were not right from the factory, but were corrected before I started it for the first time. You said yours ran fine for a few weeks, clearances will close up quicker on a new engine as it breaks in, and they could easily have been a bit tight out of the factory. Set to (.004" for the intake)...and (.005" for the exhaust).

[Ebuddy]

rks is spot on.

I'm the third owner of a 2008 Chinese 250cc scoot where the first two owners did all that rks described. Only minor, somewhat typical issues and I have nearly 13k miles on it (about half were put on by me). I look at it as the offset to the low cost of Chinese scooters. In addition however, by knowing your scoot so intimately, you can faster identify issues if they ever arise and for the most part you already know about 75% or more (youtube will get you the rest of the way) on how to fix it.

In addition to fuel pump and air filter, I'd look at a vacuum issue by spraying Gumout, WD-40 or something similar around the vacuum hoses. The stock hoses tend to be really cruddy and it's worth saving a while ot of future headaches by just replacing them outright.

[Mäwby]

I have learned so much about Chinese scooters since I purchased my Tao Tao Lancer 150. I can pretty much replace or repair anything on it now.

Check all of the main parts - Stator, Voltage Regulator, Carb. The design of Chinese scooters is very poor. Nothing seems to fit back properly after you remove it for the first time, but things will remain functional. The voltmeter helped me a lot because I was able to finally zero in on my stator needing to be replaced. Oh, and check the fuse by the battery box. Mine blew once and I got no electric output at all. I use the 15aph fuses instead of the 10aph. Also, only use 93 octane fuel.

[Mäwby]

Originally Posted by rks

Chinese scooters don't come out of a shipping crate ready to roll. Doing a complete PDI is absolutely necessary. Here is a link to one on this site....http://scootdawg.net/showthread.php?t=55171 . If you google "scooter pdi", you will find others. It will take some time to do one properly. If you don't do it, you will have one problem after another, and never have a dependable scooter.

When mine arrived, it was in pieces for a week. Every bolt or nut got a drop or two of blue locktite, every electrical connector was unpluged, greased, and put back together, wires were re-routed, or insulated, to avoid rubbing on the frame, the cheap glass, main fuse was replaced with a blade type. The emissions system was removed, the fuel tank was removed and blown out with compressed air.......you get the picture.....it is not a one hour job.

Do a pdi, operate it the way it should be, and be religious about routine maintenance....you will be rewarded. I just crossed the 10,000 mile mark with my Chinese scooter.....and it is no where near worn out, I have never had a breakdown, roadside repair to make, or any other problem while riding. It has never failed to start, idle, or run properly.....and it still has the original spark plug in it.

[IMG][/IMG]

Awesome. The next Chinese scooter I buy will be awesome since I now know how to work on them.

[Shadowfire]

Originally Posted by Mäwby

I use the 15aph fuses instead of the 10aph. Also, only use 93 octane fuel.

Just wanted to add that this is some really bad advice, followed by some expensive advice here.
1. NEVER replace a fuse with a higher rated fuse. EVER. The fuse is sized to protect whatever is downstream of it, be it wires or connectors or lamp sockets. BUT, By installing a higher rated fuse, you are no longer preventing something downstream from catching fire in an overload situation. Do you like having unintended bike fires? I don't. This advise is similar to the old trick people used to use in houses with screw-in fuses where they'd put a penny behind the fuse to bypass the fuse, then subsequently inadvertently burn their house down.
2. Premium (93) octane fuel is only required when the engine might otherwise experience detonation. ALL of the Chinese scooters are using clones of Japanese engines from the 1980's which were not high compression engines OR prone to detonation. "Use what the manufacturer recommends in the owner's manual." If the manual doesn't make any callouts for premium fuel, then you're just burning money by using it, with ZERO benefit to you or your bike.

[Mäwby]

Originally Posted by Shadowfire

Just wanted to add that this is some really bad advice, followed by some expensive advice here.
1. NEVER replace a fuse with a higher rated fuse. EVER. The fuse is sized to protect whatever is downstream of it, be it wires or connectors or lamp sockets. BUT, By installing a higher rated fuse, you are no longer preventing something downstream from catching fire in an overload situation. Do you like having unintended bike fires? I don't. This advise is similar to the old trick people used to use in houses with screw-in fuses where they'd put a penny behind the fuse to bypass the fuse, then subsequently inadvertently burn their house down.
2. Premium (93) octane fuel is only required when the engine might otherwise experience detonation. ALL of the Chinese scooters are using clones of Japanese engines from the 1980's which were not high compression engines OR prone to detonation. "Use what the manufacturer recommends in the owner's manual." If the manual doesn't make any callouts for premium fuel, then you're just burning money by using it, with ZERO benefit to you or your bike.

When I looked to purchase a fuse from the Tao Tao parts website, the fuse that is displayed for my Lancer 150 is 15ahp not the 10. So I assumed the 15 was the correct fuse. I've had no problems with the 15. Ok on the fuel as well. I'll check the manual again. I'm still learning about Chinese scooters, so I appreciate all of the above information you provided.