Lighting issue (New owner)

[zoophilian]

Hello! I just bought my first scooter, A Freedom, 2012 I believe? Unsure at the moment but i got her home and brake lights work but headlights and riding lights (Tail lights) Dont, We haev turn signals as well but no head light, Which sucks, Bought it to get back an fourth to work and well, I work over nights!

Is this a cheap fix? Or am i in trouble?

[kz1000st]

Is the battery charging? The headlight usually works off the alternator as well as the tail light. Check across the battery with a multimeter and see if you have 13+ volts. Otherwise start looking for a loose connection in the wiring. Also make sure your bulbs simply aren't burned out. Stuff happens.

[zoophilian]

Ill have to wait till i get as tester tomorrow to check the battery.

[zoophilian]

Okay we got a multimeter thingy, the battery is reading 12.3 when off and 12.8 / 12.9 when the motor is running, Still no lights, Whats the next step?

And if its to get behind the headlight, How do we do that? We undid the bolt in the front but we dont see how to get it off from there.

[zoophilian]

Okay! We got the headlamp panel off, Checked the links and wires everything is on there tight and no fusable links, SO must be the Alternator / Generator, Is there a way to test to see if its working before i invest in a new one?

[kz1000st]

If it's making power, and it is, you have to start testing the wiring back to the battery and the voltage regulator. Somewhere power is being interrupted. 12.8 isn't great but if there's more power when the bike is running your alternator should be OK. It sounds like there's a break in the wiring and the only way to find out where is tracing the wires and checking for power along the way. Look at places where the wiring could rub. So many times it's around the handlebars.

[zoophilian]

Okay so we traced it to a loose plug which we fixxed, Lights come on now but! New issue, They dim when idle and light up bright when we hold the throttle.

[kz1000st]

They should do that. Do they go very dim or a little dim. If they were running through the battery that wouldn't happen but they don't. They are voltage dependent from the alternator which increases with revolutions of the engine. Keep in mind how much the engine revs on the road.

My scooters all do that. My 50cc bike will almost double the light output from idle to half throttle.

[zoophilian]

Thanks! We ajusted the idle and now works wonderfully! But this brings me to a new issue, today was the first road test for her, road her up to work and back, My guages said i was doing 65, But i was barely doing 35 i know cause cars were passing me left and right. Its a 150cc.

[rks]

First road test, on your first scooter, and you're doing 65?.....For your sake, I hope your speedo is reading kilometers, and not miles per hour. I also hope you have taken the time to remove all of the plastic body panels, and checked every nut and bolt for tightness.

65 mph 150's are very rare, unless they have been heavily modified. At that speed your engine would be screaming.....what did your tach read?

Maybe you'll need to find a less traveled route to your place of work....a 150 is not designed to be a highway machine.

[zoophilian]

I dont have a Tach, I dont think O.o, But yeah! Looked at the speedomiter, its in KPM's so i need to get a new one of those soon, What all would i need to make her be able to go 45 regularly without needless strain on the motor?

I picked her up for 720 as a replacement for my car as a daily to and from work ya know? Anything you can help me with info wise would be greatly appreciated ^.^

[zoophilian]

Also want to mention, Not looking to get out there and hotrod, Just get her up to 45 without overdue strain, So i can drive on normal streets here in town without worry of gettin run off the road. , So just what ever upgrades you can direct me to or advice to give would be lovely.

[kz1000st]

You shouldn't have to hot rod it to get it to do 45 mph. My seven year old, 9,500 mile scooter will do that all day. If the engine is over revving it might pay to look at your rollers. 13 or 14 gram rollers will have the engine in a safe rpm. Anything lighter will give you instant acceleration but have the scooter screaming at speed.

On your present speedometer 45 mph translates to roughly 73 kph.

[zoophilian]

Rollers, Check. Ill look into those this next paycheck as well as getting a proper (For me) US mph based speedometer.

Last night when i rode it just felt like i really had to lean on the throttle to reach 35+ MPH. Which is why i was worried, If i can get her stable at 45mph or so ill be a happy camper cause then i can get around town with no problems at all, Its a small town kingsland, no road here is over 45, none in town atleast.

[zoophilian]

Okay! So today on my way to work got a good read on my speedomiter and rpm gauges whiel riding (No traffic oddly), I can get her up to 40 - 45 but RPM's are redlining at 7 - 8 I know thats not normal, Least not from what little i have been told about 150's.

Should also mention, When i release teh throttle it slows down like, crazy fast, Kinda like a car does when hauling a lot of dead weight.

Advice?

[rks]

Follow kz100st's advice in post #13 above. Sounds like you have some really light rollers/sliders in your variator.

[novaraptor]

And, just a thought. With the engine off, does it push forward easily? Might be a bit of brake lockup going on..