:O Before I drove off this morning to run some errands, I happened to glance over my hub wheel since the scooter's driving had felt a slight bit "wobbly" as of a few days ago. Lo and behold, one of the nuts that hold the wheels integrity and structure together had just plain FALLEN OUT!
See pic - 
Geez I didn't even think about checking those! I mean, what else could fall out of this device ??
Anyways, I put a temporary replacement in until I could run to the hardware store and buy this large size (14 mm with lock-nut) and encountered, within about 1 1/2 miles, my first flat, which hit me while zooming under the 210 FWY in Pasadena, going about 35 mpH.
Thank GOD I was not leaning into a curve, otherwise I would have took my first scooter flying lesson!
I suspect that, when I tightened the wheel again, some metallic particles got free and punctured the tube from the inside of the tire, as there is not even a TRACE of intrusion visible on the outside!
Well well, here goes the Craftsman Toolbox again, but -hold it - where do I get a good spare tire?
Anyone bought the slightly bigger ones somewhere ? Good store? Please share your insights....
Boy at the angle that I usually corner with the scooter, - makes me concerned, verrry concerned!
Here's the lesson: I had a standard AAA membership, which does not include motorcycle roadside assistance. If you upgrade the membership beyond "classic", so that you may receive RV and motorcycle roadside assistance, you will only receive coverage for up to $ 200.- which the towing company may charge. Some of them charge up to $ 125.-/hr.!!
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So was it virtually a blow-out? Deflation in seconds? That is a scary failure mode. The rear rim does not have much of a safety-ridge on it, so a sudden flat can also result in sudden detachment of the bead from the rim.
My peace of mind has generally been from an assumed very low likelihood of a sudden blowout.
What pressure did you keep the tire inflated to?
Way back, e-max USA issued an e-mail bulletin recommending periodic checking of those four bolts. The e-max isn't like a home appliance or something - it should receive at least a cursory "pre-flight" inspection before each ride.
Yeah, it was out in seconds flat ;-)
Boy, when I get my replacement tire, I will open the whole motor assembly, there is some black dust oozing out of some microgaps between the components (brake dust??)
Anybody ever done that??
My tire pressure was about 43, just inflated before the ride....also, I forgot to put the plastic cap back on, maybe it was a valve failure???
be safe ;-)
I wouldn't attempt to open up the whole motor assembly. The is no way for dust to enter the motor itself.
When you remove the wheel/motor assembly, the brake shoes and backing plate will slide off, revealing the integral brake drum. Brake dust DOES collect here.
By the way, when replacing the tire, I would NOT follow the manuals directions to remove the entire motor/rim assembly to change the tire. Just remove the rim. Tilt and pill the motor off the rear forks just far enough to slip the rim out. You need a good toolkit to do this job - tightening the four bolts and nuts requires two ratchets or breaker-bars, two 13mm sockets, and a selection of socket extensions of various lengths.
Use lots of soapy water and good tire-irons to pry the tire off the rim. The rear rim is pretty flimsy and bends fairly easily.
If a puncture caused the tire to deflate that fast, the hole should be obvious. So it must have been a shifted or pinched tube. I have gone to tubeless tires myself - But the use of a car-type straight tubeless stem is a little awkward.
I've got some spare stock e-max (cheap Chen Shin) tires and tubes for sale. But I'd recommend upgrading your tires after I'm using Kenda K324's - they seem to have a good low rolling friction due to the center-groove type tread.
Paul D.
Paul is right, I'll just add some info about the tires. The OEM tire size is 10x3.00, but that size is getting out of fashion. The recommended, very similar, replacement is 10-90/90, I use Michelin S1 and have been very impressed by them. The S1 can be mounted with or without tube, I run tubeless in front and with tube rear. New tires is an excellent upgrade, don't put the old tires back on once you have removed them. You'll be amazed how much difference it makes. [You should be ashamed of trying to sell your OEM tires, Paul. Can't believe you did that. ;) ]
To go tubeless in the rear wheel you need one of these
(I never got around to get them, it works fine with a tube as well although I replaced it with Michelin - the OEM tube was crap and broke easily.)
Rolf,
Those are exactly the stem I've been looking for, but haven't been able to find them. I inquired at some chep chinese scooter/ATV dealerships - pointing out exactly the stem shown on one of their scooters, but sales persons are fairly clueless whether they are even tubeless tires or not, and usually just say they can't get this part to get rid of me.
The 90/90-10 is a bit bigger than a 3.00x10, isn't it? I've gone to 3.50x10's and I've been wondering what the closest metric equivalent would be. The section of a 90/90x10 is theoretically supposed to be 90mm (3.54") wide, by 90 X 0.9 = 81mm (3.19") tall. So. I had assumed 90/90-10's would be close to a 3.50-10.
Paul D.
Yes, it's a bit bigger than 3". You're right about the calculation of height of the 90/90 profile, not sure exactly how to calculate the height of 3" though. I always simplified it to exactly 3" height, though I suspect it's a little bit less in reality - the 3" is supposed to be a 3" round section, and since the section intrudes a bit down the rim section, actual height could be slightly less than 3" (76 mm). Nevertheless the difference is only a few millimeters, hardly noticable. But the tire looks a bit beefier, because it's wider.
In theory 10"x3" would be 76/100-10, in "metric" units. But 76/100-10 doesn't exist, the closest I have found is 90/90-10 - Michelin recommend them as a direct replacement for 10"x3", and stopped producing the latter. They have worked fine on my scooter so far, no rubbing or scratching against fenders.