Should I buy my scooter locally or over the internet?
That’s a good question.
So let’s take a look at the differences and then you can make the decision on which way would be best for you.
When you compare the prices for the exact same quality scooter you will find that there is normally only about a $300.00 difference in price between the internet sold scooters and ones at your local scooter dealer. The key words here are “exact same quality scooter”. You will find as you search the internet a number of brands that appear to offer the same scooter at widely different prices. The Chinese are very good at coping things, even themselves. And although these scooters look the same there can be a major difference in the overall quality of them. This will be reflected not only in the price but also in the warranty that they offer. To learn more about this click: I’ve seen other scooters that “look” the same as Carolina Fun Machines but are less expensive. What’s the difference?
ScootDawg, a popular internet scooter forum, highly recommends that you buy from a reputable dealer in your area. They say this will save you a multitude of headaches and will give you a local source for help if something goes wrong. They say you will pay more for a scooter from a dealer but the added expense is well worth it. They recommend that you save a month or two longer if you have too, but buy locally… if not you’ll usually wish you had.
Buying Locally
When you buy from a local dealer you are able to go to their place of business and see, touch and sit on a number of different scooters. You may even be able to test ride one depending on local laws and regulations. After choosing the one that is best for you the dealer will fully assemble and perform the pre-delivery inspection before they deliver the scooter to you. The dealer will also take care of the Department of Motor Vehicles paperwork for you.
Most local dealers will also protect your investment with a parts and labor warranty. So if any defects show up all you have to do is take it back to your local dealer and they will repair the defect at no charge and have it back to you in a day or two. Some local dealers may even provide low cost rentals or loaners while your scooter is in the shop.
And if, after some experience on your new scooter, you decide you want a larger one your local dealer will more than likely be willing to take your current scooter in trade for a larger model.
Buying on the Internet
If you’re not scooter savvy buying a scooter over the internet can be very intimidating. There are dozens of resellers, offering scooters from over 35 different Chinese manufacturers, and many of them look to be the same, but be very careful… for they’re not.
In our lifetimes we have all heard the saying “you get what you pay for.” And because we live in such a competitive world today this statement is truer than it’s ever been. So when you see scooters on the internet that look the same but range in price from $699 to $2,199 you have to ask yourself why there is such a big price difference. There are many. The overall quality is the main one, the warranty is another and the ability to get parts and service are also factors. I bring all this up because I want you to be ok with walking away from the low priced scooters and understanding why you did and feeling good about it. Believe me, in the long run you will be so happy that you did. The last thing you want is to have a new scooter that won’t run and are not able to get parts or service on it and it sits in your garage doing nothing but collecting dust. When this does happen the last thing you remember is the great deal you got on it.
Recently I’ve seen people selling low end scooters at flea markets and off the back of their pickup trucks on craigslist. These people are making a quick $ and have no interest or intentions of providing service or parts over the time period that you will own your scooter. And most local dealers will not work on these scooters because of their low quality and lack of parts availability. So you end up with the same situation, a scooter collecting dust.
So, with all that said, what is it like to buy a scooter over the internet?
ScootDawg goes on to say: If you buy from the internet YOU are responsible for assembling the scooter, performing the pre-delivery inspection, and sorting out the many quirks it will have for the first few hundred miles. If you are not handy with a wrench, don’t have the desire or time to repair things then do not buy on line. Even the best dealers (and we know of many good on line sellers) can only tell you how to fix a problem and send you parts. They cannot repair the scooter over the phone for you. Know your own abilities before you commit to buying a scooter off the internet. On line scooters can be a great deal but only if you have reasonable expectations and can do the needed repairs yourself. Sorry to sound redundant but all too many people buy the cheaper scooters and then fill the message boards on the forums with such and such scooter is a total piece of crap… don’t buy a scooter from this company or that company and so on. If you are in doubt at all make the drive and buy from a local dealer. The scooter will be prepped, running, and you can take it back for repairs if needed.
In reviewing the forums we hear a number of stories where the scooter arrives and it is not reflective of the picture people ordered from on the website, or it's the wrong color, or worse yet… damaged. If you fully review the terms and conditions page of many internet resellers (and many of us don’t until it’s too late) you will see that they are not responsible for many of these things when they happen. And if you want to return the scooter you have to pay the shipping cost back to them and they may charge you for the freight they paid to ship it to you in the first place along with a restocking fee. So you are out as much as $600 to $800. Because of this most people just keep the scooter even though it isn’t what they wanted or ordered.
Then we also hear that many times when the scooter breaks it can take 2 to 4 weeks to get replacement parts. With internet purchased scooters most dealers require that you ship the bad part back to them before they will ship you a replacement. And then after waiting for 2 to 4 weeks the part doesn’t fix the problem and the process starts all over again. We have also heard that it can take weeks to get the paperwork required to get the scooters registered with your state Department of Motor Vehicles so you can drive it on the streets legally.
In summary, you expose yourself to a lot of headaches and frustrations for a few hundred dollars in savings. With all of this in mind you be the judge… should you by locally or over the internet?