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Our Scooters At
Ace Scooters we have spent the last four years building our brand offering to it's current position. We believe
we have the ideal selection of brands in the scooter market today. When
buying a scooter, the key factors most customers consider are unsurprisingly price, looks and functionality. The
factors less often considered are after-market support, such as availability of spare parts, and technical back-up.
Of course we're going to say that the brands that we sell are the best on the market, but we've done the research, and really
believe that they are. Warranty period has generally been
a fairly good indicator of scooter quality, and we've made a point of only selling scooters with a good quality
warranty of 2 years parts and labour. However, we've so strongly reinforced this point, that we've now seen some
competing brands being offered with a 2 year warranty when in fact the quality is definitely NOT as good as the warranty implies!
Moreover we've also discovered that some brands put a significant number of conditions on their warranty, making it
sometimes difficult to get claims resolved in a timely manner. So whilst warranty used to be a great indication of underlying
product quality, its vital to be a little bit more discerning these days, and really understand what you are getting for your
money.
One thing that has become clear to us is that whilst the scooter
market in Australia is relatively young, it has matured very quickly. We are seeing a number of riders migrating towards
the better known brands for their second or third scooter, recognising that the extra investment is almost always worthwhile!
You don't have to pay a huge amount more money to get the very best the scooter market has to offer. So why not spoil
yourself? So
we strongly encourage readers to do their own research - and the forums on Australia's Scootersales website (www.scootercommunity.com.au)
are a great place to start because that's where you can get owner's experiences, not just the salesmans. Now before going any further a few words of advice: 1)
You get what you pay for! As in life, as in scooters. New brands are appearing all the time at the cheaper end
of the market. If you are willing to take the risk then the best of Aussie luck.
Spending a bit more can be very much worth it in the long run. However there are genuine lower-priced bargains
available - the Zip and Fly from Piaggio, for example, are great quality scooters which are available at budget prices. They
are well priced because they are assembled in China - but these ain't chinese scooters - you won't find them on the streets
of Beijing! Low priced yes, low quality certainly not!!!
2) If
you're not sure, ask! We will always endeavour to give you the best advice - our aim is that you are not just happy,
but delighted with your purchase. We stock a large range of scooters from a selection of top quality brands because
we have found that what's best for you is entirely dependent on your needs.
3)
Our aim is to provide options to help you make the right decision. But ultimately the decision will be yours.
The brand range we carry provides you with always at least two options, whatever the size and/or style of scooter you are
looking for.
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Vespa - the
name synonymous with scooters, but what many people don't realise is that they are part of a larger group, Piaggio. The Piaggio
group have a number of brands within their umbrella, including Vespa and Gilera. Whilst the three brands,
Vespa, Piaggio and Gilera, share componentry and engine technology, they are quite distinct in what they offer.
The Piaggio group are the biggest selling brand group in Australia, currently supplying over 23% of the overall market.
Let's start with the name
that everyone knows, Vespa. Sixty years old in 2006, this brand stays true to its traditional look and feel, and is the
only scooter brand on the market where the metal body is also the frame. Although originally designed as a budget form
of transport, much like the Mini and the VW Beetle, the Vespa has also moved up in the world and they are now highly
sophisticated pieces of engineering craftwork. Truly a masterpiece of form and function.
Gilera is the groups
sports brand. Currently the range of new scooters in Australia is limited to one model, but what a model! The
Fuoco 500 is the ultimate 3-wheeler, and was voted the scooter of the year by motorcycle.com!
Finally Piaggio. Not
surprisingly this is the brand where a lot of the new technological developments are showcased from first. Innovative
fuel injection technology, big wheeled scooters, "compact-maxis", three-wheeled scooters, and soon hybrid technology
engines too. Recently the range has been expanded to include a more keenly priced 50cc, 100cc and 125cc models in order
to cater for all budgets. In Australia Piaggio moved from being about the 10th highest selling brand to 2nd in less
that a year. Interestingly we now get more hits on the Piaggio page than on the Vespa page which just goes to show how
quickly this brand is getting recognised over here.
All models from the Piaggio group come with a 2 year warranty and range in price from just $2,499
up to just over $14,000 rideaway!
In our opinion, no short-list should be complete without at least considering something from one of these marques.
Sure, some may stretch your budget a little further than you might at first have considered, but there is a very good reason
why. No other scooters ride so well, or look so good - perhaps not surprising given they come from a country that produces
Ferrari's, Lamborghini's, Maserati's, Alfa's and Lancia's. You can't invent pedigree - it takes time to mature and develop.
And with over 60 years under their belt, the Piaggio group have almost more experience than all the other scooter companies
put together.
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Derbi - one of the fairly recent returns to the
Australian market, Derbi is a Spanish motorcycle/scooter company that recently became part of the Piaggio group. Like
Gilera, Derbi have a very strong sports focus, so its unsurprising that in the 2009 Le Minz 24hr (an Australian scooter race
for 50cc scooters) that Derbi came in first and second. Derbi uses
much of the same technology as the rest of the Piaggio range, making them extremely robust too. Although not well known
in Australia yet, expect to hear a lot more great things about this brand!
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Daelim - a south Korean brand, though not widely known in Australia,
these vehicles have a very loyal customer fan base as they offer very reliable, high performance / high technology, solidly
built machines at reasonable prices. The majority of our sales of these vehicles are to people who come in looking
precisely for one - they've already done the research and know just how good they are!
Daelim offer just two models.
A 50cc sports scooter, and a fuel injected 125cc. Well worth looking at.
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So that's a bit
of background on the brands that we stock. The following pages provide a bit more detail on the specific models within
those brands.
Unlike some dealers, we actually ride scooters ourselves so the comments on these pages are
based on our opinions of these machines.
Finally, but importantly, the prices shown are the RIDEAWAY
CASH RRP. Most dealers will advertise the vehicle price with the caveat plus ORC. The ORC (on road costs)
are the government charges, freight and dealer delivery costs, and can often range from between $300 to $1000.
The figures we quote are the price that you will pay when you finally take delivery of the vehicle, including 12 months registration
- so you know what you can expect when you walk into the showroom.
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