Modern Buddy

I've had my Buddy 125 nearly a year and always turned it off using the "kill switch". I just talked with Scooterville and they say, no, turn the scooter off using the key. Which is correct/best or does it matter?

The manual is not helpful.

It doesn't really matter unless you have any sort of accessories connected to the ignition switch. If you do have your deadlights connected to the ignition, I would probably use the key switch.

In reality, there is not much practical need for a kill switch on an automatic scooter. I have always used the key and never had any sort of problem.

So, is it okay then to just leave the kill switch in the "on" position at all times?

Yes. I never turn mine off on any of my scoots.

ucandoit wrote:So, is it okay then to just leave the kill switch in the "on" position at all times?

I'd say yes. In my 45 years of riding, even if I shut the motorcycles off using the kill switch, and then remove the key, I immediately put the kill switch back to "ON". All it takes is trying to kick start and diagnose what's wrong with a bike for a half hour only to realize the kill switch was "OFF" , and you'll make sure it's always "ON" after that. Don't ask how I know......

I'll side with the experts here, they say it's not necessary to use the 'kill switch' I believe them. MSF classes, around here at least, teach to always use it. I don't, I suppose it's all a preference.
I do however always check it when I get back to my scoot in a parking lot for obvious reasons, some people can't seem to keep their damned hands off of other peoples' stuff. (I once stood in the pouring rain for an hour trying to figure what the heck was wrong waiting for my son to come 'rescue' me...)

Many aftermarket throttles don't have spaces for stock style electrics (kill switch / start button). I am installing an NCY Quick Draw throttle on my Ice Bear Maddog 150 (stretched Ruckus clone) and will be completely deleting the factory kill switch and the start button in the process.

Since I never use the kill switch, that is actually somewhat of a bonus to me. I will just cut the wires and connect them to each other in the run position. The stock starter button will be replaced with a low profile 16mm black stainless steel momentary switch located on the top of the battery box similar to the engine start buttons used in many sports cars in recent years.

Cleaning up the wires on the handlebars can make a significant difference in the look of many scooters with exposed bars. Since the Buddy headset and handlebar setup is pretty well shrouded, the difference would be minimal and would probably only be worth looking into if the stock electrical setup failed.

So, I'm just curious, if the kill switch is "on" does that mean the engine is killed?

ModernMike wrote:So, I'm just curious, if the kill switch is "on" does that mean the engine is killed?

NO. The switch is not "ON". The switch is in the "ON" position which means the electrical circuit is on, able to be started. Off is the circuit is off.

ModernMike wrote:So, I'm just curious, if the kill switch is "on" does that mean the engine is killed?

Ha. Grammar and word usage.

I've seen it used both ways...
The kill switch is "on" means it won't start.
Turn the kill switch to "on" to start your engine.



Probably safer to just use the words "run" and "kill" -- rather than on/off. (Though it is oriented to where flipping it up (the normal "on" position) is run; and down (the normal "off" position) is kill.)

Yes, up is "ON" "RUN" and down is "OFF" "KILL" just like a wall light switch in your home.

Very technical discussion this but really is this a big deal? R

ucandoit wrote:I've had my Buddy 125 nearly a year and always turned it off using the "kill switch". I just talked with Scooterville and they say, no, turn the scooter off using the key. Which is correct/best or does it matter?

The manual is not helpful.

If you leave the key/ignition on, it will drain the battery.

I always cut the engine with the kill switch... based on other comments I might have learned that in the Motorcyle Safety Course, but I can't remember. Though it can also prevent unwanted (amateur) joy riders who don't know about the kill switch.

But I also always make sure to turn the key to the off and completely remove the keys.

I was having trouble with my boyfriend moving my scooter in the garage and coming back to a dead battery where he'd left the keys in the ignition.

The kill switch is another electromechanical device that can eventually fail through repeated use. I leave it on always other than to test it once or twice a year.

I have knocked it into the off position more than once. So the first thing to do after saying "Oh sh-t" when it won't start, is to check the kill switch before you start tearing down the engine.

still shifting wrote:Very technical discussion this but really is this a big deal? R

Depends on how many times you've seen someone unable to start their scooter because the kill switch is flipped to kill or the battery is dead because it wasn't turned off...

(But clearly the "on" discussion is really just fun with semantics, and making sure people know which way the switch should be flipped ... )

thatvwbusguy wrote:I am installing an NCY Quick Draw throttle on my Ice Bear Maddog 150 (stretched Ruckus clone) and will be completely deleting the factory kill switch and the start button in the process.

Since I never use the kill switch, that is actually somewhat of a bonus to me.

Just remember that the kill switch is a safety feature: to kill the engine in an emergency: accident, stuck throttle, broken key... I'm sure it's a rare need, but worth considering before eliminating it.

Which seems to be why the MSF tells riders to cut it off with the kill switch all the time. This ensures that you have muscle memory ready to hit it in the event of an emergency ... and that you're not stuck in a bad situation unable to start your scooter when the switch gets accidentally (or intentionally) flipped. It seems like many people who don't use it regularly have some sort of story about this.

I can appreciate that the kill switch is a safety device, but in my 28 years of riding all sorts of two wheeled vehicles on the road, I have never had an emergency that required the use of a redundant switching system.

On the other hand, I have managed to bump the kill switch while riding with winter gloves a couple times, which can be super exciting when the engine cuts out while trying to merge with traffic

Tazio wrote:The kill switch is another electromechanical device that can eventually fail through repeated use. I leave it on always other than to test it once or twice a year.

I have knocked it into the off position more than once. So the first thing to do after saying "Oh sh-t" when it won't start, is to check the kill switch before you start tearing down the engine.

The kill switch is a last ditch effort. I haven't touched my kill switch yet. PM me if you think you can.

thatvwbusguy wrote:I can appreciate that the kill switch is a safety device, but in my 28 years of riding all sorts of two wheeled vehicles on the road, I have never had an emergency that required the use of a redundant switching system. :

I agree...I have never had to use the kill switch on any of my bikes...however I have had to use it on someone else's when they went down and the throttle stuck wide open. I was afraid that the rear tire was gong to grab and spin the bike so I hit it with a stick...that wasn't as long as I would have preferred!

When I laid my Hyosung down recently and ended up under it with the bike running I was quite happy that I could reach the kill switch with my non trapped leg and kick it off.

It's funny, when I used to ride both a Stella and a Yamaha Riva I was always hitting the kill switch on one of them (Riva I think) because muscle memory had me flipping the turn signal switch that was in the same position the other bike.

My 'Race' Moped has a kill switch lanyard that I consider to be one part safety feature and one part anti-theft feature.