Modern Buddy

Just saw a new article that says Genuine is working with Italjet to sell scooters in the US in 2024. - https://www.rideapart.com/news/695463/i ... -usa-2024/

The Dragster 200 is an interesting scooter, 181cc making 17.5 hp at a dry weight of 273.4 pounds(I would guess the wet weight should be just under 300 pounds.) Those numbers could add up to a fun scooter that might be pretty quick.

Italjet just debuted a Dragster 300 overseas with 23.8hp 278cc engine(Vespa 300 HPE engine?) With a dry weight of 282 pounds it would be a darn fast scooter. If the 300 isn't enough power they also have a Dragster 559 Twin that has 58 hp and a 6 speed manual gearbox. I'm not sure if this is just a concept or if the overseas market is getting them.

I hope that all the Genuine dealers can be Italjet dealers like how they sell Royal Alloy. I wonder if Italjet will be imported under the Chicago Scooter Co. like Royal Alloy. Either way if my local dealer carries them I going to try to get a test ride.

Very interesting. Genuine and Italjet are not a combination I would have guessed, but it can see it making sense for both companies.

I have never ridding a Dragster, but I have seen a few up close. They look very neat and I was told they handle very well. In 2003 (give or take) a local dealer had a 50cc version in as a demo. The shop was considering carrying the line and the demo was to help them make up their mind. The first time I saw it it hadn't been prepped yet and sadly it was sold the next time I stopped by. The dealer decided not to carry them because he thought they were a little too high end for his demographic of mostly college kids and folks trying to save on gas.

Philip McCaleb is rolling over in his grave. That thing is fugly.

Believe Phil still walks among us. Well, any of us who happen to be in Vietnam.

The Italjets are distinctive-looking, high end scooters. I think they’re cool, although I don’t want one. Much better line of new scooters than the gaggle of indistinguishable 50s and 150s that Genuine has crammed their lineup with.

I recently passed on a original 50cc 2-stroke Dragster so I think I'll pass on this new one as well. Neat and unique but a 200cc is just not enough to sway me. The 300cc option might sway me to at least look at one but there are so many nice, and proven, 300cc scooters out there already. And it comes down to dealer support. I don't trust my Genuine dealers to do service work on my simple Buddy 125, I told myself that the Buddy 125 would be my last gasoline powered 2 wheel vehicle but I find myself wanting to check out the new 2023 Yamaha Xmax IF I want something larger.

As time passes Genuine keeps diluting what made them so great. Looks like part of their mission statement is to keep throwing shit against the wall hoping for something to eventually stick.

Phil was the heart and soul on Genuine. As I understand it he got screwed out of the business somehow. It must be hard to start a business you care about, support it with a strong product line, sell/loose it somehow/voted out the business by shareholders and then watch it slowly spiral down the drain. At least Genuine re-named those China scooters Chicago Scooter Company and still uses the Genuine name for the true PGO products.

I don't mind them doing the NIU line of electric scooters, and Royal Alloy for those who want something different than a Vespa. Italjet just seems weird. But then again I don't have my ear to the ground and keep up with the scooter scene like I used to. If Italjet sales take-off I'll truly be shocked.

sc00ter wrote: ↑Sat Nov 11, 2023 8:47 pm
I don't mind them doing the NIU line of electric scooters, and Royal Alloy for those who want something different than a Vespa. Italjet just seems weird.

NIU is a bold and brilliant move. Prices on gas scooters seem to be going up and electric scooters are coming down. My opinion is that electric scooters will be the bulk of the scooter market before long - referring to the US market, I mean. My local Genuine dealer has mostly moved away from scooters as his main business and is focusing on electric bicycles and some scooters.

As for ItalJet, I give it a resounding "maybe". Genuine dealers may not even choose to stock/sell them. If I was a scooter dealer, I'm not sure I'd want to add an additional brand of gasoline-powered scooters to my sales floor at this point in the scooter industry.