7th Nov 2008, 14:41

I have a 1986 Honda Elite 150 in excellent shape, so I have a point of comparison.

My Baja came with a couple of loose odds and ends, but everything has been working perfectly.

I kept the speed down for the first 250 miles. Then, changed the oil to Mobile-1 Synthetic. It uses no oil, and it starts first time every time. Mileage seems to be around 70 mpg. Kick stands and everything else work as advertised.

The Honda is considerably faster, but that may well have to do with carb jetting and new EPA emissions required of the Baja.

The Honda seat is also more comfortable and the suspension much more forgiving. I took a 25 mile spin on the Baja and ended up with a sore butt.

I have had less than stellar experience with Baja customer care. How do I check/set the valves? I tried unsuccessfully to find a decent shop manual and was eventually told that none existed; although they did offer up the web site for a Pantera 50cc manual, which is kind of similar.

Overall, the Baja can't compare to the name brands costing thousands more but it's been a pretty good buy so far.

8th Apr 2009, 09:25

The Baja scooter I had has been a good scooter.

I don't quite understand why this reviewer had such an issue with the kickstands. Mine was always stable on the side stand. It had never fallen over, nor did it seem unstable at any time.

As for the side view mirrors, a little threadlock on the bolt and a tightening fixes that issue right up.

Also, I ordered a part from Baja, and received it within a week of placing the order, and the part I ordered was fine.

I know these scooters are no Hondas, but you aren't paying a Honda price either.

The only real issue I had with mine is that the fuel gage didn't work, and the battery didn't charge up well, but a trickle charger fixed that right up. I felt that, for the money, this was a good purchase.

27th Jun 2009, 12:44

Baja is total junk. They fall apart on you and are not reliable. I bought my first Baja and had a sort of good experience with it, then I bought my second one and my first one started to fall apart. You are better off if you can make parts for them, than ordering them, and don't get a Baja if you don't have a welder (you'll need one). Remember to always get universal parts for it. If you are deciding to get one, think about how much time you want to spend riding, and add that value in because you are fixing it more than riding it, plus it will cost more to fix than it is worth.

30th Jun 2009, 16:10

GI Joes retailer just went out of business, so the market is flooded with Baja stuff. If you are a tinkerer, there should be cheap ones out there in a year or so, as those who give up easily try to recoup their losses.

7th Jul 2009, 22:57

I have had mine for about 3 months and put about 2300 miles on it.

My fuel gauge is way off, and my speedometer is correct one day and way off the next.

A baffle in the exhaust rattles like crazy.

My clutch makes a very disturbing noise when I accelerate.

My spark plug cap won't stay on, so it vibrates off like half mile down the road, so it's duck taped LOL.

It's fouled 3 plugs in the last 1000 miles.

It has a lot of problems, but after you work out all the problems I think it would be a good scooter.

The problem is getting parts. I have sent numerous emails and spent countless hours on hold. Can't get a hold of anybody, especially since the shop I bought it from went out of business. But I have been using it as a daily driver, so if you know your way around a little engine, then you should be fine. I'll never buy one again though.

10th Jul 2009, 18:03

I bought an SC150 to ride the 12 mile trip to my office a couple days a week. I followed the break-in instructions to the letter. I changed the oil early to help the new engine. Just after 1000 miles the valves and head failed. Absolutely no help from Baja Motorsports. Customer service even laughed at my loss. This product is very poor and a waste of your money!

8th Jul 2010, 20:58

They look like other brand chinese knockoffs, but are lower quality all around, even inside the engine. I will never never never never again buy any Baja product after experiencing their support, warranty and lack of service.

If you buy one and it breaks within the warranty period (which it will, one thing or another), you will have to spend ungodly hours on the phone getting the run around, on hold for over two hours just to get the first person there. After that they'll claim everything is always the customers fault, the bikes are the cheapest made things on the planet but they will claim any problems are your fault. Eventually they will maybe give in if they feel they must and authorise a 1 hour diagnostic. That's as far as you will get, if it can't be fixed in that 1hr time they consider you and the bike a complete write off, and I had to go pick up my broken bike with dead engine from the warranty center, and pay to have it hauled home.

The bike is light enough to move around easily, and yet heavy enough that it can hold down a stack of papers or keep piles of leaves from blowing away. The gas mileage is phenomenal, I've owned it two years now and it's never used the first tank of gas still since it's never worked all this time.

Insurance is cheap too, since you won't need it after very long.

It will force you to walk or ride a bicycle, or take the bus, so they are good for the environment.

Also good for the economy, since you will have to buy something else or pay for lots of parts and repairs.

The great thing about my purchase was that the credit card company refunded my money after hearing my story, and verifying it with Baja and the service center, so my paperweight is free.

(except what I lost on insurance and towing and my own time and aggravation)

Since I have spent a few hours working on it and trying to make it into a usable bike, and fix the electricals and fix the clutch, and replaced the carb and the seat lock, and glue the mirrors because they were broken, and this still hasn't even been on the road yet.

Sweet machines...