scooter pulls to the right. bad wheel alignment?

[bryanj22]

hello I just drove my girlfriends scooter ( tbx260) same as my bike. Its basically the vog 260. I noticed right away that it drove differently than mine. I then noticed that it felt like I had to have the handle bars slightly cocked to the right while driving straight. It seems that the alignment is off or something. I put it on the center stand and pointed the handle bars as straight as possible. Then I looked at the front of the bike and noticed that the tire pointed slightly to the right. Its not a MAJOR thing but I did notice it. Since I have the same bike and I'm use to riding mine It was noticeable to me.

Next, I took it for a little ride to see how bad this issue really is. When I ride my bike I will take my hands completely off the handle bars sometimes to reach for things like a cigarrete or phone (not at high speeds). This is where I really noticed her bike pulling. I took my hands off the handle bars and it wanted to pull to the right every time. I even leaned left a little bit and it was still going to the right. I put the wind in consideration and turned around on the road and went the opposite way, still pulls to the right. When Im on my scooter I can balance mine pretty good with no hands and never feel any pulling.

So my question is.. Why does it seem to favor the right so much? What adjustments can solve this issue? It just feels like something is out of line. She never noticed it but this is the first 2 wheeled vehicle she has ever drivin before. Compared to my scoot Its definately noticeable to me.

thanks dawgs

[allworld]

Hello bryanj22: Some pictures would help, but maybe the forks are not set in the bracket at the same hight. You may want to take the front plastic of both scooters and compare the 2 and see what is different.

[bryanj22]

thanks. maybe thats possible. the bike is still under warranty. this is parts and LABOR. I just need to figure out what to tell the dealer. the problem is not that noticeable but if you ride mine for a good period of time and then ride hers you do notice the difference. I just dont want the dealer to say "well, we rode it around and it doesn't seem worth messing with t since its not really that noticeable" "If it gets worse bring it in".. It really isnt that bad but it bothers me knowing that something is not right about it.

[Riddick79]

I have the exact same problem with my 150. My friend dropped mine though. It looks like the top bar on the forks was twisted a little to the right.

I have a matching fork but I need to modify it a bit to make it work. I'm planning on working on it this weekend. I'll let you know how it goes.

[earlwb]

Sounds like the front forks are twisted to the side a little.
On a motorcycle, one would straddle the front wheel and then give the handlebar a good twist. Then check the handlebar, forktree, to front wheel alignment, and repeat as needed.
But the body works on the scooter obscure it all. So you may have to use some imagination and creativity to do the same thing. Now one could use fancy tools like laser pointers and the garage wall with a long ruler as a measuring device...
First make sure the handlebar isn't bent. Then find one or two long sticks or boards that are not crooked. You can use two boards, with one board set at a 90 degree (right angle) to the other board.
Attach the boards to the front wheel so that you can see the boards while sitting on the bike. Then look at the handlebar to boards alignment. If the boards are angled off in one direction then use the motorcycle method to get it aligned again.
Then when that looks good, use the boards aimed backwards to double check the rear wheel to front wheel alignment, just in case the frame or something was affected.