Brand Spanking New Reflex Owner

[madamegato]

Hello everyone!!!

I wanted to take a minute to introduce myself - well, my online alter-ego anyway - I'm Madamegato and I just bought a bright, shiny, yellow 2006 Reflex.

It's my first time on two wheels and I want to say a great big gigantic thank you to all of you on the boards. You guys helped so much in deciding what not to buy, and just how much effort would be put into some of the other brands we looked into, and how fantastic a Kymco would be (but 4999 can't be beat for a Reflex), so from the bottom of my heart - thanks! You guys are the best!

I was a little shaky at first (as was my husband), but you can just feel the pep in the Reflex and how it's begging to be driven like mad. I can't wait until I'm proficient enough to take it out on the roads and eventually the highway. I am in absolute love. ;D My husband and I have our learners permit and with the Honda Rider's Club, we're planning on doing the MSF course to really get the most out of our experience.

At any rate, hello to you all and I hope I can become a valuable and contributing member as so many of you are. Thank you again!

[newc77]

Congratulations and good luck with your new experience. Kudos for being wise enough to learn your scoot and practice before hitting the road, and for taking a MSF course. You are wise, also be safe and have lots of happy scooting.

[scooterollie]

Madamegato;
Welcome to the Dawg Pound! Congrats on your purchase. You should have years of dependable scootin ahead of you. Keep us informed.

[T W I S T E R]

2006 yellow reflex is the sport version right ??

[monty57]

Welcome, congratulations and as usual, send pictures of your new pride and joy. You will love it it will give many happy miles!

[YellowScooter]

Congrats on the newborn!
whats her name?
;D

[tpgramlich]

Hi all. I'm "Mr. Madamegato" or the mysterious husband mentioned in the original post.

I also want to thank everyone here for all the great information and experiences contained within these forums. Our personal scooter journey was actually quite a long one. I think the first mention of scooter in our house was about a year or so ago when Madamegato mention she would like a Vespa. With basically zero knowledge of anything on two wheels my reaction was, no way. Totally impractical and wildly expensive.
Now we come up to about a month or so ago. We now find ourselves with only one car and having to manage getting me to work, and the wife and kids to school on a daily basis. Not to mention the terribly expensive and/or inconvient parking for the wife on campus. We see an ad in the campus newspaper for some little 50cc scoots that require no special license and you can park virtually anywhere you want. That seemed to plant a little seed that perhaps this scooter idea might not be too bad.
From there I started looking for information on scooters online. I came across some sites including evosales and bandit and was quite impressed with the prices. I also, so fortunately, began reading here. I quickly learned all about the difference in scooters and more specifically exactly what having a chineese scooter entails.
I wasn't too averse to the idea of putting a little work into a scooter, even though I'm not so mechanically inclined but my lovely wife wasn't very keen on the idea at all. So as the next step we decided to check out a couple of the dealers in our area. We had initially thought we might be able to get by with a 150cc but after discussing the route we'd most often want to travel (which is 50MPH for the most part) we decided we would really need to go up to a250cc. The first dealer we went to didn't have anything over 150cc so we ended up at the local Kymco dealer. We were quite impressed by those machines, the Grandvista in perticular, but I just couldn't accept the price myself. Even though Madamegato was sold, I still held fast to my belief that I would rather save about 2 grand and maybe put in some of my own work.
Then a funny thing happened. We decided to finally fix a toilet of ours which wasn't working right and we had just put off forever. Well, after spending about 3 hours replacing the entire mechanism within the tank I got a new appreciation for how I don't really enjoy fixing things all that much. So I thought, alright, no chinese scoot. But perhaps we can reach a bit of a compromise between price and reliability by looking at something used.
Looking on ebay and such I saw several reflexes. i have to admit I was quite smitten with the looks and I knew it would be one of the most reliable things around. Not finding anything used locally though we decided to just go on over to the local Honda dealer, see what they had, and just get on and check out a reflex.
Well, after getting a decent price for a new '06 and very reasonable financing through Honda we ended up getting the Reflex. I couldn't be happier with the purchase. Now I just wish I was instantly proficient in riding it, but considering neither of us have any experience on two wheels that will take time and training.

To answer some of the questions... Yep, it's the '06 Reflex Sport. As for a name, so far I think it's Reflux since we both seem to slip up and call it that a lot.

As for pics, we'll have to get on that and put some up soon.

[siestarandy]

Welcome to the boards Mr. and Madamegato.

Your' thinking up to your purchase sounds like De Ja Vu. Except for the toilet thing. I did that back in '96.

You made a great choice and can probably look forward to many years of trouble free riding. Our friends in Japan sure do make quality scoots, don't they?

Being new to two wheels again myself (after many years off), I too am signing up for the MSF Course this month. Anything we can do to increase our chances out there amongst the cages is well worth the time and money. Might I also suggest the book Proficient Motorcycling by David Hough. There are some other posts here on it and you may find it invaluable. I did.

Good luck, ride safe. Cheers,

SiestaRandy

[aristide1]

I got a new appreciation for how I don't really enjoy fixing things all that much.

;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

[jwheelermd]

My 2004 (bought new in 06 as a non-current model) has been rock-solid so far. If you get to the point you think about things like a top box, etc, I can tell you how to convert the Sport to handle one--all it takes is a used rear spoiler from e-bay, paint to match, or like I did use a complementary color (silver 01 spoiler on black 04 Reflex Sport). Use the same mounting bolts.... You may want a different windshield, too, if you do much highway travel. The shop manual is useful, too, even for just the usual routine maintenance. Get the genuine Honda one.

Welcome. The MSF course is a must-do. Keep in touch.

[Javarod]

Hmmm, Ok, you're brand spanking new, but how old's the scooter? ;D


Seriously though, congrats on your new purchase.

[madamegato]

;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

The scoot is an '06 sport, and when we bought it, there was 7 miles. So we're all new! Hee hee.

I wanted to report, after a little time riding...

I
LOVE
MY
SCOOT!!!!

There is about 140 miles on it now and I can't wait to throw more on there.

I read both of Hough's books and I totally agree... they're two of the most beneficial books ever. I have a friend thinking about buying a crotch rocket (something we're trying to change as scoot owners, har har), and we're telling him over and over that he needs the books.

I'll be taking the MSF course on Monday, so wish me luck!

[scooterlizard]

yep, ya be findin' every kinda' excuse to get on it, nothing like scoot fever. Welcome to the Dawg pound. Good luck with the class.