Review by: by: Roger L.
Scooter/moped/motorcycle mechanic
Sweden - Stockholm
I Bought my first Piaggio NRG at the start of this year , 2007.
I live in Sweden, so here it can reach a maximum of around 45
Km/H (they call them EU-Moped , class 1). It is better than
the Yamaha AeroX since it has more room for your feet, and yes
as stated by others it does have a digital dashboard, except
for the rev counterr.
The suspension on the Piaggio NRG DD is rather hard. That is
good.. In high speeds you want it to be hard. Brakes , on the
DD model (air cooled) it comes only with one disc brake.. infront.
The rear is not a disc model (drum brake) . But that's just
fine.
Gearbox, the "transmission" of this moped is automatic. Called
CVT. We call it Variomatic. It uses a "belt" made from kevlar
and other materials , and has a clutch.
Infact it has a 2 gearboxes.. Something we could call "end gear"
, and that part is connected to the rear wheel. Even this can
be changed.
The "clutch" uses 6 rollers that when reaching a certain RPM
they move outwards making the belts reach the "top" position.
And at the rear it goes down, reaching the "end" position. So
on a mountainbike with 24 gears this would be front: Gear "3"
(the biggest one) , and at the rear gear "9" - the smallest
one. Theese rollers can be changed. The lighter they are, the
faster the bike will accelerate , the heavier , the slower..
but with a better top end speed.
I have tested many different scooters, and this one is the best
one for use in a big city. It doesn't consume much fuel , it's
rather silent , it's light (compared to other brands/models).
And the spare parts are not so expensive.
Passenger seat and foot pegs. It has foldable fot pegs for the
passenger, not many other (even more expensive) have these.
But most models by Piaggio has them. Also most scooter models
come with a "sissybar" (if that's what it's called), the NRG
does not have one. But it is a bit wider than other scooter
models, so you will still "hang on there".
Just like a car , the Piaggio NRG Power DD has a high and low
beam. Only difference is that when selecting it, it changes
from left to right and vice verse. Turn signals, without these,
we would still hold our left arm out when turning.. Rear/Brake
light. Now this is a good thing made by Piaggio! Instead of
having 1 bulb that goes from time to time, they installed LED
lights. Not only does this save power and light up more , you
don't need to worry about changing them.
Gasoline tank. You can get far with the 5.5 litre capacity tank.
Engine and "modern electronics". First , you can start it by
using the start button (electric) , or if the battery is low
- the kick starter. To initialise the electric start, you have
to hold one of the brakes, this is for safety.
Never run a scooter without a battery, even if it has no power!
Engine specs: 1Cylinder , 2stroke 49cc. Power: 4Hp @ 7000RPM
(I found it doing more than that, but this is from the manual..)
The engine on the DD is aircooled. The air comes from a fan
mounted directly on the flywheel, and using "ducts" to transport
it to the cylinder. Engine type is horizontal , and has a separate
oil pump (wich is connected in a way hard to describe with words!).
When you twist the accelerator you also change the "position"
of the oil pump mechanism, so more oil comes when more fuel
comes. It is located behind the front Variator "wheel" (clutch)
If you ever need to adjust it, it can easily be done without
removal of the front Variator wheel (clutch). I could go in
to describe how the engine works, but I feel that would be too
much.
CDI / Ignition coil. CDI stands for Capacitive Discharge Ignition
. This is a very advanced little "box", and it's the heart of
it all. Almost like the computerboxes found in todays modern
cars. It use one or more capacitors to store the energy , and
this energy is than transported to the ignition coil and the
sparkplug. Now they have it all built into one single "module".
This is a big " - ". I should know , I work with scooters and
mopeds daily... You see, if the ignition coil stops to function
than it must be replaced. Usually this is a rather cheap device.
However, when combined it's not. The price is around 800SEK
or £80. It is also in an area hard to reach. (I am talking
now about the 2007 Piaggio NRG Power DD). But then also, I have
never had a customer come in and complain about that it won't
start or give a spark.. Note : On the injection models from
Piaggio (or any other company) there is no CDI, it use the same
thing as a car - a computer box. These break, they are very,
very expensive to replace. On another scooter I changed one,
he had to pay almost 5000:-SEK ( around say £500 ) for that.
They can however store diagnostical data , so connect it to
a laptop and it can ask "what is wrong".
Some people when they "tune" their scooters they use something
called "black box", this is a rev.- destricter. Other "hardcore
tuners" simply remove and replace the entire flywheel and all
electronics.
Carburator. A simple model. Fuel and vacuum type. The NRG doesn't
have a manual "gas lock" , so the valve is operated by vacuum
from the carburator to open it, and make the fuel run down the
fuel line. If the NRG has not been used in a long time I recommend
this: On the side almost at the bottom, there is a big screw.
Open it, but don't remove it. Old fuel will leave the carburator.
Now, do not use the electricstarter but kick it until it starts,
don't even twist the trottle handle.
Exhaust. Since the EU made new laws, most motorcycles had to
be fitted with a catalyser (don't know the spelling of the word),
and so also the mopeds. Some have more advanced exhausts. Some
have very simple. The NRG's exhaust is simple. It is also something
that later on needs to be changed. And thank Piaggio.. It is
not so expensive as other brands.
An overall test drive (by me) was made. During the morning ,
afternoon , night. During bad weather (rain). And I found it
to be very stable during all conditions. The rearview mirrors
are placed well , I see what I need to see when changing lanes
etc.etc.
I would give this moped a overall score of 9/10 because of the
combined CDI-Ignition coil. Thanks to Piaggio for a very nice
scooter
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Review by: by: Osey
I have had my Piaggio NRG Power DD 2006 for 3 days now and I
am very impressed with how easy and fun it is to use. The engine
performance is also very impressive doing 35mph flat out (restricted),
which beats Aprilia SR50R Factory's, and de-restricted it will
do around 55mph. The dashboard is cool with a standard analogue
rev counter and a digital speedo that displays the time, fuel
level, engine temp etc. Overall I am very impressed with this
bike and would recommend it to any one who is looking for a
50cc scooter with a good performance/price ratio.
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