Passed on a Dragster!

S

sc00ter

Well-Known Member
Region
USA
City
Norfolk, VA
Not sure how many of you are into scooters but I just passed on a chance to buy a Italjet Dragster 50cc. This has always been a dream scooter since it came out in the mid-90's. This one was a 1998 model with only 580 miles. It was in great condition, no crash damage and runs as it should. Let me say it truly made my heart flutter! So, why did I pass on this rare scooter?

I got burned out from 2-strokes a few years ago. I built some fast Zuma bug-eye 2-strokes and loved going out for a blast. But times change and I just said heck with it. All my riding buddies moved on to Suzuki TU250's and the Honda Grom. Not bad choices I might add! I do hope the Dragster ends up in loving hands and gets the respect it deserves.

My wife recently said she "Misses going on bike rides.", as in a large scooter or a motorcycle. I'm not interested in motorcycles anymore but the new Triumph 400 caught my eye. Lusted after the KTM Duke 390 until the words 'electrical gremlins' and 'head gasket leaks' constantly come up in conversations with Duke 390 owners. I have a tight parking spot but might be able to manhandle a Honda Silverwing scooter. Might also be tempted by a clean Yamaha Majesty but my friend had one and any service was overly complicated. Yamaha Xmax 300 is another possibility if I went new. But passing on a clean Italjet Dragster 50cc will give me nightmares for many nights!

So what dream toy did you pass on when the opportunity to "finally" own one has arrived, and why did you pass?
 
I don't know, but I passed up a '56 Cadillac convertible for $300. Bought a 250 Suzuki scrambler with a blown cylinder instead. That was in the early seventies. Rode that bike everywhere.
I do like to ride double up with a lady, but I got a Honda Grom and that sure limits.
 
sc00ter said:
Not sure how many of you are into scooters but I just passed on a chance to buy a Italjet Dragster 50cc. This has always been a dream scooter since it came out in the mid-90's. This one was a 1998 model with only 580 miles. It was in great condition, no crash damage and runs as it should. Let me say it truly made my heart flutter! So, why did I pass on this rare scooter?

I got burned out from 2-strokes a few years ago. I built some fast Zuma bug-eye 2-strokes and loved going out for a blast. But times change and I just said heck with it. All my riding buddies moved on to Suzuki TU250's and the Honda Grom. Not bad choices I might add! I do hope the Dragster ends up in loving hands and gets the respect it deserves.

My wife recently said she "Misses going on bike rides.", as in a large scooter or a motorcycle. I'm not interested in motorcycles anymore but the new Triumph 400 caught my eye. Lusted after the KTM Duke 390 until the words 'electrical gremlins' and 'head gasket leaks' constantly come up in conversations with Duke 390 owners. I have a tight parking spot but might be able to manhandle a Honda Silverwing scooter. Might also be tempted by a clean Yamaha Majesty but my friend had one and any service was overly complicated. Yamaha Xmax 300 is another possibility if I went new. But passing on a clean Italjet Dragster 50cc will give me nightmares for many nights!

So what dream toy did you pass on when the opportunity to "finally" own one has arrived, and why did you pass?
Click to expand...
Air cooled Porsche 911 for peanuts back in 2012. I had 2 kids in college and did the PPI and didn't pull the trigger. Kinda still haunts me...
 
Lost a drag race crossing I65 Sunday. I stopped at light, bike was only loaded with my 20 lb bike tools spares water + car screw jack, 18" breaker bar, car tire pump, two 2"x8"x12", dewalt impact wrench. Pulled up next to me a MTB with a big DD motor in the back. I use max electricity from throttle at green, if I don't the the 2nd light goes red in front of me. DD motor bike kept up with me from start to about 10 mph, when he ran off & left me. I really don't like this new controller, it ramps up the power over 4 seconds when I want instant 1000 watts crossing multilane highways.
In terms of missed opportunities, I had a '64 ford fairlane 2 door beigh & brown, in '78. No panels rusted. The model that was drag raced as the Thunderbolt in the late 60's. The wife had it towed away for junk. 80 junkyards in Houston, no way to find it. In 76 I rebuilt the motor on a '70 IH 1200 pickup, 6 passenger with long bed, 345 V8, 4 speed BorgWarner trans. Got 13 mpg after I was done with it, used no oil or antifreeze. Wife made me sell it for $1000. I divorced the wife in 1980. I still don't have a running pickup, and my '62 Fairlane is a 4 door with rusty quarterpanels, rusty rear fenders, and loose steering box. My Dad gave me a 74 Ford supercab longbed, I had the motor rebuilt by an idiot. After 500 miles it started dumping a gallon of antifreeze in the oil. Shop owner told me he bought a new block for the old cracked one. Bet some ******* welded it, which never works. Got 11 mpg anyway, not worth fixing a 360 V8 in the days of $3.50 gas.
 
Last edited:
indianajo said:
Got 11 mph anyway, not worth fixing a 360 V8 in the days of $3.50 gas.
Click to expand...

We had a family car in the late 70's.
An Oldsmobile Delta88 with a 454 V8 four barrel carb.
It got 8 mpg city and 12 mpg highway.
That was measured in Imperial gallons before we switched to metric. 😂
 
PCeBiker said:
An Oldsmobile Delta88 with a 454 V8 four barrel carb.
It got 8 mpg city and 12 mpg highway.
Click to expand...
I worked as a mover/truck driver 74-75 since post VietNam nobody was hiring physicists with a bachelor's degree.
I worked for a North American Van Lines agent. As the oil crises was deepening, owner bought a new truck tractor. A Chevrolet with a 454 gas V8. With a moving van It got 1 mpg. The old worn out IH 345 V8 tractors got 3.5. A Dodge 318 V8 tractor got 5.
 
indianajo said:
A Chevrolet with a 454 gas V8. With a moving van It got 1 mpg.
Click to expand...

The only thing that I've heard of that was was worse, was an old friends brothers fishing boat that got 0.8 mpg.
He "sailed" it from here in the Great Lakes to Florida.
 
PCeBiker said:
That was measured in Imperial gallons before we switched to metric. 😂
Click to expand...

Just before we switched to metric (around 1976), gas went up to over 99.9 cents per gallon, so the gas stations started to sell gas by the half gallon so they wouldn't have to buy new pumps with another digit for dollars.
 
sc00ter said:
Not sure how many of you are into scooters but I just passed on a chance to buy a Italjet Dragster 50cc. This has always been a dream scooter since it came out in the mid-90's. This one was a 1998 model with only 580 miles. It was in great condition, no crash damage and runs as it should. Let me say it truly made my heart flutter! So, why did I pass on this rare scooter?

I got burned out from 2-strokes a few years ago. I built some fast Zuma bug-eye 2-strokes and loved going out for a blast. But times change and I just said heck with it. All my riding buddies moved on to Suzuki TU250's and the Honda Grom. Not bad choices I might add! I do hope the Dragster ends up in loving hands and gets the respect it deserves.

My wife recently said she "Misses going on bike rides.", as in a large scooter or a motorcycle. I'm not interested in motorcycles anymore but the new Triumph 400 caught my eye. Lusted after the KTM Duke 390 until the words 'electrical gremlins' and 'head gasket leaks' constantly come up in conversations with Duke 390 owners. I have a tight parking spot but might be able to manhandle a Honda Silverwing scooter. Might also be tempted by a clean Yamaha Majesty but my friend had one and any service was overly complicated. Yamaha Xmax 300 is another possibility if I went new. But passing on a clean Italjet Dragster 50cc will give me nightmares for many nights!

So what dream toy did you pass on when the opportunity to "finally" own one has arrived, and why did you pass?
Click to expand...
I had a Suzuki 400 Burgman and a Yamaha Majesty 400, and really liked them both. Had motorcycles before that. Really liked the cvt (continuously variable transmission) which required no shifting or messing with a clutch. IOW, automatic. If I were to do it again, the Suzuki would be my choice--but I also like the Silverwing, and BMW has one with around 600 or 650 cc. But 400 cc was plenty of power for the freeway.
I agree about 2 strokes. That's why all my yard equipment now is either 40 volt or 18 volt. I see neighbors mowing while dragging a power cord behind them, and I wonder "why?" I mowed through a power cord once. That was enough.
 
I recently passed on a nice black moto guzzi griso, it'd been sorted out by the Australian guru ,and the price seemed fair, but there was another one for sale elsewhere . Both the guzzi guru AND his business partner told me to buy the other bike!!! This is what I ended up with.

20240611_081050.jpeg
 
Kayakguy said:
At one time I had a Honda 650 Silverwing with the same engine configuration. They also made it with a 500 cc, I believe.
Click to expand...

The cx motor was incredibly versatile - back in the 80's we rode a cx 650 two up in a blue light rally . It was a dirt bike ride that attracted about 1000 trail bikes. We'd come across greasy rutted out hills covered in stranded dirt bikes spinning wheels ....plod up next to them on the mighty cx, turn it off, offer help, then hit the starter and keep plodding away. With retrospect, that might have been a bit cruel......

The following year I rode my honda transalp 2 up and my mate Ian took his cx with another mate on the back. We did the first loop with pillions, then left the pillions behind for the second loop so we could play with kevin on his cb 900 " bush pig" . We had an absolute ball!

There was a presentation night afterwards - invitation via lucky dip +/- special award. At our table we had a mechanic who had carried his z50 up most of those hills, a couple who entered on vespas , trev with his bush pig, and an overly enthusiastic young thing with a lucky dip entry. He open with " Frk, wasn't that hard" ....then " did you see the crazy...."
 
Taylor57 said:
250 lbs?
Click to expand...

I wish!

She's heavy, and long, even a bit primitive, yet somehow threads through the hills in a way she doesn't deserve to. It probably helps that the previous owner sank the equivalent $ of a specialized ebike into her suspension / titanium headers etc.
 
PDoz said:
I wish!

She's heavy, and long, even a bit primitive, yet somehow threads through the hills in a way she doesn't deserve to. It probably helps that the previous owner sank the equivalent $ of a specialized ebike into her suspension / titanium headers etc.
Click to expand...
Any good crashes?
 
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