Hello Everyone,
My name is Mike and I'm from Omaha, NE. First off, what a great forum you have here, there are some talented folks here for sure. I purchased a 2008 Whizzer Ambassador off Craigslist last weekend for $350. Before anyone gets too jealous, let's just say the thing was pretty much a basket case. The bike seems to have been left in the rain/sun, so lots of surface rust starting everywhere. No battery, missing minor parts, broken brake lever, etc... The tires are junk, the forks and brakes are flimsy, bottom motor mount bolt fallen out, front motor mount tab has disintegrated, back mount bolt is loose. Sheesh- why did I buy this thing??? Oh yeah, it just looked so cool, had 250 miles on the odo, and I've always wanted one!
I did cobble together a modern Stingray and Chinese $200 ebay special motor a few years ago, but after one trip around the block I could tell that the bike and engine were all show and no go. It was a horrible rattle trap, and very uncomfortable to ride. I thought that buying one that was "born" to be a whizzer would make things easy- ha! I also like the fact that Whizzer engines are 4 strokes, it just make them seem more mellow with a nicer power band.
The saving grace of this bike was that I was able to get it running with very minimal effort. I bought a new battery, cleaned out the carb, changed the oil, and jimmied the ignition switch (removed one tumbler to get one of my spare keys to work). To my surprise it sprang to life without much of a fight. I can tell that I need to soak the carb again, and that the pressure relief valve is junk, but other than that it seems to be a viable motor. Just to have a running Whizzer motor makes me happy. I have read that this motor has some head/cylinder related design flaws, but I think it has potential for a neighborhood cruiser.
I'm going to scrap the bike itself and transplant the engine into a traditional bike frame. Hopefully I can pull it off without getting myself into a money pit of epic proportion
Thanks, Mike
My name is Mike and I'm from Omaha, NE. First off, what a great forum you have here, there are some talented folks here for sure. I purchased a 2008 Whizzer Ambassador off Craigslist last weekend for $350. Before anyone gets too jealous, let's just say the thing was pretty much a basket case. The bike seems to have been left in the rain/sun, so lots of surface rust starting everywhere. No battery, missing minor parts, broken brake lever, etc... The tires are junk, the forks and brakes are flimsy, bottom motor mount bolt fallen out, front motor mount tab has disintegrated, back mount bolt is loose. Sheesh- why did I buy this thing??? Oh yeah, it just looked so cool, had 250 miles on the odo, and I've always wanted one!
I did cobble together a modern Stingray and Chinese $200 ebay special motor a few years ago, but after one trip around the block I could tell that the bike and engine were all show and no go. It was a horrible rattle trap, and very uncomfortable to ride. I thought that buying one that was "born" to be a whizzer would make things easy- ha! I also like the fact that Whizzer engines are 4 strokes, it just make them seem more mellow with a nicer power band.
The saving grace of this bike was that I was able to get it running with very minimal effort. I bought a new battery, cleaned out the carb, changed the oil, and jimmied the ignition switch (removed one tumbler to get one of my spare keys to work). To my surprise it sprang to life without much of a fight. I can tell that I need to soak the carb again, and that the pressure relief valve is junk, but other than that it seems to be a viable motor. Just to have a running Whizzer motor makes me happy. I have read that this motor has some head/cylinder related design flaws, but I think it has potential for a neighborhood cruiser.
I'm going to scrap the bike itself and transplant the engine into a traditional bike frame. Hopefully I can pull it off without getting myself into a money pit of epic proportion
Thanks, Mike