Thinking of buying a Piaggio Typhoon 125.

Greetings from New Zealand. I'm thinking of buying a used Typhoon 125 2T. How fast can they cruise without seizing? 60mph? 65mph? Are they generally reliable? Quick replies if you can, please, I'm going to look at one this Saturday. I just seized my 70cc kitted Libertyif I do buy this Typhoon I'm not going to modify it, no, no, no.

 

Yeah they are class i bought a typhoon 125 engine and i never looked back love it! :grin:

 

Thanks for your replies. I've had trouble over the years with seizing upsized 50cc scoots, that's why I'm cautious.

So provided that all is OK (no blocked cooling fan/fins, good oil, nice cool sparkplug etc) can they be ridden more or less full throttle for a couple of hours on end?

The nice thing about the old PX200 is that they could be, probably because they put out so little power for a 200cc two-stroke, but the Typhoon engine gives much more bang per cc.

65 is enough provided it can sustain it without grinding to an embarrassing halt.

I know I swore I wouldn't modify it, but are there upsize piston/barrel kits for the Typhoon engine? How do they go with them?

 

I wouldn't ride any single for a couple of hours at full throttle as they generally are not up to it. What I mean is I wouldn't use it for long motorway journeys(secondly because you would get blown around as there is little weight and a big gap where you step through) but ripping around town they are a hoot.
Check this the below link for tuning:
http://www.scootershack.co.uk/125tuningguide.html
It is very helpful and yes, there is a larger barrel kit which takes the scoot up to 172cc and it is explosive. There is more you can do and it is listed in the guide.

 

Getting blown around isn't a problem, I'm used to touring on a scooter.

You can ride a PX200 full throttle for hours on end, are the 125 Typhoons not up to this, then?

Anyone think they are?

Maybe I better get on with getting my 1984 Yamaha XC180 back on the road, it also is OK for hours flat out (60mph or so). But over-engineered and so a bit tricky to keep running.

cheers
rtch

 

Well, I bought it, had a great time for a couple of days then it bloody seized two-up on the motorway at about 60mph. Oh well, I was toying with upsizing the piston/cylinder, I guess, just wasn't planning on doing it quite so soon, this wasn't meant to be a project bike, but aren't they all........?

 

before you start the bike after reboring you want to check the oil pump is working correctly and the jetting is correct. Maybe there is a reason it seized and there would be nothing worse than buying a new cyl and piston and then it happen again over something silly. Cheapest place to get a 172 kit is scooter center germany. They sell 125cc kits too

 

Out of interest can I ask what level octane fuel you have in NZ? If it is low like america I'm not sure that a 172cc is a good idea. We run 95 as regular unleaded and anything from 97-99 as premium unleaded.

 

If you know a way of checking to see if a used 2T is likely to seize without stripping the motor I would love to hear it! Smooth idle, good throttle response, no undue rattles.

Our regular fuel here in NZ is 91, our premium is 95, and you can get 98 at a few places. I know our numbers are higher than US ones for the same fuel, because of different testing methods, but I don't know about comparability with UK.

 

Sometimes you get poor performance before seizing but I've had one seize with no warning at all, just "bbrrrrppp..."! If you do hear a rattle or grinding it may be a bearing. To try and prevent seizing you should check that the oil pump is working okay, the belt hasn't snapped and the pipe isn't kinked or has any blockages. I don't know how I would feel running that low a grade of fuel on a big bore kit. You should be fine if you use 95 but I'm in the habit of using 97/98 all the time. Maybe someone else will be able to give their opinion on using low octane fuel on a 172 kit.

 

New oil pump belt installed a month or so ago by bike mechanic, plus drive belt and weights. I use 95, and 98 when I can get it, in my Liberty 70cc (was 49)(also bloody seized, it's the fate of 2-strokes driven too enthusiastically). I hadn't even gotten around to refilling the tank, as it was full when I bought it.

 

How can you check that the oil pump is actually pumping oil in?

 

Hi mate don't suppose you have pictures of the pipes from petrol tank to carb by any chance
I've just bought manual and can not see what pipes go we're

 

There's only two pipes, petrol feed and vacuum pipe.

 

Never ridden a 125 2t. But many 50 cc Ive never har issues with seizing pistons, If they were stock. And ive ridden quite far in times, like 25 kilometers one way, with passenger

 

Next week 28th I will have owned my Typhoon 125 2t for 17 years ! (pictured left, Beryl ) Over 40,000 miles later I still love it, yes it's had 1 barrel change due to it worn through (not siezed) and as from last november running a second engine only due to orignal needing main bearings/ rebuild but was running fine, changed as I had a spare engine. Look after them and they will last !!

 

I can second that, had a 125 on a S plate for a few years with over 30,000 miles on it never did me wrong

loved it !

 

Testament to good regular maintenance