November 27, 2007
Welcome from Aaron Dowden
Hi, I’m Aaron Dowden, known around the office as “BeeWee Man” because of how much I love my BW50 scooter! I’ve worked in marketing at Yamaha Canada for about a year; I’ve decided to start blogging so I can interact directly with customers and interested folks (you!)
Scooters are my favourite type of bike, overall, but I have ridden other kinds of bikes. My first bike was a Yamaha YZF600R, and my favourite model remains the V-Star 1300. My fav trip on a bike? To Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia (near Halifax).
When I’m not riding, I enjoy playing hockey and learning all that I can about a cool Web practice known as Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
I love talking about Yamaha products – but just as much, I’d like to know what you want to talk about… especially all you fellow scooter commuters and lovers of scooters in general! Aaron
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Hi Aaron!
Nice to meet you! Glad to hear that your favorite bike is the V-Star 1300. I just ordered a 1300 Tourer here in Calgary and will get the bike in April 2008. I am spending my waiting time researching the pros and cons of the bike. What do you like about the bike? I haven’t driven a motorcycle in about 34 years but I am anxious to get back enjoying the ride. I’ve enrolled in a motorcycle driving school for the first week in April. Is the windshield height of 23 plus inches a problem on the highway? I am 5’6″ and I don’t think I need that tall of a windshield.
Looking forward to your comments and good luck in your job at Yamaha Canada.
Roger Pelletier
Calgary, Alberta
Hi Roger,
First of all, congratulations! You’re going to have so much fun on the V-Star 1300 Tourer. I think that I probably logged approximately 1000km on the tourer this summer and was never disappointed with its performance. The get up and go factor on the 1300 is one of its best assets. It surprisingly packs a lot of punch for a cruiser. If you haven’t ridden a fuel injected machine before you are definitely in for a real treat. The throttle response is excellent which allows you to get out of sticky situations in a flash.
Another one of my favorite features of this machine is the riding position. To date I have never been more comfortable on a bike. The floorboards allow you to relax your leg position so that you are able to sit back and enjoy the ride.
The windshield height did not pose any problems to me on the highway. In fact, it was one of the reasons that I enjoyed riding this bike so much for long distances. There was minimal wind pressure on my chest which allowed me to relax as apposed to hanging on for dear life. I have owned my fair share of motorcycles without windshields and now that I have felt the difference I don’t think that I could ever go back.
The last thing that is definitely worth noting is the handling on the 1300. Whether you’re taking tight turns or wide highway curves this bike will not disappoint.
I truly believe that the popularity of this fuel injected, liquid cooled powerhouse will be increasing rapidly over the next couple of years. You’re in for a real treat Roger and best of luck on your refresher coarse.
Aaron Dowden
Hi Guys,
Do not forget …. we do offer smaller sized windshields for the Tourer …. you should let Roger know this. The windshield deal is always an issue … it seems most riders want to look over the screen … not through it but we are not all the same height. With the various sized windshields available through P&A there is no reason not to consider the 1300 Tourer. Heck if you have a good jig saw, a template and a steady hand you can cut it down yourself … just ask Chris Anderson
cheers John Bayliss
December 5th, 2007 at 1:58 pmBonjour Aaron !
I have bought my son a used 2003 Yamaha BW50 scooter to use as a commuter to his summer job. Unfortunatly after using it for 3 days, we are experiencing problems with it. Without being a professional mechanic, I have a lot of experience rebuilding small motors (Snowmobiles, snowblowers, ATV, chain saws, lawn mowers, etc.) and cars and trucks motors. Before doing any mechanical work that involves more than a tune up, I always get a service manual and read it before doing any interventions. For all my other vehicules and power (Motor) tools, I have acquired all the manuals (repair, service, owner, mechanics) on internet without any problems. But for this Yamaha Scooter, I can’t find anything else than the owner’s manual. Do you have a suggestion where I can find on internet a detailed service manual of a Yamaha BW50 scooter ? Thank you. Alain.
Hi Alain,
Always glad to hear that we have another Yamaha BW rider on the road! Regarding the detailed service manual, you can go to any Yamaha dealer and have them order you one for a fee. I believe that the service manual is approximately $80 – $99 but its well worth it especially if you enjoy working on bikes yourself. Hopefully this helps. Take care and enjoy your BW50!
Aaron
Your Yamaha dealer can place the order on-line for you for a paper copy of the service manual for your 2003 BW50 (correctly known as a YW50R). It will arrive at the dealer in about 4 days and has a suggested retail price of $82.95. Please specify if you want English language or French.
June 1st, 2009 at 2:36 pmThere is no “on-line” manual available for Yamaha motorcycles from Yamaha to the general public as the manuals are written for the experienced mechanic and make many assumptions that the user has the necessary experience, but the dealer can print an individual page and may be persuaded to do so if you are his regular customer.
We hope your son gets many good experiences from his BW.
Cheers
DS
We all live in a practical society, nowadays electric or gas-powered scooters are all starting to rule the streets as people are starting to realize several advantages that scooter has to offer in terms of efficiency ,convenience and practicability. However, with its great demand to people manufacturers are challenged to come up with state of the art and affordable spare parts that would make up a well performing scooter.
August 18th, 2010 at 3:57 am