Scooter Review  ADVERTISEMENT Manhattan 150 Partner Manhattan’s bargain basement 150 ticks some boxes, but not all. $2870+orc
Words by JERMY BOWDLER, photography by LOU MARTIN What are we to make of a 150 that comes in more than $500 cheaper than the scooter on the previous page that shares almost everything with Manhattan’s Partner, but for a 125cc motor in place of the Partner’s 150?
That’s right, it’s not an optical illusion. Manhattan’s Partner and the Zoot Sport 125 share pretty much everything, bar small details.
So how does it work? Same designs, different companies, different importers, different dealers. Different scooters, yet eerily the same.
The Partner easily out-performs the Zoot, as you’d expect from the larger engine, and the Xingyue engine is a beaut. It’s a bit rough around the edges, more raw than the silky refinement we’ve come to expect from the Italians and Japanese, but plenty powerful, sending the Partner away from the lights ahead of anything else commuting can throw up.
And, in any case, a little less refinement in the engine makes for a more entertaining ride. And it can get a lot more entertaining if the brakes aren’t up to the job of
retarding your progress. I’m happy to say that the Partner’s brakes hauled my not inconsiderable bulk up straight and true, even if the rear brake lever was coming back to the ’bar. Drum brakes can fade a bit when they’re hot and cables can stretch, but I’d prefer a bit more margin for error. I have to add, in the scooter’s defence, that I had adjusted the rear brake out a bit when I picked it up, since it was binding on. I figured a bit more slack in the system was better than wearing
out the brake linings just riding around.
An interesting side effect of easing off the brake adjuster nut raised its head when the engine got fully warm. The idle was high enough for the centrifugal clutch not to disengage at a standstill, with the result that I actually had to hold the brakes on to prevent forward motion while waiting at the lights. Not a bad idea really, since most rider trainers would recommend keeping the rear brake on whenever you’re stopped (just in case an idiot behind you doesn’t see you).
I thought at first it was a simple idle adjustment, but every now and then a blip of the throttle would send the revs back to a more suitable level, which leads me to suspect a throttle cable that hasn’t been lubricated during assembly, or a bit of road grime causing a slightly sticking throttle.
Neither the brake cable nor the throttle cable adjustment is anything a decent service or thorough going over wouldn’t fix – and it’s the sort of thing the dealer should attend to before you ride away.
As far as the rest of the scooter is concerned, the riding position is generous, the footwell flat and roomy, the pillion accommodation good, with a handy rack cum grabrail as standard. The instrumentation is basic, but sufficient (as always a clock would be a useful addition). The bag hook is good, though positioned lower than ideal (at least it has a closing latch to prevent bag handles slipping off), while the lockable glovebox is of a useful size, though with flimsy hinges. Exercise due care.
Any scooter costing less than three grand will have had shortcuts taken – details that could have been done better. As long as the basics are right, though, a little care and a little more money can go a long way to ironing out the ownership experience. With the Partner, you know you’re not getting anything you haven’t paid for. ✽
As published in TW SCOOTER MAGAZINE - 5/06/2008
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