Crash damage, and how to remove body panels.

[wildun]

Hi all. I have managed to do quite a bit of cosmetic damage just by sliding off my X10 at 25mph ! I may well be asking for advice on how much , and in what order, I need to remove body panels for replacement.

I need to get down to access the foot board and also to replace the front indicator lamp. It looks like a lot of work which is most likely the highest cost if my insurance were to make repairs and why they have classed it a write off.

I have owned my X10 from new in 2012 but due to having too many other bikes, it has not been ridden as much as it deserves. Although I still have my classic bikes I have finally sold my Kawasaki ER6f and now the X10 is my modern bike for more convenient travel. I rode to the Flanders Scootertreffen in Belgium, the main event being a 80 mile guided tour around the smaller roads with two coffee stop, very pleasant, friendly people over there. But on the way home in fairly heavy rain I slid off the X10 at Maidstone Services roundabout. Every panel on the left side was scratched or broken, luckily the main stand protects the oil filter, if that had been damaged then I wouldn't have been able to ride it home. I had to claim on my insurance, the first time since 1971 ! It was declared a write off, Cat D, but repairable so I accepted a lower payout and kept the bike. I have bought the minimum amount of parts needed to get it back on the road. This is my first experience of the puzzling amount of dismantling necessary, it appears that the whole of the bodywork has to be removed starting below the seat just in order to remove the footboard, is that correct? Also a fair amount of similar dismantling appears necessary just to replace the front indicator lamp?
I have seen the various helpful photos on this forum offering welcome advice on some of the panel removal, my lack of experience with scooters doesn't help with knowing which panels can be just prised off and which have hidden screws. I may have to have to ask on here for advice. I do not need to rush to get my scooter back on the road, which maybe just as well ! I will have to ask you more experienced owners for specific advice as I get further into the strip down, so thanks in advance.

[Mike H]

Very sorry about that, don't take much do it? I crashed my blue X10 end of March last year in very similar circumstances, rain on top of spilt diesel on a flyover, but because it had been loaded with luggage and camping gear AND it went up a high kerb while sliding on its side, the frame was badly bent about and so the crash assessor deemed it too expensive to repair.

I've got a web page with photos here, mostly about removing the sides and back end though. However the way the front end fasteners work is not disimilar in principle.

http://livinginthepast-audioweb.co.uk/index.php?p=x10striptease

If your footboard is bent up it could mean the welded frame brackets (2 off) that support it may also be bent up, if so and if you're lucky a club hammer should sort it. Started by doing that to mine but unfortunately further investigations revealed there was much more wrong with it than that.

Best of luck!

[Expat47]

Could I entice you to take some photos and, maybe, make some notes on your process? They may come in handy for others in the future.

[wildun]

Ok, Mike H and Expat47, thanks for that.

I will be taking photos as I remove the bodywork for my own benefit so if any look like being useful to other riders them I will put them on here, if I can figure out how too, I am not too computer literate. The repairs will also be a slow process so don't rush me !

Mike H, I have seen your useful photos and am pleased to hear your encouragement where to start with the chrome strip and hopefully it will become clear as I go along. The damage in the footboard area I am hoping is only to the plastics which are well scuffed, hopefully removing them will not show any serious metalwork damage.

Thanks again, onwards and upwards.

[wildun]

No, Haven't got the hang of posting photos, yet, sorry. !!!!!!!!!

[Mike H]

Testing testing...

.

[Mike H]

Oh yeah! That was an attachment.

Click 'Reply' then 'Additional Options...'

'Browse' to locate photo on computer. Beware of too large file sizes though, it says 128 kB maximum, so if from off a camera or phone resizing smaller will be required. .jpg is best for minimum filesize.

Other way of doing it is to host the photos on another site e.g. photobucket then make links to them on here.

HTH

[Expat47]

Mike,
Just to make sure I don't know what I'm doing.... There is nothing under "Additional Options" that deals with images. It looks like the only way to get images onto the forum is to first get them onto the web so they have a 'link' that can be inserted between the {IMG} tags.

Or.. am I missing something?

[Mr.Chips]

This thread has the answers:

http://www.x9ownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=15847.0

 

[Mike H]

That's OK if they are hosted on another site, for attachments...

Mike,
Just to make sure I don't know what I'm doing.... There is nothing under "Additional Options" that deals with images.

Sorry difficult to know how savvy peeps are! I'm already used to 'attachments' means picture files, or includes picture file types. 

It's 'Attach:', '[Browse]' button. Opens standard file-open dailog, find and select the picture file on your computer, '[Open]' to upload. Pic will appear below your text when it's posted.

HTH

[Mr.Chips]

This thread has the answers:

http://www.x9ownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=15847.0

In case you didn't see it.

 

[Expat47]

@Mr. Chips: Yup, that's the only way I've found, on this forum, to add a photo.

@Mike H: If you're NOT talking about the same thing as the other Mike is then I still don't see any "attach" button on this forum.

[Mike H]

Yep this forum. Either click the 'Reply' tab at bottom right, or type in the quick reply box at bottom of page, then 'Preview', then at bottom left, '+ Additional Options'.

[Mike H]

In case you didn't see it.

 

I saw that. I'm talking about attachments. Which can be used to show images.

[Mr.Chips]

It wasn't you, Mike.
Anyway, I thought the thread addressed that, too.

 

[Dave Milnes]

If you want to add any sort of 'extra' to your posting you need to use the full reply option rather than the quick reply unless you know the BBcode for what you want. All options have an icon to select and it will drop into your post at cursor position.
The full reply button is on the RH end of the toolbar on the bottom LH of the last post.
Images have to be already stored in some form of online gallery, either our own or Flikr or something like that and the address for the image itself is what is inserted into the post between the tags so it shows. You cannot link to images on protected sites, your own PC or other non-public access web based host.
Hyperlinks are automatically dealt with as the system recognises them but if you want the link to be embedded rather than displayed as a 'click me' you need to use the BBcode tag again.

[Expat47]

That's what I thought. Maggie over at www.maxi-scoots.com has added an "add image to post" link that will help upload photos to the web and drop the link into the post.

[Mike H]

I keep forgetting there's a gallery here! 

BTW, to goto the full editor from quick reply box, click 'Preview'.

[wildun]

Still not sure about posting photos, I will try once more!

But anyway, thanks to Mike H, I have finally after a weeks work, got all my damaged parts removed, phew! As Mike says, the starting point is the chrome strip below the petrol filler flap then with a bit of gentle prizing whilst carefully looking for hidden screws I worked my way down to reach the footboard and around the front fairing to access the front indicator lamp.

So progress at last, I will not be rushing this job, I just hope that I can remember what goes where.

Thanks for the encouragement.

[Dave Milnes]

Posting images is simple and exactly the same as any other forum. Click the image button at the top of the reply window then paste in the address of the image. It starts with http: or shttp: and ends with .jpg or whatever file type it is. Getting the correct address for the image is the hard part as some on-line galleries add so much rubbish into the address so you can tell where it is stored (self promotion) that the code no longer works and needs pruning down.

[Noggin the Nog]

Fwiw. Yesterday I went on to Fowlers website and the "gallery" view of the parts for the x10. I downloaded a theimages with bodywork on and printed them A4 size. They really help in figuring out how to get the bits off.