Whether it’s a question of price or simply of choice, if you’re looking to buy a used Segway PT, you need to know a few things in order to find a good deal. You might run into a scam, and there are a few traps you should avoid. Here are my tips for choosing your Segway, whether online or from a dealer.

1 │ Is the seller reliable?

First of all, ask for the person’s detailed contact information to find out whether they are a private seller or a professional with a listed company (check on www.infogreffe.fr). If the person does not clearly transmit this information, it’s not a good sign. Here a few questions you should ask:

  • The seller doesn’t seem to know the equipment well: How did they end up with a PT? Did they use it correctly?
  • The seller is a private seller or self-employed and is selling multiple PTs. You need to find out why they have so much equipment, which is possible but rare…
  • In the ad or on the phone, the seller is unclear as to the brand of the PT being sold. For example, you may see “Segway-type PT” or “non-Segway PT.” The seller should be clear as to the brand; if the duplicity starts with the title, you can imagine the rest…

2 │ Is the information on the Segway PT precise?

  • The model: Segway i170, Segway i180, Segway i2, Segway X2, Segway i2SE or Segway x2SE.
  • Its age: is it still under warranty?
  • The mileage: this has little impact on the price, but you should examine it even more carefully if it’s over 10,000 kilometers.
  • The type of use: security, rental, leisure, street marketing, commuting… Watch out for all-terrain use in extreme conditions.
  • Where it was parked: garage, apartment, place of business…
  • The charging of the batteries: was the PT regularly plugged in to charge? If not, this is a serious risk to the batteries.
  • The frequency of use: daily or occasional?
  • Its origin: original owner or not, bought in France or abroad?
  • Original paperwork: does the seller have the proof of purchase?
  • The PT’s serial number: a 12-digit number. The first two digits indicate the year it was made. The number is located under the right mat, on a sticker towards the rear of the platform.

All of this information should be coherent. You can run the serial number by the Segway distributor in the country in question in order find out the history of the PT.

3  │ Is it a Gen-1 model?

There are 2 major generations of Segway PTs. You can recognize the first generation by its rigid shaft and a handle resembling an accelerator that allows you to turn left and right. The second generation (i2 and x2 models, and more recently, the SE restyle) began production in 2007. It introduced intuitive control with a laterally flexible steering shaft for turning left and right.
Buying a Gen-1 Segway PT is a bit complicated in my opinion since spare parts are no longer manufactured. In case of a breakdown, you need to engineer a solution or you’re out of luck.

4  │ Is the deal too good to be true?

A Segway i2 or x2 selling for under €3500 should be approached with caution. Why is the price so low? Ask the seller to justify the price with concrete reasons. If anything is unclear, don’t go any further.
Of course, you should be wary of models labelled as new and in their original packaging but sold at a bargain price. Some scammers won’t hesitate to forge receipts, so this doesn’t necessarily mean a good deal.

5  │ Is it an online scam?

In general, all the scams that exist online are possible when buying a used Segway PT.

  • The seller lives abroad and asks you for payment up front before sending the equipment? It’s up to you, but the risk is huge.
  • The seller doesn’t give their phone number on the website, or worse, doesn’t give you their number once you’ve established contact by email.
  • The Segway PT is a parallel import or of questionable origin: you can have serious difficulties when trying to get your PT serviced in your country.

 

One last piece of advice

You should think about the pros and cons of buying used versus renting from a specialized agency. How often will you use your Segway PT? Are you ready to take care of maintenance? Will it go out of style or become out-of-date? Are you ready to take on the risk involved with batteries, and if necessary, replace them (about €3,000)?

Regardless of what you choose, you’re going to love riding a PT. Once you get on, you never want to get off! I hope I’ve given you some useful advice; feel free to add any comments or tips you want to share.

Finally, unless buying from a seller well known on the PT market (for example a dealership or rental agency), buying a PT without seeing it first is always a risk. You really should go see the vehicle and make sure it works properly.

See a checklist of 10 things you should verify before buying a used Segway PT.

Find a used PT

 

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Passionné par les nouvelles technologies et addict au gyropode, c’est en l'essayant il y a bientôt 10 ans que je suis tombé amoureux de ce moyen de transport. Un modèle ? Richard Branson et son état d’esprit : « People who think and say ‘we’ more often than ‘I’ are a lot more likely to succeed »

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