Journey Girls Scooter: Take Two

A "New" Scooter

When the Australian line released in 2017 a new and improved "Adventure Scooter" was also released.  This is the second scooter released by Journey Girls, the first being released in 2014 with the London line.  There are some improvements with the new Adventure Scooter, but there are also some new set backs.  At $40 on Amazon, the scooter is $10 more than Our Generation brand.  Let's take a look at the new scooter.

One of the first things I noticed was the colors.  Although both are blue and pink, the new scooter's blue is more vibrant, closer to aqua blue, while the old scooter's blue was more baby blue.  Besides the pink, which is close to the same on both, there is also purple on the new scooter.   For an added splash of color a pet basket on the back of the scooter is a nice yellow.

This new scooter is a completely different design.  The 2014 scooter is more of a vintage design, compared to the 2017 scooter that has a new Vespa feel.  The body of the scooter is aqua blue, with a pink accent along the edges.

One large working headlight sits atop the beautifully curved front of the scooter; the Journey Girls logo ("JG" in a circle) plastered in the middle of it.

Attached to the headlight's post are the purple handlebars and side view mirrors.

Reflective silver stickers mimic mirrors on the bright pink mirrors.

Another neat little new feature is a pocket.   It's not a huge pocket, but it can hold sunglasses and a small hand purse.  With this little pocket and the pet basket in the back, there is good storage, especially compared to the 2014 scooter.  When the handle bars are turned, the small front wheel turns with with it, but no blinkers.

Both the small front wheel and the larger, wider back wheel have a plastic gray rim and black rubber tires.

Giving the wheel weight, the rubber not only looks cool, but helps with stability of the scooter.  Which can be a challenge.  The 2014 scooter had tiny "training wheels" on the underside to help stabilize it, partly because both wheels were thin like the front wheel on this scooter.  In this iteration, Journey Girls has taken a cue from Our Generation and made the rear wheel much wider.  It is not as wide (and weird looking) as the Our Generation scooters, and it is rounded on the edges, making it less stable.

I found it a challenge to balance the scooter, not impossible, but definitely difficult, especially if the doll moves at all.  It would be wonderful to have a kick stand to prop the scooter up on when not driving it.

Covering 3/4 of the back wheel, the purple fender matches the handle bars.  "JG" is embossed in the fender along with a checkered line.

On top of the fender are gray "metal" tubes holding up the pet basket.  There is a stamped woven pattern similar to a picnic basket.

If you open the basket, which can be done by pushing in the latch on the front of the basket (made difficult by the seat of the scooter), there is a black cloth seat belt for your pet.

The seat belt is long enough to fit around most pets, but not all.

Of course, most of the pets that are too big for the seat belt are also too big for the basket.

A pink seat, similar to the one on the 2014 scooter, fits the Journey Girls well, as it is skinny.  The seat position as well as the larger flair of the front and foot rails makes it easier for most of the Journey Girls dolls to stay sitting.

Two issues with staying seated: one there is nothing that helps the doll stay on the seat besides the pressure of her feet on the foot rail.  The old scooter had a clear attachment that helped the doll stay in place.   I didn't love this piece, but would like to see a seat belt maybe.  Two: Some of the Journey Girls, especially the ones released from New York on, have had horrible leg spread, making it near impossible to get them to sit on the scooter.

Bianca's feet do not touch the scooter or barely touch the scooter when she sits correctly. Add that to the fact that the handlebars are positioned in a way that the doll has to lean forward a little to touch them.

This puts the doll in a constant state of stress, making sitting difficult (again for some of the dolls more than others).

While I am on the topic of the handle bars...it is a challenge to get the doll to hold on to the handle bar.  Both hands are more vertical, making it impossible to hold the handlebar.

The best that I could do was have the hand on the end of the handlebar.  I noticed in the official photos of  scooter Kelsey only has one hand on the handle bars and they are turned a little to make it easier for her to grab.  Not the end of the world, but it is a little frustrating.

Unlike the 2014 scooter, this scooter's gauges have a raised outside and then a sticker in the middle.

Push the gauge cluster and the lights turn on as well as the sound of a revving engine.

Unfortunately the new scooter does not have turn signals, but the "Journey Girls" on the foot sill lights up...which is pretty cool.

If you want to personalize your scooter, put the included stickers on in any fashion you would like.  They do not stay on forever, but in some ways that is okay. 

It means that you can redesign your scooter a different way.

Every scooter rider needs to stay safe, so a helmet is included with the scooter.  The pink, sparkly, helmet has a blue visor that matches the scooter.

A purple strap with velcro on it holds the helmet in place.  The helmet fits well with the dolls hair straight down...no ponytails, buns, or up do's.

Rating

All ratings are out of 10

Playability 8 - As with the 2014 scooter, this scooter has an issue with stability.  Most of the time that is not going to matter, but with no way to attache the doll to the scooter and a scooter that isn't steady on it's own, fall are going to happen.  At least there is a helmet.  I really like the design of this scooter over the older one.  However, the dolls legs still aren't held on the scooter and she really can't hold the handlebars with both hands.   The lights are really neat.   And the sounds are fun.  It's an upgrade from the last one, but it's not perfect.

Value 8 - The scooter is better made than the Our Generation scooters and has some great features.   It is a little more expensive, but not by much.  Good value for a fun vehicle.

Quality 9 - Made with a thicker plastic than the Our Generation scooter, the Journey Girl scooter feels really well made.  The details on the scooter like the pink edges and the "Journey Girls" etched into the foot rails are great touches.  I'm not sure that the scooter will stand up to rough play.  It feels like it should, but the mirrors and the pet basket may be susceptible to breaking.

Overall 8 - Even though this scooter has a few issues (mostly with fitting the doll on it, which is partly an issue with the Journey Girl dolls) overall it is really nice.   The colors are fun.  The design is much better than the older version.  The addition of the pet basket is really nice. Although they got rid of the working turn signals, the large headlight looks great and the sill lights are downright awesome.  Amazon has "Adventure Scooter" for $39.99 which qualifies for free shipping.  A good deal for a great scooter.