Any scooter enthusiasts here?

[sbebenelli]

Any scooter enthusiasts here?

In June I bought a Genuine Scooter Company, Buddy Italia 150. It gets 90-95 mpg. I love it.

 

[adimag]

With gas prices te way they are and the short commute I have to get to work, I am seriously thinking about getting one. However, I have been looking at the larger Hondas that are rated for the highways.

The Buddy is a great looking scooter!

 

[mchlwise]

Great scooter!

I have been scooting for about 4 years now. I just upgraded from a 50 to a new Roketa 150. Not near the quality of the Buddy, but so far I haven't had any real complaints. Since shadetree mechanic-ing is a bit of a hobby of mine, I've actually enjoyed dealing with the minor issues I've had.

Scoot on! :rock:

 

[Greta]

89 mpg? You betcha! $20/week for gas for 3 scooters. The car gets started up maybe once a week just for good measure.

 

[sbebenelli]

89 mpg? You betcha! $20/week for gas for 3 scooters. The car gets started up maybe once a week just for good measure.

Are those Veno 125's?

 

[Greta]

Yes, they are... Our son has a Zuma 50.

 

[sbebenelli]

Yes, they are... Our son has a Zuma 50.

When I bought mine it was a hard decision between the Veno or the Buddy.

 

[Greta]

The Vino is sweet... and low-riding enough so I can at least get my toes on the ground.... I'm seriously challenged on the Zuma. I don't take it out on the highway but if I had to, I can keep up with traffic at 50 mph (speed limit is 45 on highway in town). And I've gotten it up to 55 going uphill (in a 35 mph zone... good thing I had a cop riding behind me trying to keep up! oo: )

 

[Chuck289]

My friend has a Vespa GTS 250. Its a fast scooter and fun to ride. I thought about getting a little 150cc or less scooter for around town. I ended buying a motorcycle. Might still get a small scooter sometime. 90+mpg sounds nice

 

[orbital]

+

We have a couple of Honda Metropolitans with a total of about 15,000 mi. between the two,...they're driven alot!

They top out at almost 40 down hills,
I change the oil about every 800 mi., use Castrol Syntec Blend 10/30

They are absolutely a blast!!..

 

[geepondy]

Do you need a motorcycle license to drive them?

 

[sbebenelli]

Do you need a motorcycle license to drive them?

In Iowa if it's over 50cc you have to have a motorcycle license.

 

[sbebenelli]

The Vino is sweet... and low-riding enough so I can at least get my toes on the ground.... I'm seriously challenged on the Zuma. I don't take it out on the highway but if I had to, I can keep up with traffic at 50 mph (speed limit is 45 on highway in town). And I've gotten it up to 55 going uphill (in a 35 mph zone... good thing I had a cop riding behind me trying to keep up! oo: )

Mine will go 60 without problem.

Yamaha just introduced a 125 Zuma for 2009. Our local dealer just got one in. More of a off road looking style.

 

[McGizmo]

Vespa LX 150 here.

I purchased this last year after I decided that my electric scooter just didn't have enough top end to be safe on the roads I travel. There are a lot of the 50cc models over here due to the no license requirement.

My brother and I opened a Vespa and moped dealership in the mid 70's primarily because of the new mopeds that were coming out and their exclusion from class 3 license requirements in Ca. One thing that bugs me these days is that over here, the 50 cc scooters are referred to as mopeds. Where's the peddles? These things are scooters, not mopeds!

I really enjoy using the Vespa for transportation. I have my own pizza pie warming bag and when I go to pick up a pizza, people see me loading up and ask what the delivery range of the restaurant is. I laugh and tell them I am not a delivery boy employed by the resaurant.

When we had our Vespa Shop, I got a hold of an old but cherry 150 that had been owned by an Arbian prince. It was over 10 years old and only had a couple hundred miles on it. It had a bunch of country badges on the skirt. I welded up a tall "T" bar for the front and rear racks and this served for a surfboard rack with the board just above my head and longer than the scooter. The board acted like a spoiler and the scooter actually had improved stability with the board overhead. If I ever run across a sturdy front rack for this 150, I think I will do the same thing again but then with strong trade winds as cross winds, if I were to get it wrong......

 

[sbebenelli]

One thing that bugs me these days is that over here, the 50 cc scooters are referred to as mopeds. Where's the peddles? These things are scooters, not mopeds!

Where I live scooters don't seem to be very popular. Most people call them mopeds. I also have found great interest in mine from people while I'm getting gas. When it costs me $4.00 to fill up and I can drive just as far as them after they put $80.00 in their SUV. When I mention 90+ mpg that seems to change most peoples views about scooters. On the other hand I've experienced hatred toward me while I'm driving. I've had comments yelled at me and I've noticed people have a tendency to pull out in front of me or not wait their turn while at a stop sign. I assume they associate my scooter as being a moped and assume it's going to be slow and they want to get in front of me.

I've read where scooter sales are up all over the US this year because of the gas prices. Seems like the figure was 125%.

 

[McGizmo]

I believe the license exempt 50cc units are supposed to have a max speed of around 28 mph. I see many which obviously go much faster and yet not fast enough for the highway. The result is folks flying through the bike lanes at speeds unsafe, IMHO. When I was on the electric scooter, I was restricted to the bike lane because of my speed and yet I would have these scooters fly by me in times when passing was not a bright thing to do. I too have had people deal with me, I am certain, under the assumption that I could not keep up with them. I myself have learned to look for a license plate. If I see a plate, I know the scooter can keep with the flow of traffic and I don't identify them as a vehicle that I will want to get around. The main hwy I need to drive on has a max speed of 45mph and I have no problem going with the flow and I believe the others on the road recognize this quickly as I match or even exceed their speed. I can be quicker off the line than most and this in itself helps establish my credentials to be among them and not as some jerk who should be over in the bike lane.

 

[raggie33]

i still walk every where but im going to get a scooter some day .thought about electric ones at wally world.i figure it will beat walking .but then again i get great mpg walking lol.just wish they would install sidewalks

 

[griff]

Quote from McGizmo:

"I can be quicker off the line than most and this in itself helps establish my credentials to be among them and not as some jerk who should be over in the bike lane."


JERK....not you Don.
I also started with a 1974 Auranthentic Charger

this mini-bike is 24v 300 pound behemoth with a top speed of 32-mph and a range of 20 miles on flat ground
from a charge. This left me stranded more than once. It was made during the oil embargo of the 70's. It's kind of a unique machine and get alot of looks as I whiz by people quietly .
Now I ride a 2004 Vespa ET4 150 CC with a malossi performance piston and cylinder head and a
kevlar belt.

This setup has increased top speed to 71 mph and alot more torque for rapid take offs. Now If Don would build me a McGizmo LED Headlight upgrade I wouldn't worry about overdriving my current 50 Watt headlight
endangering life and limb.
I think america could make the shift to two wheel
transportation and save a hell of lot of fuel and have FUN at the same time!
Here in Kansas there's no helmet law and some of you might gasp at the thought of going 70 mph down a gravel road without a helmet but what good will it do when a cow wanders out it front me
when Im a top speed. It's bad enough having to ride a seafoam green vespa let alone looking like the "Great Gazoo" from the Flintstone'shttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoSiKpqvD9Q

 

[raggie33]

Quote from McGizmo:

"I can be quicker off the line than most and this in itself helps establish my credentials to be among them and not as some jerk who should be over in the bike lane."


JERK....not you Don.
I also started with a 1974 Auranthentic Charger

this mini-bike is 24v 300 pound behemoth with a top speed of 32-mph and a range of 20 miles on flat ground
from a charge. This left me stranded more than once. It was made during the oil embargo of the 70's. It's kind of a unique machine and get alot of looks as I whiz by people quietly .
Now I ride a 2004 Vespa ET4 150 CC with a malossi performance piston and cylinder head and a
kevlar belt.

This setup has increased top speed to 71 mph and alot more torque for rapid take offs. Now If Don would build me a McGizmo LED Headlight upgrade I wouldn't worry about overdriving my current 50 Watt headlight
endangering life and limb.
I think america could make the shift to two wheel
transportation and save a hell of lot of fuel and have FUN at the same time!
Here in Kansas there's no helmet law and some of you might gasp at the thought of going 70 mph down a gravel road without a helmet but what good will it do when a cow wanders out it front me
when Im a top speed. It's bad enough having to ride a seafoam green vespa let alone looking like the "Great Gazoo" from the Flintstone'shttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoSiKpqvD9Q

thats very cool i had no idea they made electric one back then.i d love a lithium powered one with a batt pack that big

 

[jtr1962]

Here in Kansas there's no helmet law and some of you might gasp at the thought of going 70 mph down a gravel road without a helmet but what good will it do when a cow wanders out it front me
when Im a top speed. It's bad enough having to ride a seafoam green vespa let alone looking like the "Great Gazoo" from the Flintstone's

That thing's stable at 70 mph? Just wondering because it seems like with the small wheels it might not be. I had my Raleigh up to 65 mph once and it was a white knuckle ride. I actually could have gone even faster that day, probably over 70, if I had an 11-tooth rear cog. Strong tailwind plus a hill is how I ended up spinning out in top gear on a bicycle.

Regarding the lack of helmet, I don't wear one when I cycle for similar reasons. 99% of cyclists who die are done in by cars. A helmet won't do me a whole lot of good if an SUV rearends me at 50 mph. Never had an endover in my life which is the type of cycling accident most likely to lead to head injuries. Thanks to all the dirt the wheel picks up most of the time the front brake isn't strong enough to flip the bike even if I wanted to. No falls at all for me in about the last 8 years BTW.