50cc gas moped

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1. The 50cc gas scooter is a stylish product well worth the inexpensive price tag. Not only will you be riding this comfortable moped at your leisure. but you ll be saving money and causing jealousy in your neighborhood. The look and feel of this compact two wheeler will bring you back to the days when Vespa seemed like an inexpensive alternative to the megalomaniacal practices of corporate car manufacturers. Now that time has passed and we need a new scooter with the classic feel of those revolutionary days. Well here it is.

   Comment by Brooke — 05/12/2010 @ 3:15 pm

2. The United Kingdom has several organisations which are dedicated to improving motorcycle safety by providing advanced rider training over and above what is necessary to pass the basic motorcycle test. These include the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA). Along with increased personal safety. riders with these advanced qualifications often benefit from reduced insurance costs.

   Comment by Egerton — 05/12/2010 @ 3:15 pm

3. How Much does a Scooter Cost?

   Japanese and Italian scooters which are sold through authorized dealers, the price goes up significantly. For a 50cc scooter expect to pay around $3300 for something like a Vespa LX 50, which is a “classic” small scooter or something like $3000 for an Aprilia SR50 (fuel injected two-stroke) which is a little more sleek and modern looking. The classic Honda Metropolitan 50cc sells for around $2000.

   Going up to a 250cc, for something like an Aprilia SportCity 250 expect to pay around $4600, or $5400 for a Honda Helix. If you go to larger scooters like the Honda Siver Wing (580cc) you’ll pay $8100 ($8600 with true APS braking). The 400cc Yamaha Majesty sells for around $6100 and the Suzuki Bergman 650 will cost you $9000.
   How fast do Scooters go?

   Small 50cc scooters (“Mopeds”) are good for about 30 mph, maybe 35 mph in some states without speed restrictions. They will just about keep up with urban traffic, but you have to ride them WOT (Wide Open Throttle) do to that. This can be good for novices and young riders because in most of states the rider does not need a motorcycle license to operate a 50cc less scooter, but the inability to keep up with faster traffic can sometimes be a hazard as cars try to “squeeze” past you when there really isn’t room.

   150cc Chinese scooter. It might look fast, but it’s not really very happy above 60 mph. Mid sized 150cc scooters are good for 55-65 mph, though with a long enough run at it they may get up to 65+mph, especially if there’s a tail wind or slight downhill grade. 45-50mph is enough to keep up with most urban and suburban traffic, though it’s really not enough to flow with the traffic on a freeway, where speeds of 65-75mph are more normal. We?ˉd certainly recommend a 150cc scooter over a 50cc scooter for commuting unless you live in Manhattan. Most of the 150cc scooters cruise quite comfortably at 45-50mph.

   If you want a high speed machine, you would probably be better off with a motorcycle.? 250cc scooters are just about OK for freeway use and should be able to cruise at 60mph and get up to speeds of 70mph or more if pushed. We wouldn’t recommend riding anything less than a 250cc scooter on the freeway, you might want to check on our 300cc motorcycle that is listed on our website.

   What MPG Does a Scooter Get?

   This depends mostly on the engine size. The smallest engines are typically 49cc and they can give up to 90 mpg, depending on what type of riding you do and how much you weigh. Obviously if you weight 300lbs and do mostly short “stop and go” trips you’ll get a lower mileage than if you weight 100lbs and travel mostly on long trips at modest speeds. At the extreme, we’ve seen figures of 110-120 mpg for 50c scooters when the rider was trying their best to drive as economically as possible.

   150cc scooters aren’t quite as frugal, but we’ve seen reports of up to 85mpg. With the larger engine sizes (300cc) you should still get around 70 mpg from a scooter traveling at legal highway speeds. That’s about the same as a Toyota Prius Hybrid, but the scooter will be a lot more fun!

   Scooter Wheel & Tire Size

   Motor Scooter wheel size varies from a minimum of about 10″ to a maximum of around 16″. Most are either 12″ or 13″. This is the size of the metal wheel itself and doesn’t include the tire. The measurements is the diameter of the wheel rims The tire may add 5″ or 6″ to the diameter. My scooter has 13″ wheels (rims), but the tire measures about 19″ across in total.

   So what are the advantages and disadvantages of different sized wheels?

   Well, the smaller the wheel the more maneuverable the scooter can be. The smaller wheel has less of a gyroscopic effect making it somewhat easier to turn (though this also depends a lot on steering geometry). So in general, scooters are more maneuverable than motorcycles (which have larger wheels). The converse of this is that larger wheels may give better stability at speed.

   The downside of smaller wheels is that they don’t roll over obstructions in the road as well. Just think of a pothole in the road. If it’s a large hole and a small wheel, the wheel could fall into it! Even if it’s a raised obstruction like a tree branch or a curb, a larger wheel will roll over it with less effort than a small wheel. That’s one reason why off-road trucks often have monster wheels. When you’re driving over rocks a big wheel makes life easier. Similarly, if you’re riding over roads filled with potholes (for example New York City!), you’ll value larger wheels.

   While a few scooters have 16″ wheels (e.g. MC_X1507) and a few have 10″ wheels (e.g. MC-U1504), most scooters have a 12″ or 13″ wheel which is a reasonable compromise between maneuverability and stability.

   Scooter tires come in all sizes of course, with a typical 13″ wheel scooter tire having a designation something like “130/60-13″. The “13″ refers to the wheel rim diameter. The “130/60″ part indicates that the width of the tread is 130mm (5.1″) and that the tire has an aspect ratio of 0.60 (or 60%), which means that the sidewall height is 60% of the width of the tire. Some tires are designed for front wheel use, some for rear wheel use and some can be used on either wheel. Though most tires today are tubeless, there may still be a few tires which require an inner tube, especially on older scooters.

   The tread pattern may be directional, meaning that it has to be mounted the correct way around to perform properly and there should be an arrow on the sidewall which shows which way the tire should rotate. You may also see a speed designation on some tires between the “130/60″ and “13″. This is a letter which runs from “J” to “Y”. “J” indicates the tire is safe to use up to 62mph, “L” is up to 75mph, “N” is up to 87mph, “P” is up to 93mph and “S” is up to 103mph. You probably won’t be going any faster than that on a scooter. However there is a “W” designation shows the tire is safe up to 168mph. As far as I know there are no “W” rated scooter tires! Most scooter tires will be priced in the $55-$85 region.

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   What is a Scooter?

   Well, here’s what Wikipedia has to say:

   A scooter is a style of two-wheeled motor vehicle traditionally defined by characteristics such as a step-through frame, wheels less than 16″ in diameter, and an engine located below the rider and to the rear.

   That pretty much sums it up. Motorcycles have an engine mounted in the middle of the frame with a gas tank above it. The rider sits astride the engine with the gas tank right in front of them. Motorcycle wheels are also typically larger (over 16″ diameter) than those on a scooter. Another major difference is that the engine of a motorcycle is attached to the frame, while on a scooter it is usually part of the rear suspension. So when a motorcycle rear wheel goes up and down, the engine remains stationary, while when the rear wheel of a motor scooter goes up and down, the whole engine and transmission moves up and down with it.

   These days, 99% of scooters have a “twist and go” automatic (CVT) transmission, which means you don’t have a clutch to control and you don’t have to change gears, while 99% or motorcycles have a manual clutch and you have to shift gears manually (with your left foot). This also means that on 99% of motor scooters you apply the rear brake with your left hand, while on 99% of motorcycles you apply the rear brake with your right foot. While there are still a few manual scooters and there are a few automatic motorcycles, both are very much the exception rather than the rule.

   These differences result in a motorcycle usually having better acceleration high speed handling characteristics, but a motor scooter is often more maneuverable at low speed and is easier to ride, especially for novices.

   Scooters usually have a small engine, from 50cc to 250cc, though there are 400cc and even 800cc scooters, so engine size doesn’t define them. While most are limited in speed, scooters with a larger engine can exceed 100mph and cruise easily at freeway speeds, so speed isn’t a defining characteristic either.

   So what is a moped then? That’s a little trickier, but the working definition for most DMVs is a motorized two wheeled vehicle with an engine of less than 50cc capacity. It used to be that a moped was a Motorized pedal cycle, i.e. basically a bicycle with a small engine, but some jurisdictions don’t require pedals. Again we can also look at Wikipedia for a definition:
   Mopeds are a class of low-powered (under 50cc displacement) motorized vehicle, generally two-wheeled. A Moped is driven in an upright position with the rider’s back perpendicular to the seat . From a practical point of view, in most jurisdictions mopeds can be ridden without requiring a motorcycle license (a car license is sufficient). They may be speed limited by design, but even if they aren’t, the small engine size usually limits then to a top speed under 40mph (maybe 45mph downhill with a tail wind). In the United States the definition and regulation of mopeds differs from state to state. Again calling on Wikipedia:

   Legal terms and definitions of low-powered cycles vary from state to state and may or may not include “Moped,” “Motorcycle,” “Motorized Bicycle,” “Motorscooter,” “Goped,” “Motor-Driven Cycle,” and or others. A moped’s speed generally may not exceed 30 mph (48 km/h) on level ground, even if it is capable of going faster. In a few states this number is 20 or 25 mph (32 or 40 km/h), and in most states, the maximum engine capacity is 50 cc. However, Kansas (“Motorized Bicycle” K.S.A. 8-126, 8-1439a) allows up to 130 cc[13]. Some states, like California, require pedals, while others do not. Virginia allows mopeds to operate at up to 35 mph (56 km/h). Some states, like North Carolina, require there to be no external gear-shifting mechanism.

   Comment by master — 05/12/2010 @ 3:15 pm

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