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£11,000! I can buy an electric scooter here for $700. Unfortunately, the article is really just a Press Release. So it doesn't go into any detail about what yo
by freddie_mercury 8y ago
£11,000! I can buy an electric scooter here for $700.
Unfortunately, the article is really just a Press Release. So it doesn't go into any detail about what you get for all that money and whether it is worth it.
Where I live (not the US) there are a growing number of electric scooters. I'd guesstimate maybe 20-30% of vehicles on the road now are electric scooters.
It is amazing how much quieter it makes...everything. Internal combustion engines are so noisy yet we've become so accustomed to them.
- yardie 8y agoFor $700! This is the stand up push style pedestrian scooter. What they are selling is the larger motoscooter (I wish the English language had a better way to indicate the difference). Similar to a Vespa which is far more than $700.
- victornomad 8y agoIn China you can buy quite nice e-scooter (Vespa-like) for around 2500 - 3000 CNY which is around 320-400euro. I think the reason that dont come to other countries is just pure lobbying from local companies.
- Tepix 8y agoWhat type of batteries do they have?
- hwillis 8y agoI would guess it has much more to do with shipping and dealerships- you can get these things delivered, but even a horrible quality gas scooter costs 800-1000 USD delivered. A buddy bought one several years ago. It showed up at his doorstep in a neat little box and worked quite nicely once we had changed the oil (full of metal shavings from manufacture), although the CVT and tiny engine weren't quite up to getting on the highway. Even most scooters and motorcycles in the US are sold through dealers, and they will simply be making no money on a vehicle that costs <$500. It's probably only feasible to store them in a warehouse and ship via freight, which is expensive. I don't know why you don't see them in Walmart, but maybe there's some sort of law or maybe even Walmart can't move them.
- harias 8y agoThey wouldn't pass the safety standards. Most Indian cars got a zero from NCAP
- nradov 8y agoThere are barely any safety standards for scooters.
- yardie 8y agoSafety, emissions, and probably IP protection are more likely. Even Piaggio stopped selling scooters in the US because their 2-stroke motors couldn’t meet our emissions requirements.
- CyberDildonics 8y agoYou think an electric scooter has problems with emissions?
- freddie_mercury 8y agoNo, $700 is not a push style pedestrian scooter where I live. That would be an insane amount of money to spend on something like that here. $700 gets you something that you can drive on the city streets & highways with a range of 100km and can carry 2 people. https://www.pega.com.vn/product/Aura/images/aura-xanh.png https://www.pega.com.vn/product/Aura/images/aura-xanh.png
- ElBarto 8y agoSo, by "not the US" did you mean Vietnam, then? That would have been clearer.
- emptyfile 8y agoDid you think "not the US" meant Canada?
- alistairSH 8y agoNo, there's a huge difference between 1st world nations and up-coming Asian nations. Cost of any given consumer item is vastly different, salaries vastly different, and in automotive industries, a HUGE difference in safety and design.
- SmellyGeekBoy 8y agoHow much difference can there really be, safety-wise? It's a scooter...
- alistairSH 8y agoEmissions. Quality of battery pack (lots of stored energy) on electrics. General durability/quality (things like fasteners, tires, brake lines) that might not impact immediate safety, but over time failures cause problems.
- C1sc0cat 8y ago
- C1sc0cat 8y agoIn English Scooter does mean a small wheel Italian style moped is the large wheeled step though Honda C90 et al are mopeds
- kbutler 8y agoThat's one definition. From google define, a second definition is: "a vehicle typically ridden as a recreation, consisting of a footboard mounted on two wheels and a long steering handle, propelled by resting one foot on the footboard and pushing the other against the ground." This also comes in electric versions (some of which even incorporate seats!): https://www.google.com/search?q=electric+scooter&safe=strict&source=lnms&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=electric+scooter&safe=strict...
- kevin_thibedeau 8y agoDespite being commonly conflated, mopeds are not scooters. The former having actual crank pedals and the latter not.
- Broken_Hippo 8y agoNot really. In many areas, the words are used as synonyms. A scooter could be anything from an unpowered skateboard with a stick to a some powered wheelchairs to a moped with decent speeds, electric or gasoline. A moped is always something one sits on and has wheels, though it can include both the small and large wheels. Even the legal definitions don't reflect that. The difference is often more dependent on the size of engine, the speeds the vehicle can go, and things like that. These distinctions can make a difference in plates and insurance.
- pcvpcvpcv 8y agoCezeta souds more like a scooter Tesla - you get easy handling, chic looks and an innovative two-way throttle. So I guess the usual buyer is a scooter fan (or snob) more likely than a usual commuter.
- harias 8y agohttps://www.atherenergy.com https://www.atherenergy.com is trying the same in India
- baybal2 8y ago>innovative two-way throttle ? Every moderately recent Chinese electric moped works that way. One has to check if it is not just a white label Chinese moped in custom bodywork.
- ghostly_s 8y agoWell, the article claims it is patented. Maybe just shoddy reporting, though. Anyway I always thought the reason all throttles don't work this way was not because no-one had the idea, but for safety concerns.
- coldtea 8y ago>£11,000! I can buy an electric scooter here for $700. Perhaps, but there are also cars that cost $10000 and cars that cost $500000.
- jksmith 8y agoBut is there parity between a $14k scooter and a $500k car? Probably not, but as the Devil said, "there is no accounting for tastes." I think the better question is, who will buy a $14k scooter if and when $24k electric cars become available? Given the affect of mass production, will this scooter eventually get to $700? Personally, I think that thing is ugly as sin and I still prefer crotch rockets.
- King-Aaron 8y agoWho buys a $500 second hand scooter when $1000 second hand cars are available? Answer: People who want them.
- upofadown 8y agoThis thing is likely much faster than the $700 scooter. Most lower end scooters are e-bikes and are power/speed restricted.
- dwd 8y agoAn ICE scooter is usually in the 70-80db range. More lawn mover noisy than a car, and almost embarrassing to ride at night when it's quiet. I finally tossed my old 50cc scooter just yesterday. Too noisy and while it got about 25km/l it only had a 5l tank which is less range than this electric.
- rasz 8y agoIts an artisan rebuild of 60 year old rusted East block engineering corpses targeted at hipster clientele.
- technofiend 8y agoThat explains the facial recognition block on the ignition: you may only start the scooter while sporting mutton chops or a handlebar mustache.