7 ms·

I purchased a vespa-type gasoline moped almost a year ago, and it's been an incredible tool. It outperforms cars on every dimension. Here's some "bare" facts,

I purchased a vespa-type gasoline moped almost a year ago, and it's been an incredible tool. It outperforms cars on every dimension. Here's some "bare" facts, which present only a fraction of the benefits: - ~90mpg, has a 1.4 gallon tank - surprising amount of storage capacity (seat storage, and a hook where your fit sit) - inexpensive - a brand new, nice scooter cost me $3800, + a nice helmet and gloves - with proper clothing, and be worn in a quite wide range of weather/temp combinations - less safe than riding around in an airbag-equipped heavy steel box, but not as unsafe as I was afraid it would feel I can park it anywhere. _anywhere_. I always do trips door-to-door now. I don't pay for parking in cities anymore. I can ride to the front of a column of stopped cars (at a light or stop sign) It's the perfect vehicle. It got stolen 3 days ago (sigh. I forgot to lock the steering wheel column, someone rolled it away from where it was parked, probably into a pickup truck). I bought a new one the next day. I was out a few thousand dollars and a few hours of inconvenience, but it was no biggie. No car driver can empathize with: - these low costs of operation - high amount of convenience - trivial replacement cost/inconvenience Go visit a local scooter dealer, and do some test rides! (I live in Denver, bought both scooters from Sportique on South Broadway. They're great, and do same-day maintenance for oil changes and such.) I had a 125cc Genuine Buddy Kick, I replaced it with a 200cc Lance Cabo. Lots of my friends are getting closer and closer to buying their own mopeds. Some already have. #ScooterGang

MrRiddle 4y ago
“motorcyclists were nearly 29 times more likely than passenger car occupants to die in a crash per vehicle miles traveled.” No thanks. https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-motorcycle-crashes https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-motorcyc...
- KennyBlanken 4y ago
  Eh. While there's certainly a lot of "SMIDSY" crashes, at least some crashes and deaths are due to dangerous riding and lack of gear. It'd be interesting to see how the risk is spread; my guess is that if you're over 25, the risk drops precipitously, for example. I've known numerous motorcyclists throughout my life and very few of them have had a crash. They're all middle age or older, well educated, and not thrill-seeker types.
  - MrRiddle 4y ago
    I’m not concerned with my riding style, I’m concerned with people driving around me. So many bad drivers are on the road that my vehicle purchases are guided by safety over other factors.
  - alphabettsy 4y ago
    Other drivers are what concern me. > I've known numerous motorcyclists throughout my life and very few of them have had a crash. This surprises me. I know a decent number and more than half of them have had a crash, all have close calls. Mostly avoiding another vehicle or laying down because of gravel or oil on the road surface.
- ryukafalz 4y ago
  Like with bicycling, the danger is largely from the cars around you, not the vehicle itself. Which is not to say your concerns are unfounded. Just means we need safer streets. :)
KennyBlanken 4y ago
Good for fuel and CO2 output per mile, manufacturing impact, and so on. Not so great for atmospheric pollution, where even modern "emissions equipped" 4 cycle scooters and motorcycles pollute far more than a modern passenger SUV. This one major downside would be easily fixed by going EV. And scooters are far more practical for having an EV in an urban area; you can actually charge them off a 110V outlet in a practical amount of time, for example. The shame is that in the US, "Vespa" style electric scooters are very difficult to come by. Some major players are in the market, but nobody seems willing to import and sell in the US on any sort of grand scale. We need someone like Honda to sell an EV scooter. FYI a steering lock won't stop a scooter from being stolen. You need to basically secure it with an enormous chain to something completely stationary. Even with a steering lock and disc brake lock, it'll just get tossed into a minivan (the most popular choice for thefts because they're enclosed and have tinted windows.)
- jareklupinski 4y ago
  right you are Ken that explains the bottomed-out suspension on some minivans I see driving around the city...
nickthegreek 4y ago
Love my vespa and am always afraid of it getting stolen. His an AirTag on it a month ago just in case.
morninglight 4y ago
Around 1963 I offered a ride on my new Lambretta scooter to a good looking girl. She looked at it and saw the manufacture's name, Innocenti. Without hesitation she said, "that's Italian". "Inno" means no and "centi" means sense. Anyone who would ride on that thing doesn't have any sense. And she was right! .
usrn 4y ago
I drive 100 miles many weeks (usually in one go.) I'm not doing that on a moped, it's bad enough in a car.

MrRiddle 4y ago

“motorcyclists were nearly 29 times more likely than passenger car occupants to die in a crash per vehicle miles traveled.” No thanks. https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-motorcycle-crashes https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-motorcyc...

KennyBlanken 4y ago
Eh. While there's certainly a lot of "SMIDSY" crashes, at least some crashes and deaths are due to dangerous riding and lack of gear. It'd be interesting to see how the risk is spread; my guess is that if you're over 25, the risk drops precipitously, for example. I've known numerous motorcyclists throughout my life and very few of them have had a crash. They're all middle age or older, well educated, and not thrill-seeker types.
- MrRiddle 4y ago
  I’m not concerned with my riding style, I’m concerned with people driving around me. So many bad drivers are on the road that my vehicle purchases are guided by safety over other factors.
- alphabettsy 4y ago
  Other drivers are what concern me. > I've known numerous motorcyclists throughout my life and very few of them have had a crash. This surprises me. I know a decent number and more than half of them have had a crash, all have close calls. Mostly avoiding another vehicle or laying down because of gravel or oil on the road surface.
ryukafalz 4y ago
Like with bicycling, the danger is largely from the cars around you, not the vehicle itself. Which is not to say your concerns are unfounded. Just means we need safer streets. :)

KennyBlanken 4y ago

Good for fuel and CO2 output per mile, manufacturing impact, and so on. Not so great for atmospheric pollution, where even modern "emissions equipped" 4 cycle scooters and motorcycles pollute far more than a modern passenger SUV. This one major downside would be easily fixed by going EV. And scooters are far more practical for having an EV in an urban area; you can actually charge them off a 110V outlet in a practical amount of time, for example. The shame is that in the US, "Vespa" style electric scooters are very difficult to come by. Some major players are in the market, but nobody seems willing to import and sell in the US on any sort of grand scale. We need someone like Honda to sell an EV scooter. FYI a steering lock won't stop a scooter from being stolen. You need to basically secure it with an enormous chain to something completely stationary. Even with a steering lock and disc brake lock, it'll just get tossed into a minivan (the most popular choice for thefts because they're enclosed and have tinted windows.)

jareklupinski 4y ago
right you are Ken that explains the bottomed-out suspension on some minivans I see driving around the city...

nickthegreek 4y ago

Love my vespa and am always afraid of it getting stolen. His an AirTag on it a month ago just in case.

morninglight 4y ago

Around 1963 I offered a ride on my new Lambretta scooter to a good looking girl. She looked at it and saw the manufacture's name, Innocenti. Without hesitation she said, "that's Italian". "Inno" means no and "centi" means sense. Anyone who would ride on that thing doesn't have any sense. And she was right! .

usrn 4y ago

I drive 100 miles many weeks (usually in one go.) I'm not doing that on a moped, it's bad enough in a car.