Are scooters impractical?

Question

I was talking to a motorcycle rider about my thoughts of buying a scooter and he told me it is impractical! I want to buy a 50 cc motorcycle and I know they do not go as fast but they are still allowed on most highways and are alot cheaper. He also told me they are not as comfortable. I want to get a scooter but a motorcycle has never crossed my mind. Is he right? Thanks.

Answer 1

both scooters and bikes get better fuel economy than most cars, the scooter might be a little better, but personally, i would get a bike for a little extra $, but neither are that practical for a. passengers, b. cargo room, c. traveling in adverse weather, and d. safety. but the fuel economy is so good that its tempting, and i wanted one for a while, but i decided against it.  actually my parents decided for me, but now im looking at the opposite end of the spectrum- at older classic cars that get terrible gas mileage, but have plenty of passenger room, much more cargo room, much more comfortable in the rain, and a wee bit safer. no air bags, and maybe a lap belt, but its better than a scooter i guess. in any case u'll have to decide on ur own based on ur preferences really. but i can say if u live in a congested area, i would advise against a bike or a scooter. good luck.

Answer 2

Vespa makes models that do 90 miles per hour ,but scooter are good for commuters! and gas at $4.00 per gallon in most states depend on commute safety! (no freeways they don't have weight and you'll be blown off the road)

I recently went to london , England woke one morning just out my window there was over a hundred scooters going to work!

at the time they were paying $6.00 a gallon!

Answer 3

Of course a motorcycle rider would say a scooter is impractical since motorcycle riders don't like sharing the road :)

http://scootersonthego.com

Answer 4

Scooters are NOT allowed on most HWY.  Just streets.

They are as practical as motorcycle on streets.  They are great for local traffic (short distance).  When I was in HS, I used to ride my moped all over NYC - all day during the summer.

Good Luck...

Answer 5

that guys an idiot.

they are VERY PRACTICAL, i just bought a brand new one, 2 weeks ago, and am getting 115 mpg! ..I cannot go on the major highways, but go on all the roads except the MAJOR STATE highways, i go on all the other routes and smaller highways with no problem, i also bought a 50 cc and need no insurance like motorcycle, no special license, like a motorcycle. I bought the yamaha cube (c 3) after 2 months of extensive research and comparison to many of the other scooters out there. The one i got, has less maintenance than many others, there is no filters, or oils to mix, its fuel injected, no carburetor , air cooled, and plenty of storage. I will now save over 150 bucks a month, at least in gas. It also has a wider tires, for better traction, than some of the others.  And luckily for me, (even though the price didnt matter for me) was not all that expensive.  So yes, they are MORE than practical. Unless you're looking to take some 300 mile road trip. Oh and the speed is not bad either, it goes 40 plus, i keep it at 35, and get to work just fine.

Answer 6

I have a Honda Helix scooter gets 72mpg and can do 74mph. Can do anything A motorcycle can do, but with more comfort. It's a 244cc engine. You can get a smaller one that can do about 55 60mph with a 150cc engine. Warning if you test drive one you may get the Scooter Bug.......

Answer 7

It depends on where you want to go. The 35mph top speed of a 50cc scooter is very limiting. Even a 35mph rural road can be a problem as the cars often go faster than that and you will get passed allot.  Cars don't always give you much room when they pass, so it can be dangerous. If you can limit yourself to residential streets and very quiet country roads, then it's fine.

However, you can get a 125cc scooter for nearly the same $ that has a top speed of 50mph, such as the Yamaha Vino 125. Its almost exactly the same weight/size as a 50cc scooter, but a whole lot more useful. If you're willing to spend a little more, you can get a Honda Reflex 250, and it's fast enough for the freeway (I ride one).

The main reason people go for the 50cc scooter is that they don't need a motorcycle endorsement (Lazy). This is a bad reason. You should take the MSF training anyways, and get your endorsement. You might learn something that will save your life. As an additional benefit, you can ride the bigger scooters, and wind up with a much more practical ride. FYI Even the 250cc scooters get 75mpg so you don't give up much mileage by going bigger. The 50cc scooters get about 100mpg.

Answer 8

In many ways a scooter is more practical than a motorcycle. For just driving around town a small 50cc would do as long as you did not need to go more than 35-40 mph. But scooters come in many sizes and there are some that you can ride cross country with. I would ride a Kymco xciting 250 or 500 to the west coast and back. You just have to decide which one who do what you want. OF course you would still want to take a safety course and wear a helmet.

Answer 9

If you aren't going very far and you aren't going very fast, scooters are fine.

I personally believe scooters to be MORE dangerous than motorcycles.

Here's why:

They can go 35-40 miles per hour, but their wheels are really tiny and that is dangerous.

A scooter cannot compete with a car, so cars will always be passing you as if you were on a bicycle, and that is dangerous.

On a scooter, you really don't have much acceleration  power, so it takes a while to get to top speed.

With a motorcycle, especially a 750cc or bigger, you can position yourself anywhere you want on the road because you can easily speed up and get in front of some cars or decide to back off and stay safely behind some cars, but with a scooter, you have less options.

With a motorcycle, you can speed up quicker to avoid potential problems on the road that scooters can't.

Also, you will get really bored with the scooter very soon.

A motorcycle will be a lot more fun, but also more money,insurance, clothing, etc.

Do what you want though.

Scooters are still fun as heck, I just prefer motorcycles.

The power of a motorcycle is just amazing. My favorite part is going from a total stop to 65 miles per hour in a matter of seconds! Scooters just can't do that.

Answer 10

Well, I've got both! It just depends on how fast I want to get there, and I'm not in that big of a hurry to get to work!

The XR350R is pure dirtbike, but I've plated it and will run 70mph all day long. It'll also do about 60mpg.



My Trail 90 will only do about 45mph, but gets over 100mpg and is also offroad capable (hi/low trans, knobby tires, full street legal).

Answer 11

Forget 50cc anything. Scooters are rapidly coming into their own, auto trans, good brakes, reasonable mileage etc. Stick with a 250 or larger. Personally speaking though, I would get a cycle. A new Suzuki Burgmann 400 scooter is about $5500. You can buy a heck of a used cycle for that.

Answer 12

I think a motorcycle looks better and you can get the smaller cc ones on ebay that look like just like little street bikes, but really its a pride thing. Like I would never ride a scooter, but they are great for fuel economy! If you don't care what other riders think, then go for it!

Answer 13

Depends on what you want it for. A basic 50cc scooter is going to top out around 35-40mph. And it is not allowed on the freeways. To be on the main freeway you must be at least 500cc size which is the larger Honda or such scooters or actual motorcycles.

If you are just driving a few miles here and there, a scooter is fine. If you plan on riding 10 miles or more on a content basis to say work or such. Then the scooter is going to make you feel about 13 yrs old on a slow little moped.

If you don't want an actual motorcycle, you can get what is also called a scooter. But these normally start in the 500cc range, are allowed anywhere a car goes, etc.

http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/photos/20...

Answer 14

Pass on any scooter under 150 cc since they are not allowed on freeways or highways (in CA).  Scooters are very comfortable and emit less engine vibration as well as from the handlebars.  And you can still hold a cell phone while riding since most scooters operate on automatic; there's no clutch or shifting.  Scooter insurance is also much lower than for a motorcycle.  The insurance for a typical 150 cc scooter is about $65 per year.

Good luck!