Top 7 Reasons to Scrap the Scooter Idea

Looking to buy a Scooter to survive gas prices? Some reasons to get it and go metropolitan, and my Top 7 reasons to Scrap the Scooter Idea.

Reasons To Get One

With today’s gas prices, scooters sip the liquid gold at around 50 to 80 MPG (pretty significant…)

Cheap to buy and cheap insurance: the low end scooters start around $800 and you can get a decked out ride for around $2200. Spend more if you want some Italian Style or you want it to look like a shrunk down Harley.

But let me warn you, if you pull up next to some Harley riders, two things will happen: they will kick your ass into next week, and they will throw your little gas sipper in the nearest dumpster. Seriously.

Top 7 Reasons to Scrap the Scooter Idea

Very Limited Payload: you simply can’t pile all your friends onto it, in fact many have payloads of around 200 lbs. so for me I can take myself and any friend of mine who weights 30 lbs or less. My dog weighs more than that…

Limited Cargo: a few groceries and maybe your MacBook is about all you will have room for. They make luggage racks, but still, not much room to mount stuff on them.

Weather: it doesn’t take much wind to blow these things around, and think of riding in the rain… that would be an adventure.

Defensive Driving: I drive a truck, and I have a motorcycle. In the truck, I can hit almost anything and probably be ok (the bumper and air bags are excellent protection). On the motorcycle, I can out accelerate most things on the road to get out of trouble, and on a decent road, brake faster than just about any car. Unfortunately, the scooter has none of these advantages. The scooter’s itty bitty motor sounds cute under full throttle, but it’s acceleration is not up to par with traffic. The tiny tires and brakes don’t give you much in the way of fast stops either. It really makes you a minnow in a sea of sharks on the road.

Limited Range: Most scooters are not intended to get on the highway, and most would not be safe at highway speeds. You’ll probably have to cancel the roadtrips.

License: In many areas, you’ll need a motorcycle license to ride a scooter. You should probably have one anyway in my opinion, but if you don’t, add it to the list of stuff you will need to get on the road legally.

Training: Many people think “it’s just a scooter”, jump on, ride, and save tons of gas. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. Just like a motorcycle, you need training if you are going to survive dealing with the challenges of city driving. Even though you shouldn’t, in a car you can talk on the phone, put on make-up, change CDs, re-organize the back seat, check out that wreck on the other side of the road. But when you are on two wheels, the smallest distraction can put you on the pavement. Remember, a fender bender in a car will just leave you late for work, a fender bender on a scooter will probably land you in the hospital. It’s absolutely a must to take a training course, and practice before you consider yourself qualified for two wheeling it in traffic.

Use What You Got, Solve the Gas Problem

True, I’m biased against solving the gas problem with “smaller, lighter, slower, less powerful” solutions. I want my 250 horsepower truck to get 100 MPG, while I’m carrying 4 passengers, cargo, and a 50 lb black lab.

Am I there yet? Not hardly, and this Gas Crisis is stinging me just as it is you. The thing is, if you are even a little bit handy with tools, if you can follow instructions, ask questions if needed, you absolutely must check this out: Water4Gas Vehicle Conversion.

There is a whole grass roots community taking our existing cars and making them what they should be: gas efficient. It will probably be a few more years before you see a full size truck getting 92 MPG, but would you settle for 28 MPG? How about 38 MPG? Just doubling your MPG cuts your gas cost in half, and you get to KEEP YOUR VEHICLE.

Seriously , check it out: Water4Gas Vehicle Conversion

I’ll talk to you soon,