What do Americans think about scooter?

[shakerdriver]

i never joked about the riders just the scooters themselves. i'm a pretty hefty guy at 360lbs. so the thought of a little scooter getting me around was a joke to me. then i bought my kids a brand new used scoot that didn't run and thats when i got hooked, kept tinkering till i got it to run. then i started shopping around and kept finding scoots that were better than the one before it until i bought my rally. then i found this forum and discovered the aftermarket world and its an addiction that my wife wishes i hadn't found (sometimes). now i check c-list and ebay almost on a daily basis to see if theres anything i can trade my way into. i actually traded a nice running subaru car for my wifes metro, she was upset at first but then she took it for a ride and wasn't so upset after all. now i can't get enough of the tinkering or money together to buy parts to cure my addiction, sucks being unemployeed.

[famous]

lol i am trying to get a night job to support it i hear ya.

[malerocket]

i used to think scooters were only for kids until i got one by way of my brother in law. my sister talked him out of a motorcycle since she thought she would ride. after nearly bottoming out she quit on it. so now for 300 dollars i acquired a 50 peace with 250 miles. after being under 3 feet of water in a flood, been ridden all over at wot, and being at the weight limit, still fires right up. lovin it especially the 10$ gas for a month.

[erictheviking666]

I originally bought mine when gas was $4.00 a gal. in 2008 and I was putting $40 - $50 a week in the car. But I fell in love with it and only take the car when it's raining or cold now. Here you have to have a license so the alcohol stigma does not exist. Also one thing I like is you are not supposed to ride on the shoulder but full on in your lane just like a motorcycle. It's not stated in the law but I usually try too stay off roads with a speed limit over 45mph. I don't like riding on the shoulder because a**hole drivers will squeeze you off the road and into a ditch trying too pass you. I hope to see Americans to one day get over the big SUV status symbol thing that goes on over here. Unfortunately it may take $4 to $5 a gallon gas too make it happen. Remember 2008 when even if you had an SUV and wanted to trade it in the trade-in value dropped so low most people were stuck with their SUV's because they owed more than they were worth. There may actually be more Scooter & small M/C riders out here now if these people hadn't been stuck with their SUV's back then.

[lackthereof]

I think a big part of it is the typical American commute. The typical home->work commute is a half-hour car trip (one way), usually involving mostly freeway driving. As most scooters aren't allowed on freeways, the typical American would have to divert from their 80mph freeway cruise, to a stop-and-go 35 on surface streets.

Availability is another issue. Used cars in America are unusually cheap, and unusually plentiful. A cash-strapped person can buy a drivable car for $500 in any city, by simply flipping through the classified ads in the local paper. Slightly upmarket, there are used car dealerships absolutely everywhere. They've all got partnerships with financing companies, so just about anyone with a pulse can walk in off the street, and with only a signature and a token down payment, drive off an hour later in their very own car.

Scooter dealers, on the other hand, are few and far between. Sure, your Honda and Yamaha motorcycle dealers will carry a token scooter or two - but there just aren't many dealers around, and those name brands cost 4x as much as the Chinese bikes we ride. To top it off, there's virtually no used market - a (running) used scooter in my city sells for basically the same price as a new one.

When I bought my 49cc, A Lifan Gemini I, I had to drive a half hour out to an importer's warehouse in the suburbs. Then, I had to go and get it titled MYSELF - as they dealt primarily in power equipment and off-road vehicles, they hadn't bothered to get licensed as a vehicle dealer, and weren't equipped to do the paperwork. I drove to a licensing office and bought a 72-hr transport permit so I could get it home, but then I had a week or so wait to get the MSO, then shuttle that paperwork out to a state licensing office to exchange it for a title, registration, and plates. Whereas if I had gone and bought a car, I could drive it off the lot without ever visiting a govt. office or waiting for documentation in the mail.

As for perception, what people think of them, well, people DON'T think they're practical. In the US, scooters and motorcycles are looked upon as something someone gets for personal image or for recreation, not for practicality. People don't look at the scooter and think "that guy's a wimp" - they look and think "He can't haul a grocery-cart load on that, how impractical."

GTVert mentions that legal restrictions in his state discourage scooter use. Things are completely different in Washington State. We're super relaxed about it. There's 3 tiers you can register as:

• Mopeds- [<50cc, ≤30mph top speed on flat ground], requires a standard drivers license, no motorcycle endorsement needed. Not just allowed but explicitly REQUIRED to ride in vehicle lanes with the full rights & responsibilities of a passenger vehicle. Forbidden from controlled-access freeways, but allowed everywhere else, regardless of speed limit or lane position.
  
• Motor-driven Cycles- [<5hp. No engine size or speed restrictions], requires a drivers license with motorcycle endorsement, but still banned from freeways.
  
• Motorcycles- [≥5hp], requires a drivers license with motorcycle endorsement, allowed anywhere.

So here, most 125cc/150cc scooters qualify as full-fledged motorcycles!

And completely contrary to what they do in Maryland, shoulder riding is outright banned unless a sign explicitly allowing it is posted. Even in those areas it is HEAVILY discouraged - the state would prefer you stay right in the center of your lane regardless of the speed limit, and only pull into the shoulder when 5 or more cars are backed up behind you, reserving the shoulder for emergencies and bicyclists. Mopeds are also explicitly banned from bicycle lanes - the overall pattern here is that Washington is more worried about keeping mopeds from mingling with bicycles and pedestrians, rather than worrying about them holding up traffic.

Realistically, I don't have any trouble with the cars around me. This might be because I ride mostly in the city, but I don't have trouble with people cutting me off or riding my ass. In heavy city traffic, the little guy keeps up with the cars. Out on the open road, it's no slower than a transit bus. And most of the time I'm already speeding anyway (30mph speed-limit for most of the city), so people aren't impatient with me, even when I'm in the far left lane.
I get much, MUCH more respect from other roadway users on the scooter than I ever did riding a bicycle, and it really feels like people give me more space on my scooter than they do when I'm driving my Cavalier

[90GTVert]

We do still consider above 50cc motorcycles in MD. Our HP rating for a scooter is 2.7 or less. lol There was a bill they wanted to pass last year that wouldn't allow us on roads with no shoulder at all. So essentially you'd be banned from everything but main roads around here... and then of course you can't go on the highways because of the 55MPH speed limit. ...And why was this bill introduced? Because people were complaining about scooters going too slow and holding them up on those roads. Luckily, that bill never passed. MD laws make it very clear that scooters are not to impede the flow of traffic. You'd think they would consider giving us another 5MPH on our speed limit if that's so much of a concern. Kinda hard to follow the law and drive 30MPH on a 45MPH back road AND not slow down other motor vehicles. Lucky for me, I ignore the speed and displacement laws... until I see a cop and then I'm just a happy guy going 30MPH enjoying the scenery.

[lshigham]

Dec 21, 2010 9:03:12 GMT -5 90GTVert said:

We do still consider above 50cc motorcycles in MD. Our HP rating for a scooter is 2.7 or less. lol There was a bill they wanted to pass last year that wouldn't allow us on roads with no shoulder at all. So essentially you'd be banned from everything but main roads around here... and then of course you can't go on the highways because of the 55MPH speed limit. ...And why was this bill introduced? Because people were complaining about scooters going too slow and holding them up on those roads. Luckily, that bill never passed. MD laws make it very clear that scooters are not to impede the flow of traffic. You'd think they would consider giving us another 5MPH on our speed limit if that's so much of a concern. Kinda hard to follow the law and drive 30MPH on a 45MPH back road AND not slow down other motor vehicles. Lucky for me, I ignore the speed and displacement laws... until I see a cop and then I'm just a happy guy going 30MPH enjoying the scenery.

That reminds me of when a cop pulled out behind me a few days back, so I had to slow to 30. It's very hard to do so with a high revving scoot going down a very steep hill. I pulled over to let them pass, and then kept on accidentally catching up with them :cop:

[builditright]

Hey Brent,
Check the law, we were reading it last night and the way it reads you can run on the road even if you have a shoulder as long as there are no cars on it. Also the one paragraph says that if it is over 55mph you have to follow the bicycle rules. Whith that it means you can ride on the shoulder of that road.

I argued that it says you can not ride on it but I was shown that if you read it as is you can ride on the 55 mph roads but you have to be on the shoulder. I guess it is how you read it. I read it that you can not run it.. That is why I carry a copy of the law with me..

As for the dunks driving for some reason they seem to think that you do not have to have a license. There are several in Denton that have scooters with no license. I have showed them a copy of the law but they just ignor it.. Anyway it is also law that if you sell scooters in Md. you have to tell the person you sell it to what the law is.

Bill

[90GTVert]

From MD's MVA site...

"Note: A person may not operate a motorcycle that has a rating of 1.5 brake horsepower or less, or a capacity of less than 70 cubic centimeters piston displacement, on a roadway where the posted maximum speed is more than 50 miles per hour, or on an expressway or other controlled access highway."

Later it says...

"Traffic laws that apply to individuals riding a bicycle also apply to people operating a motor scooter.

When operating a motor scooter, the rider must ride as near to the right side of the roadway as practical and safe except when:
Making a left turn.
Operating on a one-way street.
Passing a stopped or slower moving vehicle.
Avoiding pedestrians or road hazards.
The right lane is a right turn only lane.
Operating in a lane that is too narrow for a bicycle or motor scooter and another vehicle to travel safely side by side.

Operators of motor scooters are encouraged to wear a DOT compliant motorcycle helmet. They may ride side by side only if the flow of traffic is unimpeded and must exercise due care when passing a vehicle. The use of headsets covering both ears or earplugs are prohibited except in certain circumstances.

A person may not ride a bicycle or a motor scooter on a roadway where the posted maximum speed limit is more than 50 miles per hour. If the roadway has a bike lane paved to a smooth surface or a paved shoulder, a person operating a bicycle or a motor scooter must use the bike lane or shoulder and may not ride on the roadway except for a situation identified above as (1 through 6)."

Hmmm. It still sounds like what I said before to me, but like you said, it's all in how you interpret it. If it's OK to ride the shoulder of RT50, I'm going to Ocean City this summer. lol Prob not really. It may or may not be legal, but I don't think I'd feel safe on the side of that road in beach traffic for 150 miles round trip.

[lshigham]

I've taken mine for a 220mi round trip before, mostly down dual carriageways. Here, a scooter has the same rights to be places as a car, apart from motorways.

[erictheviking666]

Same here in Florida, which IMO is safer than forcing riders on the shoulder. The only specific restrictions I'm aware of is that your not supposed to ride on divided highways with a speed limit of 55mph or over. I have always tried to stay on roads with a limit of 45mph. The cops here pretty much ignore Scooter riders, I've buzzed right by them at 45mph, and my Scooter is quite loud. The only cops I'm careful around are Motorcycle cops, which are well known around here to be harda$$es!!

[lshigham]

Our dual carriageways are basically motorways without the restrictions. They are what you would call a divided highway, the speed limit is usually 60.

[90GTVert]

Jan 14, 2011 15:02:32 GMT -5 lshigham said:

I've taken mine for a 220mi round trip before, mostly down dual carriageways. Here, a scooter has the same rights to be places as a car, apart from motorways.

It's not the mileage that worries me. The highway I speak of is basically 100 miles of distracted people on the way to the beach. Think minivans with parents watching the kids as much as the road, teens distracted by cell phones or other people in the car, folks headed to a good time and looking for trouble in some cases, and everyone speeding. Later at night you get the folks headed home from all the bars and clubs, and you know what that means. It's not insane, but after seeing the things I've seen on the shoulder of my 50MPH road with a hell of a lot less traffic, it's enough to make me think that one over.

I couldn't keep up with that traffic. If I could and was allowed to it would make a big difference. I ride home at times in the roadway doing 50-55MPH instead of on the shoulder. Usually at night, so a cop would just see a bike of some sort and not a scoot doing 50 in the roadway. Feels safer to me and I get treated different by cars around me. You feel more like a part of traffic than an obstacle at that point.

[lshigham]

The other traffic makes a big difference. I do most of my riding at night or early morning, when there are few cars. I did a 38 mile stretch down a dual carriageway without seeing a single car.

[90GTVert]

Wow. I couldn't do 38 miles on back roads and not see cars in the middle of the night.