Scooters

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ChrisV

ChrisV

Formerly CC2014
Location
Falkirk
On the off chance (and very good chance) that there are knowledgeable people on here with regards to scooters/motorbikes etc I thought I'd post here before going through the hassle of joining a dedicated forum.

If not, nothing lost ...

My car is now 10 years old with 100k on it, and slowly but surely things are starting to go wrong on it.

My wife has a car also that we use at weekends if we all go out, so mine is basically a commuting machine.

I really, really don't want to go down the '3 year old Insignia/Mondeo etc £8000, £180 a month on finance for 4 or 5 years' as I don't get enough out of car ownership to warrant this. I only need to get myself 15 miles to work and 15 miles back.

I do have a bike, and do commute on it from time to time, but it's not a realistic option for everyday use. I have tried this and can't stick to it.

So, I have been looking at 125cc scooters. Can get brand new for around £1000, sit a CBT then 130mpg is within reach!!!

Does anyone else do this? I am worried that £1000 may not be enough to get a reliable brand new bike, that the winter will be too dangerous and force me off the road, and that I love it and end up killing myself on a 1250cc super bike!

The first two more so than the last one!

Anyone have some insight that could benefit my musings?
 
vernon

vernon

Harder than Ronnie Pickering
Location
Meanwood, Leeds
Don't forget that helmets are compulsory.
 
gavroche

gavroche

Getting old but not past it
Location
North Wales
Hello ChrisV, this is a very viable option you are considering and I would advise for the 125 scooter for the following reasons:
_ cheaper to run than a motorbike.
- better mpg
_ more reliable
_ belt driven so no chain to worry about.
_ more comfortable as sitting position is upright.
_ better storage than a bike as you can put things away under your seat.
I used to have a 400cc scooter and loved it until some idiot rear ended me with his car and put an end to my scooter days.
If you are still interested, I can recommend a very good scooter site full of advice .
 
OP
OP
ChrisV

ChrisV

Formerly CC2014
Location
Falkirk
@gavroche What site would you recommend?

Just figured out difference between 2 stroke and 4 stroke, the fact I need a CBT and that bikes off the internet for £1000 are probably not a good idea!
 
gavintc

gavintc

Guru
Location
Southsea
My wife and I have a Vespa 300 we bought for just this. I had a licence. She took a 2 week crammer and got her A2. Now upgraded to full A. It is perfect for a commute. You get through traffic so much easier. Worth doing.
 
Rickshaw Phil

Rickshaw Phil

Overconfidentii Vulgaris
Moderator
Location
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
I'll declare an interest as I work for an importer.

Firstly, confirm whether that £1000 is an on the road price. There are extra fees (registration, tax etc) on top with some of the cheaper makes.

CBT gets you on the road but is only valid for two years or until you take your test: https://www.gov.uk/cbt-compulsory-basic-training so there will be extra costs there too.

Quality can be highly variable with Chinese made machines. I'll second the advice to go for a scooter rather than motorbike in this price range for the ease of use and reliablity.
 
StuAff

StuAff

Silencing his legs regularly
Location
Portsmouth
screenman said:
A 125cc Honda would be a better bet than a Chinese bike made from monkey metal.
Click to expand...
+1. Had a Chinese-made 50cc, POS really. Exposed metal parts got rapidly rusted up, it was a complete pain when it was being run in. It did the job for a couple of weeks of 40 mile round trip commutes, wasn't that bad to ride once it settled down, but it wasn't a long-term solution as it was too slow, and a tiny fuel tank (5 litre..was filling up twice a week). Low-end 125s have barely more power, many of the 125s are just the 50s with a bigger engine so range will be worse. A lot of them will only do 55 mph or so flat out- which sounds OK until you go on a national speed limit road. And you'll never get 130 mpg from them, the engines just aren't sophisticated enough. No fuel injection or stop-start here. Taiwanese-made ones like Kymco will be much better, let alone something from the big brands. ASAP (went for a look the first weekend after starting that commute, picked it up the next) bought a Honda PCX 125. Fantastic bit of kit. I'm getting 140-150 mpg week after week, accelerates very nicely and perfectly happy at 50-55 mph on national limit roads (did 60 miles return trip on the A3 a few weeks back), will top out at 65 or so. Spend a bit more and you'll be a lot happier.
 
Last edited:
cyberknight

cyberknight

As long as I breathe, I attack.
Location
Land of confusion
In the future i have considered a moped for going to work on when and if i find commuting and work to much as my workplace policy is pretty much if you cant do the job you will eventually get a sweetener to leave but it wouldn't be enough to see me through to retirement so i might have to ditch the ride to work.
I only have a car license and i used to ride 50 cc "chicken chasers " in my youth , those days they were pretty cack tbh and would seize up eventually , my ride on the shortest route is 8,5 miles so would a modern 50 cc handle this or would i really need to look at something a bit bigger and get my cbt etc ?
I dont really want to go down the route of 2 cars from a monetary pint of view and i want to keep riding my bikes as long as possible but i am thinking long term .
 
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