Modern scooters are practical and nothing costs less to run (unless you want to pedal!), and they’re trendy too! – With ‘twist and go’ style transmissions, clean running 4-stroke engines (mostly) and usually with plenty of storage space for essentials, buying a used scooter can make great financial sense, as well as being a whole lot of fun to ride.
Though they are a far cry from the ‘classic’ scooters of the 1960’s, modern commuter scooters share many of the same design features which made the original Vespa and Lambretta so popular. They are lightweight and easy to handle with small diameter wheels making for great manouverability round town and you can park a scooter in the tightest of spaces, even in the most congested of city streets. Most of today’s scooters feature electric starters and run on normal unleaded petrol with no need to pre-mix with oil as was the case with the early 2-stroke machines, they are also much quieter and more economical too.
Ranging from the ubiquitous 50cc Honda Cub, the world’s best-selling motorcycle – and still a popular among commuters, to the very latest luxurious ‘super scooters’ with engines of 600cc and more, the choice is huge. In the UK you are restricted to a 125cc machine if you haven’t passed your test and that is undoubtedly the most popular capacity choice, most manufacturers offering a selection of machines to suit the learner legal commuter scooter market.
Honda’s current scooter range includes the Vision 50 and 110, the Lead 110, the Honda ANF125 Innova and the very stylish PCX125 and Forza 125’s. Yamaha offer the Aerox 50 sports moped, the Neo’s and Cygnus urban commuter plus the long lived and still popular Majesty. Suzuki scooters include the Address 110 plus the well-respected Burgman, available with 125, 400 and 650cc engines.