Scooter or motorcycle? [ Archive] - GasSavers.org - Helping You Save at the Pump

Opinions?

I'm thinking the scooter is more practical for every day use with the under seat storage for your school stuff. A friend of mine says he thinks a motorcycle with saddle bags can be just as useful.

The motorcycle saddle bags could carry larger items that could stick out if necessary. I think that a small motorcycle will also be a bit safer because it will be more maneuverable and you can swerve better and accelerate quickly in the event that someone starts to pull out in front of you (believe me- it will happen to you).

I've ridden both motorcycles and scooters for over 40 years with hundreds of thousands of miles on both. Everything from Vespas to Goldwings. My opinion is that for around town everyday riding a scooter is the way to go. Don't let anyone tell you a scooter doesn't handle well, they do. The light weight and low center of gravity are a big advantage in town. Weather protection is much better on a scooter also.

Q who rode a Vespa to Alaska.

Where you live and where you're gonna go might play into it too. At least something to think about. A lot of scooters are limited on top end where you're not going to be able to reach let alone maintain a highway speed.

When I rode on the street, a back pack was all I need to carry. Maybe you have more stuff, I don't know.

I always used a back pack as well, that way when you get to where you are going you don't have to unpack anything, I did however add a basket on to the back of my Tomos scooter, a wire basket that was designed for the front of a bicycle, it works great, allows me to carry books.
I like my Tomos Arrow scooter because anyone with a drivers license can use it, I can park it on side walks and at bike racks, it was cheap to buy new, it's simple, it gets 80-100mpg
I like my Honda cb125 because it can go 60mph, I can pass people, I can coast, I can carry a passenger, it only gets 65mpg.

I drive a big 650 cc dirt bike, but it only gets 55 mpg or so. I thought I'd get scooter-like mileage. It must be that it's too big and too geared for power.

My advice would be a ~250 cc street bike rather than a scooter. A scooter just won't keep up on the Interstate.

Aprilia makes a scooter with a direct-injection 50 cc two stroke engine. Direct injection should make it a lot more efficient than a carbureted 2 stroke. Anybody got actual mileage figures for it?

Most scoots that are 150cc will do 65mpg and cruise at 55-60 all day long. They are very easy to manuever around town and the insurance is CHEAP! With underseat storage and an additional trunk on the back, you can carry just about anything you would need. You should get 70-80mpg with a scoot this size. Don't go any smaller (from experience) than a 150cc. I have had VFR 1000s, YZF600R's and Cruisers...the Lambretta UNO150 I have is easier to drive around town (I weight 230#) and gets 70+...

Either way, scoot or motorcycle, make sure you buy something big enuff for your needs. I got a 50cc and it was not near enuff so I was going to get a 125cc and used the rule of thumb "Go One Size Bigger Than You Think" and settled on the 150cc.

Ther are now scoots of all sizes...including the KYMCO 250s and Suzuki Burgman 400s and bigger. Ride as many as you can before you buy.

All this talk makes me yearn to find another Honda CM 450E as I once had.
450 cc parallel twin four stroke, 6 speed transmission, 85+ mph (indicator pegged at 85), two up seating (cozy, but not cramped) and 75+ mpg average over the year and a half I owned it. Better performance than the 50 and 150 scoots mentioned here, better fuel mileage too, So what's the rationale for scoots again?

Oh yeah, I should say the interstate travel will be few and far between(if at all). The only use it'll really see most of the time is my ~8 mile round trip to work and home on city streets. The car will be for freeway use because the wind here is just too much for a small bike (summer average is about 25mph with 35-40 gusts)

Ever had a scooter? The quick handling and weather protection are hard to match on a motorcycle. There are a wide range of scooters, some of which will cruise at 85+ mph, quietly and comfortably. Don't know about the gas mileage on the big scoots. A 150cc scooter makes a great commute vehicle.

It all depends on what your needs are. Right now I commute on a cheap 200cc Chinese dual sport motorcycle which gets 75 to 90 mpg. I also have a Honda CX500 for day rides in the mountains which gets about 46 mpg, and a Goldwing for trips that gets about 42 mpg.

Q



All this talk makes me yearn to find another Honda CM 450E as I once had.
450 cc parallel twin four stroke, 6 speed transmission, 85+ mph (indicator pegged at 85), two up seating (cozy, but not cramped) and 75+ mpg average over the year and a half I owned it. Better performance than the 50 and 150 scoots mentioned here, better fuel mileage too, So what's the rationale for scoots again?

This is what you need. But, I am a little biased. The Yamaha TW200, you can get a used one for around 1000-2500 depending on the year. New ones go for about 3,500. They get about 75 to 85 mpg and are considered dual purpose and street legal. They come with lights, blinkers, etc. The best thing about them is you can go offroad or go trail riding too. They don't have a lot of power and they are not designed to be a light dirt bike for jumping or anything like that. They are very versatile bikes and easy to control due to the small size and relatively low weight. Stock bikes can do 70 MPH However, If change the sprockets (front or rear) you can get close to 80 MPH. They are kind of similar to the Zuma or Ruckus scooters but with more power and better maneuvering and very low maintainace cost, it only takes 1 quart of oil and is air cooled. click on my gas log to see pic

A scooter or a motorcycle is a good way to go. Scooters are very limited however. Small, slow, you cannot take most of them on the highway (400cc Minimum here in WI) and forget about a passanger. I have a Harley. I love it. It gets twice the mpg as my car, I can go anywhere in the country with it and people say high to me that I don't even know, just because I am on a bike. Granted, I do not get 70 mpg, but It is a heck of a lot cheaper than driving my car.

IMHO, Motorcycle > Scooter.

Usually faster, louder, and girls want to go for a ride.

Ignoring scooter fairings, motorcycle windshields and tire resisitance:

Would an automatic transmission scooter, on throttle off, coast as far as a motorcycle with the clutch in?

I would think that being able to choose to shift sooner (lower revs) to a higher gear would suggest a motorcycle?

I try to shift my Jetta TDI under 1200 rpm unless climbing a hill or bucking a headwind. I often shift under 1000 rpm around the neighborhood up to 30mph.
The diesel does have to torque to pull through without stalling... although I have killed it a couple times :D

I rode over a 5" high curb at about 40 mph on my Honda FT500 Ascot (70 mpg) one dark and dewy morning, moved into the left turn lane too soon and didn't even see the curb at all..

I didn't come off the bike, if it had been a scooter there is absolutely no doubt in my mind I would have gone over the handlebars when the front wheel hit the curb..

Something to keep in mind..

The auto transmission (variable belt drive) scooters I've ridden don't coast with the throttle off until the speed drops below about 10 mph.

Yes, there are potential fuel saving advantages to having a manual transmission.

Q

Ignoring scooter fairings, motorcycle windshields and tire resisitance:

Would an automatic transmission scooter, on throttle off, coast as far as a motorcycle with the clutch in?

I would think that being able to choose to shift sooner (lower revs) to a higher gear would suggest a motorcycle?

I try to shift my Jetta TDI under 1200 rpm unless climbing a hill or bucking a headwind. I often shift under 1000 rpm around the neighborhood up to 30mph.
The diesel does have to torque to pull through without stalling... although I have killed it a couple times :D

The auto transmission (variable belt drive) scooters I've ridden don't coast with the throttle off until the speed drops below about 10 mph.

Yes, there are potential fuel saving advantages to having a manual transmission.

Q

..is the Vespa PX200 currently the only manual transmission scooter on the market currently.

Thanks!

I thought that Genuine Scooter's Stella was the only scooter with a manual transmission that's currently being produced in the US. Granted that it's a copy of the PX, but last I checked, the only PX's still in stores were the ones that hadn't been sold since they stopped production.

The Stella claims better fuel efficiency than the PX, and it's also less expensive. I've been considering buying a used one after I graduate and get settled into a job someplace, replacing my GTS250. The only thing holding me back is that it's a two-stroke.

At least in Wisconsin if it's engine is over 50cc then you need a motorcycle license, the 50cc scooters are licensed as "mopeds" and they have all kinds of advantages, like being able to park on sidewalks (no more coins in the meter, or tickets), they are also required to have an automatic tranny to make them simple to operate, if you get above 50cc then by all means get a motorcycle, small wheels are unstable, are bad with potholes, step thru frames feel unstable and are harder to maneuver with.
I love my Tomos Arrow (not made in china) I use it for trips in to town because it is 50cc, I also just filled up today and got 108.5mpg with it.
If you want something that is just cheap to buy new, then check out the Sachs Madass, you can pick one up new for about $1,600 then put a Honda engine on with a 4 speed instead of the automatic two speed and you will have something that should get amazing mileage.

The motorcycle saddle bags could carry larger items that could stick out if necessary. I think that a small motorcycle will also be a bit safer because it will be more maneuverable and you can swerve better and accelerate quickly in the event that someone starts to pull out in front of you (believe me- it will happen to you).

Actually a scooter handles EXACTLY like a motorcycle...the only thing is it has a CVT and no clutch to shift gears, just because the tires are smaller doesnt mean it handles any differently

I drive a big 650 cc dirt bike, but it only gets 55 mpg or so. I thought I'd get scooter-like mileage. It must be that it's too big and too geared for power.

My advice would be a ~250 cc street bike rather than a scooter. A scooter just won't keep up on the Interstate.

Aprilia makes a scooter with a direct-injection 50 cc two stroke engine. Direct injection should make it a lot more efficient than a carbureted 2 stroke. Anybody got actual mileage figures for it?

Most scooters that are 250cc or larger can handle freeway speeds nicely..even the Honda rebel 250 can go 70mph but it sounds like its going to explode...the Bergman 650 rivals many sportsbikes..don't underestimate the MODERN scooter..those things are sportsbikes you step thru, they hold TONS of stuff under the seat, get AWESOME gas mileage, and actually look much more decent than their older cousins, if you really want interstate speeds go with something in the 400cc range or higher, this way you know it can handle the speeds, you should expect approx 50-60mpg on a 400, 70-80 on a 250 (plus it all depends on how you ride)

Oh I also recommend this awesome motorcycle safety site!
http://www.msgroup.org

At least in Wisconsin if it's engine is over 50cc then you need a motorcycle license, the 50cc scooters are licensed as "mopeds" and they have all kinds of advantages, like being able to park on sidewalks (no more coins in the meter, or tickets), they are also required to have an automatic tranny to make them simple to operate, if you get above 50cc then by all means get a motorcycle, small wheels are unstable, are bad with potholes, step thru frames feel unstable and are harder to maneuver with.
Check the requirements in your area. In some states to qualify as a moped it also must no go above 25mph (I believe) in addition to being 50cc and under. There are some 50cc scooters that go over 25mph that do not qualify as mopeds. To suit both markets Honda makes two versions of its Metropolitan scooter, one is limited to the lower mph.

IMHO, Motorcycle > Scooter.

Usually faster, louder, and girls want to go for a ride.

I was over at my friends place replacing the seals in the master cylinder on my 1978 BMW R80/7 last weekend. He showed me this 30 year old Vespa he'd picked up last winter. We decided to see if it would start after sitting for 6 months -- it fired right up -- and then decided to run it up and down the street a bit.

As he's leaving the driveway, he stops at the sidewalk to let a very cute pedestrian pass -- she looks at him smiles and says "great scooter".

Funny, I've never had a hot chick look at my motorcycle and say the same thing.

As you can tell, I went for the Rebel after all. It works for the farting around town I wanted and the manual transmission lets me try some 250cc hypermiling (P&G, EOC, ect.) :thumbup:

One advantage of a scooter, say a 150cc, is it only weights about 250# total. makes it easy to load it on a Hitch Carrier and take with you "day to day" or on a "longer trip".

I always thought scooters gave at least 100 or 120mpg?

What is this 65mph you guys are talking about?

OK, somehow through this site I stumbled upon in frame mount motors for bicycles, they are relatively cheap (less than $300 new), some users have reported going 35-40mph and getting over 120 mpg. I've been an avid freestyle BMX and MTB rider for 20 years, so I'm seriously thinking about getting one of these motors and going MX style with it. Should be fun.

http://thatsdax.com/

I always thought scooters gave at least 100 or 120mpg?

What is this 65mph you guys are talking about?

65 MILES PER HOUR

100+ MILES PER GALLON is usually reserved for 4 stroke 50cc scoots and a few other very small scoots/bikes

I have been riding motorcycles since 2001, ridden more than my fair share of motorcycles. Recently, I just got a 250cc cheap Chinese scooter. I put over 1800 miles since March 26th.

Scooter cost $80 a year to insure, my motorcycles usually around $150 to $400 a year depending on model.

Maintenance on the scooter has been very cheap, it takes less than a quart of oil, 800ml of coolant, $4 sparkplug, $30 replacement tire, $25 for CVT belt, since I bought my scooter I have not spent $1 at a local dealer for maintenance or parts.

90% pr the engine operation is between 30-55 mph, I very rarely go above that, and never sustain high rpm operation. I'm loving my scooter for the practicality.

I have built a few of those for myself and friends. Be very careful! A bicycle isn't designed to go the speeds these engines will push them.

Q

OK, somehow through this site I stumbled upon in frame mount motors for bicycles, they are relatively cheap (less than $300 new), some users have reported going 35-40mph and getting over 120 mpg. I've been an avid freestyle BMX and MTB rider for 20 years, so I'm seriously thinking about getting one of these motors and going MX style with it. Should be fun.

http://thatsdax.com/

I think scooters are great in the city centre of for the suburbs, but in I do not trust other car drivers at all, I saw a motor bike pushed half way into the side of a car, it was the cars fault as he took the corner when he shouldn't have, the bike rider was decapitated right away, at the time I thought his helmet came off, that took away any fancy idea I had about getting a motor bike now.

I have built a few of those for myself and friends. Be very careful! A bicycle isn't designed to go the speeds these engines will push them.

Q

Most bicycles aren't. My bicycles however are designed for jumping, flipping, dropping (as in dropping off cliffs), high speed runs, and other assorted mayhem. I've made gravity runs on bicycles past 55 mph on several occasions, one of them being on a BMX bike. Adding 19 lbs for the motor and having a top speed of 35-45 mph seems pretty good to me.

Most bicycles aren't. My bicycles however are designed for jumping, flipping, dropping (as in dropping off cliffs), high speed runs, and other assorted mayhem. I've made gravity runs on bicycles past 55 mph on several occasions, one of them being on a BMX bike. Adding 19 lbs for the motor and having a top speed of 35-45 mph seems pretty good to me.

Most bicycles that are built for jumping, flipping, dropping off a cliff are likely to weight up to 50 lb. with all the suspension. Can't be fun pedaling (po-going) that on pavement for extended period of time.

I just bought a qlink 250cc cruiser. Qlink has got very good reviews on various scooter websites. The pegasus scooter is very hard to get. Liquid cooled. They sell out before they arrive. My "Legend" is a great looking 250. I haven't checked the milege yet but I have only used a small amount of the 2.3 gallon tank and I've got 65 miles on it. 2300.00 out the door, tax and tags in florida. I'm guessing I'll get 70-90mpg. It should cruise at 65 or so after break in.

Chinese scares me...it's a taiwan company that makes their stuff in china...they say they have engineers to oversee...they all say that so I'm not sure I believe it....does have 2 year parts and labor, 1 year road side assistance. Will I have to wait 6 hours to get help....your guess is as good as mine. I bought because of the reviews. Be sure to drive it!!!! The first one I drove didn't shift well. The welds are a little snotty but....what can you expect for 1990.00 plus tax and tags.

One thing I don't like is carburated....it needs to warm up a bit before taking off. It's fine after a few minutes. Runs great....I probably need a little carb adjustment...I'll get it done at my 500 mile oil change. It had zero miles and I don't think it was ever started so they had to adjust the carb a little while I stood there.

www.qlinkmotor.com

just hit cancel when the chinese language thing comes up....I'm not selling these so fear not!!! I'm not a salesman for qlink. The reviews say qlink is 3rd tier out of 5 tiers when it comes to quality of scooters. Honda, yamaha....1st tier. Here's the review I read...this is why I bought it. http://scootdawg.proboards59.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=1590

The "legecy" is pretty! Has a radio built in and etc....about 3300.00 out the door. The chinese sure do know how to make good looking cheap stuff.

Most bicycles that are built for jumping, flipping, dropping off a cliff are likely to weight up to 50 lb. with all the suspension. Can't be fun pedaling (po-going) that on pavement for extended period of time.

With the motor it will be about that weight. I usually ride full rigid MTBs because of my BMX background and my bikes usually weigh in around 30 lbs. I'm thinking of using a squish fork with the motor though.

Here's a bike similar to what I typically ride.
http://www.eastern26.com/Products/Complete/MTB08Completes/LargePhotos/Thunderbird2008.jpg

I will need a slightly taller frame to fit the motor though.

Hot damn! First tank yielded 94.6 mpg... not bad from the usual 22.3 I got in my car!

Most bicycles aren't. My bicycles however are designed for jumping, flipping, dropping (as in dropping off cliffs), high speed runs, and other assorted mayhem. I've made gravity runs on bicycles past 55 mph on several occasions, one of them being on a BMX bike. Adding 19 lbs for the motor and having a top speed of 35-45 mph seems pretty good to me.


Here's a bike similar to what I typically ride.
http://www.eastern26.com/Products/Complete/MTB08Completes/LargePhotos/Thunderbird2008.jpg

I will need a slightly taller frame to fit the motor though.


Single speed with that tiny chainring and no front brake at 55mph?

Gravity can be a wonderful thing for gaining speed. I did state that the posted bike is similar to my bikes, I do use front brakes on my MTBs.

I will need a slightly taller frame to fit the motor though.

I mounted a chain saw engine on my mountain bike back in 1998, I rode it all the way to Paris from Scotland, it was so dam loud even with extra steel wool in the muffler and the vibrations in the saddle and handle bars was a killer, my hands would lose sensation even with the flexy stem, the only good part was the speed and FE, I originally used a half litre water bottle as a fuel tank and it would last around 90 to 120 minutes depending on what I did, I had so much fun with this but I got pulled over by the cops way to many times in the end, because it had a 64cc engine they said I needed an MOT, road tax, and insurance,:rolleyes: killjoys.

I highly recommend you guys make your own chainsaw powered bikes because its a blast, I could get up 68mph with my gear set up and the engine has the same power as 6 pairs of legs but with 20,000rpms:p

http://www.saabphotos.com/gallery/albums/album231/DSC02989.sized.jpg

That is a kick butt piece of work!!! 68mph!!! Oh yea!!! Nice!

Feedback on my Qlink Legend 250cc....sent qlink an email...going on two days without an answer. That's enough to say.....they're not as good as the review. The motorcycle rides fine but....they can offer anything in warranty form but if they don't answer their email then it is worthless...or close to it.


I mounted a chain saw engine on my mountain bike back in 1998, I rode it all the way to Paris from Scotland, it was so dam loud even with extra steel wool in the muffler and the vibrations in the saddle and handle bars was a killer, my hands would lose sensation even with the flexy stem, the only good part was the speed and FE, I originally used a half litre water bottle as a fuel tank and it would last around 90 to 120 minutes depending on what I did, I had so much fun with this but I got pulled over by the cops way to many times in the end, because it had a 64cc engine they said I needed an MOT, road tax, and insurance,:rolleyes: killjoys.

I highly recommend you guys make your own chainsaw powered bikes because its a blast, I could get up 68mph with my gear set up and the engine has the same power as 6 pairs of legs but with 20,000rpms:p

http://www.saabphotos.com/gallery/albums/album231/DSC02989.sized.jpg

I tell this to everyone who thinks about getting a scooter over a motorcycle. Scooters are WAY overpriced. Motorcycles are too, but scooters are really bad. Most scooters cannot go on the freeway (often for legal reasons) and if you ever develop a love for riding (most do), then you WILL want to go a long distance at freeway speeds. I can't do 90% of the things I do on a motorcycle on a scooter. My theory is if your commute is short enough for using a scooter, then you can bike it on a bicycle (which I love doing except my commute is 46 miles hence the need for a freeway vehicle). Scooter mpg isn't that much better than small motorcycles. My Buell Blast is a 492cc Harley Davidson that gives me 87mpg city/freeway combined when I ride aerodynamically by putting my feet on the rear pegs and laying on the bike. It's not uncomfortable. It'll take me just over 100mph and has no trouble up hills. My huge increase in mpg largely comes from the fact that motorcycles unlike cars are terribly un-aerodynamic. By riding out of the wind, I've boosted my mpgs by 33%. No joke. 67mpg up to 87mpg. That's at a steady riding speed of 60-65mph. Not bad eh? I bought the bike used in 2004 (2 years old) for $1900 with 1850 miles on it. Buell Blasts are cheap for resale because most people don't like them because they accelerate slowly compared to twin and four cylinder equivalents. Get a motorcycle. You'll thank yourself after you've gotten your riding skills up to par.

I tell this to everyone who thinks about getting a scooter over a motorcycle. Scooters are WAY overpriced. Motorcycles are too, but scooters are really bad. Most scooters cannot go on the freeway (often for legal reasons) and if you ever develop a love for riding (most do), then you WILL want to go a long distance at freeway speeds. I can't do 90% of the things I do on a motorcycle on a scooter. My theory is if your commute is short enough for using a scooter, then you can bike it on a bicycle (which I love doing except my commute is 46 miles hence the need for a freeway vehicle). Scooter mpg isn't that much better than small motorcycles. My Buell Blast is a 492cc Harley Davidson that gives me 87mpg city/freeway combined when I ride aerodynamically by putting my feet on the rear pegs and laying on the bike. It's not uncomfortable. It'll take me just over 100mph and has no trouble up hills. My huge increase in mpg largely comes from the fact that motorcycles unlike cars are terribly un-aerodynamic. By riding out of the wind, I've boosted my mpgs by 33%. No joke. 67mpg up to 87mpg. That's at a steady riding speed of 60-65mph. Not bad eh? I bought the bike used in 2004 (2 years old) for $1900 with 1850 miles on it. Buell Blasts are cheap for resale because most people don't like them because they accelerate slowly compared to twin and four cylinder equivalents. Get a motorcycle. You'll thank yourself after you've gotten your riding skills up to par.

I guess you don't ride much in bumper to bumper traffic, that's mainly the reason I switched from motorcycles to scooter. I have been riding motorcycles since 2001, combined approx. 265,000 miles on many different bikes. When you're crawling along in traffic at 5-15 mph, the clutching and shifting on a motorcycle gets tiring really easily.
My 250cc Chinese scooter cost $1699 shipped to my driveway, I put little over 2600 miles since I received it, it gets over 90 mpg. I ride it on the freeway once in a while but no longer than 20 miles at once. Most of my commute is between 25-50 mph, which is about 40-70% of its engine capability. Longest single day distance I've traveled on the scooter is about 220 miles in little over 5 hours.

Just an FYI, you should change the category of your Buell Blast GasLog from "gasoline" to "mototcycle", some members are sensitive of this common issue.

Actually about 1/3 of my commute is bumper to bumper traffic. The San Francisco bay area has some of the worst traffic backups of any city nationwide. Problem is the state officials don't make much of an effort to fix it. You're probably not aware that in California, lane splitting IS legal. That's a primary reason I ride my motorcycles everywhere here. I can just pass by all the cagers on the freeway and in town. So I definitely do have to slow down in heavy traffic, but I don't have to sit there like everyone else. I usually don't have to go below 25mph depending on how gutsy I want to be dodging cars that decide to change lanes without looking in their mirrors for motorcycles. I think California is the only state that allows this. There are lots of reasons for it, and thank God there isn't really any opposition to it from lawmakers/politicians. In fact, here in California we motorcyclists get away with a lot of things. I don't have to pay bridge tolls ($4+ per crossing) and I don't have to do smog checks like all the cars do. It really pays off to ride motorcycles in California. So bumper to bumper traffic isn't really an issue for me. Yes, I have to slow down, but I'm not constantly shifting around because of it. I just haven't found a real love for scooters because for less than what I would pay for a scooter, I can get something that'll last forever and can break speeds of 100mph. Not to mention the distance range is a whole lot better on motorcycles. Some scooter guys here buy those small scooters for $5k+ and they only go 45mph max. I could buy two motorcycles for that price that have equivalent gas mileage (IF you drive economically as I do).

I just think scooters are way overpriced for what you get. I would get bored with a scooter real fast. They're just too weak for my tastes. The biggest factor is cost and usefulness, but for others not in my situation they may not need a vehicle capable of maintaining highway speeds. Still I think a MC is a better buy for what you get. I'm not sure how motorcycles compare with scooters in terms of longevity, but I've never heard of a scooter approaching 100k miles without complete engine/transmission replacement. Motorcycles on the other hand greatly exceed that value.

toniportray - when buying NEW - Chinese scooter go for $2K-$3K, or ~$1700 shipped if you shop around, where as a new Buell is around $5K. You got a good deal, but doesn't mean that I will.

In my area (CT) used stuff is often listed for more then you can buy it new if you look for a sale. I try to save and buy used whenever I can (all the cars I ever bought were used ...but I had to look around A LOT and go out of state to picke them up LOL). With used stuff it seems like you always have to WAIT, WAIT, WAIT and spend all the time looking in to classifieds and driving around looking at other people's junk. Sometimes it's worth it, but it's really apples to oranges.

Ross

Well, for your usage in California.. where highways are 4-6 lanes wide each direction, traffic easily flow at above 60 mph regularly that's differnet than bumper to bumber traffic on a two-lane highway crawling at 10 mph for 10 miles.
I lane split all the time whether it's legal or not, and I passed by LEOs while doing so, never had a cop pull me over for going 20 mph when traffic is at 5 mph or standstill.

On the operating cost of motorcycles vs scooter, from my experience:

For 20,000 miles usage, a motorcycle would require at least two sets of tires ($100-$300 a set),

4-6 oil/filter change (4 qt. of oil and a filter, about $20-30 each oil/filter change)

one set of chain/sprokets, ($60 chain, another $40-60 for sprockets)

one or two sets of brake pads ($15-30 a set of pads),

one valve adjustment (4 hour job, shop rate about $150-200),

maybe a clutch (6-8 hour job, shop rate $160-300 depending on # of cylinders).

For a scooter, two or three sets of tires will cost 1/2 to 2/3 of motorcycle tires at $20-60 each.

Engine oil requirement about 1/3 of motorcycles. (only 1 qt. per oil change, no filter)

CVT belts ($30) at 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of a motorcycle chain,

brake pads about the same,

I do my valve adjustment in 5 minutes while engine is running at operating temp.

Clutch replacement on scooter is a 2 hour job (shop rate $80-100), I can do it in my garage with less time.

BTW, I doubt very much that a Buell Blast would last 100,000 miles with its single cylinder engine. Once you get used to operating a motorcycle, you would likely move to bigger displacement, more cyclinder motorcycles.