November 28, 2006
Scooter devotees aren't discouraged by the chill
If, during some bitterly cold day this winter, you see one or more scooters motoring down some Mankato road, do not pity them.
Well, maybe a little pity wouldn’t hurt. But they won’t put their Vespas and Lambrettas in storage simply on account of subzero temps.
At least two Mankato riders are looking to win a blog’s contest to see who can ride for 10 miles in the coldest temperature. Last year’s winner hailed from Ithaca, N.Y., and rode in minus 6.5 degrees.
Peter Lundgren figures he can beat that. All he needs is some Minnesota cold and some clear pavement (riding in the cold may sounds painful, but scootering on snow or ice is asking for trouble).
What he doesn’t need is an excuse.
“I love to ride scooters,” said Lundgren, 28. “It’s what I do.”
Life before scooters is a blur. He assumes he must have talked about something, but he can’t begin to think of what it might have been.
He doesn’t even need a contest.
On Saturday, he scooted in to work (yes, he sells scooters) at Starr Cycle Yamaha. He has five scooters (one doesn’t run) and this time he chose a Lambretta, which can do 70 mph.
You see, Lundgren loves his scooters too much to hang them up for six months. He tries to get out at least once a month, every month.
Link.
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November 27, 2006
Exploring the West Coast scooter revival
"Total obsession" doesn't begin to describe Kenny Brown's love affair with his motor scooter. It's a veritable religion where Vespas are idols, garages are temples, and ritual is pushing a start button to bring forth the buzz of a two-stroke engine.
As Brown, a phlebotomist living in Arroyo Grande, puts it, "It's a way of life. It's a totally different world."
Sixty years after Italy's war-torn Piaggio first started producing the wasp-like Vespa, scooters have seen a monumental comeback. They're sleek, nostalgic and infinitely cool, a favorite with hipsters, professionals and Italophiles alike. Twenty years ago, you might have seen 20 or 30 scooters cruising SLO County streets, Brown said. Now the figure is closer to 100 with demand so strong that this month, the county gained its own certified Vespa dealer.
Jim Wilmore said he's had about 20 people a day stopping to check out the scooters at his Wilmore Auto Works in San Luis Obispo. Getting in on the action, he bought himself a brand-new burgundy Vespa as soon as the shipment came in.
Unlike motorcycles, scooters feature full bodywork including leg shields and a "step-through" design that allows users to sit rather than straddle the engine — as well as more compact, generally less powerful engines and frames. What's more, they boast stunning gas mileage and ease of use. A newer model might get up to 100 miles per gallon.
Bonnie Scott of San Luis Obispo is among the scooter enthusiasts drawn by the economic benefits of Vespas and other brands — cheaper-than-cars prices, low gas costs and the ability to park just about anywhere.
Link.
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Visiting the Piaggio museum
Scoot over to see an Italian icon
MOST people flying into Pisa head straight for the obvious charms of Florence and Siena. But it is well worth spending a day or two exploring Tuscany’s less-crowded northern region.
If you have only time to see one attraction in this neck of the woods, then head for Pontedera, a 20-minute drive from Pisa. On the site of the iconic transport company’s former factory, the Museo Piaggio is home to the world’s biggest collection of Vespa, Piaggio and Gilera motorbikes.
Although best known for the cult Vespa scooter, Piaggio manufactured almost every mode of transport, from cars, buses, motorbikes and trucks to aircraft and trains. The museum traces the entire collection and provides a fascinating social and economic history of the area.
The company was founded by Rinaldo Piaggio in 1884. By the second world war Piaggio was one of the most important European aeronautics, railway, steamship and transatlantic liner manufacturers.
In 1946 Rinaldo’s son Enrico envisaged and produced the Vespa, a vehicle that came to symbolise post-war reconstruction in Italy. Since then, more than 100 Vespa models have been produced and 20 million sold, making it one of the most successful post-war brands ever created. The first Vespa prototypes are on display alongside more modern models, such as the Montlhéry and Siluro, as well as the Dalì, designed by Salvador Dalì, the Catalan artist, in 1962.
Link.
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Fuel cell scooter project gathers pace
A project to develop an affordable hydrogen-powered scooter is gathering pace with a new agreement between experts from around the world.
Birmingham, UK, based Valeswood is leading the development and has announced that it is bringing together experts from the UK, Finland and China to work on the development of the fuel cell scooter.
Valeswood managing director, John Turner, said that the technology involved in this development is "completely different from other hydrogen fuel cells".
However, he added that it is hoped the final product will cost no more than an ordinary scooter, reports the Birmingham Post.
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November 19, 2006
TVS Motor [India] to enter 4-stroke scooter category
TVS Motor is planning to enter the 100 cc plus four-stroke scooter category to take on Honda Activa and Kinetic 4S, report agency sources.
The company official said that TVS Motors is expected to launch a scooter in the segment in which the 102 cc Honda Activa is the leader. There are also plans to launch a new motorcycle in the 125 cc executive segment to grow its sales. It would be the second time the company would be entering this category. TVS was forced to exit the segment after its product failed to notch up good numbers.
The official further said that the main reason for launching a 100 cc plus scooter was because the 90 cc TVS Scooty was associated with women and hence was not able to rope in male customers. The entry into the segment could happen sooner than expected. The scooter segment forms 10 per cent of the two-wheeler market whose size in volume terms is between 5 lakh units and 6 lakh units per month.
TVS sells between 22,000 units and 25,000 units of Scooty every month. The company does not believe that it is entering the market a bit late as it finds that the growth in that segment has stagnated and it is the right time to launch a product, which could shake up the market.
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November 14, 2006
Bajaj readies for comeback in scooter segment
Bajaj Auto is all set to make a comeback in the scooter segment with a new portfolio of vehicles, the first of which, the Bajaj Kristal, will be launched in January 2007.
The company's comeback into the segment, which is currently showing signs of revival after a long gap, will be on a strong technology platform, Mr Rajiv Bajaj, Managing Director, told Business Line.
The company is simultaneously reworking the distribution channels for the scooter business with a view to keeping it the focus of attention in a market currently dominated by motorcycles.
"I believe that there is a promising future for scooters that are insightfully positioned, since such scooters will offer customers several meaningful benefits that motorcycles cannot."
Link.
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Designers - Win a Vespa!
The South African Vespa site is well worth a visit - Vespa's current campaign and website get a big thumbs up from Represent - and you know we fussy like that.
Have you seen the billboards around town "Pay to use the road" and "4 wheels pay. 2 wheels don't" "Road Tax coming" - well they're all part of Vespa's latest campaign - they're asking peeps to sign a petition against the forthcoming road tax bill to be put before parliament. Go online and download your form!
But if you'd rather not focus on politics and get a little creative, enter the ArtVespa competition before the 31 November - it's super simple, all you have to do make a Vespa look funky with your very own style. You can download a photo of a Vespa from the site and photoshop it and send it back for your chance to win - tres simple!!
Check it out here. Good Luck!
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November 13, 2006
Yamaha's prototype fuel cell scooter
This is a parallel hybrid scooter mounting an electric motor and gasoline engine. Despite the large body that gives a feeling of spacious comfort to the ride, this model has torque-y power development in the low rpm range that delivers the acceleration feeling of a bike one class above, as well as good fuel economy, environmental friendliness and performance that brings a real joy of riding.
The frame is a CF aluminum die-cast type. At the same time it has convenient functions that only a hybrid bike can offer, such as a "quiet mode" (running only on the electric motor) and a "push mode" that makes pushing the bike in places like parking lots easy (super low-power drive when off the bike).
Fuel cell systems using hydrogen gas as their fuel are the most common, but it is difficult to make a compact system of this type. The "Yamaha Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (DMFC) System" uses a liquid methanol-water solution as its fuel, which eliminates the need for a converter and a pressurized (fuel) tank and thus makes it possible to create a lightweight system for a small vehicle requiring power in the 1 kW range without compromising on power output characteristics.
Based on survey data gathered from licensed public-road use of our "FC06 PROTO," a prototype mounting the Yamaha DMFC system, the advanced fuel cell motorcycle model "FC-me" has now been created with improved performance in areas like reliability and running distance. By optimizing the control parameters for the fuel cell system, Yamaha's engineers have achieved an energy conversion rate for the FC-me that is 1.5 times that of the FC06 PROTO, while re-evaluation of the body components has made possible a light machine weight of just 69 kg. A contract has been signed with Shizuoka Prefecture to put this model in practical use on a lease basis as of September 16 of this year.
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This mod's Vespa is voted best
Napier scooter enthusiast Lance Robson has never had a problem knowing what was coming up behind him on the road. He can see whatever it is from 13 angles ... the British mods of the mid-60s would have been delighted.
And not just with the 13 mirrors which adorn his Piaggio PX200 Vespa.
The mods (who adorned their Vespas and Lambrettas with every possible accessory and add-on) would have also given the thumbs-up to the white-wall tyres, the smart mudflaps, the chequered windscreen and the lashings of chrome.
Earlier this year the judges at the New Zealand Scooter Association Show in Palmerston North also gave his remarkable Vespa the thumbs-up.
It took the "Best in Show" title, which left Lance with a smile on his face.
But then, when he's out on the scooter he usually has a smile on his face.
"They are fun ... they are just so much fun," he said.
"I'm always grinning away. That's why I wear a full-face helmet," he said with a laugh.
Through the years there had been a worldwide interest in classic scooters, namely those from Italy.
That word had reached Hawke's Bay, and as a result a casual, social group had sprung up, fittingly called the Napier Scooter Boys. Not a structured club by any means. More a group of blokes who love to get out on the first Sunday of every month for a scooter ride.
"We're never in a hurry," Lance said.
Link.
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Man on scooter chases burglar
LANCASTER COUNTY, PA - A Paradise Townshp burglary victim, riding a scooter, chased a suspect until Lancaster state police arrived and arrested the fleeing man shortly before 3 a.m. Wednesday.
Michael David Riehl, 43, of Paradise, was caught on South Belmont Road, after he allegedly broke into a nearby building on Quarry Road, Cpl. Lawrence Wallick said.
The activation of motion alarms at 2:45 a.m. Wednesday alerted Ivan Beiler King, 33, that someone was on his property at 4 Quarry Road, Paradise, which is about 11-w miles south of Route 30.
When King checked a building, he heard noises and then saw a person inside the office area, Wallick said.
The intruder fled on foot, runing east on Quarry Road and then south on Belmont Road. King followed him on a scooter. Troopers then arrived and took Riehl into custody, Wallick said.
Riehl was charged with burglary, criminal trespass and theft, and was committed to Lancaster County Prison in default of $10,000 bail, police said.
On Wednesday night, Lancaster state police searched for a “peeping tom’’ suspect in Salisbury Township.
A resident who lives in the area of 5200 block of Old Philadelphia Pike near Snake Lane, which is west of White Horse, called the Lancaster barracks at 9:25 p.m. He had seen a strange man looking into the window of a neighboring home, trying to get a glimpse of a female, Trooper Josh Whiteside said.
The man had both his hands and face pressed against the window, the caller told police.
When the caller asked the man what he was doing , the man replied that “he was looking for his dog,’’ which he described as a white German shepherd with a black rear leg. The man told the neighbor he had been looking for the dog for several hours, Whiteside said.
The man then fled on foot. Lancaster troopers and a K-9 unit from the West Brandywine Police Department in Chester County searched for the suspect for about an hour, but could not find him.
Link.
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Vespa dealership creates a buzz
Vespa scooters, long the vehicle of choice for many Europeans, are now being sold in downtown San Luis Obispo. Wilmore AutoWorks became the county’s first official dealer of the sleek, trendy Italian scooters over the weekend.
Owner Jim Wilmore said he began noticing the scooters around the Central Coast in recent months. He approached the Vespa maker, who agreed to make Wilmore AutoWorks the first Vespa dealer in San Luis Obispo County. The dealership is located at 1144 Higuera in San Luis Obispo.
Previously, the closest Vespa dealerships were in Santa Barbara and Bakersfield. Vespa is the Italian word for wasp, which the president of the original manufacturer exclaimed in the mid-1940s after first seeing what would become the most successful scooter of all time.
The scooters, which have long been popular in Europe, were made famous when Hollywood starlet Audrey Hepburn side-saddled Gregory Peck’s Vespa for a ride through Rome in the 1952 film "Roman Holiday."
Since he began offering the stylish scooters, Wilmore said he has had dozens of inquiries from interested buyers. The cycles appeal to riders who have short work commutes or who want to lower their gas usage, he said. The scooters range from $1,899 to $5,800 and can reach up to 65 mph. Most varieties are not built for highway driving, however, because most can’t reach 65 mph.
The new-found popularity of the Vespa isn’t limited to the Central Coast — United States Vespa sales rose by 15 percent in 2005, according to the Piaggio Group, the firm that makes Vespas.
Wilmore AutoWorks, which also sells used high-end European cars, has 38 scooters in stock with innovative designs and colors.
Vespa was created in 1946 by the Piaggio Group, an Italian transportation company.
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“Turn in your machine-gun and win a scooter”
SARAJEVO -- The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) launched a drive in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The contest calls on all owners of illegally held weapons to turn them in and enter a lottery to win a number of attractive prizes.
All those who decide to hand over weapons left from the country's 1992-1995 war may win a scooter or any of numerous home appliances, the UNDP said.
Loads of weapons were left behind across Bosnia-Herzegovina after the 1992-1995 war, posing a constant danger to security.
Since the end of the war, hundreds of people have been accidentally killed by illegally held weapons.
The weapons left from the war have also been often used as a tool in family disputes or as instrument in ethnic-related incidents, such as last month in the southern city of Mostar, where a Bosnian Croat fired a rocket-propelled grenade at a local mosque.
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New electric scooter hits 100kph
An electric motorscooter capable of travelling at 100kph will hit Italian showrooms in January and promises to transform urban transport .
The Vectrix is produced by a company of the same name created ten years ago by former Ducati CEO Carlo di Biagio .
"This scooter is the result of the confidence of many foreign investors who put 65 million dollars into the project," Di Biaggio said. The scooter is being marketed as an "urban revolution" because it is is at least twice as fast and has twice the autonomy of electric motorbikes currently on the market .
Aside from its top speed of 100kph, the Vectrix has an acceleration rate of 0 to 50kph in 3.6 seconds and can travel 110km on a single charge .
According to the producer, the scooter's battery can be charged to 80% capacity in only two hours .
Vectrix hopes its new scooter will capture 5% of the domestic motorbike market within the next five years. Although the Vectrix's price tag will be in the neighborhood of 12,000 euros, about twice that for a normal 400cc scooter, buyers will quickly make up the extra expenditure through savings on fuel and maintenance .
It was calculated that if riders travel 8,000km a year they will save 2,269 euros on fuel .
Buyers of the Vectrix will also be able to benefit from government incentives to buy environmentally friendly vehicles .
The city of Rome, for example, offers up to 1,300 euros for the purchase of electric vehicles .
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Suzuki has a cool scooter
There is an old joke among motorcyclists about riding a scooter that isn't suitable for a newspaper. But the punch line is, "It might be fun, but you wouldn't want your friends to see you on one."
And so I felt some trepidation when I agreed to ride Suzuki's Burgman 400 for a week.
The Burgman, like many modern scooters, is a sleek number with more plastic than pizzazz, and though it is far more powerful, comfortable and reliable than, say, a vintage Vespa, it is nowhere near as cool. That's why you don't see them parked six deep outside hipster bars in the Mission.
Such thoughts vanished faster than oil from an old Triumph as I zipped through each day's commute on the road-going equivalent of a Barcalounger, smiling all the while knowing -- thanks to the big digital gauge smack in the middle of the instrument cluster -- I was getting 46 mpg.
Of course, motorcyclists aren't the target audience. The Burgman is aimed at urban commuters looking for reliable and comfortable transportation for a reasonable price, and it might be just the ticket for them. It's easy to ride, it goes forever on a tank of gas, it's freeway legal and it carries a ton of stuff.
Link.
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Electric scooters are economical and ecological
If every journey begins with a first step, the first step in Jim Letzel's latest enterprise was noticing swarms of electric scooters buzzing everywhere he went in China.
"Then I saw gas prices here spike, and I thought I could sell them," said Letzel, chief executive of a Mission Viejo trading company called Global Discoveries.
For more than a decade, Letzel has made a living doing business with Asia: selling California wines in China and selling Chinese wine bottles to California vintners, buying gift package products there, printing Japanese textbooks here.
His latest import is the Eco-Glide LE, a scooter that looks like a Vespa but runs on a pair of rechargeable batteries with 1,500 watts of power – enough juice to cruise at more than 30 mph.
"Eco stands for economical and ecological," Letzel said.
The Eco-Glide runs as quietly as a golf cart. Recharging takes 10 to 12 hours and uses about 50 cents worth of electricity. The Eco-Glide's range is little more than 10 miles, which Letzel sees as practical for students or other short-distance commuters. In China, the scooters are popular for food deliveries. Letzel drives his to the office.
"The worst thing is being heckled by the guys on Harleys," he said.
In California, you need only a regular driver's license and a helmet to drive them, he said.
The biggest challenge was finding a reliable manufacturer in China, Letzel said. He scouted a dozen factories before choosing one in Taizhou, about an hour outside Shanghai. There, he found a pair of entrepreneurs he nicknamed the Wright Brothers – Ken Wu and Wei Jie – who eagerly adapted the Chinese scooters to American tastes.
The LE stands for "Luxury Edition" because the U.S. version of the scooter quadrupled the wattage to carry a typical American – up to 250 pounds – and installed bigger brakes to stop all that weight.
Letzel declined to release specific sales figures but said he has sold "a few hundred" since the bikes first were offered on Costco's Web site, www.costco.com. Although the scooters cost more than the cheapest moped, Letzel points out they are half the price of a Vespa.
And, Letzel adds:
"You can order them in any color, as long as it's black," he said.
Cost: $1,399.99.
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