While a motorcycle gets between 40 and 60 miles per gallon, a scooter gets between 60 and 100 miles per gallon, according to Mike Mount, a spokesman for the motorcycle group.
Customers “are sick of feeding their big trucks,” said Darrin Gitlitz, owner of New York Honda Yamaha. Gitlitz said that he has seen scooter sales increase more than sales of other kinds of motorbikes.
Honda typically sells more than 12 million two-wheeled bikes globally every year, according to John Seidel, a Honda spokesman. This year, in an attempt to capture sales, Honda released its 2009 scooter models to dealers early, according to Seidel.
“We went ahead and released ‘09 this summer,” said Seidel. The two 2009 Honda scooter brands – the Rucqus and the Metropolitan – both sell for between $2,049 and $2,149. In contrast, a Honda motorcycle starts around $3,000 and maxes out near $25,000.
As I was filling up the Ferrari the other day and soaking in happy thoughts of $3.49 gasoline, the dude at the next pump was sporting this little number:
I liked it enough to look it up on the internets later. I’m saddened, however, by two things. Its cost and its MPGs. $2500 and 85mpg. What the fuck! It’s got a top speed of 43mph. Which is fine, except that for $2500 and the cost of an umbrella, I might as well buy a car. This is the kind of thing that really pisses me off.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Zoomer (The one I saw looked a lot more like the one in the wiki photo, it’s definitely rugged)
Like the mini-Ford diesel that they won’t sell in the US. I’ve posted that link before but I’ll find it and put it here when I have a second.
[update] This thing has a “dry weight” of 180 lbs. That means with the gasoline and me, we’re talking 340 lbs. This sucker needs better mileage.
My current ride gets 3.5 MPG in ALL conditions. It weighs 1500 lbs. and does 160 around corners. There is no excuse for Honda. They are a competitor.
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September 11, 2008 at 8:48 pm
FARfetched
Home. Ahead of schedule, against my will, and (as it turns out) needlessly. At least I can catch up on ZK now.
Small scooters like that are kind of special-purpose vehicles — they’re meant to live in town where they won’t be asked to go much faster than 40 in the first place. Putting one on the open road makes about as much sense as never getting a Ferrari out of heavy traffic. But most scooters are better equipped with cargo space, the better to carry groceries and work materials.
Its name (Ruckus) and design suggest it’s aimed at younger city folks, who are more concerned with style than practicality.
September 11, 2008 at 8:53 pm
JR
That’s the first thing I thought about was cargo space. Plus maybe a seat with more back support. I’m guessing you and I will go on to fame and fortune as consultants to the “new-and-improved” GM.
September 12, 2008 at 9:40 am
FARfetched
Yeah, your seating position is going to be much like a car or a cruiser-bike: feet forward, sitting up straight. You’ll need some back support or take very short trips. A slight forward lean would help.
The fat tires & camo fairing suggests pretensions of being able to take it down at least hard-pack dirt roads. The suspension says otherwise. IOW, it’s the two-wheel version of an SUV pavement queen: all show and no go.
September 26, 2008 at 12:58 am
Nicholas
The Ruckus is a nice little machine for the city. 50cc bikes can be parked on the sidewalk. I was hoping for a street legal Dream 50 R though…
See those Chrysler GEMS?
February 7, 2009 at 11:24 pm
uncle yarra
FFS! they couldn’t even put disc brakes on it!
Frankly it doesn’t look much different to my Z50J I had when I was in 3rd grade (1970s).
March 26, 2009 at 10:18 pm
Shimabaran
Not sure you guys are getting it – I live in rural Japan, own a Zoomer, and love it. Anyone who say’s it’s all show and no-go hasn’t tried one. The tube-frame is covered in hook-points for a cargo-net or bungie cords – combined with the open space under the seat, means you can transport stuff that you never could on another scooter. The oversized tyres and low max-speed do a lot to offset the relative lack of suspension or disc breaks. Not sure where complaints about the fuel economy come from – seems good enough to me. They’re also fertile ground for customisation – see (http://is.gd/pb2e), (http://is.gd/pb2t), and (http://is.gd/pb57). I don’t own a car, and use mine for rides up to about 90mins in length. Low speed isn’t much of an issue here since not many Japanese roads have a limit of over 50km/h anyway.