Motorcycle And Scooter News

[kz1000st]

That mileage is pretty good. It always amazes me the discrepancy between scooter mileages on conscientiously maintained scooters and the ones that get flogged. I have seen people write that 20k miles is "High Mileage" on a scooter when guys like you can drag them out to 30k and only sell them because they want/need something newer. Keep up the good work.

[kz1000st]

Oh Goody! A 155cc scooter that goes out the door for over $14k.

https://www.motorcycle.com/bikes/new...llery-44615677

[guzzijohn]

Glad to see someone but are we the only ones?

[kz1000st]

So far Sc00ter and I are the only active participants on this thread. Scooter forums are all being replaced by Facebook and YouTube sites. Join in and join the party here.

[sc00ter]

I love these silly little scooters so I'll pop in from time to time, plus I have to keep my password fresh. Also, I don't do FaceBook or any social media site.

Now back to one of KZ's post about the big baller Vespa. In person those collector Vespa's are super nice. Not practical by any means but very nicely executed. I'm obviously not their target for a potential buyer, especially at that price! Only thing I collect are those New Wave Toys 1/6th scale arcade games. But the last one I purchased, Food Fight, was poorly built. I no longer have faith in New Wave Toy products and will be VERY selective if I decide to purchase from them again. The Food Fight has the following flaws. To turn it on or off you have to turn it upside down! The speaker sounds like its being smothered under a pillow and the joystick responds poorly. All the other games I have by them work correctly, though I hate the clicky/notchy spinner on the Tempest.

What weird hobbies do you have?

[guzzijohn]

Ah yes, the phone plague. No smart phone or video games here.

[kz1000st]

Nothing is easy.

https://www.rideapart.com/news/74794...m-refinements/

[sc00ter]

I have a funny ebike story. My co-worker purchased a AddMotor for $100 with a locked-up motor. He pulled the motor from the hub and brought it to work and we got it working. So he got a $150 ebike, the $50 was parts needed to fix the hub because a magnet came unglued. My co-worker was working a part time job at this time and noticed a fellow employee riding a cheap Huffy mountain bike everyday.

I had a Lectric XP 3.0 that I was no longer riding and was trying to find it a worthwhile home, so my co-worker and I had a idea. My co-worker loaded both ebikes in his truck and took them to his part time job to see if the Huffy guy would like a free ebike. He huffed this Huffy 8 miles each way, rain or shine. So anyways, my co-worker finds the guy and ask him if he wants to try both ebikes and pick the one he likes best. The Huffy guy wouldn't even try them! Said ebikes are "To fast to be safe for him.", passed on a free ebike because 20mph max is unsafe! You can modulate the throttle and lock the top speed but this guy had no urge to even try one. To each their own I guess.

My co-worker kept the XP 3.0 and found someone thru his church for the AddMotor.

[kz1000st]

Originally Posted by sc00ter

So anyways, my co-worker finds the guy and ask him if he wants to try both ebikes and pick the one he likes best. The Huffy guy wouldn't even try them! Said ebikes are "To fast to be safe for him.", passed on a free ebike because 20mph max is unsafe! You can modulate the throttle and lock the top speed but this guy had no urge to even try one. To each their own I guess.

People are really strange sometimes. He probably saw someone on an e bike once who was really going fast and the endless impression was that e bikes are all too fast.

I've owned big motorcycles and never broke the sound barrier on them. If I ever bought a crotch rocket you have to know it would never wheelie down the street or race around at twice the speed limit. It's always the impression that someone gets from seeing something crazy. The local Supermarket has a cheap e bike for under $400 and it stirs my interest. I have a trio of good Road Bikes if I want to get out on something though.

[sc00ter]

I had road bikes BITD. My favorite was a Peugeot Triathlon with good 'ol 105 groupset. My riding buddy had a De Rosa with Campy, Chorus and a bit of Record. My last road bike was a Rans Fusion semi-bent. What road bikes do you have? I quit riding when all the quiet rural roads got over ran with McMansion sub-divisions and all the wannabe cowboys there started driving big, dumb trucks. Just so dangerous now!

Costco has a Jetson ebike for $500 that's a heck of deal spec wise. Best bang for your buck is a direct to consumer Lectric XP Lite or a Ride1Up Portola if you want gears.

When I had my crotch rocket I was in my early 20's. I was that idiot riding wheelies on the interstate, doing burn-outs in parking lots and just being a jackass. I miss that bike sometimes but I'm older now and know I'll never ride it even remotely close to it's limits to enjoy it properly. I was gonna treat myself to a Kawasaki ZX-4RR but we (USA) got the neutered half-power model.

[kz1000st]

Originally Posted by sc00ter

What road bikes do you have? I quit riding when all the quiet rural roads got over ran with McMansion sub-divisions

I was gonna treat myself to a Kawasaki ZX-4RR but we (USA) got the neutered half-power model.

I have a 1970's Raleigh Grand Prix with friction shift and Center pull brakes, An aluminum Raleigh R500 and a Cannondale 500 with carbon fiber forks.

I don't get the ZX-4RR at all. For the same money you can have a Z-900, regular as opposed to the RS model, and have way more power and all around use as opposed to laying your belly on the tank. I would do a long ride or commute on a 900. Maybe if I was a Tech Jockey it would make sense but I'm too old for that.

[kz1000st]

This appeared on Facebook recently. It was written by Chris Riggs the owner of Freedom Motor Scooters. Chris was selling his version of the 300cc Storm and was going to sell it in dealerships, not online ultimately. He now sells a Grom sized bike with a 200cc engine by Loncin. After resistance not only with dealers who want to sell cheap stuff but with scooter owners out there who are convinced if it says "Made in China" it's junk. He added the 200cc bike and it sold out like crazy twice. Here is what he wrote on Facebook and it's a sad indication of where scooter sales are headed.

"Freedom Family, we have made the tough decision to discontinue our scooter product line for 2025. Moving forward, we will be exclusively focused on the Fighter 200 as our sole model.
Freedom has long been a hobby for me & is not my main source of income. It's never been about the money, but about my own personal passion for riding. This hasn't always aligned with the for profit/commercial implications that come along with selling through franchise dealerships.
In doing this, we will be parting ways with some dealers who are focused on the scooter industry, while forming new relationship with dealers who are excited to add new motorcycle models to their floor.
It's a change in direction, but one that allows me to focus on the MiniMoto segment, which has become my passion.
If you own our scooter products, we plan to support them for years to come. Parts will continue to be available. Once a part of the Freedom Family, ALWAYS a part of the Freedom family.
This is a new direction for us, but one I feel is the best use of my time & creative energy. Of the people, for the people, this the Freedom way."
My Best,
Chris

[sc00ter]

I've heard of Freedom Motor Scooters but have never seen one in person. I've seen other 200cc Grom-like clones though. Some with good build quality and others with not so good build quality.

Now I would have liked to see this 300cc scooter from Freedom. Outside of a SYM CityCom 300i there is no other 300cc sized scooter that wows me. Price is one thing. Cram all this Star Trek tech on a scooter and it raises the price and also raises reliability issues (with me). I like simple. I don't mind paying for quality though.

I would imagine getting a inroad into dealers would be tough. Like mentioned already, the few scooter-focused dealers around me favor low prices/value products over premium. My local dealer can "order" something premium but do they have the equipment/knowledge to service it when needed? My local SYM dealer didn't even know the CityCom 300 existed when I inquired about one!

[kz1000st]

It was designed in Italy and built in China. But I think it will go the way of the Dodo bird. 250cc Chinese bikes are selling like crazy online.

https://gotscoots.com/product/storm-s-300/

[kz1000st]

A Honda Rebel with e clutch. Imagine any Honda with the ease of shifting like a Cub.

https://www.rideapart.com/news/74845...aunched-japan/