Pondering

[derrick7]

I have an old Giant Lafree, it has served me well & still does, but lately I have been thinking of getting a bike where I can journey along without pedalling (for short distances) because of growing infirmity, a hub motor bike with a throttle, the Alien Unisex would suit me very well. Now to do the sums.

Alien £620 delivered + £279 every 2 years for a new battery, 25 miles max. say 12 miles there & back (to be on the safe side). Or a 50cc scooter.

Scooter £580 delivered + £55 registration + £15 road tax + £80 insurance (guess) & almost unlimited mileage.

This is what I am mulling over, it strikes me that batteries still aren't good enough & are still expensive!

Derrick - Llanberis

 

[spudhed]

as a man just moving from motorbikes to elec bikes i may be able to enlighten you a bit, im guessing that £580 scooter price is a chinese cheapo and believe me they are more trouble than they are worth, just look on ebay you wont see too many second hand ones for sale more than about 2 years old, its because they usually dont last that long, if youre going to get something youd be far better off with a second hand japanese or italian one

now for the rest, first off you havent factored in the price of gear, just because its a 50cc doesnt mean it wont peel your skin should you come off at 30mph in shorts and a tshirt, take a look at ride2die.com to see exactly why you should wear your gear at ALL TIMES so you need to add £150 min for helmet, jacket, boots and gloves minimum

next is the ever present breakdowns, ive owned 8 different bikes and only one of them could be described as reliable, all the rest broke down at least once a month due to something (2 strokes which many 50cc scooters are, are notoriously problematic) so unless youre pretty good with mechanics or know one keep a bit of cash aside for repairs/recovery oh and again if that scooter is a 2 stroke the milage is far from unlimited, cheapo 2strokes usually need a rebuild every 7k or so, some even less, again especially with chinese ceapos

and a final thing to factor in is a decent lock, spend no less than £30 and never believe "it wont happen to me" even for a second, i once left my bike outside whilst i nipped into my house for a coffee and to pick up a bag, before i was halfway through my brew someone knocked on the door to say some youths just nicked my bike

in short everything has pro's and cons but after near 10 years on bikes ive realised that its never as cheap or easy as you think it will be (im hoping thats not the case with these elecs)

 

[Ultra Motor]

I'll second that, I rode scooters for years, and motorbikes. The Scooter proved so unreliable. I bought a brand new Peugeot Speedfight 2 when I was 16 and had starting issues, battery issues (replaced regularly), you smelt on 2 stroke when arriving at destination!

e-bike or e-scooter would be my choice any day!

 

[derrick7]

Pondering no more

I have taken note of the two answers to my dilemma above, I have never owned a scooter & never ridden a motorcycle & the two people who have given the advice above have put my mind at rest. The scooter I looked at is a Chinese/Indian scooter (4 stroke) thanks for the advice, I shall go for the Alien Unisex they seem to have a good reputation.

Derrick - Llanberis

P.S. I am 70 & I never wear shorts or T shirt, if it gets hot I retreat to the shade!

 

[Miznomer]

also, you don't seem to have factored in the cost of fuel

 

[Old Timer]

As you might have read I recently had a minor heart attack. So, have been considering a scooter for the longer runs to take a bit of the pressure off. I did own a Piaggio some years ago and am considering a new Piaggio Fly 125cc. I would say that buying a 50cc 4 stroke modern scooter is obviously going to cost to run(although less than the my proposed 125) and I think that the above replies are painting a poor picture of modern scooters( maybe Chinese scooters fall into the unreliable category) but a number of people that I know who own good quality scooters don`t seem to be having the problems that have been mentioned. About theft! well whats new then if you live in certain parts? My Piaggio was superb and never missed a beat.

Going on from that and feeling a lot better I took my alien conversion out this afternoon for a short throttle only run just to see how it coped (against my wifes better judgement) with low grade hills and could it cope (even if i took a spare in the future)Results!!! no way would i put up with just throttle hill climbing I`m afraid. It looks like that with care I might get back to riding like before but still considering a Piaggio scooter for longer runs.

I`d be very interested to hear what makes and models of scooters or motorbikes were that un reliable. Up to 10 years ago I had a run of maybe 10 motorbikes in about 15 years and only once did one break down( the pratt that fitted the alarm must have been blind)

Dave

 

[Ultra Motor]

Hi Dave,

My 50cc two stroke (Peugeot Speedfight 2) was a headache. It was regularly serviced and looked after. But wouldn't start sometimes, conked out, lights would flicker, I got through 3 shock absorbers under normal riding (under warranty luckily!).

I then had a Honda Cityfly 125 and that had similar conking problems, battery always going flat- was great in my leathers running down the road to bump start!!

But thats just my experience. I love scooters, but any future one's would be electric!!!

Mark

 

[piotrmacheta]

I ride motorbikes, electric bikes and normal bikes and they all have a role to play.
Although I have a few motorbikes I can praise the Suzuki Van Van (RV125) for its style, economy, reliability and comfort. They are cheap to buy (£2500 new or £1000 used), do 80 to 100mpg and the seat is super wide. It has never let me down and feels light as a feather to control. It only takes £5 of petrol and goes over 100miles on it!
I used to use it for all my trips from 2 miles to the local shops to 250 miles touring to the Lakes.
Since discovering electric bikes I now use that to go the 14 miles to work and back everyday.
I find the electric bike a bit more relaxing as when riding it there's no hurry.

In short, get both and use the electric bike for all the local trips less than 20 miles when you're not n a rush and the motorbike for the loger trips, holidays and when you're late.

 

[Geebee]

As you might have read I recently had a minor heart attack. So, have been considering a scooter for the longer runs to take a bit of the pressure off. I did own a Piaggio some years ago and am considering a new Piaggio Fly 125cc. I would say that buying a 50cc 4 stroke modern scooter is obviously going to cost to run(although less than the my proposed 125) and I think that the above replies are painting a poor picture of modern scooters( maybe Chinese scooters fall into the unreliable category) but a number of people that I know who own good quality scooters don`t seem to be having the problems that have been mentioned. About theft! well whats new then if you live in certain parts? My Piaggio was superb and never missed a beat.

Going on from that and feeling a lot better I took my alien conversion out this afternoon for a short throttle only run just to see how it coped (against my wifes better judgement) with low grade hills and could it cope (even if i took a spare in the future)Results!!! no way would i put up with just throttle hill climbing I`m afraid. It looks like that with care I might get back to riding like before but still considering a Piaggio scooter for longer runs.

I`d be very interested to hear what makes and models of scooters or motorbikes were that un reliable. Up to 10 years ago I had a run of maybe 10 motorbikes in about 15 years and only once did one break down( the pratt that fitted the alarm must have been blind)

Dave

Don't think just because you had a heart attack that hammering on a bike is over,
I have had a not so minor heart attack and a quad bypass and last night I rode 50 km un-assisted at around 30kph average, my local rides include a 20% hill to get back home every time.
Getting fit is the best way to hold of the next attack, use common sense though until you are fully fit.
Cheers

 

[drillam]

I've only posted a coupla times on the forum as I'm new to cycles, both electric and the peddling variety so know very little about them and am on a steep learning curve.
I have however been messing around with motorbikes for over 40 years so can say that I'd agree wholeheartedly with SPudhed and a few other comments about staying away from Cheap Chinese scooters, wearing protective gear and breakdowns.

I recently had an ebay shop breaking bikes and scooters for spares and only bought one Chinese scooter to break. It was unadulterated rubbish compared to the equivelant Italian and Jap offerings. I bought it for spares for £100 with only 98 miles on the clock.

As for safety gear? well I'm no safety Nazi by any means but I took a totally different approach to my personal safety after this:-

What caused it?
Hooning around the country lanes?
Racing me mates?
Showing off?

No, the throttle jammed wide open whilst bump starting . By the time it chucked me off the side it couldn't have reached more than about 20mph.
I was wearing ordinary jeans.
Even on the hottest of days after that I wore at the very least a pair of Draggin Jeans, the ones with the kevlar linnings. That's after I was able to graduate from shorts to actually wearing long trousers again.

Breakdowns - they're a fact of life with an engine between your legs, even with the most modern of bikes. Not as frequent nowdays as in days gone by, but they happen.

 

[timidtom]

I have an old Giant Lafree, it has served me well & still does, but lately I have been thinking of getting a bike where I can journey along without pedalling (for short distances) because of growing infirmity, a hub motor bike with a throttle, the Alien Unisex would suit me very well. Now to do the sums.

Alien £620 delivered + £279 every 2 years for a new battery, 25 miles max. say 12 miles there & back (to be on the safe side). Or a 50cc scooter.

Scooter £580 delivered + £55 registration + £15 road tax + £80 insurance (guess) & almost unlimited mileage.

This is what I am mulling over, it strikes me that batteries still aren't good enough & are still expensive!

Derrick - Llanberis

Hi. I think we're looking at very different proposals here. Your money could buy a second hand decent motor bike - a Honda CG 125 or a semi-auto Honda Innova. Given the outlay of protective clothing either of these would (given time - lots of time!) take you round the world. However, every time you go out you have to dress up.
The e-bike, in your price range, will probably be a Powabyke or PowaCycle. Not top of the range but dependable in a plodding sort of way! You have the joy of 'think & ride' - no vast preparations to make before you're on your way!
Either way, avoid the 'bargain-bin' cheapo buy & throw ranges sold from a container.
Good luck whichever road you take. May the wind be ever at your back ...

 

[Old Timer]

I`m holding fire on the scooter, I find that I am able to ride the e bike again.

 

[Django]

My advice,

Buy a Honda C90 - cheap as chips and you can abuse it for years without worrying about reliablilty. Don't bother with any safety equipment beyond that which is required by law (the more you wear, the more likely you are to crash).

Oops, I keep forgetting, this is an electric bike forum. Go for the Alien.