What's in a Name? Or, We Want Our Name Back!

[flecc]

I never did understand how low powered motorcycles and scooters without pedals came to be known as mopeds. By definition moped means motor assisted pedal cycle. As you say, the perfect description for our machines.

The name came along for the petrol assist motors on bikes just at the moment sales were stopping in favour of the increasing scooter sales. In fact both products overlapped, contrary to popular belief the scooters took years to really take off. There were still some autocycles around from Excelsior and the like, those being pedal and petrol 98c jobs, and I think they probably helped with the gradual name transfer, it appearing quite a lot later in place of scooter.

With these multiple products around, I think public confusion probably played in big part in the misnaming. The OED doesn't help by getting things wrong as usual, thinking a moped is a low powered motor cycle.
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[coops]

"The wheels that fly with sun and you"

Nice imagery , will need a little work to express it concisely, retaining the meaning .

Is the vernacular shorter, and are there regional variations?

 

[coops]

With these multiple products around, I think public confusion probably played in big part in the misnaming.

It seems similar to ipods vs "mp3 players" : ipod is rapidly becoming the generic term for the latter, but it should be the other way around!

The OED doesn't help by getting things wrong as usual, thinking a moped is a low powered motor cycle.

Do they define according to usage, not necessarily generic meaning? If so, we could reclaim moped, but it'll be an uphill struggle & depend on uptake of the "new" mopeds to reinforce the usage...

 

[Miles]

The vernacular version is much more difficult to translate....

According to Google languages "easy ride quick no rice"

 

[coops]

That's brilliant Miles! Now that deserves to be worked with!

 

[flecc]

Do they define according to usage, not necessarily generic meaning? If so, we could reclaim moped, but it'll be an uphill struggle & depend on uptake of the "new" mopeds to reinforce the usage...

No chance with their system. It's been committee decision from the very founding of the dictionary, and for years now they insist on documentary evidence, which of course leads to many errors. No matter how overwhelming, they won't accept people's knowledge from the relevant time.
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[flecc]

The Chinese seem to follow our example by using erectric bicycrre
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[Miles]

"erectric" .......

 

[coops]

Other than confusion, what's to stop us from trying to reclaim moped for our bikes, just by referring to them as that? I mean, its not my favourite word, but it is accurate and, in time, it may become popular usage if used & the bikes sell its simple and already known, just misused makes sense too, since we'd just be reverting to the original name for our bikes in their petrol motor form, and it fits with the idea of replacing petrol motor with electric motor too .

We call mopeds "scooters" and ebikes "mopeds"... is it that easy?!

 

[flecc]

Yes, I think it could be that easy to get it into wide usage, but the entries in law of moped would lead to problems. It's very difficult to get those legal terms changed in acts of parliament or regulations.

But we could just stubbornly use moped, and qualify it when challenged by saying real moped, undeniably true.
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[coops]

I feel a people's revolt coming on! We Want our name back, indeed!

 

[Miles]

I feel a people's revolt coming on! We Want our name back, indeed!

If you can get your bike through the MSVA test, you can call it a moped

 

[ITSPETEINIT]

A 50 Cycle?

A 50cycle

Best regards

50cycles

Typical!

 

[ITSPETEINIT]

What?

exo-, intra-, extra- + -bike -cycle e.g. exobike, intrabike...

exo- meaning giving out, as in exothermic (releasing heat), or "outside of".
intra- meaning "within": powered within.
extra- meaning "beyond".

The i has the plus of shortening to ibike (could be short for intelligent bike - referring to the smart choice of the rider!) . There's always "superbike" too, in the true sense of "over & above" or "more than" .

If you just want to be catchy, how about giga- or tera-bike, or to keep ahead of the times, peta- exa- zetta- or yetta-bike (the prefixes above mega- and giga-).

The most individual characteristics of these bikes to me are that they are human/electric hybrid-powered while retaining the energy efficient & mobility aspects of bikes: though they are clean, other vehicles also claim this.

Maybe someone else can find a better prefix or suffix, or alternative expressing the "hybrid" aspect?

Even the "bike" part needn't be retained: I like the acronym style names like HPV & ENV, but sadly IV has another usage & unwelcome association with bikes .

Stuart.

I'd need a brain transplant to know what I was reading.

 

[flecc]

Typical!

I don't know Peter, if 50cycle is ok, maybe Wisperbike is too!
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[coops]

If you can get your bike through the MSVA test, you can call it a moped

You mean they'll call it a moped, don't you? I know some bikes legally should be tested if delimited but if passing that test means mandatory tax & insurance then I'll skip it, and I'll call my bike a moped anyway ;-).

Its crazy when you think about it: mopeds don't have pedals & the only vehicles that do are bikes, trikes etc., so a pedal-bike with a motor is a moped!

Pete: Sorry , I think I'll stick with moped, its easier! .

 

[flecc]

Its crazy when you think about it: mopeds don't have pedals & the only vehicles that do are bikes, trikes etc., so a pedal-bike with a motor is a moped!

Of course the Chinese didn't help the confusion by producing a lot of scooter like e-bikes that had next to useless pedals.
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[Miles]

Its crazy when you think about it: mopeds don't have pedals & the only vehicles that do are bikes, trikes etc., so a pedal-bike with a motor is a moped!

No, no..... working pedals are a requirement for the SVA "Low Powered Moped" category.....

 

[coops]

Of course the Chinese didn't help the confusion by producing a lot of scooter like e-bikes that had next to useless pedals.

Though you could say its a step in the right direction, since they're (sort of) bikes with motors which people think are "mopeds" as such... .

 

[Haku]

EMC

Electro-Motorised Cycle