Motor Scooter - the wave of the future

So, what is a motor scooter? It's a much smaller version of a motorcycle and a larger version of a moped. It has plenty of power for speed, yet burns very little fuel. It's a lightweight, fair weather form of transportation.

The relative difficulty or cost of this tip is rated 1 to 10. A rating of 10 suggests that this tip is the most difficult or most costly. Expected savings are also rated 1 to 10. A rating of 10 suggests that this tip will provide substantial savings in fuel, money or both.



Motor scooter. We are going to see a motor scooter invasion in America as a way to save money on gas. It is the best of all gas saving tips for the well balanced, physically fit and cautious driver. Scooters provide the highest miles per gallon of any serious fuel powered form of transportation. Getting 65 to 95 miles per gallon isn’t unheard of.

If you travel to Asia, you will witness a sea of bicycles and scooters, all ridden by individuals trying to save money on gas. In Taiwan, there are scooters everywhere. They are lined up on the sidewalks when not in use, and they seem to meet the needs of their owners, because they are as common as cars.

Now, if you think that you can’t carry much on a motor scooter, you need to spend some time in Taiwan and South Korea. I have seen nearly every light to moderately heavy item on a scooter; even a full sheet of plate glass for a store front window.

Don’t ask me how they do it, but they do. Bags of rice, multiple people, baskets of produce, boxes for delivery and even caged animals – seemingly everything goes on a scooter.

Today scooters come in styles like a motorcycle, but have a smaller engine. The styling offers compartments for carrying things, and a luggage rack gives the operator more space for hauling limited bulk and weight.

There are models known as maxi-scooters that ride very much like a motorcycle. These models cost considerably more than a scooter, but they can handle highway speeds and get somewhere between 50 and 60 mpg. What a great way to save money on gas.

For about $2,000 or less, you can get a new 80cc or 50cc scooter that is street legal. You can’t take it on the highway (and you wouldn’t want to), but it will do just fine on nearly any other road. Sustained speeds of 50 mph shouldn’t be a problem at all.

I’d say recommending a vehicle that gets 65 to 95 mpg has to be one of the most enticing of all gas saving tips.

Cost or difficulty: 4
Savings: 7

Done with Motor Scooter, take me back to Save Gas