Category: International

Haynes’ “Chinese scooter” book

Scooter-Station notes that Haynes has released one of their famous service manuals targeted to Chinese/Taiwanese/Korean scooters. Probably handy, but it can’t be too specific, even though half the scooters made in Asia are Yamaha Vino knockoffs, there’s a lot of variety there, too, and surely a wide variety of tolerances and torques and such, which is where the Haynes manuals usually shine. Still, knowledge is power, and even if it just covers GY6-style engines in depth, it’d be useful.

Dealer Expo 2009, Part I: Overview

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Every February, powersports dealers from around the nation descend on grey, shivery, boring Indianapolis to see what’s new in the industry. It’s a chance for manufacturers, importers, and distributors to wine and dine their dealers and hopefully round up some orders for the upcoming riding season. This was our third year at DealerExpo, though it was our first with actual 2strokebuzz press passes. Continue reading “Dealer Expo 2009, Part I: Overview”

Lambretta Maxi-Scooter: The L-Ong 150

The New Cafe Racer Society brings us another gem from the past. The re-revelation is this long and low, two-seat, feet-forward steed that looks far ahead of it’s time. The “Centauro” is stated to be Spanish built and appears to be a nice cruising machine with handlebars not unlike a Lambretta Vega. For me, finding evidence of a proto-maxi-scooter dating back so far is like the first time I realized poor, misguided Apple Computer enthusiasts don’t have any ground on which to stand to shout “first!” after I learned about Xerox PARC inventing the GUI as we know it. Take that Lambrettista! Your brethren invented the Helix

Small Displacement Hybrid Racing Revealed

MotoGPmatters.com (aka KropotinThinks) reported on the efforts of KTM (warning: poor, resource-burdening flash site) to implement a Kinetic Energy Recovery System on their 125 cc Grand Prix machines. Kropotkin cites a report by the Spanish motorcycle website Motosolo describing a system used last fall in the race at Valencia and again during testing this winter at the same circuit. The system uses a capacitor rather than a battery to store energy during braking and can reintroduce approximately 2.5 HP for use when needed. It may be surprising to find efficiency enhancing technology applied to a class of machines that is already known for being relatively more fuel efficient efficient than other forms of transport but that 2.5 HP could really come in handy when tenths of seconds count.

While exciting new hybrid and electric scooters and concept vehicles have been reported here in the past, they have their challenges and barriers to widespread implementation. One of the biggest problems for both all electric plug-ins and hybrids like the Toyota Prius is the cost, weight and disposal of large toxic chemical-laden batteries. The use of a smaller energy storage unit like a capacitor could be a strategy to not store so much energy where one could drive for extended periods of time without combustion, but to assist a motor at specific points in vehicle use. The energy that normally would be wasted as heat during braking could be harnessed to turn near useless engine applications such as a small four-stroke engine that can’t get out of it’s own way in traffic into a useful machine. Where tenths of seconds count in racing, they may be even more important when that cab driver decides his lane position is more important than your life. The increase in efficiency may allow internal combustion engines to be designed smaller and less powerful knowing that some other stored energy could be used on-demand. One could even envision a 25cc four stroke with a capacitive KERS system that could navigate urban traffic and get 150 mpg!

Vespa versus Venti

Don’t say it was unexpected (1, 2) but 2sb has learned that Piaggio has taken some sort of legal action against Hammerhead, the importer of the Venti 150 vintage Vespa lookalike. Our source tells us “Piaggio sent Hammerhead a cease-and-desist order in regards to the Venti yesterday.” We suspect it was actually a C&D letter rather than an order“ (there’s a difference) or if it’s based on the design of the Venti or the marketing language used in their flyer, but either way, domestic legal action against importers is usually a safer bet than an international legal contest, especially when China is involved. The good news for Hammerhead is that they’re raking in publicity leading into Dealer Expo (just a couple weeks away), so we applaud their market savviness , if not their design and engineering.

Venti 150: more details!

Way, WAY more Venti 150 info and photos on the Dallas/Fort Worth Scooterist board. Apparently it is a plastic body and the photos show a real prototype that was made to spec in China. The photos look pretty impressive, and the importer is candid about its possible shortcomings. I have to admit that I’m excited about this, somewhat because it’s so Vespalike, but moreso because it appears it’s actually the result of a U.S. importer working with a Chinese manufacturer to design a scooter (at least the bodywork) rather than buying a containerload of off-the-shelf Vino knockoffs. In any case, it appears there’s a real scooterist behind it and not a fly-by-night opportunist, and you gotta love that. An interesting tidbit: it sounds like Adly is working on a similar project, probably with a Lambretta twist. Back to the Venti, wouldn’t there be intellectual property issues with Piaggio? I’m of the opinion that if Piaggio has a problem with it, they could just shut the hell up and make a vintage-styled Vespa themselves, for crying out loud, but lawyers don’t think like I do. (Thanks for the link, bbehanna.)

Racer Redding Road Legal On A Piaggio Zip 50

One of the most dramatic events of 2008 British motorsport was the victory by Scott Redding in the 125cc Grand Prix race at Donnington Park. Redding’s win ended an over thirty year drought for Brits in the One-Two-Five class as he set the record for being the youngest Grand Prix winner at about fifteen and a half years of age. MotoGP.com posted a nice report on the Gloucester lad passing his Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) test. Scott can now drive himself around on a scooter. I am fairly sure 50ccs of unbridled 2-stroke fury will make him feel a bit like he’s moving in slow motion compared to his Aprilia RSW125. But maybe he can get some help tuning the bike from his Team BQR mechanics. Mr. Redding is pictured on MotoGP.com while astride a Piaggio Zip 50 scooter. Scott races for Blusens Aprilia. As Aprilia is under the Piaggio umbrella of companies, I hope they set him up nicely with the ‘ped for free.

Good Ol’ Norwegian Hosts

From Deadlicious via The New Cafe Racer Society, we are reminded of the good manners possessed by our Scandihoovian brethren. I wonder if some tourism savvy municipality could resurrect such a program in the USA. It would create much needed jobs for out of work scooterists. In these hard times, there may not be enough graphic design jobs to go around.