50cc Motor Scooters

Focus: on engine size 50cc

You know those little sugar cubes you sometimes get in restaurants? Not the larger ones but the tiny ones which most people use in twos and threes? Well they are approximately 1cc. The difference between a scooter you can legally ride and one you probably can't without taking lots of tests and things.

50cc motor scooters are actually a misnomer because they are not quite 50cc's. They are 49cc's; 49.5cc's and even 49.9cc's, but not 50cc's. There is a very good reason for this. Ever since mopeds and scooters were originally developed in Europe as a cheap, affordable and comfortable form of transport after the Second World War, governments of most countries, realising that transport was imperative for poor people, as well as rich, have, to all intents and purposes, excluded them from the more rigorous legislation necessary for larger and faster forms of transport.

In most states in the USA this exclusion continues today, although the odd one has different regulations, allowing larger scooters on the road without full licences.

The rising popularity in the use and enjoyment of 50cc scooters in the USA recently is due to several factors, not least because they are cheap to buy and run. Modern technology has seen that the gas consumption you can get from your 50cc scooter is quite amazing. Some models do up to 100mpg, with 60-80 being far from unusual.

Looking at the models available to you today there is something for everyone. If you want something to get to work every day in the city quickly and cheaply there are many possibilities. Perhaps you want to use your scooter at the weekend too for leisure. Some models are built for longer distances.

You can zoom through the traffic jams; using a fraction of the petrol a car or 4 wheeled vehicles would, and be ecologically friendly at the same time.

These safe, reliable, smart, parkable 21st Century vehicles are becoming the thing to have nowadays. Many car owners in the USA are realising that the price of gas is not going to go back to the good old days and that it has become a sizable chunk of the household budget. An inexpensive to buy and cheap to run 50cc scooter has all that's needed to get you to work quickly, and its rather good fun to ride too. Passing your friends in their traffic jam with a cheery wave may even persuade them to try one too.

Many people in the rest of the world, particularly if they come from Rome, Madrid, Rio da Janeiro, Bangkok, Manila, Paris, etc, etc, have been amazed in the past that this worldwide phenomenon has not been in evidence in the USA until this time, particularly in the busy cities.

Well, things are changing and 50cc scooters are to be seen more and more in the States as people are rising to the challenge of enjoying the quicker and cheaper way to get around. Why don't you give it a go? Its good fun.

Independent writer based in Thailand- Retired Company Director
Former article writer for UK Newspaper