Are Vespas and Scooters harder to drive with the smaller wheels?

Question

Im looking into getting some sort of scooter or moped or Vespa to drive around town and to work every day.
My question is - the wheels seem small. Is it hard to steer and drive?
What are you experiences with them? Like them or not? Its not for long distance drives, only to work and market. I work about 3 miles from home.

Answer 1

lemme tell ya about how these handle 1st hand. compared to a full sized bike, they're very very squirrelly. seems any type of bank feels extremely steep, low speed feels like u are riding on marbles, and when it comes to emergency evasion manuvers...a swerve, if u dont do it by the numbers, it could dump u quicker than any full sized scoot.

my work is 2 miles from my house, but because i like to cruise at times after work, i got a full sized bike. granted, the full sized scoot is gonna cost ya, but based on firsthand experience with the honda helix, i felt more in control with the full sized bike.

Answer 2

If you can already shift a 2-wheeler and have basic riding skills, learning to ride a manual Vespa shouldn't be too hard. There will be some adjustment, though. The major differences are that the shifting is done with the handlebar. The left grip rotates forward, sort of the opposite of a throttle. The PX is a 4-speed shift. The gears are actually marked on the handlebar to make it easier. Neutral is between first and second. The second big difference is that the rear brake is used with a pedal on the right side of the floorboard. The other big adjustment is that you'll be riding on 8" or 10" wheels. (I think the older models had 8" wheels but the "millennium" PXs made after 2000 had 10".) This means that, compared to the KTM, the Vespa will be quite nimble and handle well in tight spaces. The down side is that it will be a bumpier ride and won't handle big curves at high speeds as well as a large-wheeled bike or scooter. If it's an older PX125, you'll have to manually mix the oil when you add gas. There are special cups made for calculating how much to add. Many online parts suppliers carry them.

Answer 3

Small wheels make less centrifugal force. That means they are slightly less stable in a straight line than big wheels. There is however an advantage to this. The are much more maneuverable. Lots of sport bikes have smallish front wheels, for increased flickability. It's like the difference between an American car with heavy steering, good (goodish anyway) in a straight line, but try to turn and it wants to keep going straight, which means it doesn't handle well in fast or emergency situations. Japanese and German cars have very fast reacting steering, which some people think is bad because they are not used to it. The typical example of a comment you hear for both scooters and Japanese or European cars is, they're all over the road. They aren't really, it's just those riders and drivers are more used to the slower reactions of their cruisers or American cars.

Answer 4

Hello and thanks for letting me assist you with this question.

First and foremost there's a wheel dynamics to the situation that I am going to touch on lightly. Have you ever noticed motocross riders are very stable while in the air doing high jumps? The larger the wheel the more it keeps the bike upright. From the wheels creating centrifugal forces. If you ride your bicycle down the road and jump off without stopping the bike will continue on just because of the wheel dynamics.

Now when you go to a smaller wheel scooter it loses its stability just because the wheel dynamics it cut to a 1/3rd of its stability. Now they are OK to about 25mph but be careful of bumps that can throw you and make wheels wobble. If all possible get yourself a larger wheel small moped or something. Much more st able.

Answer 5

Scooters are fun and very easy to ride. They are great for short distances around town. The small wheels are fine as long as you are on a good paved surface. They will be less stable on rutted or gravel roads so be aware. The only problem I had with my scooter is that it would only go about 30-35 mph so I couldn't keep up with traffic on some of the bigger streets.

Answer 6

A Scooter is exactly what you need! They are not hard to ride at all, in fact, it's much easier than a motorcycle, especially if you purchase an automatic. The automatics you don't have to worry about a clutch - just rev it up and go! Some good quality brands to check out are Vespa, Stella, and TNG. They are pretty cheap, as are parts, and are very simple for any motorcycle tech to work on/repair. Feel free to e-mail me if you need more info.

Answer 7

If you're not really into bikes / scooters & just need a means of getting from A to B get a scooter. They have better weather protection, space under the seat for your bits & pieces, most vespas even have a catch on the front of the seat to hold your handbag.

They're very easy to ride & learn on, suggest you go to a training school or bike / scooter dealer & ask if you can try one out. If you can ride a bicycle you will find it really easy.

Most of them will let you have a go free of charge on their cbt site & answer any questions you have got.

Answer 8

Based on the motorcycle image on your website, I am speculating that you have some riding experience . .
http://www.ambierose.com/pages/links.html

You will notice a big difference in the handling "geometry" between a motorcycle the the typical 10-12" scooter wheels . . consider one with 16" wheels:
http://www.allpropowersports.com/cf-moto-e-charm-150cc-liquid-cooled-scooter-dot-and-epa-approved-can-be-registered-in-most-states-including-california!-p62.html
http://www.allpropowersports.com/kymco-people-s-200-street-legal-dot-epa-and-carb-approved-can-be-registered-in-all-states-including-california!-p72.html

Answer 9

Why should it be. Test drive one and find out.