Modern Vespa

I own a scooter, by default.
It's true - I'd rather own a Honda motorcycle than a scooter (though it'd be tough to give up a Honda Forza!)
12 years ago I went shopping for a motorcycle for my son - only to have my wife and 6 kids start birthing canaries when I came home talking about returning to motorcycles after 40 years.

So - they were Ok with me riding a scooter - since "they are safer and kinda European".

I thoroughly enjoy riding a scooter - but I'd rather be riding a nice Honda motorcycle. I miss the connection and the experience of controlling a motorcycle. "Twist & go!" .....a little bit embarrassing.

Was wondering if I am alone in owning a scooter as a second choice?
Life involves second choices.
I've had plenty of first choices go my way -
O.S.

I have both. In my opinion scooters are much more finicky than bikes. All this belt, roller and tiny tire stuff in addition to the archaeological excavation to get at maintenance items. Since I have been riding for 63 years shifting is like breathing. But the scooters, with a trunk and built in storage, is better for milk and egg runs and Take Out pickup so it's a wash.

After 40 years of clutching and shifting with both two and four wheeled vehicles, I decided, "enough". Belts and rollers? No problem thanks to Rocket and MV.
Mr. F

Not in the slightest.

I have both, a scooter and cruiser moto. Each serves its own purpose. Scooter for city streets, cruiser for highways. Neither is good for the opposite purpose.

It's a twist and go, but it's still a Honda and I love it!

I also have both and they both scratch different itches.

The scooter's a little more fun, NGL.

I can only say that a scooter was my first choise when I had it.

I really liked my Vespa. I might well get a scooter again, Vespa or something else.

Still, I do like motorcycles too. Right now a motorcycle is something that I prefer to have.

One thing that motivates me staying with motorcycles is ergonomics - my physics can't handle any kind of feed forward bike. Surprisingly many larger scoots are too close to this category. Vespa of course not, the ergos were just great for me.

I've never really thought scoots to be embarrasing....but then again, I'm an European, even if a North European

I understand that ... To me the skill when riding in the country is being able to keep speed through the corners with a good line and lean. so many bike riders are not good at this and instead rely on the power to accel after the corner.

ie being able to ride well is not dependant on bike vs scoot.

If only I could get a scooter with a manual transmission.

Oh wait. I have that and thanks to modifications has a top speed of 60 and a comfortable cruising speed of 50 which makes it a perfect city commuter bike. (VBC).

I never really enjoyed extended highway cruising and that's what the GT and GTS do best so I think I will let one, if not both go.

In a world where I had more garage space and didn't care about the cost of extra insurance and registration fees, I'd have both. But my garage space is limited and I'm kinda cheap when it comes to paying the extra expenses. So I sold the Vespas and just have one motorcycle.

I started with a Buddy 125, then up to a BV 250, then a Honda CTX DCT. Enjoyed them all and learned to ride OK. Sold the CTX when I moved to flat and non- curvy coastal Delaware. Picked up a Sprint 150 that was great but did miss the power of a bigger engine so on to a GTS 300 HPE. Perfect for down here. Lots of torque and all the speed I need. A motorcycle would not give me anything I could really use that the GTS doesn't.

When I was researching my current PCX my wife went with me to look at it. She keeps pointing to Honda Rebels. Nope, been there and done that, no more motorcycles for me. But I will say I was ever slightly tempted by a Honda Monkey so who knows. And the Rebel 500 is a nice bike in person.

My wife seems to think that scooters are incapable of serious commuting. I still put around 10,000 miles a year just commuting and usually don't keep a scooter longer that 4 years/40,000ish miles-whichever comes first. I just want something "new" after a few years. And I like the ease of use of a scoot compared to a motorcycle.

If garage space wasn't tight and getting to the garage wasn't so narrow I'd get a motorcycle for a toy. Nothing new, maybe another Honda NTV650 Hawk or go old school and get another Honda CB500 or CB750. I don't hate bikes, they just no longer fit my current needs so a scoot wins the limited garage space!

You itching for a motorcycle O.S.?

Well. I'll put it this way.......if someone were to steal my scooters, I'd replace them with a Honda motorcycle.
But I would continue to never ride an interstate, or any road requiring 55mph....and I'd still be heading out pre-dawn
Unfortunately, people around here steal scooters about as often as they eat family pets.
O.S.

I love motorcycles AND scooters. Different vehicles for different missions. I would be greatly saddened by the loss of either.

Ditto. I'll ride either, but I prefer older stuff and displacements of 500cc or less.

I had an '85 K100RS for a hot minute about twenty years ago. It was thrashed, but fast. Going fast on a thrashed bike is not wise. I fortunately realized that I'm make a lovely grease stain down the road if I didn't learn to regulate myself.

Riding a slow scoot fast is plenty for me these days. Almost everything I have is stock or mildly tweaked. I'll help friends with their fast stuff, but I'm usually busy enough fixing them when they don't listen to their scoots that I don't need to be doing that alongside them.

No. Rode motorcycles for years, but am very happy on my scooter....

You can kill two birds with one stone and get a vintage Vespa or a Lammy. I loved my P200E when I had it. Fun to ride once you got the hang of the twist grip shifting.

I have a BMW R1200RT, probably the best long distance tourer there is.
I have a GTS 300, among the best in town scoots around.

If I had to give up one, I'd keep the GTS. Every day utility. Its not often I have to ride from Oregon to LA or the Grand Canyon. Every day I have to get to work and park, and get groceries. I'd keep the scoot. My two cents.

A Manual Transmission will win every time.

Especially on a BMW R1200RT.

Sorry.

I've had scooters for 40 years and still invade seaside towns around the UK on my Vespa and I go touring with mates every year on my Triumph Tiger.

Simply put, I would have a massive hole in my life if I had to choose one or the other.

For me, this is definitely one of the most satisfying parts of riding too. Curves

Even after years of riding, I really enjoy focusing on curves. Getting the approach right, riding position right, looking to the right direction, getting the counter steering right..and then just enjoying the feeling when smoothly accelerating through the curv to the right direction....it physically feels almost like flying when everything goes right.

I've pretty much learned my limits too, leave plenty of room for an error, and don't do this too fast - taking it easy don't take anything away from the experience.

I'll have to add - I did miss the lack of gas tank on a scooter. I've learned to do things 'by the book' and having lower body anchored to the bike is just something I'm used to. For really tight curves a 125cc Vespa was still hoot because of the agility though

Not me.....
After owning motorcycles for 25+years (I was a late starter) I bought my first Scooter (s150) last fall and enjoying it around town and for short rides.
When I'm in the mood for some noise I'll take out the VROD and blast around the paved secondary roads just outside the City limits.
I can't see me not having one of each.....

Personally, I can't think of any good reason not to enjoy both types, they offer different pleasures and uses, even at the crazier end of things.

I do. Probably selling both though 🤷‍♂️

I currently have three motorcycles and a scooter. Each has its own special place. The Janus Halcyon 450 makes me feel like I'm riding a bike from 100 years ago. The Moto Guzzi V7 reminds me of my old 1967 Alfa Romeo I used to have. Fun and Italian but not going to win any races. The BMW R1250RT is like a jet! 135 horsepower but really civilized. It has every kind of electronic trickery known to man. Even adaptive cruise control! The guy in front slows down and so does the bike. The suspension automatically adjust for the load and the settings (Road, Sport or Rain) can be selected on the fly. It is the perfect coast to coast machine, especially if there are some great curves along the way!

And the "Chuckus" Chinese Ruckus is 150cc of silly fun!

Within a few months I will sell everything, including my house and buy a condo in Albania. When I get there I plan on buying a GTS or MP3 as my only form of transportation.

I'm sorry but nothing beats that change up into 6th around 80 mph and the feeling that the bike still wants to accelerate.

It's a thing of beauty to have that much weight, torque and stability beneath you.

A scooter can't do that.

Bike wins

Had so many bikes I loved them all but with age, I really love my MP3 500, for me and the missus it just is loads of fun, and nice and safe, and no need for bags, just a nice topcase and underseat storage.

I know what you meant, but it still comes across as a Sumo Wrestler to me. I prefer my girls slim & trim.

Within a few months I will sell everything, including my house and buy a condo in Albania.
Tell me what is so wonderful about Albania? Low cost retirement, great food or just great scooter roads?
Tony in Tn

Low cost of living is one of the main factors in deciding to leave but there are hundreds of countries to choose from. The people have a reputation for friendliness so that puts them near the top. They have a fascinating history starting with the oldest known human settlement in Europe. It dates back 8500 years. There are Greek, Roman and Ottoman ruins to explore. The south is a whole series of beautiful beaches. The north has some of the most rugged mountains.

I can afford a condo with an ocean view! As a fan of MotoGP I'll be able to get to a lot more races! And I can visit a lot of other countries that I've never been to.

One of the strangest things is they love America! After the First World War everyone wanted a piece of Albania. US president Woodrow Wilson declared that Albania should remain a free and independent country. They have been through a lot including a kingdom, being invaded by Italy and Germany in WWII and a communist dictatorship but through it all they have maintained their love of America. In fact the town we are going to was named Wilson until the Italian invasion. They even have a replica Statue of Liberty.

If the GTS was available in both an auto/cvt and manual/geared choices ...

The number of machines that we allow ourselves to own is dictated by how many we can stuff into our slightly oversized two-car garage and still get the car and pickup in.

We refuse to rent off-site vehicle storage, as a way to keep things from going too far out of control.

With a motorcycle, your feet go on the foot pegs. No negotiation. Take it or leave it.
On the Vespa, there's room to shuffle my feet around the dance floor to any position that feels comfortable.
For someone who has knee issues, this is a real blessing.

Until they get so bad you can barely walk let alone ride, ruining everything you enjoy doing.

TKR.
700,000 Americans can't be wrong every year.
https://www.healthline.com/health/total-knee-replacement-surgery/outcomes-statistics-success-rate

Do you know why my knees are bad? Have you been present at my previous surgeries already? Have you now offered to pay for "medically unnecessary" electives?

If the answer to any of those is "no" maybe at this point it's best to do what lawyers recommend when police interact with you and shut the fuck up.

Clampet, Once the RT series gets rolling much of the weight seems to disappear but I understand what you are getting at.

Has anyone here ridden a R1200RT and a R1250RT ?

Cruiser style motorcycles fitted with floorboards rather than pegs are similar in that regard, with a lot of forward/aft room available for moving one's feet around compared to pegged bikes

Heel shifters on these kind of bikes do restrict the left foot's positioning however, and is why I always remove them from the floorboard cruisers I've owned. I view heel shifter foot levers as a rather useless novelty anyway.

The floorboard on the 2016 Indian Vintage that I had, with the heel shifter lever removed for better foot position options...

I'll admit that rolling into a corner with as much momentum as you can while you feather the throttle can be a lot of fun on a scooter but once the drive spins down you've lost much of your drive back out the other side.

I'll be interested to know if whatever form of PTW you had first has any bearing on the one that you'd be least likely to sacrifice.