With gas prices hovering near $3 a gallon, the oh-so-adorable, economical and affordable motor scooter is grabbing some attention in Utah Valley.
Motor scooters can travel up to 100 miles per gallon of gas, have price tags starting around $2,000 and have access to some of the best parking spots around.
Vintage or brand new, in just about every color of the rainbow, the European-style motor scooters are an object of desire for many. They have names like Vespa, Lambretta, Zundapp Bella and Kymco, and riders range from poor college students in jeans to the impossibly chic, wearing suits or dresses _complete with Grace Kelly-like head scarves to keep hair in place.
A Google search for Vespa brings up more than 2 million Web sites, some selling the motor scooters, some dedicated to its worship.
In Utah County, the typical motor scooter customer is the budget-conscious student, but there are motor scooter enthusiasts of all ages in the valley.
On a recent afternoon, a motorcycle lot at Utah Valley State College held 12 motorcycles and 14 scooters.
Jesse Breinholt, a self-proclaimed “scooter and science nerd,” was heading home on his scooter. The senior biology education major at UVSC has had his Kymco for about six months and uses it primarily for the drive of about two blocks from his apartment to class. “You can get right next to any building you want on campus almost,” he said.
UVSC allows scooters and motorcycles to park for free.
Breinholt’s scooter gets about 60 miles to the gallon, and the longest trip he’s made was to Pleasant Grove. He has a car for longer trips.
Melanie Barber, owner of a Vespa “boutique” _ dealership, really _ in Orem, said gas mileage and easy parking aren’t the only reasons to buy one. “Most of all, they’re fun,” she said.
Ashley Bushman, a UVSC freshman psychology major, drives her scooter from Provo to class in Orem. And when winter arrives, she bundles up and faces the cold.
“A lot of people don’t know you can actually do that,” she said.
But even when it’s cold outside, she never regrets buying the scooter. Her motivation: “Money. I don’t have enough money for a car,” she said.
Her Kymco People scooter cost $2,000 new, and she pays about $60 a month on the loan. Her scooter gets about 100 miles to the gallon, she said.
UVSC Director of Parking and Transportation Steven Jackson said his office doesn’t track the number of scooters on campus, but he has noticed an increase. He said they take up less parking lot space and help control congestion on campus.
The Scooter Lounge in Orem sells, services and restores scooters. Assistant Manager Kent Pyne said sales have been “through the roof.”
“People are tired of paying $45 a week to fill up their tank,” he said. “They decided to come get a scooter. They’re putting $5 or $6 in a week instead and getting about the same mileage.”
He said many customers are students, but some recent sales have included grandparents and an alfalfa farmer from eastern Utah who wanted the scooter to get around his farm. Some customers are casual riders who are interested in getting from point A to point B, and some are scooter enthusiasts who are looking for performance parts.
Customers at Barber’s boutique range from high school students to senior citizens. “A lot of our customers are anywhere from 30 to 70 years old,” she said. Vespas are more expensive than other brands, which factors out some college students, “but that’s what they want.”
Prices range from $3,600 to $7,000, with some budget models made by Piaggio, Vespa’s parent company, starting at $2,500. Gas mileage ranges up to 70 miles per gallon. With a tank that holds less than 3 gallons, a fill-up can cost $6 to $7.
The scooter does have some disadvantages. Other motorists don’t always share the road nicely, and Bushman says her 50 cubic centimeter engine is not powerful enough for the freeway. “It’s hard to keep up with traffic,” she said. “You get kind of bullied around a little bit. You can’t go on the freeway. You have to take back roads, and that gets kind of old.”
Most Vespas are freeway legal. Barber said a Vespa with a 200 cc engine can go up a canyon, and one of her customers drives his scooter from Payson to Logan and back, while others make regular trips to Moab. “You can do pretty much what you want on them,” she said.
Top speeds range from 35-45 mph for smaller engines to 80 mph or more for 200 cc models.
Barber recommends that customers take a two-day motorcycle safety class offered by the state, although it’s not required. Utah does, however, require scooter drivers to get motorcycle licenses.
“I’ve never even had a near-miss,” Barber said about the vehicle’s safety. She recommends staying off icy roads, bundling up and getting a windscreen for winter.
