# Moped Scooter Weight Limit?



## butterflyinreverse (Mar 10, 2012)

I am going to Key West in April. I wondered if anyone has used the moped/scooter rental places down there and what size they were when using them. The only info I can find says the Moped for two is designed to carry 550 lbs...I think together me and my hubby are heavier than that, but probably not by more than 50 lbs...should we risk it? 
I wonder about the single rider ones, if that means they only hold half that?


----------



## bigmac (Mar 11, 2012)

For motorcycles and scooters it doesn't matter how you split the payload. 550 pounds is 550 pounds (one large person or two medium sized people its doesn't matter to the machine).

And its not a big problem going a few pounds over. My carried 250-350 pound BBWs on the back of several motorcycles (I was about 250 pounds at the time). Once I ran out of ground clearance (loaded bike sits lower) and skidded through a left turn on the center stand until I scrubbed off enough speed for the bike's rear wheel to regain traction. So drive slow when turning and you should be fine.


----------



## CleverBomb (Mar 11, 2012)

Bigmac is right -- bikes are built with a bit of margin of safety over and above what they're "officially" rated for. If the suspension isn't bottoming out (often, the rear suspension is adjustable for lighter or heavier riders), you should be good to go. 

Then again, if you can ride a bicycle and drive a car, you've got MOST of the required skills to ride one by yourself if you want to. 

Kind of short notice to find a Motorcycle Safety Foundation class (and depending on your location, they might not be starting up until the weather improves), but look into it. It's fun 

-Rusty
(Has scoot, will travel.)


----------



## wreckless1967 (Mar 14, 2012)

Also most good quality motorcycles or larger mopeds will have adjustable suspension settings that can be tweaked easily, just increase the spring tension to compensate for two up cruising, also increase tyre pressure slightly and you will be fine, enjoy


----------



## moore2me (Mar 18, 2012)

Another thing to keep in mind is most scooters do not have near the speed and power of motorcycles and regular street vehicles (cars, trucks, buses, etc,). A girlfriend of mine bought a scooter to ride back and forth to work in the city. It didn't take her long to learn that riding a scooter during rush hour in city traffic on busy streets is dangerous. She quickly stopped the practice. Why? The busy stream of cars darting around her slower scooter almost ran over her (or knocked her in a ditch) several times. She is a normal weight girl, but the scooter just wouldn't go fast enough to"be run with cars" on busy streets.

*To answer you question about coming near the weight limit on a double seater scooter - I imagine the more the load weighs, the less the scooter will have the acceleration power to be run in extreme traffic.*
*
If you guys can stick to roads with slow traffic and not make any risky moves requiring acts of power acceleration . . . you should be much safer.* You will just have to drive like you were driving an Amish horse drawn buggy or maybe Barbie's convertible. It should still be fun but don't expect the scooter to out run the wind or come in 1st, 2nd, or even 3rd in the Kentucky Derby. (And if you think the rental agency might not rent to the both of you - why not just one of you visit the shop and sign the paperwork?) The other person could stay in the hotel.


----------



## SBQT73 (Apr 12, 2012)

Not sure if I'm too late, as April is almost half over, but.....Key West is a lot of fun! You might want to check into the electric cars. I rented one when I visited - I found it to be very comfy and fun to drive!


----------



## CleverBomb (Apr 13, 2012)

moore2me said:


> *Another thing to keep in mind is most scooters do not have near the speed and power of motorcycles and regular street vehicles (cars, trucks, buses, etc)*. A girlfriend of mine bought a scooter to ride back and forth to work in the city. It didn't take her long to learn that riding a scooter during rush hour in city traffic on busy streets is dangerous. She quickly stopped the practice. Why? The busy stream of cars darting around her slower scooter almost ran over her (or knocked her in a ditch) several times. She is a normal weight girl, *but the scooter just wouldn't go fast enough to"be run with cars" on busy streets.*



For typical riders (no passenger), 50cc scooters are basically fast motorized bicycles, a good 150cc bike will run with surface street traffic to 45 MPH, and 200-250cc scooters can go on freeways -- but you aren't going to be doing much, if any, passing. 400cc and up gets you into motorcycle territory. 

For larger riders (or typical riders with a passenger), go up one category -- go up two if you're close to or over the rated capacity. That is, don't bother with a 50cc, and don't expect a 150cc bike to be particularly fast. 

I've exceeded my 650cc scooter's 400# rated capacity by 150# without incident and kept up with traffic quite handily. (I was taking it easy though -- new passsenger.) 

Anything above 50cc will require an actual motorcycle license, and in any case I highly recommend the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's Basic Rider Course. 

Avoid cheap Chinese scooters (Taiwanese ones are ok though). Italian bikes are great, but expensive. Japanese ones are very good, and not qute as expensive. Unfortunately, if you're renting, you probably won't have much choice in the matter -- I'm talking about buying one of your own, here. 

-Rusty
(Scooter Trash --150 Vespa, 650 Suzuki)


----------

