Whizzer Nation

[8ball]

I like these motors. I've sold a few of my RRBs with the owners returning to show me them outfitted with blackened engines, pinstriped tanks, wrapped mufflers. They look super cool. I'm thinking of trying one.

And I've seen many motorized boardtrack bikes posted here that look fantastic. I'm starting to see 80cc pizza delivery bikes in places I visit.

If/when gas hits $7 a gallon, do you think these will become a part of our lives... a reborn Whizzer culture or will they remain a relative novelty?

Edit: Green - I should add electric to an alternate power plant.

 

[teh603]

Check your local laws first. Those might require a moped or motorcycle license in some jurisdictions.

 

[8ball]

Check your local laws first. Those might require a moped or motorcycle license in some jurisdictions.

Oh yeah, law abiding, street (no hwy) legal. I'm not suggesting we'd be buzzing these things down the bike path (though I think the guys who bought my bikes do it).

And they would evolve over time into the driving culture - the pioneers of this movement would need to deal with the texting SUV drivers... gulp.

 

[Road Master]

There is no doubt in my mind that whizzers are becoming a part of our culture now. Even at $4 a gallon a powered bicycle can pay for itself pretty quickly for round the town type errands. For what I pay to have my vehicle worked on once I can buy a new engine for the bike. We are getting less and less for our dollar everyday - pay increases have not matched or exceded inflation in a few years in many fields. Benefits for health care continues to decrease as the cost increases. Population continues to grow as the jobs required continues to die. Men and women are being replaced with automation and out sourcing. Job loads get heavier every day for the same amount of money. I personally feel that what we have been calling a recession is becoming a way of life - there aren't going to be jobs available to put everyone that have lost their jobs in the last 5 years back to work.

The good news is we - meaning bicycle enthusiasts - are ahead the game when it comes to basic transportation. And I would much rather ride a bike for excercise in any kind of weather than stay home walking on a treadmill. When I retire in a year and a half I'm moving to Florida to live near my two sons (no State Tax!). I am not taking a vehicle with me. I intend to use whizzers as my main form of transportation eliminating registration, gas, insurance and maintenance. So yes, I do believe whizzers are becoming a part of our culture.

 

[teh603]

And they would evolve over time into the driving culture - the pioneers of this movement would need to deal with the texting SUV drivers... gulp.

And the fact that the US will never have proper drunk driving laws because the drunks like to stick together and cover for each other, and the fact that a certain major city in Texas' red lights are now functionally optional thanks to an overwhelming vote against proper law enforcement by red light cameras...

 

[Bigcam59]

Unfortunately the law in NJ doesn't allow you to make your own moped without registering it as a motorcycle and jumping through many hoops to get the proper title and paperwork. I feel the only way the law will change here is if some politician figures out a way to tax it. :roll:

 

[teh603]

Unfortunately the law in NJ doesn't allow you to make your own moped without registering it as a motorcycle and jumping through many hoops to get the proper title and paperwork. I feel the only way the law will change here is if some politician figures out a way to tax it. :roll:

That's the good thing about Texas. As far as I can tell, anything under a certain horsepower (25 ? Something like that) doesn't require any papers.

 

[NLCTVWguy]

Laws vary state to state regarding motorcycle-moped-powered bicycle-scooter legislation.

Some states require a strict adherence to the powered bicycle/moped standard of pedal-start (no electrics) and require the bicycle to be pedal-powered (i.e. "assist motors").

All states that consider mopeds/powered cycles to not require registration, as far as I know, place a limit of 50cc on the powerplant. Our state, Connecticut, goes a step further and states a 30mph max speed and 2.0HP max output.

Here, mopeds and bicycles with engines cannot be used on limited access highways and some other designated routes. The grey areas come about from a couple things:

1) 50cc scooters built by major motorcycle companies and 1000 Chinese knockoff firms. Some are sold by motorcycle shops, some by anyone under the sun. Some are legal to the letter of our law and some are not, but broadly ignored if they are (or say they are) 50cc.

2) Powered bicycle (Whizzer) engine kits that exceed 50cc. Some engines are as large as 125cc. 66cc and 80cc engines are common and VERY hard to distinguish from the 50's. These go much faster, place much more stress on the bicycle frame and components, and are all technical violations of the law. Since they're also almost all "home installations", policing these is very tough. Small shops installing these and selling them to customers, knowing that they exceed 50cc, are putting themselves at great liability, I believe.

3) Other state's laws: CT does not provide for registering a 50cc bike or moped. No titles are produced, no insurance is required, no bill of sale is needed to sell one (though dealers collect sales tax as with any purchase). You can't register one here EVEN IF YOU WANT TO. Now, Rhode Island, due to a booming industry of rentals on an island offshore, requires ALL motorized bicycles, scooters, mopeds, whatever to be registered. So I can't bring my bike to Rhode Island legally, unless I somehow got a RI address and registered it there. Probably not worth the hassle. Similar complications arise when selling a bike across state lines, when one state has no paperwork and the other requires it. FIND OUT THE FACTS in your state before getting into trouble with one of these machines.

Yeah I still want to build one of those kits on one of my bikes! One place we've found that offers a nice turn-key setup is nearby in Massachusetts: http://www.piratecycles1.com . They address some of their legal issues on their web site too.

I wish there were a single law across the US for these machines- presently its a patchwork.
--Rob

 

[8ball]

I wonder (not advocating) if the USA is moving towards a society that will turn a blind eye towards minor traffic infractions and violations. As in the case with some countries I've visited, with motorized bikes, which appear to still be just bicycles in the eyes of the authorities.

Downsized police departments with officers overwhelmed with crime and paperwork could just let a bicycle putt-putting along, just keep going. Bigger concerns to attend to.

So Whizzers could exist in a realm of DMV/PD "selected neglect".

 

[teh603]

I wonder (not advocating) if the USA is moving towards a society that will turn a blind eye towards minor traffic infractions and violations. As in the case with some countries I've visited, with motorized bikes, which appear to still be just bicycles in the eyes of the authorities.

Downsized police departments with officers overwhelmed with crime and paperwork could just let a bicycle putt-putting along, just keep going. Bigger concerns to attend to.

So Whizzers could exist in a realm of DMV/PD "selected neglect".

I dunno, more people die on the roads each year than in Iraq and Afghanistan combined, due to the cops neglecting minor offenses like running red lights and DWI.

Still, wizzers do have their place.