Jalopnik
offbeat news
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drunk driving
New Study Reports 39% Of Moped Accidents Caused By Intoxicated Drivers
A new study presented to the American College of Surgeons found that 39% of moped drivers sustaining accident injuries had a blood-alcohol level greater than .05 mg/dL — more than one-and-a-half times the number of intoxicated car or motorcycle drivers. So what's the deal? Mopeds (in this case, we presume they're referring to scooters as well) with engines of 50cc or less displacement can be driven without a driver's license in many states. Thus, they become the vehicle of choice for alcoholics who have had their licenses suspended but still, you know, have to get home from the bar. Clarkson? We're looking at you. More » -
Jeremy Clarkson Is A Big Fat Idiot
Bike-Hating Jeremy Clarkson Rides A Scooter
The Daily Mail captured these pictures of Jeremy Clarkson riding a Vespa GTV around his village in the Cotswolds. The fat, balding Top Gear presenter’s hatred for motorcycles and those who ride them is well known, to the point where Clarkson once suggested that stretching wire across roads would help reduce their number. Ironically, not only is he riding a scooter, but it appears he's operating it illegally. More » -
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retro
Honda Motocompo Fits In Your Tiny Trunk!
Tiny Japanese cars from the '70s and '80s are awesome, but can you really fit anything more than a small suitcase or a couple bento boxes in the back? Actually, yes. In fact, back in the '80s, Honda sold the City with a motorcycle in the rear hatch. How did it fit? It transformed!
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novelties
What's Up With The Japanese Scooter Tuner Crowd?
Japan rightly sits near the top of the world's strange automotive trend setters. What is cool in the United States now is so two years ago for our pals over in the land of the rising sun, so it pains us to speculate that overly gaudy tuner scooters will be the next big trend over here. Hell, people are already installing media centers in them. Our Japanese-savvy friends over at Pink Tentacle have rounded up some of the more unusual looking tuner-scooters from Japan and we're more confused than titillated. A low rider scooter? That's just asking for trouble. [Pink Tentacle]
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novelties
VW Busbretta Isn't Quite Humiliating Enough
Pardon us for still trying to wrap our brains around this whole Vespa modding trend, but here is another Vespa-style (it's actually a Lambretta, but details, details) scooter mutilation worthy of noting. Not only is this person driving scooter, but it's a scooter with a sidecar, a sidecar that is modified to look like a Volkswagen Bus. So, Jalopnik faithful, which would you least want to be caught in: the scooter or the sidecar? At least in the sidecar you could possibly duck down low enough to not be seen. [Presurfer] -
motorcycles
Hummer Scooter Concept Makes Trucks Look Silly
When we saw the official press shots of Hummer's new H3T the first thing we noticed was the presence of the ubiquitous - well in the world of truck press shots that is - dirt bike in the back. We understand why they put the bike in there, it's to highlight the utility of the vehicle and to draw parallels between the ability and sexiness of the dirt bike and the truck it's placed in, but we can't help but feel it does the opposite. With its fuel economy, mud-plugging ability, cost and practicality, the bike just makes the truck look effeminate and silly. Enter this Hummer scooter concept from Oberdan Bezzi. With a 450cc engine, it's probably every bit as fast as the H3 and just as capable off-road. In fact, it's probably a more practical vehicle all round, but will that matter to potential H3T buyers? Not a bit. [Via Scooter Design]
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two-wheeled wonders
Piaggio Set To Release 170mpg Plug-In Hybrid Scooters
/> Not only will Piaggio's new HyS scooters be environmentally friendly, but they'll boast 85% stronger acceleration too. The parallel hybrid engine is remarkably small, requiring no visual modifications to the Vespa LX, Piaggio X8 or MP3, while hugely improving the gas mileage of all three. Capable of recharging from a standard 220v European outlet, the scooters can travel up to 12 miles on electricity alone. The underseat batteries can be recharged on the fly by the engine or through regenerative braking. More » -
attention in the pits!
Jalopnik at MotoGP: Parade of Pit Bikes
With the crazed velocity that was MotoGP a wrap, we now bring you another sort of motorcycle spied at the big race. Getting around the pits is often as important as getting around the track. Shuttling tires, parts, and fuel around is often the task of the noble pit bike. Crew members spend countless hours in the off-season prepping their pit bikes for the show. Hustling among the pits are vintage Honda 50s, electric-powered contraptions, and few big ruckuses. -
lighter-than-air scooting
The Graf Scooter
Electric scooter manufacturer Vertrix is working up a fuel-cell powered machine that'll run 155 miles on a tank of Zeppelin juice. The 500-watt cell gives the two-wheeler a top speed of 62 mph and features regenerative braking to dump juice back into the NiMH battery pack. It'll also run on reformed methanol, or can be plugged into either a 110 or 220v wall socket. We'll take ours in silver with ribs. Swastika-delete option, please. [Vectrix PDF via Hydrogen Cars and Vehicles Blog]
