The History of the Motor Scooter
The original design for the motor scooter originated around the early 1900’s, where certain motorcycles incorporated certain features into their design, such as small wheels (just slightly over a foot across), a rear-mounted engine, a flat floorboard (for resting one’s feet), a front fairing, and inner fairing storage. Manual transmissions were the norm back then, and scooters were no exception.
However, the first and most popular motor scooter design was the Vespa (“Wasp”), an Italian design whose name derived from a comment by a friend of the designer that it resembled a wasp. The Vespa was conceived in response to postwar conditions, which featured an economic slump and sluggish technological development. The Vespa was an innovative machine, which did not at all resemble the bulky, noisy and uncomfortable motorcycles of the time, instead bearing sleek lines, which suggested refinement and sophistication. As might be expected, the Vespa was a great success, with over 49,000 produced a mere three years after its design, and well over a million produced in many European counties by 1960.
The Vespa was soon joined by the Lambretta, designed by Innocenti as competition to the Vespa. Its chief claim to fame was its fuel economy; petrol was scarce in the post-war years and fuel was at a premium. Any vehicle that could minimize its usage of the precious commodity was approved of, and so the Lambretta gained popularity as well.
Scooter development was proceeding apace in other countries. In Germany, the Heinkel Tourist, a heavy scooter known for its reliability, gradually became commonplace on the streets of the nation. It was a sleek, streamlined machine that could reach relatively high speeds despite its small motor. The Zundapp Bella succeeded the Tourist in the 1960’s. It was a machine also known for its reliability and the ability to sustain a very high cruising speed (roughly 60 miles per hour) all day. Other countries such as Austria, England, Japan and America also had their own lines of scooter development.
In the 1980’s, a new trend arose in scooter designs—namely, the trend to make scooters resemble their larger motorcycle cousins. They became larger, with bright colors, and motorcycle stylings. These scooters are also known as Maxi-scooters, and while the original scooter design has a timeless appeal to it, Maxi-scooters also have their own following.
Peugeot has pioneered a new breed of scooters; the electric scooter, which they released in 1998. These scooters promise to be quiet and non-polluting. If it has flaws, one could say it is that the batteries take a long time to charge. But some might argue it is a small price to pay for the advantages gained.
Related Information
