Scooters vs Motorbikes – What’s the Difference?

Gliding and twisting down the country roads, zipping and darting through the city streets; there’s something thrilling and exciting about being on two wheels that have a bit of horsepower. It gives you a sense of freedom and opportunity, like you can go anywhere, do anything and see everything. Scooters and motorbikes are a fun way of travelling and are super convenient and easy for daily life. If most people are asked to picture a motorbike, the first thing that comes to mind is usually a tough bearded guy dressed all in studded leather haring down the road at 300mph putting himself and others in danger. Scooters are the complete opposite, chugging down the road slower than a snail holding all the traffic up and making you late for work. But ignore these inaccurate stereotypes and find out exactly what is the difference between a scooter and a motorbike.

Scooters

That sluggish bike holding you up? Probably not a scooter. Mopeds are bikes with engines that are 50cc or lower, meaning they can just about make 30mph, at a push. So, put those preconceptions of scooters in the bin. Whilst they look very similar, usually with a step through design, the engine of a scooter is anywhere between 50cc and 150cc. Their bigger engines make them more powerful and faster, meaning they can easily cruise away from 30mph zones without disrupting or angering anyone else on the road. If you want a new image of scooters, think trendy European city, sun shining, wind in your hair vibes. A Piaggio electric scooter creates this look perfectly and is more environmentally friendly than their fuel powered counterparts. With Piaggio Scooter, the pinnacle of Italian elegance and craftsmanship, you can travel in a distinctive way. Whether it’s a graceful Liberty or a cutting-edge Medley, this dependable family of scooters never fails to please.

Motorbikes

The design of a motorbike is completely different to that of a scooter. On a scooter, there is a platform for your legs to rest comfortably, like sitting down in a chair, whereas on a motorbike your legs straddle either side of the bike frame. They have more of a slick and sporty look than your standard scooter, and rightly so. Motorbikes have much larger engines than scooters, usually 250cc or larger; they have better acceleration, can reach speeds way exceeding that of a scooter and characteristics that make them easy to handle at such high speeds. When you imagined a vehicle zooming down winding roads in a flash, you weren’t entirely wrong, but not all bikers are hairy daredevils.

Operation

A significant difference between a scooter and motorbike is the way you operate them. As you may have expected, it is much simpler to ride a scooter than a motorbike. Scooters are operated using a twist-and-go system, where you do literally that: twist the handle and it moves. Simple. Motorbikes, on the other hand, have a clutch and require manual gear changes to get up to speed, braking with the left foot rather than the hands, as with a scooter. This difference in handling is why you need to pass more than a Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) test to ride a more powerful bike.

You wouldn’t be nipping through narrow city streets on an all-powerful speed machine, or cruising over the rolling hills at 30mph – the difference between scooters and motorbikes are clear once you know what to look for.