Zoomi Life

Honda has announced that it will begin selling hybrid motorcycles by 2010, following them with smaller electric-only scooters by 2011. The car giant has finally recognized the huge and untapped market for those who want a greener, environmentally friendlier motorcycle.

Honda’s hybrid motorcycles will use small hybrid engines between 200 and 1,000cc, offering fuel efficiency 50% higher than gasoline-only models. Their commercial availability follows plenty of R&D by Honda, including development of its prototype Numo hybrid scooter, shown above.

This Post via ElectricPig

LONG BRANCH —Jack Grazi figured it was a no-brainer.

With gasoline prices in the stratosphere and the whole country talking about alternative energy sources, Grazi figured the electric moped’s moment had come. So far, he’s figured wrong.

The moped, a Jinglong Moto, is a Chinese import. Runs like a champ, Grazi said. Trouble is, there aren’t a whole lot of places he can run it. The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, it seems, has no room for the Moto.

Grazi got the idea for his moped on a trip to China last year.

Moped might be a bit misleading of a term, since it’s not pedal powered at all. It’s more like the old motor scooters, only electric, Grazi said.

“I try to be open to new ideas,” the 80-year-old Elberon man said. “In China, everybody was using these mopeds, and that’s what they call them. It just seemed like such a good idea. I figured why not use one at home? It just made sense.”

But Grazi soon learned that what he thought made sense wasn’t consistent with government policy.

The first cracks in Grazi’s idea began to show last year when he arrived at the state Motor Vehicle Commission office in Long Branch.

“Nobody knew how to create a license for an electric moped,” he said. “They shifted me from place to place like I was a little boy, and no one knew what to do. They finally said call Trenton.”

Then Grazi said he got an answer from someone in the East State Street headquarters of the state’s Motor Vehicle Commission: We can’t license electric mopeds.

READ MORE AT MYCENTRALJERSEY.COM…

The high prices of petrol and diesel, a growing awareness of global warming and a recent commitment from Gordon Brown to alternative-fuel vehicles mean the distributors of electric scooters in Britain are poised for a switch from cars to electric vehicles.

One such vehicle is the recently-launched e-max – a stylish-looking scooter that is visually indistinguishable from its petrol-powered counterparts.

e-max electric scooters have a top speed restricted to 30mph, which means that those with a driving licence issued before 2001 are automatically entitled to ride one.

Power is via an electric motor built into the rear wheel, which is virtually silent when in use.

The ‘fuel’ is provided by sealed batteries which, like the motor, are completely maintenance free.

A spokesperson for the Environmental Transport Association (ETA) said: “Many drivers affected by the congestion charge in London have already discovered the financial and environmental advantage of petrol-powered scooters, but it’s hard to gauge how many will go electric. If you buy your electricity from a sustainable source, this is about as green as motoring can be at present.”

Read more at ETA.co.uk