A Better Ride! (Peugeot Speedfight)

Member Name: huddro

Product:	Peugeot Speedfight
Date:	03/08/01 (7297 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good looks, Ease of riding, Fun

Disadvantages: None

A better ride I hear you say, what are you talking about Rob?

Well alas despite accepting my order for the Piaggio Typhoon (see A Great Ride) the said Motorcycle dealer was unable to supply me with the scooter I wanted, and not wanting to commute by tube I was forced to look again. So I cancelled the order and went back to the drawing board.

Lucky me what a total result because…

I have just got a fabulous deal on a scooter that was originally totally out of my price range. As of Tuesday I am the proud owner of a Peugeot Speedfight2 and what a machine.

The Peugeot is a 100cc, although also available in 50cc form, 2-stroke engine as opposed to the 125cc that I was looking for, and initially I was worried that the acceleration would suffer. The designers at Peugeot had already thought of this and in order to beat the competition have shaved the weight of the scooter down to 95kg, this means it is on average 20 to 30kg lighter than its nearest 125cc rival. Thus, the smaller engine can keep pace with and often out accelerate rival scooters.

The improvement in appearance over my original choice is amazing. My choice for a scooter was based on functionality, and keeping costs down. Alas, this meant a compromise on looks, but not anymore. The raking front of the Speedfight2 is set off with twin triangular headlamps below a pointed black “radiator” grill giving the impression of speed.

The centre of the handlebars is sculpted to give the impression that the instrumentation is housed in individual pods and this trim curves down to a point finishing the “v” look on the front of the bike.

The faring sweeps round behind the front wheel and rather than the flat floor, of the traditional scooter, Peugeot have moulded the frame so that the rider doesn’t sit knees forward ankles together but sits semi-astride the scooter with feet tucked into the cut outs behind the faring.
Air intakes in the faring direct cool air onto the engine in addition to providing further aesthetic enhancement.

Peugeot have a couple of limited editions available in “racing team” colours such as the Prost version giving a powder blue base, with red and white transfers, chrome foot plates, and red wing mirrors. Personally I prefer the more subtle approach provided by the standard colours. Available in black, technium grey (silver to us), and pulsar blue the Speedfight2 looks a classy scooter.

The seat is sculpted to give a more comfortable feel and being slightly narrower again give the impression of a motorcycle riding position rather than the sit on scooter position. Not only do I find this more comfortable but feel more in control having the bike between my knees rather than feeling like I am balancing on top of it.

The rear of the seat is slightly smaller than that of the Typhoon but with a grab handle on the rear and better positioned foot pegs the ride experience for the passenger is more agreeable. Remember though no carrying of passengers unless you are properly licensed!

The raised rear of the bike curving into the rear light below the seat sets off the sporty line off the bike perfectly.

The ride on the three spoke alloy wheels is fairly smooth and any reservations I had about the single front swing arm assembly, most bike have two front forks the Peugeot has one swing arm on the left hand side of the wheel, have long since disappeared with the crisp handling and manoeuvrability of this machine.

As I mentioned earlier I feel more secure riding this bike in a more sit astride stance than a sit in position but this may not agree with everyone so I would definitely recommend you ride this before buying.

Acceleration feels a lot smoother and more controlled than other 125 and 50cc machines I have ridden. This does not take the fun out of the ride but does give a more refine
d feel to the scooter.

So I have told you so far that this scooter looks the bees-knees, rides well, and handles beautifully but what about stopping?

Peugeot have done it again, fitting disc brakes to the front and rear rather than the disc and drum combination found on many competitor machines. The levers have been thoughtfully positioned for easy reach and pulling them provides positive, firm, smooth braking giving a controlled feel to the whole stopping process.

Peugeot have come up with a complete package on this bike including security features that other manufacturers do not supply as standard and you may want to take this into consideration when deciding what scooter to buy.

The first security device is the key coded immobiliser that prevents the bike being started without the correct ignition key. The second is the retractable boa lock. What I hear you ask?

Well, rather than having a thick chain that you have to store in your box and thread through the wheel the Speedfight2 has this lock fitted inside. You simply pull the lock from out of the rear of the bike, wrap it around the post or whatever you want to chain the bike to, and lock it on to itself. When you return undo the lock and it slides back into the bike.

Final bits; the under seat storage box is big enough for a helmet or a small back pack, the mirrors actually do allow you to see behind you (I have found some allow you to look at your won shoulders!), and the Speedfight2 is quieter than most scooters I have tried.

Insurance supplied through a Peugeot dealer is your best option, and I found that the quotes were around 20% cheaper than other agencies.

The Peugeot Speedfight has been voted scooter of the year 1997, 1998 and 2000 being highly commended in 1999. With the further improvements made to the Speedfight2 I foresee that Peugeots dominance of the scooter market will continue and rightly so.

Why did
I not buy this bike to start with? Well it was £300 over my budget and this is where the fabulous deal I mentioned comes in. Ringing round for a Typhoon I found Scooters Direct. After chatting to the very helpful Paul and explaining what I wanted and what had happened he offered me a Speedfight2.

I mentioned these were too out of my price range and he offered a £200 reduction for a brand new silver machine and included free delivery (from Bristol where they are located to London…. not bad eh?).

I have to say I am very pleased with the fact the Typhoon never turned up as I now have a cool look on top of all the other advantages I listed for commuting on a scooter. Definitely a better ride!

Information

Peugeot Scooters
www.peugeotmoto.co.uk

Scooters Direct Ltd
Lewins Mean
Bristol
BS1 2l
Tel: 0117 925 7666
Fax: 0117 925 7333
www.scooters-direct.co.uk (this site is being reconstructed so does not work properly at the moment)

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