I've made a return to dooyoo just to write this (Peugeot Vivacity)

Name: skpsirwin

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Product:	Peugeot Vivacity
Date:	18/04/03 (3310 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Independence, sexyness and style, Cheap as chips, Speed and time

Disadvantages: Theives, Rain, Engine Power at times

OK, not a car, but my first vehicle so I'm easily impressed, my sexy Peugeot Vivacity. I got it in January after waiting two weeks for it to arrive from sunny old France.

Its quite a sexy looking thing (dare I say it), definitely makes me look good on the road as oppose to some other 50cc models which are so low down on the road a bus could easily crush you without noticing. With 12inch wheels fitted as standard (as opposed to 10 inch wheels fitted as standard on all other scooter makes) the machine sits higher in the road and has brilliant suspension for turning corners at 30mph and adding very good stability.

Top speed of the Peugeot Vivacity 50cc model as the book states is 30mph, however I've been known to push it over 35mph and very near 40mph on open stretches of road. Considering I drive for at least 40mins each journey in Central London rush hour traffic, I usually achieve 35mph going on the wrong side of the road in heavy traffic jams, which is perfect for commuting, at times I've even beat police cars and ambulances to the fronts of jams. So although 40mph isn't very fast at all, it does the job for a hardcore commuter ped in the Capital. However downhill It has been known to do 55 mph, which is scary stuff as its never designed to do those sorts of speeds. However considering my claims above I do actually consider myself to be quite a safe driver. I follow the usual unwritten motorcycle convention on the roads, never had accident yet.

Bit of a killer on insurance as I cant get fully comp insured, as the cost of the insurance would value more than the cost of a brand new scooter. So I'm stuck with Third Party Fire and Theft. A plan which is absolutely no good to me whatsoever, great if I decide to smash into somebody or fire it out of a cannon but it hasn't happened yet. I mean how can a 50cc engine overload and go in fire when restricted to 30mph?? Other things that go against me insurance wise are my a
rea, Central/South London SE1, my first vehicle, age (18), have only got a provisional license with CBT and living on the border of the congestion charging zone. I've also lied to insurance people and told them that I keep it garaged, in a desperate attempt to keep the premium down. The scooter came with £100 subsidized from whichever insurance plan I chose, or free third party insurance. I chose the subsidy.

Although I live on the border of the congestion charging zone, all two wheeled vehicles are 100% exempt from congestion charging which is one of the good points of owning it. Parking is totally free where ever I go, Solo Motorcycle bays are free everywhere, although I don't particularly like using it as when I return from a hard days work ready to drive home I find that 7 times out of 10 somebody has picked it up and moved it out the bay so they can squeeze theirs in, isiots costing me the price of a ticket. Parking on yellow lines, on the pavement and in other non-parking designated areas definitely contravenes parking regulations and will incur a fine, however we motorcyclists have a known convention which gets up the parking attendants noses. Simply covering the number plate with something and ensuring that my tax disc (costing only £15 mite I add) is safely in my pocket as I walk away from the bike ensures that I dodge a few hundred pounds of parking fines each week. As the law states that Parking Attendants cannot touch anything on the bike including anything covering the number plate or tax disc. If only you cars could get away with it. Of course I dont take advantage too much, I always park in places which dont obstruct anything or anybody where possible, although its illegal it doesnt do anybody any harm.

Its a 50cc model (Parents think I'll kill myself on anything higher) in Night Blue and comes complete with a built in, insurance approved boa lock which pulls out of the back of the scooter allowing it to be wrapped around
anything and locked to itself to secure it to something. And a built in immobiliser. Already been put to good use with several theft attempts. I've also added an alarm and disc lock at my own expense.

A tank of petrol will last me half a week to a week, which considering I do serious mileage every day (Usually about 25 miles per day) is great economy. I top up with two stroke oil every two to three months (only costs about six quid). However I do have a suggestion to make to anybody with a vivacity. Peugeot recommends using Esso two stroke oil, which is what comes with the scooter and it's what they'll put into it every service, however its crap. I use Castrol Two Stroke Semi Synthetic Scoot-r oil. Its especially designed for scooters and since changing to it I've noticed a brilliant cold starting time, cleaner exhaust, by reducing carbon nuild up and keeps the spark plug cleaner for longer. Also the bottle says it doubles exhaust life. Cant go wrong really.

I drive on a provisional license, costs about £30 and must have motorcycle entitlement on it, (simply means just ticking an extra box on the form), I did a CBT (Compulsory Bike Training) which cost £100 and took a day to do, it involved taking the scooter to the training centre for a day or so, learning about basic maintenance and operations of the bike, riding around on the pad for a few hours, weaving in and out of cones, practicing emergency stops, travelling at low speeds, unplanned dismounting (crashing), and finally going out on the road with the instructor, we were both linked via radio comm, after he's satisfied that I was good enough to ride on my own, he issued the certificate of CBT which made me legal to drive and validated my insurance.

Theft Attempts:

Around three weeks...
...after getting my brand spanking new machine, I left my house one morning to discover that somebody had tried to take a hacksaw to the boa lock, and failing miserabl
y as it cannot be cut through.


Around the end of February...
...I drove the scooter the 12 or so miles to work in Battersea, when I arrived and got off the scooter to garage it for the day, I discovered that the back faring panels where they meet at the entrance to the boalock had been loosened and all of the screws accessible on the bodywork were missing. Quite a chilling surprise to gather that somebody had removed all the supports to the body work and left it as a death trap for me to use after failing to steal it once again. Total cost for repairs £16 for new screws and refixing bodywork. Lesson for the future, daily checks to make sure everything is as it should be before even getting on the thing



Sunday 24th March...
....I was awoken by some loud noises at around 3AM. I jumped out of bed to look out of the window to find the somebody had tried to steal the scooter, and because of the disc lock, boa lock and immobiliser they were unable to get it. So they threw it over on its side causing serious damage to the right hand side resulting in the necessity of a new faring panel and mirror, total replacement cost for five minutes violence £100.

What do the police do to protect us innocent victims of the law?? Nothing. So I've invested £150 notes in an alarm and a new hammer which stays under the bed for repeated attempts at costing me a lot of money, I'll get them.

However dispite theft attempts and other things, I'd definately reccommend the Vivacity to everybody, the independence it gives me to just get on it and scoot to whereever cannot be bought on public transport, the time it saves is unbelieveable, after the total cost of the scooter is settled the only payments are petrol (£4 per tank), oil (£6 every few months), Tax (£15) and Insurance once a year (£456 for me but EVERYBODY gets it cheaper than me). All in all much cheaper than £35 on a travelcard each week. But be careful on the roa
ds and dont under estimate other people on the roads, always be one step ahead and do it all legally, insurance servicing and CBT. Be safe

There are some pictures of my scooter on http://www.stephenirwin.co.uk/id88.htm

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