Scooter Forums - SoScooter.com UP!

Two OLD posts below. The forum is already up and has only 20 members (including myself :frowning: )

Please join and help me spread the word!

I’ve started one thread in the “Asia” section about how to know you’re riding in Taiwan. Care to help me write about the dangers - and hilarity - of riding in Taiwan?

Thanks,
Shawn

Here’s the link:http://soscooter.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=34


Hey Everyone,

I was thinking about starting a forum for North Americans (Canada & USA) about the scooters we all know and love in Taiwan. When I first came to Taiwan, I thought scooters were pretty nerdy… but as I lived here for a while and got used to them, I know think they’re alright and can be cool (just as you probably felt). Very utilitarian, too - considering the ease of use and savings on gas.

I basically feel that now is the time a larger majority of people in the USA and Canada will start appreciating scooters for what they are. They’ll feel better about driving them (environmental consciousness) and they’ll become much more popular.

What do you all think? Would the site be popular or a flop?

Will scooter sales in those two countries start to rise and will they become the craze that they are in Taiwan?!?!

All opinions and viewpoints welcome!

Thanks,
Shawn


So… that’s my old post as above. I’ve started a worldwide scooter forum (in English, though) for scooter fans all over the world. Please support it and join! It can be found at:

www.soscooter.com

Get it? It’s like how the Taiwanese kids say, “Ni hen ji che…”, “You are so scooter!” Of course, that phrase means you’re a jerk or something, but it can be used in a joking manner.

So… hope to see you on SoScooter.com!
~Shawn :frowning: :frowning:

You ought to make a forum for sit down lawn mowers and fork-lifts too.

I was considering buying a fork lift for my main means of transportation, get a custom paint job with some flames down the side

and some rims.

Driving it would be great and parking…well I’d just create parking spaces wherever I’d go.

“Wanna cut in front of me? Well we’ll just move your ass up into the sidewalk there you go.”

Most people cringe in fear when a really determined looking madman cruises by in a fork-lift and honks his horn in a wild almost senseless manner.

I see… so you’re saying it’s a niche market.

Don’t you know sit-down lawnmower races are BIG in the US of A Midwest?!

Also, forklift operators at shipping yards all over the world have races each morning before work.

I say go for it, shawn_c.

I think Vespas were getting popular in some cities in the USA.

I know San Francisco has its fair share of scooters, scooter shops, and scooter enthusiasts.

Even places like Chicago have caught the scooter bug–even though the winters there make driving them for a good three months of the year nigh on impossible.

Rising gas prices might make scooters even more popular, as you mentioned.

Don’t know if they’ll ever be as popular in North America as they are here, however.

I, for one, would be interested in such a Web site or forum. Best of luck with this, whatever you end up doing with it.

You might want to take a look at UK auto scooter magazine Twist & Go. The magazine’s not actually very good (too thin, lots of puff pieces) but it might give you some ideas. You can sometimes buy it at Eslite bookshop.

Here’s the website:
twistngo.com/

fee and joesax, cool! Thanks for the real advice!

I’ve had this idea for a while, and I’ve also seen one Canadian forum dedicated to Toyotas go from just Toronto members to nation-wide Canadian and American members. Very successful, I’d say.

I think I’ll keep doing some more investigating and any more comments would be appreciated.

But, it isn’t hard or expensive to do, so I’ll probably end up doing it - I’ll of course let the Forumosans know, too, once it’s up.

This is a great idea. I hope to see this grow into something huge!

Good Luck Shawn! :bravo: :bravo:

Hey TainanCowboy,

Thanks again for the encouragement! I better keep working on it, though… the start page is a little sparse and I whipped it up in about five minutes. Haha… I also bought that little clip for only $12 at POYA… haha.

Where’s Mordeth at? Is he gonna join?!?!

I often thought there was a killer to be made for someone to import performance “made in Taiwan” parts for scooters in North America. Lots of them youger blokes riding scooters in Quebec, for example, and the best they can think of to increase performance on their scooters is to drill holes in their stock pipes. Anything else is far too expensive. Two wheelers are considered a “fun” luxury in Canada, and the prices on upgrades and maintenance reflect just that.

I think your idea has potential, indeed. With gas prices so exorbitant, a scooter that can do 90Km/hr certainly will gain more and more appeal, especially in the warmer parts of North America.

I thought the exact same thing for Aus, and was pretty much setup to start exporting stuff from here to import there… but after some research, there’s not really much of a market and a lot of hassles to go through… Still, I am continuously keeping my eyes on the scooter market in Aus to see if there’s any explosion. Thing is also that they sell mostly Euro scooters… the ones we have here are far and few… but heck. I’ve got my plans :slight_smile:

I know that Taiwan used to export a lot of knock-off car parts and upgrade parts to the West… but now, China has taken that market over. China is also beginning to take over the scooter market, too! Have you noticed some Chinese brand of scooter being sold around here in Taiwan? It’s called Lidan or Lifan or something… they’re ugly as hell, though. Considering Yamaha sells so well in Taiwan goes to show you that good design counts for a lot.

Hmm… I was also myself half-thinking about exportation of scooters themselves (not so much the accessories) to Canada/USA… but… it only went so far as thinking!

bobepine, I guess you’re from Quebec, eh? I’m from Ontario. I know that when I went back to Toronto for a year in 2005-2006, I saw many more scooters on the streets than I had ever seen before. Of course, it was still only a handful.

How about we all pool together our resources and take the Taiwan-scooter-part exportation market for ourselves!!!

I’m from Honolulu, Hawaii, and there are a lot of scooters in the city. Parking for a car is $8 a day in downtown Honolulu, so riding a bicycle or moped makes lots of sense. 49cc / 50cc mopeds are counted as bicycles, so you don’t need a Type 2 (motorcycle) license. Most folks here (illegally) hop up their bikes with a 68cc - 70cc (or up to 100cc) single cylinder engine kit. They’re 2-stroke Polini or Malossi kits that have massive power. With a race belt and weights, a typical bike is able to reach 65 - 70mph. Personally, I’ve moved on to motorcycles, but these bikes are tons of fun.