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Advanced engine tech in Piaggio’s new 140mpg three-wheeler can future-proof your commute
Gas is cheap now, but everyone who remembers when it was $4 a gallon knows it won’t be affordable forever – especially when world demand exceeds supply. (In 2007, the usually staid International Energy Agency predicted the world supply of oil could peak before the average consumer has ditched their current vehicle.) Meanwhile, the same economic crisis that sent oil futures into a tailspin has made belt-tightening more important than ever.
The MP3 500 hybrid is Piaggio’s answer to all that. It’s got a few things going for it that no other non-car on the road does, including a radical (for scooters) plug-in hybrid engine that a yields a toe-curling 140 miles per gallon, and a unique three-wheel design…Â Details
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The Economic Meltdown Is Affecting Everyone
Unless you’ve been living in a cave for the past 6 months, it’s been pretty difficult for a day to go by without hearing yet more gloomy news on the economy. And for many of us, it hasn’t been just watching/reading news or water cooler conversation–it’s been a brutal, harsh reality. Like most big corporations, SR’s parent publishing company has trimmed staff down to skeletal levels, and a few friends outside the magazine have been let go after years of service by their respective companies. For quite a few of us, the New Year was rung in with, “So long 2008, don’t let the door hit you on your way out.”
Nowhere in the motorcycle industry has the economic meltdown been felt more severely than with… Details
When it comes to electric vehicles, the Tesla Roadster and Chevrolet Volt get all the love. But there are other EVs rolling around, and they’re balancing on two wheels.
Since 2007, when Vectrix of Middletown, R.I., first rode onto the scene with its battery-powered Maxi Scooter, a growing number of U.S. startups have entered the plug-in two-wheeler market. They’ve invested millions of dollars in vehicles, many of which are poised for production within a year.
Led by pioneers with impressive resumes, these companies predict growth despite the down economy, and they’re laying claim to niche markets with such boasts as “first” and “fastest” as they stake out territory in what many believe is the future of transportation…. Details