Scootin
 

Ever since the demise of the Ford Focus aka Hocus Focus, I inherited my fathers SUV. I have gone from $20 a month in gas to $85. I would do a mileage log, but when work is 1.6 miles away, who wants to read a constant 13 mpg for the last 2 years. So with my mechanical prowess I am now searching for a cheep scoot that will net me about 80 mpg. I plan on doing the EGR-PVC catch can, ignition upgrades and going to a flat slide carb, vs. a butterfly style, to decrease fuel droplets. The speed limits in my little town in Utah is between 30 and 40, so it's all city. Not to mention, the SUV is cush, luxurious, automatic and computer controlled. Lets face it, I need a project and regardless of gas prices, I would like to save the gas money.

1.6 mile commute... Get an electric scooter or a manual bicycle.
(my commute is 40 miles one way... Jealous)

Mine is 14 miles one way. And in the summer I did it by bicycle a few times. Once I did thrice in a row. And stopped on the way home to swim in the lake :)

When I lived 3 miles from my workplace I walked or pedaled.

On smaller (but non-zero) footprint vehicles: but most frequently, I do this 2*14 miles by a 650cc single cylinder motorcycle (BMW F650CS), a.k.a. Teresa. I can get 80+ mpg in the summer. In the winter, I can't. And I couldn't ride to work this winter, it was very snowy.

For such a short commute, assuming you aren't piling on the miles anywhere else, it's going to take forever to recoup even the smallest investment. I'm with those guys, don't bother with anything that burns fuel for such a short distance, bicycle/walk and take the guzzler when weather is severe.

Then you still need a project, but the project can be anything you want, not something that needs to pay for itself in fuel savings.

Although the commute is short, that's probably not the only driving done on a weekly basis. I live 1.5 miles from work, but I usually drive at least 10 miles a day. My pick is to find a decent used Ninja 250 or Buell Blast on Craigslist. If you shop around, you should be able to find a decent running one (probably not pretty though) for under $1,000. Either bike should be able to top 60 MPG easily, and there are users out there that got those bikes to 90 and 100 MPG. The payback in fuel savings should be about a year if the purchase price is kept reasonably low.

There are 2 hills I have to climb. The first is progressive, but the second is a 1/2 mile monster. I can't go to work covered in sweat. Plus due to my finances, I am buying used and will do repairs. Found a couple, so I will post as soon as I buy. The electric bike sounds good, even considered an e-car, but even with my years of junk yard picking, an electric is just out of my means. So it's off to scootin.

I was thinking that there are a few electric scooter things to choose from though the range usually sucks. that wouldn't really be an issue for you given such a short commute.

I do understand the showing up to work like you just worked out thing. just doesn't look professional.

I think you can get most 49cc scooters new for like $800 or so. I would think used would be even less.

Yes, used is the way to go, I'm looking at an 08 for 150 and a 07 for 200. Most of them are owned by students and put up for winter. One needs a carb clean out, the other a battery and ignition switch. So a little work for a greater return. The return value will be almost instant, for the low investment. Selling some eBay stuff to pay for it.

Ignition switch??? Double check that VIN and make sure its not stolen.

Thanks, I always do a vin check and I have turned down cars that don't match up. I also call the DMV, to check for charges and tickets. But it is good advice. The used market has plenty of scams.

Check out my motorized bicycle. You can get the complete engine setup on Ebay for about $200, and get 200mpg. I had this engine on a tandem when I took the pictures, but then put it on a regular mountain bike. You could easily get 200mpg if you put it on a road bike.

I picked up a Kymco Like 200i scooter in March as my primary means of transportation. Despite it's name, it is a 163cc fuel injected scooter. The cash price was $3200 out the door but that was with a windshield added to it too.

At lower speeds, it gets GREAT fuel economy. I've seen as high as 70 mpg, but I have a VERY heavy hand and am at full throttle quit often, but not because I have to. This thing has EXCELLENT pick up from zero to 45 mph. After that it takes it a while to hit it's 60 mph top speed. But with the luggage box and the saddle bags that I added, it can hold quit a bit of stuff. I have ridden it 90+ miles non stop and had luggage with me for a 5 day trip. On the highway when you're at full throttle the fuel mileage drops down to 50 mpg.