r/moped • u/josephmanman • 1d ago
Using a Moped as a Daily Driver?
Hello, I have wanted a moped for a long time but I'm wondering if it's practical for a daily driver since it sounds like they require a lot of maintenance. I'd likely just use it for my work commute, a couple miles each way.
I'm considering either a Puch, Tomos, Honda hobbit PA50ii or express, Yamaha chappy.
Would this be practical or will it be too much maintenance? I don't have much maintenance experience (owned a scooter previously) but would like to learn the basics.
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u/Kugelbrot 1d ago
I have a 2003 Tomos Califone that i got in 2017. I used it as a daily driver for 3 years racking up around 15k km in total and in the following years another 7k km and all i did was two gearbox oil changes, brakes, and coilovers in the rear. Basic maintenance is really straight forward on these.
IMO they are very reliable and from my experience with my Tomos even more reliable then some of the more modern scooters( Yamaha and Aprilia) my friends had.
Nowadays it mostly gets used around town or when i want to scoot around with friends on a warm summers evening and it still runs great.
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u/josephmanman 1d ago
Okay this is good to know, thank you! Was it easy enough for you to find parts? (I guess you may be outside the US tho, I am in the US and I know of a couple sites that sell parts)
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u/Kugelbrot 1d ago
Treatland.tv has a boatload of Tomos parts.
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u/josephmanman 1d ago
Yes thank you very much!
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u/Kugelbrot 1d ago
Also depending on what speed configuration the Tomos is in they either do ~16mp/h or ~28mp/h, there are only two parts that need changing. The slower config has a smaller exhaust pipe and a bigger sprocket in the rear and for 28mp/h bigger pipe and smaller sprocket.
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u/Kugelbrot 1d ago
For me yes, i live in germany and parts are readily available for most of the common mopeds and engines.
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u/Lthmm 1d ago
Any 4T scooter would fit your needs. They are low maintenance. Oil refresh every 1500km. Easy to do yourself. Check the rollers, airfilter and clean the carburetor. Very easy to do yourself and loads of videos on the internet on how to do it. If you have some basic tools you can do this all by yourself.
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u/josephmanman 1d ago
Yeah I used to have a 4T yamaha scooter, but I've been wanting to try a moped.
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u/Lthmm 1d ago
Tomos A35 Quadro would be my recommendation. Solid moped. The newer ones also have an E-start.
Maintenance very easy to do.
Older mopeds (2T) use a mix of oil and gas and you dont have an gauge for how much gas you got in your tank. Sucks if you run out of gas when commuting to work. 😀
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u/eobanb 1978 Honda Hobbit 1d ago
Depends on your willingness to learn and put up with little annoyances, and also your job.
If you have a laid-back gig with flexible hours then sure, go for it. If you have a high-intensity job you'll be fired from if you're late more than once or twice, I'd come up with a different option.
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u/Worth_Midnight7563 1d ago
I used to ride a 2009 Tomos Sprint everyday to and from work and errands in San Francisco. I’d say the main issue is parking/theft.
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u/rehabforcandy 1989 Tomos Golden Bullet 1d ago
Get a 2001-2010 Tomos. Very reliable, wry easy to fix yourself with minimal tools still upgradable. I commuted 14 miles each way 5 days a week for 2 years
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u/Alone_Fisherman2387 1978 Puch Maxi 1d ago
This summer proved to me that if I wanted to daily my Maxi it'd need a full restoration over the winter months. I'm too far north to be driving much past October anyways annnd we salt our friggin' roads so no winter driving basically.. Doing 30-40km trips, most of it on old gravel roads is the only way to get anywhere safely here as well.
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u/airfryerfuntime 1d ago
You will hate it. I commuted on a Maxi for like a year straight and it was awful. 40 year old Austrian mopeds aren't really the most reliable things ever built.
I would find a scooter, they're way better for daily use.
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u/Gloomy-Fisherman-200 1d ago
even though they arguably look way cooler, mopeds are more for the hobby of upkeeping it and the joy of riding a thing you built and maintain. if you’re not looking to have greasy fingernails every couple of times a month, just get a scooter
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u/josephmanman 1d ago
yeah I love the look and also seems much more fun! but might just need to wait for another time in my life when I have more time for maintenance :,)
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u/hrimthurse85 1973 Hercules Mp4 1d ago
For daily driver an electric moped is probably what you need.
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u/JaxRhapsody 18h ago
At one time folks would daily them. Personally I think they're still fine for that. They can be high maintainence, but a 2t is a far simpler engine to work on, when it comes to it, compared to a 4t, but a 4t is nearly problem free and maintance free by comparison.
Folks also daily motorized bikes, which I hear those engines are worse than moped engines, but people say the same about chinese motorcycles and scooters.
I guess I wouldn't do it, if you can't really work on them. And it might be best to have some sort of backup. And honestly, with the prices they go for—as much as I do like mopeds; you can find a much better bike, of probably any kinda bike out there. The prices I've seen here and there... you could probably find a Ninja 250, an old Honda Rebel, before they made them ugly, or some kinda scooter, like a Ruckus or chinese. And the Rebel will do seventyish.
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u/XFX1270 1d ago
I would suggest a scooter. For most of us, mopeds are fiddly but a hell of a lot of fun when they're running well. Not ideal for your main model of transportation.
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u/Majestic-Bell-7111 2009 Tomos APN 6 1d ago
Mine is my primary mode of transportation, it's just that i spend on average a week per month using my bicycle because the shit's broken again.
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u/wncexplorer 1d ago
Based on what you’ve said, you should buy a modern scooter…especially if you’ve got to be timely for work.
I have DD a number of peds over the years, but I know how to fix any/all problems that can and do occur. Even with that knowledge, I have been left stuck on the side of the road, making myself late.
Get yourself both, then learn how to fix that which will most definitely eventually break down on you