Weight Capacity on a Metropolitan

[jlauerman]

I'm a new member here and will be buying a scooter to commute on through our city. I have been considering the Elite most seriously, but think I should at least consider the Metropolitan. Here are the considerations for me:

1. I'm 5'11" and 270 pounds (fortunately going down). Will the Metro perform at all normally with that much weight? Would I exceed the maximum gross weight of the Metro?

2. While my normal route is 5.5 miles and requires a need to be able to cruise at 35-40 mph, when I commute on my bicycle I take a different 7.5 mile route that avoids any street with that requires a speed in excess of 25-30 mph. Would this option work for the Metro?

3. One of the attractions of the Elite is its EFI. What are the issues of operating with a carburetor? Will it be hard to start on cold mornings? Will ethanol in the gas cause more problems with the carburetor?

4. Obviously, the Metro takes the cost and hassle factor of taging and licensing out of the equation. I am willing to get a Class M license (I already have the learner's permit), but it would be nice to avoid it entirely.

Thanks for any wisdom you can provide.

[ronnath]

Welcome to the forum

1. I'm 5'11" and 270 pounds (fortunately going down). Will the Metro perform at all normally with that much weight? Would I exceed the maximum gross weight of the Metro?

the stated weight limit on the met is ~275. if you're headed south from there, you should be okay. i weigh ~220 and the mets i had handled the weight very well.

2. While my normal route is 5.5 miles and requires a need to be able to cruise at 35-40 mph, when I commute on my bicycle I take a different 7.5 mile route that avoids any street with that requires a speed in excess of 25-30 mph. Would this option work for the Metro?

depends upon whether the shorter route has any hills. if it's all flat you should be able to maintain the speed.

yes, the second option should work - once again depending upon hills.

3. One of the attractions of the Elite is its EFI. What are the issues of operating with a carburetor? Will it be hard to start on cold mornings? Will ethanol in the gas cause more problems with the carburetor?

mets usually require a warm-up of a few minutes in cold weather. after that, they're fine.

i never used ethanol in the mets i had. the slightly higher cost of regular was pretty well offset by the 100mpg i was getting.

4. Obviously, the Metro takes the cost and hassle factor of taging and licensing out of the equation. I am willing to get a Class M license (I already have the learner's permit), but it would be nice to avoid it entirely.

depends upon what state you live it. Here in iowa mets require motorcycle plates because of the manufacturer’s stated top speed. The older met2 had a top speed of about 25 and they can get by with a moped registration

[jlauerman]

Ronnath:

Thanks. That is very helpful.