Piaggio Unveils a 141-MPG Plug-In Hybrid Scooter

Italian scooter-maker Piaggio has unveiled a plug-in hybrid three-wheeler it says will get up to 141 mpg and could be on the road as early as next year.

The MP3 Hybrid that Piaggio rolled out at the big international motorcycle expo in Milan, Italy,  combines a 125-cc gasoline engine with an electric motor in an easy-to-ride three-wheeler that reportedly could do zero to 60 in around 5 seconds.

It looks eerily like the prototype Vectrix 3-wheeler.  Except the Vectrix doesn't have the Italian model sitting on it.

But of course the Vectrix vehicles are all-electric.  One nice aspect of the Piaggio is that it will allow the rider to switch from all-electric to hybrid mode to gas-only mode.  Pretty cool stuff.  No word on the price tag though.

 looks AWESOME.  i like that it's a 3-wheeler (somehow makes me feel safer riding, ha), and the bike looks great.  141-mph...crazy!  i like the flexibility in what's powering it, i.e. hybrid vs. gas-only vs. all-electric. sweet!

That's 141 mpg, not mph.  Which I assume is what you meant, because going 141 mph on any motorcycle would be scary as hell ;-)

But yeah I agree, the fueling flexibility is pretty nice.

Threw up a product page for it, FWIW

http://greenhome.huddler.com/products/piaggio-mp3-3-wheel-hybrid-electric-scooter

141 mph would be terrifying :)

hahaha, yea, i meant 141 mpg.  i'd be nervous about riding on ANY motorcycle, let alone at that speed!  lol

First off, agreed that 141 MPH would be nuts.  I don't think I'd ever want to go that fast...in a car, on a scooter...I don't think I could handle it.

Second, I've definitely seen a few of the gas powered ones roaming the streets in San Francisco.  They're pretty cool looking. 

And third...haha, yeah, so Vectrix actually was planning to license the patent from Piaggio.  This comes from an LA Times article after the Vectrix V3 debuted:

For its follow-up to the electric scooter it debuted last year, the Rhode Island manufacturer has gone the way of Piaggio. Literally. In order to make an electric version of a three-wheeled scooter, Vectrix had to license the right from the Italian manufacturer, which holds the patent.

While the V3 uses the same sort of independent, wheel-action suspension as the Piaggio MP3, allowing each front wheel to move independently but also lean in tandem and lock when stopped, Vectrix's front suspension is its own proprietary design.

Back at the last SF Green event in May, the Vectrix rep I talked to said that they had pushed off plans to produce the V3 until they saw how the market was for the Piaggio MP3 three-wheeler.

Aha well that explains it.  Good investigatory work, stins!  I was wondering if one of them had ripped off the other :-)

Over the last few days, I've seen two Piaggio MP3's around San Francisco.  The other day, I was walking in my neighborhood and I saw one of the Piaggio MP3 scooters parked.  Now, this one was 100% gas powered, but it was pretty interesting to see the styling and what not up close and personal.  It's a big bike for sure.  I kind of like the idea of a 3-wheeler since it's more stable.  In any case, here's a little janky cell phone picture:

Man you guys get all the cool stuff in SF!

...where did the model go?  (J/K  LOL!)

I have seen one tooling around my area down here as well... I think it's a Piaggio.  Looks like it rides fairly well.

 They sell Piaggo 3-wheelers in Santa Cruz, but I am still undecided about height an width on the lousy roads and wind, but that is just 1 opinion!  A lower seat version with a roof would put rider weight closer to the 3 wheel 'pyramid' yet the roof could adjust higher for visibility.  I am very glad to see more trikes on the road than only mine.

Counterstrike, what do you think about the VentureOne?  Although...looking at the company's website, it looks like they've rebranded to the Persu Hybrid with both hybrid and all-electric models.

Here's a video of the Carver which is basically the same thing...