You might think twice about parking it next to the Harleys down the street at the Bashful Bandit, but the Vectrix VX-1 isn't merely a utilitarian, zero-emission, electric scooter — at least that's not the way it's marketed.
Middle-aged real life Vectrix rider "Dave," pictured on a Vectrix VX-1 electric "maxi-scooter" at the top of the company's U.S. home page, wears a biker-style head rag, has a beard, skull T-shirt under a black leather vest and inked-up arms.
Surrounded by a showroom of extremely fast, mostly red and definitely macho Italian Ducati, Moto Guzzi and MV Agusta motorcycles, Steve Spreter finds Vectrix "Dave" a bit amusing.
Still, he admits the Vectrix is a lot of fun to ride. And Spreter knows about riding for fun. He's the owner of Renaissance Motorcycles, 4411 E. Speedway. He's been selling fast Italian bikes in Tucson for 30 years. He recently started selling the classic scooters of Vespa and Piaggio, too.
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The all-electric Vectrix is another step in the scooter direction, but Spreter says the Vectrix electric scooters use many of the same production quality components — suspension, brakes, instrumentation — of the powerful bikes that take up most of the showroom.
It uses a 125-volt nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery pack.
It's proven technology, said Rush Dougherty, head of the Tucson Electric Vehicle Association, known as TEVA2. Dougherty said NiMH batteries are tough and can take repeated nearly full discharges without drastically diminishing their life span.
"The average person in America drives per day only 33 miles," says Dougherty. "It (the Vectrix's 35-55 mile range) would satisfy 95 percent of the population, not 100 percent. But an electric vehicle that gets 35 miles or something near is more than adequate."
The Vectrix VX-1has a windshield, big soft seat, running boards rather than footpegs, enclosed cargo compartments. The guts that make it go are all hidden from sight under the plastic body.
But it'll do 62 mph and zero to 50 mph in 6.8 seconds, according to the manufacturer.
It doesn't make any threatening snorting noises while doing it. And it runs as clean as the electric plant that made the power that charged its batteries.
It takes three to five hours to recharge the batteries and will travel between 35 and 55 miles on a charge, Spreter and the manufacturer say.
Spreter says the battery packs make up almost half the 515 pound weight of the Vectrix, so an aluminum frame is used to offset the weight of the batteries.
So far, Spreter hasn't sold a Vectrix but says he's had a lot of lookers.
That doesn't surprise Dougherty.
"People are a little leery of being the first one on the block to get something," Dougherty said.
Spreter thinks buyers will come around, attracted by the "green" factor, the quality fit and finish of the Vectrix, and the fun. He allows that going green and saving money on gas are sometimes good excuses for having fun while going to and from work.
"People are a little leery of being the first one on the block to get something."
Rush Dougherty, head of the Tucson Electric Vehicle Association.