Take to the streets with the Zoomer

By GARY MORELLO

The latest Honda-built scoot is a bit of weird one. First off, take a look at those rather odd design cues. Strange, wouldn't you agree?

The new mini-scoot was created by Honda's "N Project" development team. Not surprisingly, this team is comprised of young engineers and designers, charged with creating products designed to appeal directly to a younger generation.

The end result is what those of us in the motorcycle world call a 'naked' bike. These are two-wheelers with no chassis, no body, no fairing - if you will. Sure, you can't cheat the wind, but they do turn heads.

With extras like mega-fat tires, twin 'bug-eye' headlights and the naked styling, the new Zoomer is curiously intriguing. Is it a scooter or semi-sentient robot?

The new Zoomer runs off a single-cylinder, 49cc four-stroke mill, putting out a meagre five horsepower (3.6kW). However, this is more than enough power to get you through the everyday hussle and bussle, especially considering the scooter's light weight of only 84kg.

Seat height is just under 74cm, which is low enough to accommodate almost all shapes and sizes and the Zoomer comes with both an electric start and kick start, the latter perfect for when the battery dies.

All up, the Zoomer offers today's youth an individual, unique and different vehicle to get around in. Those who are bored of the generic scoot 'look' should pay close attention to the new Zoomer as it could set many a trend in years to come.

The only misgiving we have about this yet-to-be-released scooter is that Honda has chosen to go with drum brakes, front and rear. Obviously cost comes into the equation, as Honda would no doubt like to keep the price down, but drum brakes are insulting. The price point in Japan is currently ¥189,000, which converts to around $2,900. Quite a healthy price tag, all things considered.

The Zoomer was launched to the Japanese public in June of 2001 and, with any luck, we might see the little scoot on local shores in the near future if it sells well in the Nihon.

For those who just love the look of the new Zoomer, you might get lucky and find a grey import at your local scooter/motorcycle dealer. The Zoomer is perhaps just the beginning of Honda's "N Project" team's success and it wouldn't be surprising if scooter design went completely wacky from here on.