This is Scootterre!

Back in 2016/2017, I’ve spent 5 months traveling around Asia: China, Japan, but mostly South Asia, like Thailand, Indonesia, and a bunch of other countries.
The two longest stops were the island of Koh Phangan in Thailand, where I’ve stayed for about a month, and Bali, Indonesia, where I’ve spent almost 2 months. (and did a visa run to Australia… a bad idea! 😀 )
Both islands are full of spectacular views and fun things to do, and the most popular mean of transportation on both islands is a scooter.

After returning back to Canada I was thinking about buying a scooter as well, but owning a scooter here is not so pleasant.

  • There is winter with snow in Canada, so you can’t drive it half of the year.
  • Here in Quebec province you can get only a 50cc scooter with a regular driver’s license, otherwise need a motorcycle license.
  • North America is mostly a car continent, ie roads are made for cars, like, you can’t go on the highway with a 50cc scooter.
  • Roads are bad (in Montreal), and if you can feel every pothole and bump (tabarnak!) while driving around in a car, you feel it 10x more on a scooter.
  • There are not many choices in terms of brands/models and service.
  • In Quebec, a license plate for a scooter costs the same as for a car. (thank you SAAQ)

With such a list, I’ve abandoned the idea of owning a scooter up until this year.
This spring, something has changed in my mind, maybe a lack of some adventures, and I’ve started searching for a scooter on the Internet.

I didn’t consider e-scooters, mostly because of lack of autonomy and/or speed, regular gas scooters can go 200+ km with one tank (4-5 liters) at 50-60 km/h speed.
As I needed a bigger (but still 50cc) scooter to comfortably sit 2 people there were basically 2 choices in Montreal: Vespa/Piaggio or Scootterre.
Can’t remember the model, but a brand new good size Piaggio with 2 helmets and a box at the back had a price tag of around C$6k with taxes and Vespa is even more expensive.
At the same time, Quebec/Chinese Scootterre Voyageur Urbain with the same 2 helmets and a box was under C$4k.
While Italians definitely build nice and better quality scooters, I couldn’t overpay that much for the thing, that will be used mostly for fun and just half of the year at best.
So, here started my little adventure.
First, there are 2 places in Montreal to buy Scootterre scooters. 😀
One on Papineau avenue and they were pretty quick to give me the price telling that the scooter would be ready in a couple of weeks.
Another place is in Laval.
And there I’ve been told that they didn’t have any scooters at all, cause container with new models didn’t arrive. How Papineau place could possibly sell me a scooter is a big question.
I put my name on the waiting list, but it didn’t take too long and they called me back in a month or so.

Now, one summer and 700 km later I’m still a happy owner of the Scootterre and here is my review:

  1. Scootterre scooter 😀 use Supreme gas instead of Regular, it’s a bit pricier, but it still costs just C$3-C$5 for every 100-150km, unless prices will rise dramatically.
  2. Roads in Montreal are really bad.
  3. At first my scooter was stalling while idling, but after some Internet search, I was able to easily fix the problem. There is a screw under the seat, that regulates motor RPM, if it’s too low, cold motor can stall.
  4. Did I mention roads in Montreal? Yeah, they are bad.
  5. It might be hard to do a cold start if the scooter wasn’t used for some time.
  6. My top speed was 80 km/h in the Atwater tunnel when going down! 🙂
  7. Scooter started to make some strange sounds by the end of the season, but mechanic just told me it’s some dust and they would clean it till the next season.
  8. Yes, I’ve put the scooter in storage in Laval, C$240/winter with oil change and battery recharge.
  9. Basket at the back is very convenient to put a second helmet or some picnic food/stuff.
  10. Doing groceries by scooter is fast and furious fun unless you need to buy a lot.
  11. Parking in downtown is much easier now, that’s one of the reasons I bought the scooter. You still need to check parking signs, but there is always a little spot here and there to tie your steel pony. 😀
  12. Squeezing between cars or using bike lane is an option to beat the traffic, but it’s risky, so don’t recommend.
  13. Insurance cost me $C70/year, Liability only though.

Here are some pics from my Asia trip:

Other side of The Great Wall of China

 

Fujikawaguchiko, Japan

 

360 Bar, Koh Phangan, Thailand

 

Bagan, Myanmar

 

Bali, Indonesia

 

Singapore

8 comments on “This is Scootterre!”

  1. As I’m planning to pick up my Scootterre soon, I’ve checked their website to see what’s new and there are lots of new things:

    1. There are more places now selling Scootterres around Montreal and in Canada.
    Here is the full list: https:// scootterre.com/fr/detaillants-2021 https://scootterre.com/fr/detaillants-2022

    2. Prices went up a lot. My Voyageur Urbain now costs C$3295, and I bought it for C$2650 just last year (in 2021). It’s almost 25% more expensive.
    There is a little note about this at Laval Scootterre website: “Augmentation de prix dû a l’augmentation des coûts de transport des conteneurs.”
    Wow!

    Reply

    1. Thank you for this nice review.
      I just bought my bike.
      I’m afraid of having my scooter stolen.
      How do you keep your scooter safe?
      Do you park on the street at night?
      What do you recommend to keep your scooter safe in Quebec?

    2. Hey!
      I park my scooter in the garage during the night, so don’t have this problem.
      During the day should be ok to park anywhere on the street, I’ve never had any problems with that.

      But at night you can do the following:
      1. Lock the front wheel of your scooter, usually all the scooters have this feature, here is the video on how to do it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nIdB4yIMCg
      2. Lock your ignition switch, not all the scooters have this option, but Voyageur Urbain has.
      3. Previous two steps won’t save you from picking your scooter up, throwing it at the back of a truck, and driving away. For this, you might use a padlock to attach your scooter to something, the same way everyone attaches their bikes.
      You can buy something like this with alarm: https://scootterre.com/boutique/fr/cadenas/cadenas-alarme-de-6-et-1-2-cm-p1151c77/.
      I have one, but not using it, so can sell it, if you are in Montreal. Sold. 😀
      4. You can insure your scooter from theft, the same way as a car, cause it can be stolen no matter what you do.

  2. Thank you, i will definitely reach out, if needed.
    I have ordered the Voyageur and still waiting.

    Reply

  4. Yesterday I opened the third Scootterre season, and this time it’s different!
    Last autumn, I didn’t put the scooter in storage because I was travelling in October and was too lazy to go to Laval.
    I left the scooter in my garage for the winter and followed these “winterization” steps:

    1 – Le réservoir doit être plein d’essence afin de minimiser l’humidité et la corrosion.
    2 – Ajoutez un stabilisateur d’essence dans le réservoir.
    3 – Démarez le moteur et le laisser fonctionner pendant dix minutes environ. Arrêtez le moteur et retirez la clef du contact.
    4 -(Optionel)- Enlevez la bougie et y ajouter l’équivalent d’une cuillerée à soupe d’huile a moteur (la même huile que vous utilisez pour votre moteur soit 2 ou 4 temps)-Remettre la bougie et le cap a bougie en place.
    5 – Faites tourner le moteur a l’aide de la pédale de démarrage au pied. (Kick Start et non électrique ) Le moteur devrait tourner sans démarrer ( ne pas mettre le contact ) afin de bien lubrifier les parties internes.
    6 – Videz le carburateur a l’aide de la vis de vidange située sous le carburateur.
    7 – Retirez la batterie et la remiser à l’intérieur. Une fois par mois, recharger la batterie a l’aide d`une charge maximum de 1 ampère durant environ 6 à 8 heures.
    8 – Au printemps, vouz n’aurez qu’a mettre le contact pour partir le scooter et a l’aide du démarreur au pied ( kick start ) , faire la motion de démarrage entrte 10 et 30 coups. Le scooter devrait partir. Le laisser rouler 5 minutes avant de partir avec le scooter.
    9 – Il est a conseillé de faire votre changement d’huile moteur pour les scooters 4 temps..lors..de..l’entreposage

    Source: Procédures de préparation pour l’hiver

    I bought the fuel stabilizer, battery charger, and motor oil for the scooter at Canadian Tire.
    Several notes:

    • There are good videos online showing on how to empty the carburetor.
    • I placed the scooter on its center stand for the winter. If the scooter (or car) is standing for a long time (several months), the weight of the vehicle starts squeezing the tires where they touch the ground, and this might deform or even damage them. I got this tip from one of the YouTube videos.
    • It took me at least 20 tries to finally kickstart the scooter after the winter, and at some point I thought I was doing something wrong.
    • The user manual that I posted earlier has good instructions on how to change the oil. There are also lots of good videos online.
    • A 17 socket for the drain plug that comes with the scootterre was the wrong size (well, made in China, you know), so I had to buy the right size 17 wrench.
    • Because the drain plug is upside down, at first I was trying to open it in the wrong direction. Don’t make this mistake! 😀
    • The old oil was very dark, and there was some dirt inside the filter, so changing the oil and cleaning this filter after the winter seems important.
    • Don’t dump used oil into the sewer! In some parts of Montreal it goes directly into Saint Laurence river. Lots of garages accept used motor oil for recycling.
      Check out here: https://soghu.com/en

    My Vouyageur Urabin has 1365 km on its odometer after 2 years, so average is around 700 km per season.

    Reply

  5. This year the price of a new Scootterre Voyageur Urbain is C$3395, slightly higher than in 2022.

    Also, there are two new models available that didn’t exist in 2021: Scootterre Portofino and Scootterre Rebel.
    Portofino looks nice, it has this old-style Italian-like design.

    Reply

  6. There is one little but well-known secret, at least I heard about it back in 2017.
    With a regular driver’s license, one can only drive a 50cc scooter in Quebec.
    Anything more powerful and you need a motorcycle license.
    At some places you can ask to upgrade your Scootterre to 80cc, a bit more power for extra $$$ of course.
    It still will be 50cc on paper.

    Reply

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