My daily journey is a 25km round trip that starts in suburbia and goes right to the heart of the CBD, as it does for many other Aucklanders. I live close to the ramp so just after driving a few blocks, I have to sit until it is my turn to rush onto the motorway, where things get a bit better. But, in order to mix things up a little and to cover different scenarios, I also did a there-and-back journey up North, with a big stint on the motorway and 20km of twisty roads.
The first one to be put to the test was the lovely CE As with all bikes, there is some setup required. I geared up, connected the Motorrad app that allowed the map to be shown on the cluster, and put my laptop, backpack and the charger in the cubby underneath the seat. This is really useful storage, riding without a backpack over your leather riding jacket is just so much better! The access to the motorway is through a two lane ramp that goes for hundreds of metres.
Usual Auckland stuff, and a stretch of road where bikes are the best equipped to save time. Once merged and moving with traffic, the scooter starts showing its skills. Given its motor and battery were initially designed for cars, there is enough grunt to keep up with any movement, even facing headwinds going up the Bridge, regardless the state of charge β this latter being a big thing.
The information shown on the screen is very helpful. If only it were easier to flick between them: the button sits at the top of the commands on the right, which makes it complicated to hit when moving. It feels as stable as a big motorcycle and can easily cope with motorway speeds even against strong winds. It never feels underpowered, and you can shift your weight around and try different riding positions to make the air resistance less tiring.
However, the long body also makes it less willing to change trajectory and dance with you, something the smaller sister was great at. After you get used to the riding position β I had little experience with scooters myself β and the very low centre of gravity, it becomes easy to work with it and learn how far you can comfortably lean on the bike when taking turns.
