Modern Buddy

In California, you can't take anything smaller than 150 cc on the freeway. So here's a question for somebody who knows more than me...say I put a 165 or 177 kit on my Stella. Not that i wojld want to, but could I then take it on the freeway legally?

Yes. You could even take a stock 150cc Stella on the freeway legally. But I wouldn't recommend it. Being legal and being wise are two different things. For example, I wouldn't take my 150cc Buddy on the stretch of the 101 between SB and Ventura. It is just not fast enough or powerful enough to keep up with traffic speed — especially where the road is uphill.

In Virginia, the rule is anything with plates can ride anywhere. Yes, this means a 50cc (not 49cc) is the minimum requirement. It's insane, but true. I asked 2 police officers about it and they said it'd be kind of stupid, but technically legal.

I agree with the legal/wise process.

I CAN take my 150 on <65mph roads here in CO (well, assuming it has plates, but I digress...). However, anything that isn't flat or <55 is probably a dumb idea, as I will just be backing up traffic.

Heck, even the 250 maxes out about a true 70, so even though it is legal on the 75mph freeways, I'm just not gonna do it.

Like I said in the original post, 'not that I would want to'. No desire to ride my Stella on the freeway, just curious about the laws.

Skootz, I'm not sure you're correct about the Stella currently being legal on the freeway. It's technically 147.5 cc according to the manufacturer. Not sure how that works legally, but my impression is that it would not currently be legal.

Rusty Shackleford wrote:In Virginia, the rule is anything with plates can ride anywhere. Yes, this means a 50cc (not 49cc) is the minimum requirement. It's insane, but true. I asked 2 police officers about it and they said it'd be kind of stupid, but technically legal.

Unless Virginia has minimum speeds on some highways (as Oregon does), or a more general law concerning obstructing traffic.

Regardless of displacement, in CA you still need to be able to keep up with the flow of traffic and ride at minimum speeds. I know someone with a P200 engine in a VB1 who was kicked off CA-1 for going too slow. You can be ticketed for this as well, I think.

Dooglas wrote:

Rusty Shackleford wrote:In Virginia, the rule is anything with plates can ride anywhere. Yes, this means a 50cc (not 49cc) is the minimum requirement. It's insane, but true. I asked 2 police officers about it and they said it'd be kind of stupid, but technically legal.

Unless Virginia has minimum speeds on some highways (as Oregon does), or a more general law concerning obstructing traffic.

We do, you must maintain at least 15mph under the speed limit to be allowed on the interstate so when the posted limit is 70 you need to be doing at least 55mph

magnato1 wrote:Skootz, I'm not sure you're correct about the Stella currently being legal on the freeway. It's technically 147.5 cc according to the manufacturer. Not sure how that works legally, but my impression is that it would not currently be legal.

There are two camps on this — the "it is sold as a 150cc so you can treat it as a 150cc", and the more literal "it is really a 149cc so don't you dare treat it as a 150cc". There's a bunch of back and forth.

As for myself, if it says 150cc on the scooter and it is licensed to be sold as a 150cc in California, that is good enough for me and, I suspect, most CHP officers — so long as you can keep up with traffic. No matter what cc scooter or motorcycle you are riding, if for whatever reason you can't safely keep up with traffic and thus become a hazard, as Eric says, you will get pulled over.

The other side of the coin is that, in some circumstances (such as a short distance in thin or congested traffic) a 150cc might be able to handle it. So it's good to know whether it's legal if such a situation arises.