Leon Li, formerly a successful real estate sales agent, had a vision following a two-wheeled adventure traversing much of China. While visiting China on vacation, Li, who speaks fluent Chinese, purchased a scooter and traveled with his girlfriend across China into Mongolia. The scooter proved to be dependable despite its low cost. In an entrepreneurial spirit, he imported a lot of 20 scooters, which were resold here in the United States for a substantial profit.

The venture worked so well, Li purchased a shipping container filled with even more scooters. Again, they sold out in short order, and again at a profit. Li felt he'd discovered a niche, so two more container loads were imported in the middle of winter. Sales slumped drastically and Li realized then that scooters comprised somewhat of a seasonal market. Sagging sales activity coupled with lack of availability of parts prompted regrouping to establish a more viable approach to the scooter market.

Li, together with partner Daniel Pak (the two share the same title - operations manager), developed their own line of scooters - still imported from China - but manufactured to their specifications with online facility managers in place to ensure quality control and to oversee the implementation of their required improvements and enhancements. This was accomplished after researching more than seven individual scooter-manufacturing operations. The line is called Flyscooters.

The partners then decided to establish a network of sales outlets (dealers currently number 90-plus) with parts and service backing, thereby increasing product value and reliability. Local availability includes outlets in Alameda, Elk Grove, Sacramento, San Francisco and Vacaville. There are no online sales.

Flyscooters, which is based in Emeryville, offers a lineup that currently consists of two 50cc models and two 150cc models. The 50cc scooters range in price from $1,400 to $1,700, while the 150cc scooters cost from $2,000 to $2,700. The company maintains an office in China, and is looking to expand the line to include two 260cc models and a 300cc scooter, and possibly three-wheeled models. Flyscooters offers several accessory items including windshields, tour-packs, locks, helmets and logo apparel.

I tested a 150cc La Vie model Flyscooter finished in Montego red, with a complementing ivory dual seat. Other available colors include: Sea Mist green, Peruvian gold and Cinnamon brown. The base price of the scooter was set at $2,200, with the final total amounting to $2,700 after adding a few upgrades and dealer prep.

Power for the La Vie is provided by a 151cc GYC air-cooled, four stroke, carbuereted single-cylinder motor that develops 8.4 horsepower at 7000 rpm and 5.0 pound-feet of torque at 6000 rpm. The transmission is a Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT automatic) with a dry, centrifugal-type internal clutch. The final drive consists of a shaft into the rear wheel rim, based off of a clutch and variator to a series of gears.

The suspension consists of dual hydraulic shock absorbers up front and a pre-loaded adjustable hydraulic shock absorber in the rear. Brakes are power-assisted hydraulic single discs front and rear and the tires are Taiwanese tubeless 120/70-12 front and rear-mounted on three-spoke aluminum alloy wheels fore and aft.

Summary

Flyscooters philosophy is to offer the best value for the money without claiming to be either the least expensive or the best, and they certainly seem to have accomplished that goal. The La Vie Flyscooter I rode had several worthwhile features to offer. There was locking underseat storage, a locking tour pack capable of storing a full-face helmet, pop-out passenger foot pegs, both a side and a center stand, a locking front end and a locking forward compartment.

The La Vie Flyscooter looks and feels much like a classic early Vespa, except that the body panels are made from scratch and ding resistant ABS material rather than fiberglass or metal. There are also lots of attractive chrome trim accents that aid in dressing up the scooter's overall appearance.

Since there's no clutch lever, the left-hand lever controls the rear brake, while the right-hand lever actuates the front brake. One can actually engage the rear brake as if it were a clutch, releasing it after rolling on the throttle.

The La Vie is exceptionally well balanced with a 54.8-inch wheelbase and 75.1-inch overall length. It tips the scales at a mere 242 pounds (dry). The fuel capacity is 1.3 gallons, which still provides decent range. The seat height is a fairly tall 33 inches. It is freeway legal, with a top speed of 55 mph, but it the La Vie is really much more comfortable for scooting around town.

Deploying the sidestand does not kill the engine which is the norm, and starting the motor cannot be accomplished until applying one of the brakes. There is also a center stand provided.

My test La Vie Flyscooter was great fun to ride and represented an outstanding value at less than half the cost of a new Vespa. With nearly 3,000 miles on the odometer, there seemed to be no reliability problems except a persnickety ignition switch cylinder.

It is definitely a "fly" scooter, and being able to cover 150 miles on a tank, with a fill-up of premium fuel costing under $6, is nothing short of inspirational.

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