Ok, so watching my most favorite new tv series "The Colony" they built a badass electric trike. This got me to thinking about a story I read in Wired a year or so ago of some guys who made an electric Sport Bike with amazing speeds from a few prius batteries and a mfg. frame. I've since got the crazy idea to either purchase or possibly even build an electric scooter. There are many of them out there comparable to anything from a 50cc all the way up to 125cc engines, some getting 180km per charge, and a couple that go nearly 70MPH! Here's one I've been looking at and researching researching:

This is actually a Euro bike but said at http://treehugger.com to be now selling in the US.

Emax 140L [140cc Equivilent]

Maximum Speed
25 / 45 km/h
(due to EU regulations),
up to 60 km/h technically possible
Battery Capacity   15 x 3.2V/90Ah
Distance Range 130-150km

Motor 4000W [Max Power]
13'' high torque maintenance free motor

Nominal Voltage 48V

Output (with Booster) Approx. 45A (80A)

Charging time  2.5-6.5 hours

Power in kW (with Booster)  2.0 (3.2)

Weight  Approx. 145 kg

Tires 130/60 - 13" (front and rear)

Brakes  - hydraulic floating disc brake

Rim -Aluminium

Front and rear shock absorber

oil/gas pressure

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The bottom line being, I think Preston and I could easily make a faster, cheaper scooter on our own using parts plus an old scooter frame. If you watch "The Colony" - ep. "Recon Mission," you will see that aside from learning some fun new electrical throttle stuff; it isn't really that hard if you know the right things and have the knowledge to decently fabricate what you need. I'm super hyped about this, I'm working with some numbers for how many and what type of batteries can be used. The above scooter and the faster ones all use Lithium batteries. I will also need to find a good candidate for motors, aka, what type of machines can I scrap them from.

If you think this is an interesting idea, or have input, or part donations, add it to this thread!