In law and regulations, mopeds are normally defined by limits on engine displacement, speed, power output, or transmissions, or by a requirement for pedals. In some countries, the legal driving age for a moped is lower than for larger motorcycles, and consequently mopeds are popular among the youth. Typically, mopeds are restricted to 30-85 km/h (18-53 mph) and engines less than 50 cc.

Manyvague: date=September 2008 jurisdictions classify them as "limited-speed" motorcycles; also in some, a pedal-equipped moped, in using both human power and machine power, qualifies for special treatment as a hybrid vehicle.

History

The earliest mopeds, introduced in the early 1950s, were standard bicycles with a helper motor in various locations, for example on top of the front wheel; they were also called cyclemotors. An example of this type is the VéloSoleX brand, which simply had a rubber roller driving the front tire. A more innovative design was known in the UK as the Cyclemaster. This had a complete powered rear wheel which was simply substituted for the bicycle rear wheel, which originated from a design by two DKW engineers in Germany. Slightly larger machines, commonly with a 98 cc engine were known as autocycles. However, some mopeds, such as the Czech-made Jawa, were derived from motorcycles.

A further category of low-powered two-wheelers exists today in some jurisdictions for bicycles with helper motorsthese are often defined as power-assisted bicycles or motorized bicycles; see full article there. Some jurisdictions, however, may categorize these as a type of moped, creating a certain amount of confusion.

Some mopeds have been designed with more than two wheels, similar to a microcar, or the three wheeled (two front, one back) transport moped.

Batavus Starflite HS

Etymology

Other terms used for low-powered cycles include: Mofa (Motor-Fahrrad, German for motor-bicycle), Mokick (equipped with kick-start), Motorbicycle, Motorized Bicycle, Motor-Driven Cycle, and Goped (motorized inline skateboard with T-bar), Mopo (Moottoripolkupyörä, Finnish meaning motor-powered bicycle).

Southeast Asia

main: Underbone In Southeast Asian countries, mopeds are classified as small motorcycles similar to Honda Super Cub, sometimes called underbones, they are also known as kapchai in Malaysia. A kapchai moped is usually powered by small 2-stroke or 4-stroke engines ranging from 50 cc to 125 cc, but recently the displacement range was increased to below 150 cc with the introduction of the largest displacement kapchai model, the Suzuki Raider/Satria 150R .