Last week, we did a post about how difficult it is to find stylish walking sticks and crutches. We thought that that was a challenge but then we tried to find stylish mobility scooters!
Companies building mobility scooters have to work not only to create a practical, functioning machine but also to make something that is stylish enough to overcome the stigma that has, until recently, come with the idea of using a scooter. For all the bog-standard mobility scooters, many of which seem to have been transported from the eighties, there are also many new scooters out their, with an eye on design and style. We’ve had a look around to try and find the most trendy options on the market:
It’s been described as the Harley Davidson of mobility scooters and you can see why. It looks just like one of those classic, massive motorbikes but with a more comfortable chair!
Tim Ross, TGA Supersport‘s sales manager, told the Guardian that his products are for ex-bikers or for “someone who doesn’t want to be told: ‘Right, you’re old, you’re disabled, so get a red scooter. It’s a little bit modern, it’s a bit funky.” This is exactly the sort of thing we are looking to feature on this list, so it’s a great place to start.
The scooters are very capable of taking on tougher off road journeys, if that’s something you’re looking to do. The Supersport’s upholstered adjustable seat and large wheels ensure a comfortable ride on trips of up to thirty miles.
The Supersport is a great scooter for motorbike enthusiasts. It’s available at TGA Mobility at a starting price of £3995.
Tzora’s Titan 4 is quite a cool, futuristic looking scooter. The look durable and practical but, at the same time, as if someone in the design process actually thought carefully about how the product was going to look.
These scooters are also very maneuverable and portable. They can be collapsed and folded to fit into a train, car or plane (although it isn’t clear where the seat then goes).
Tzora are based in Israel. Their scooters are distributed in the UK by Grace In Age Ltd. who don’t appear to have a website. Grace In Age’s contact details are available on the Tzora site. To find out prices you need to contact them.
Rascal Vision and Rascal Balance
These two scooter designs from Electric Mobility are both quite popular but are rather different to each other.
The Rascal Vision is a big, modern statement vehicle with all the features a modern user could need. There’s an LCD screen on the handlebars and even a USB port for your SatNav or iPod. The LCD dashboard offers “easy to read feedback, ambient temperature display and full diagnostic functions” making it a great option for people interested in technology.
It’s a real big beast of a machine costing £3,249 at Smart Scooters.
The Rascal Balance is really quite different. It’s a smaller, lighter and more basic machine. But there’s something quite nice and sort of retro (as opposed to just plain old) about it. As a three wheel scooter, it’s also slightly more maneuverable than a four wheeler.
It’s also available at Smart Scooters for £2,140.
Shoprider Traveso Cabin Scooter
Often, to keep dry in the rain, when you’re on a mobility scooter, you have to massively compromise your style. But with these scooters you can keep the rain out without having to look bad. At least, you will avoid looking like this:
Traveso’s cabin scooters encase the driver in a fully waterproof pod. This seems like a particularly good idea in the UK where it rains all the time. The scooter is made from materials that won’t rust. It also has windscreen wipers, wing mirrors and lockable doors which can be taken off in the summer (if we’re lucky enough that it stops raining then). The pod design also means that you don’t have to have a shopping basket hanging off the scooter. On the other hand, they do attract a fair amount of attention.
These cabin pod scooters are available, in silver, from £3,749 at Discount Mobility Direct. If you want a red or blue model, prices vary a bit more. If you do want a choice of colours then Wheelie Good Mobility may be a good place to take a look at.
This is possibly the lightest of all the lightweight scooters that can be dismantled to fit into a car boot. There’s so little of it that you almost wonder where they’ve managed to fit the all the machinery in.
In terms of style, it’s pretty basic but sometimes that can be an overlooked virtue in design. What they seem to have done is to just keep it as simple and stylish as possible. Steve Hughes, commercial director of Roma Medical, says: “We want people to feel that they are going to have some fun with it.”
They’re very good value, costing £535 at Mobility Scooters Plus.
Mark Hermolle, managing director of Kymco Healthcare, said in the Guardian that “Scooters are an extension of yourself. Just as you think, ‘I can either buy an ugly suit or a smart one’, the same is true of scooters. People take pride in these products. They don’t want to look as if they are driving around on an old bread bin.” Now, that’s the sort of person that you want to have in charge of designing mobility aids! Someone who understands how people feel about them.
The Kymco Midi XLs are really cool. The way that they curve back towards the driver and the paneling on them makes them look a bit like Vespas. They have a basket for storage on them but it isn’t sticking out in an obvious, unsubtle way. They’re not clunky or awkward but are rather sleek and trendy.
Kymco make another similar scooter called the Maxi XL. However, this one is a little bit larger and bulkier which we feel makes it a little less stylish.
They do have a slightly strange name – are they Midi or XL? It really doesn’t matter.
We found the Kymco Midi XL for £1395 at Mobility Shops.
These scooters have a really interestingly futuristic design – they look like space bugs. They come in a really nice range of metallic colours. They have an LCD screen which the manufacturer claims will provide you with everything you might need, at the touch of a button. Suspension and cushioned seats make the ride as comfortable as possible.
Mobility Shop lists the TGA Vita 4 at £3295 but also says that you can call for best price.
These scooters don’t actually seem to be available for purchase yet. They’ve been a long time in the making, with the first signs of Honda working on a mobility aid coming some years ago. We’ve now been through two stages of Honda scooter, the first being the Monpal ML200, which was followed by the super modern EV-Monpal Scooter. The EV-Monpal has been called the “next generation” of Honda scooters but, as far as we can see, we haven’t really experienced the first generation yet.
We decided to include the Honda designs on our list because, although they don’t appear to be available yet, you can be sure that when they do come out it will be a big deal. Honda have such a strong record of stylish and functional products that their scooters may be worth the wait.
We hope there are some good ideas for scooters in our list to reach out to a variety of different people. One thing we would say is that, if you are looking to buy one of these, it’s probably a good idea to look around and research where the best price can be found and to check that they can cater to your specific needs. These things can change all the time.
Have you seen any other quality, stylish mobility scooters around? Please, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us. We’re always looking for more trendy mobility aids.
Hi, im 37 years old and following a motorbike accident in 2012 I actually need to use a mobility scooter but because of the discerning looks and the way i feel in one i refuse to. What i would like to see is the ‘Joanna Lumley’ of scooters, so one which has a champagne glass holder, cd interchanger, perhaps a convertible roof, height adjustable seat, caddy seat for a small child. What i don’t like on mobility scooters are the silly sounding bells / horns, the plastic wipeable fake leather seats, grey wheels, small wheels, baskets, arm rests shapes,spindly steering column with two handles (why not a steering wheel). Most importantly all mobility scooters should have the option of patterns, colours, crystals. I use two crutches that i purchased from Glamsticks ALL the time, and if i can’t get there without the sticks then i wont go. Please can someone fill the gap in the market for the Lumley Scooter and make it age representative and cool!
Hi Lisa,
Have you had a look at the Sport Rider by Drive Medical?
I’m a bloke in my 40s with MS and have had a couple of boring scooters like you described, but recently bought a Sport Rider (the Harley Davidson of mobility scooters), a very cool machine.
I suspect it will be right up your street if you used to be a biker.
I no longer feel like an old man while I’m out and about, it’s a real head turner with loads of chrome, I even fitted a motorbike iphone holder to the handlebars.
It’s now a pleasure to go out for a scoot, it will take me places that my older scooters wouldn’t dare.
I hope this helps.
Alan
Totally agree with lisa why cant it have a media centre, somewhere to stash wine (rather than a crappy basket for oranges-oh please) and a mobile phone holder. It’s depressing the scooter market.
Hi
Thanks for your comments. Scooters really are dire at the moment but there do seem to be some better ones coming from Japan
hi, have just been window shopping on net for “trendy” , “bling” ,”funky” , “pimped” , or just plain old pink with a few diamontes……youll have no doubt guessed I haven’t yet found any!!!!! I struggle with fibromyalgia and would possibly consider (maybe) some kind of 3 wheeled scooter but the choice out there is positively dire (and that’s being polite). Didn’t realise how little choice there would be on style, colour…..well just about everything!! Come on someone with a bit of fun in them . DESIGN. I would love to take off down our street (in small village) with a bit of a smile on my face while driving my funky pink , eyecatching ride trailing glitter and a puff of chanel behind me……Carol….x
Carol, I agree with your comments who heatedly. I’m 66 and looking for a mobility scooter following amputation of my right leg this May. Why is it so hard to find a scooter with any degree of ergonomics or design? Why for the price of a decent second hand car can’t I find something I actually LIKE? I am not going to be fobbed off with a plank on four wheels. Why aren’t there enough stylish scooters available that can be folded and that I can manage on one leg? I don’t want a little blue or red thing with a couple of wire baskets – why aren’t we being offered something we’d want to be seen in. How is it that you can never find the dimensions of the scooter that you need, and how much it weighs, without a phone call? I don’t want anything that dismantles, I have to manage to get it in and out of a car using one leg.
I am so glad to have discovered Blue Badge Style, by the way!
I would like to see a scooter that shows the ‘real range’ as opposed to ‘perfect condition ranges’ that are advertised by manufacturers e.g 25 miles advertised but you will be lucky to get 10 miles. Also most scooters either do not have a tight enough turning circle coupled with a decent range. In my case I would need a real range of 15 miles/25km (advertised 35miles/55km to 40miles/65km) and a turning circle of 4½ft/135cm.
No matter where I look then there is nothing that suits.
Also I would like to see more mobility scooters using the new technologies available as these are very limited e.g brushless motors, lithium batteries
Hi sir
i am in need of Honda Monpal ML200 4-Wheel.is it manufactured????????????????????
if yes how can i have it?
We’ve tried to find one but suspect it was not manufactured. Let us know if you find one
From Spencer Deane,
‘Such an amazing looking scooter and the only off-road that folds down that I have found. Do you think I can find someone that will distribute or sell it in the UK? I have called everyone, been passed to others but can’t seem to get anywhere.
If you know of anyone selling these in the UK I would love to hear about it. If not someone should!
Its the only scooter that looks cool,, is fast enough, off-road, can go on a train and other public transport yet fits in the back of a standard Volvo estate car.
Others should take note as this would be a big seller here, especially with the younger audience that don’t want to be driving the same model that their grandparents do!’
My comment by the way was aimed at the Tzora Titan 4.
I have since spoken with them and they are trying to find a good distributor in the UK and I am trying to help them find one.
Hopefully we will all be able to be all terrain and able to put it in the car easily soon!
Regards
Spencer
I have a Borgarelli its white (not maroon or silver) I have blinged it with adapted motor scooter products ie:horn cast, mirrors, windscreen,
rear fenders, Harley saddlebags, spare wheel, extra headlamp, badge bar with badges, undercarriage LED lights, strip LED lights all working
genuine fox tail and tiger tails and many other little bits and pieces.I am disabled and 73yrs old.I don’t see why I should conform to what they want
me to be.Ive done it because I can.
Regards Ray Martin
Hi Ray
Do you have a photo we would love to feature it
Was just browsing there and came across your site, very nice!
I suffer with chronic pain, im only 24 but pretty much house bound because I refuse to have an “old man” scooter.
For the past few months I’ve been thinking about setting up my own range of scooters and this has spurred me on to do just that! I’ll be on Facebook within the next few months but before that “go fund me” to raise money for my business venture, i’ll be back once I have my prototypes drawn up and let you all see 🙂
Have a lovely day everyone xx
Di blase morphic mobility scooters are absolutely great… Italian new product from Di Blase who make folding bikes. they come in a range of colours..mine is bright red. They fold up with the push of a button .and can be whheld like a suitcase.larger back wheels mean they are better on uneven terrain. Only problem is no key for ignition but I use a bike lock. They are stylish and fun
I have a scooters that inspires, ‘Where did you get you get THAT?’ questions almost every time I go out; I bought a Travelscoot in December 2013 after doing the same on meeting a lady with one in the local farmers market. They are never advertised – people either meet someone with one or find it via an internet search. There are now three of them within 400m of each other in this little patch of north London, and I often have people contacting me asking to come and try it out – the company puts interested customers in touch with existing owners, who probably make the most reliable sales reps as we don’t have anything to gain or lose by giving an honest opinion.
It is the lightest mobility scooter available, apparently. I required something I could lift from the pavement up onto my front path, then up two steps into the house, which ruled out the ones that come apart into pieces that may not be heavy individually, but altogether they are. It is made from aircraft aluminium, which means it is indestructible (I crash down kerbs with bottom-numbing regularity), and weighs the same as a solid bicycle. My husband picks it up like it was a kid’s bike. It takes the same space as a child’s pram, so goes on buses with no problem – you go up the wheelchair ramp. It folds up, though I have never needed to do so – drop the handlebars down to the level of the seat and it goes in the back of a small hatchback car. I took the Rixen Kaul shopper basket from the front of my bike and put it onto the back of the buggy; Travelscoot also sell a decent size wire basket that goes on the front. I get a good £50 worth of groceries home, far more than you could carry. The motor is really powerful and gets up the bus ramp and the hill to my house without difficulty when laden down.
I agree totally with comments about about not wanting most of those on the market for aesthetic reasons. I haven’t pushed up the share price of face creams to sit on one of those things and put on 60 years! The proof of its non-aging cred comes every time I go to my kids school. I feel the Pied Piper of Hamlyn, followed by a gaggle of 11-13 year old boys asking if they can have a go. My boys show off, racing around the playground (where 4mph feels fast – it’s a different matter in pouring rain).
Travelscoots cost about £1500. There is nothing to break, so no worry about bent axles etc.The battery goes for about 8 miles on the flat. I have just bought a new battery as the range of the original one has gone down.
I am in NW5, by Hampstead Heath, if anyone wants to try it out: Amy Silverston, 020 7485 7625.
Thanks Amy we’ll add to our updates known as the ‘D’List – new things in the world of disability. Keep an eye out for it.
I currently have a 3 wheel Tzora Titan (a pity the company selling these in the UK disappeared!) which I got because the front looks like a ‘proper’ scooter, and also a Luggie for travel on public transport – my Luggie fits in most wheelchair spaces on trains and buses, goes easily into the spaces on tube trains and has travelled to Canada with me.
I’ve had both of these over 5 years, and am beginning to think about replacements – so am really disappointed to find so many companies are still trying to sell us the 1970s models. And that searching for ‘folding scooter’ still brings up models that have to be dismantled. Both my previous Autogo and the Luggie were bought because I cannot ‘fold’ a scooter by wrestling it apart and I needed one that not only genuinely folds down to go in an ordinary taxi boot but which also takes more than 15 or 16st (me plus winter clothes plus luggage come to a lot more than that).
I’m newly in need and horrified by the lack of sporty looking off road or rough terrain ideas to enable at least some of my old, rambling cross country dog walks. I am only 43 not 93!. I’m surprised you’ve not included one of the viper or batec in your list. Both are detachable hybrids that convert a manual wheelchair to a trike. So far these seem the most promising ideas for me. See http://www.teamhybrid.co.uk/product/viper-sport-power-cycle/ and https://batec-mobility.com/en/products/handbikes/batec-electric-2 and
Hi Kiri
We did review them in this later post https://wp.me/p1RLkf-6eD
Being a bike rider till recently, I still wanted that connection a biker has to their environment, so was very particular when it came to a mobility buggy, it needed to cover 30 plus miles with a trailer! Had to climb hills (including grass) up to a thousand meters, use an average country/coastal path to get there and back, and look the dogs! I chose a pioneer adventure, Brilliant! All the above, n shopping too.
Hi Steve can you tell our readers where you bought this buggy?
Hi All,
Was just doing some research about Mobility Scooters for work and wanted to thank you for the great list. It’s definitely added to my research.
Have you seen the Scooterpac Cabin Car though? I found it on the Wild and Wacky Mobility site (https://www.wildandwackymobility.co.uk/product/cabin-car-mk2-plus/) first of all and after seeing this list thought it could be a good addition!
I have just purchased a Horizon Aztec scooter with power steering and Lithium batteries for long range (over 60 miles advertised so can expect 40 miles real life). It looks very much like a go-kart and has 3 speeds. 4 mph for pavement use, 8 mph for road use and 11 mph for private land use. Although it has solid tyres, the suspension negates any harshness from uneven roads. The only things that I find are a problem with it is it’s poor turning circle and the battery charge gauge is set for lead/acid batteries so show 100% even after travelling over 30 miles. Bar these two problems, I am very pleased with it and plan a long trip this summer. This is a lot different to most scooters and turns heads every time I go into town or anywhere else.