But that’s a moped.
this post was submitted on 13 Nov 2025
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Mopeds are called motorbikes/motos/scooters in most countries, the term "moped" is rare.
Placeholder for when I get home and can do a mad brain dump on two wheeled vehicle nomenclature.
Placeholder because I want to see this.
Okay, here we go. All of these have two wheels. If I've missed anything, or you'd like my opinion on a specific two wheeled vehicle classification, let me know.
Motorcycle
- More than 15HP
- 16" or larger wheels
- Manual transmission or DCT automatic (not a variator with a belt)
Moped
- "Functional" pedals; not practical, just functional
- Under 80cc
- 16" or larger wheels
- Variator/belt transmission
- Few or no plastics
- These came up in the late 1970s to comply with various "motor-driven cycle" legal allowances
- You rest your feet on the pedals
- Can be "throw your leg over" or step through
- Generally have a max speed of 30MPH stock
Scooter
- Any engine size (I believe the Suzuki Burgmann 650 is the largest, could be wrong)
- Step through, you sit on it like a toilet
- Flat floor pan for your feet, or flat foot "floorboards" to the sides of a low center hump
- Lots of plastics
- Variator/belt transmission
- Most of these have 14" maximum wheel size and comparatively fat tires
Noped
- Basically a moped without the pedals
- Foot pegs
- These came in the early to mid 1980s
- Can have smaller wheels, but the tires are not fat like scooter tires
Scooter cycle
- Looks lilke a small motorcycle; clearly intends for you to think it is
- Variator/belt transmission
Motorized bicycle (MB)
- Began its life as a regular pedal bicycle without power assist
- Has an added internal combustion engine for power assist
- ICE engine can drive the rear wheel with a second chain and sprocket, or the front or rear wheel with a pinch roller, very rarely with a pusher trailer; kits also exist to replace the bottom bracket with a freewheel sprocket that the engine drives, with power going to the wheel via the pedal chain
- In rare cases, these were manufactured this way, generally very old ones
E-Bike
- Pedal bicycle with electric power assist
- Many of these are factory made now
- These can also be made the same way MBs are, by adding an electric motor: -- Pinch roller drive -- Hub motor drive -- Bottom bracket drive
Minibike
- Similar to a noped, but extremely small
- Small wheels and fat little tires
- May not have brakes at all, if it does, they're really bad
- Pull start
Dirtbike
- A small motorcycle designed for offroad use
- May not be street legal
- Small ones for kids may be variator driven
needs more upvotes
(US only specifics for Ebikes)
Class 1 is pedal assist only, max 20mph, max 750W motor.
Class 2 is pedal assist or throttle, max 20mph, max 750w motor.
Class 3 is pedal assist only, max 28mph, max 750w motor.
Anything else technically is an emoped or even a motorcycle if powerful and fast enough.
Most of Europe only allows up to 15ish mph before shifting classification to some sort of moped/motorcycle if my memory serves correctly.
Pushes up glasses All mopeds are motorbikes.
You can’t be in a biker gang on a moped though. You could be in a mod gang with a duffel coat, but that’s a totally different subculture.
(There was a Wythenshawe biker gang who didn’t have any bikes, and just went to the meet ups on the bus, but at least they wore cuts.)
No it isn't. Mopeds have bicycle pedals. It's a scooter.
Mopeds are motorbikes.
No they’re not - they’re scooters.