Home Forums General Discussion Mini choppers and the law.

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  • Anonymous
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    Post count: 2134

    Before I start blazing off messages to the Ministers for Police (sadly, also my local MP), Transport and especially ACC, could anybody give me a quick rundown on the requirements for the legal operation of these mini pests on the road (Mr Bell, maybe)?

    I had a tiny altercation with a rider of one on my way home from work last night. After he had done 150 metres over double yellows at a busy intersection, against oncoming traffic, and then cut a right hander through a red light, BETWEEN the oncoming, I called him a lackwit (well, something like that) as he passed just in front of my stationary push bike. He then took offence, put his bike on the stand, and rushed back up to my bike: I did not think he had rushed back to lodge a land claim on the intersection. We had a small conversation, wherein he asked me what I called him, so I said anyone who rode that way was a "lackwit", and he said, "You honky "thing", I'm going to smash you unconscious!"

    At this stage I was anticipating imminent pain: with one foot on the floor, one still clipped in the pedal, and both hands holding up my bike I was somewhat ill prepared for pugilism. Fortunately, he continued to verify my ID of him as a "lackwit" by attempting a headbutt, so I ducked my face and let him plant his open face-helmeted kisser in the top of my bicycle helmet, which took his mind off his stated objective. At this point some of the fifty or so onlookers around the scene were expressing interest in joining proceedings on my behalf, so he swanned off. Lucky me!

    That is of no interest to the lawMAKERS in the gummint: the operation of those vehicles should be.

    They are low (below Remuera tractor, or even some cars', bonnet height). They do not require a bike license = the riders have had zero training. You can't complain about them if you are on two wheels, unless you have a Baehr hooked up to your cell phone (on my push bike?), because they have no number plate, you would have to trail them until the law turned up (in South Auckland, sometime next month, maybe). Many of them have no taillight, stoplight or indicators.

    And when the riders get smeared out across the road, guess which ACC pool statistics they will get lumped in with? Like we don't pay enough, already. There is my issue.

    Mr Bell? Any others? What legal constraints are there against these machines currently (never mind the Queensbury Rules, I'll maybe not be so flip with my lip to avoid that in future.)

    Anonymous
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    Post count: 2134

    Yeah, before anyone else points it out, my mug shot on the mini trail kinda lumps me in with my mate, eh?

    Warren
    Participant
    Post count: 37

    I agree with all your comments on this subject ( and a few others from time to time but not always) Anyway, there is a swarm of these bikes in our area. About 5 or 6 at last count. Must be a club as they go out together on rides and when they all line up at the intersection outside my house, the noise is worse than a Stagecoach bus and that is saying something.
    Some have lights and indicators but most don't and no number plates. probably no licence and no brains either. They do have helmets. I suspect they have parental consent as most appear to be quite young so the lack of intelligence must be hereditary.
    It would seem that plod has got them in the too hard basket and will continue to harass lawabiding (most of the time) roadusers as that is far more profitable. Even with the number of teenage road deaths recently, the gummint seems to not want to know and so it's agencies will do nothing until there are some votes in it for their masters.

    Paul
    Participant
    Post count: 16

    There is one of these machines a few doors up the road from our place. On fine weekends the house occupants take turns “burning” up and down the street, without helmets, jackets, gloves or shoes! Occasionally the braver ones will venture around the block, including busy Campbell Road.

    Other road users cannot see these machines easily as they are obscured by parked cars and small shrubs. Luckily the exhaust systems (or lack of) make up for this if you're a pedestrian, but a bugger to hear when wearing helmet and earplugs!

    I have politely asked one of the riders (an older guy, presumably struggling to keep some excitement in his life, however short he wants that to be) to consider the negative impact his actions have on us road legal riders (yes, I was on the BM at the time). But, like others here, what else can we do?

    Do we look to the enforcers to deal with this? What about addressing the bike dealers who supply them? Unlikely to be BMW, but surely other reputable dealers would not want to lose their law-abidding customers for the sake of a few slopeds?

    Hopefully our plodmates will have some advice for us.

    Dave Ross
    Keymaster
    Post count: 2310
    Bwucie wrote:
    Yeah, before anyone else points it out, my mug shot on the mini trail kinda lumps me in with my mate, eh?

    Sure does 🙂 . Love the rant, you write well.

    I agree, where is a 4x4 when you couled have used one. "Sorry officer, I only noticed him the next day, when I was cleaning some muck out from the bullbars, he looked like he got reat ended by some small bike"
    Dave Morris
    Participant
    Post count: 615

    whats the power output of one of these little huas in KW

    if under 2kw then it maybe classified as a moped

    suggest u go to ltsa site and see requirements http://www.landtransport.govt.nz/factsheets/43.html

    one of our big tough gang members is riding around the city on one, probabaly more reliable than his harley

    Anonymous
    Guest
    Post count: 2134
    Steve.B wrote:

    if under 2kw then it maybe classified as a moped

    suggest u go to ltsa site and see requirements http://www.landtransport.govt.nz/factsheets/43.html



    Thank you, Steve, that was much quicker than browsing tier site myself.
    And the good news is they have to have a number plate, and can't operate on the footpaths or parks.
    Now to get the local road bobbies on a speed dial on the batphone...............
    pdmeikle57
    Participant
    Post count: 68

    My wife recently read somewhere that LTSA is reviewing whether it is such a good idea to allow these things on the road (gee, ya think??).

    Apparantly the guy who first started importing them was interviewed and he said he never intended for them to be ridden on the road.

    I must say it beggers the mind that someone at LTSA thought it was a good idea in the first place to let these things be registered for the road.

    And yes I totally agree... when these Einsteins start getting smeared all over the tarmac WE will be the ones who get tarred with the same gooey brush!

    The only upside?? it helps clean out the gene pool...ohhh did I say that??? 😉

    Cheers
    Tracy

    Anonymous
    Guest
    Post count: 2134

    Check this link: http://productline.co.nz/index_files/Page877.htm . Some of these little monsters are 110cc, and have claimed speeds of 70kph out of the shop (which is probably conservative). Lighting – zip, reflectors to the rear – zip. No way can these things be mopeds.

    Now for some good news

    There was I going to work in the dark and early yesterday morning, and as I swung into Plunket Ave off Wiri Station (on the wife's Burgman, instead of my pushbike) who do you imagine I saw by the roadside with a broken down mini-chopper?

    Oh, how sweet is revenge! I rode up to Mr Headbutt, and asked him if he needed a hand. "Yeah, cuz," quoth he, "Could ya shine ya light over here?"

    And I said, "NO! And you're still a lackwit!" And I buzzed off.

    I'm so brave when I've got 250 little jappa cc's for a getaway.

    Anonymous
    Guest
    Post count: 2134

    HA, HA, what a great story, loved the head butt gone wrong part the most.
    Great Rant Bwucie, but hay, who really cares.

    I say, don't kick up A fuss with the filth, it tend's to back fire on the rest of us. And sooner or later someone will hopfully run that fcuker over anyway, but if there's a law in place I might not get the chance.

    Remember it's not the bike, it's the dick head riding it.

    nzjb65
    Participant
    Post count: 14

    Maybe the LTSA are onto something – why bother lifting a finger to license/do something, just wait for them all to breakdown. I haven’t got as close to one as Bwucie but something tells me the build quality is working in our favour.

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