All Tests – Introducing the MP3 Hybrid – First Impressions

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Getting in touch with the MP3 Hybrid

All Tests - Introducing the MP3 Hybrid - First Impressions

The best-selling two-wheeler in France today – yes! -, the Piaggio MP3 arrives this fall with a new technology on the market: the hybrid! Site was able to test it a few days before its arrival at the dealership: first impressions !

First impressions

With the ignition on, the pilot must choose one of the four modes offered by the electronic "VMS" system of the scooter: Hybrid power, Hybrid Charge, Electric … or Electric R, which corresponds to reverse gear! A gadget that could however prove useful among featherweight users.

Because according to the Italian engineers present during the taxiing, the MP3 Hybrid would weigh "altogether about 265 kg"! Even if once launched, the weight of the beast tends to be forgotten, the fact of being able to reverse the machine using the electric motor – maximum speed of 3 km / h and truck" beep-beep " tipper – during maneuvers at a standstill will therefore certainly be appreciated by the less sturdy … Especially in a street or on a sloping sidewalk !

For the less adventurous, it is even possible to use reverse gear while keeping the vehicle tilting locked. In this case, the torque of the electric motor is then limited to prevent heads in the air from climbing on a sidewalk, for example, which would jeopardize the balance of the tricycle….

To select the desired mode, all you have to do is press the mysterious "Hy Tech" button located just next to the starter: a long press validates the choice made. The opportunity for the scooter to emit a new beep-beep … But where is the fuse of this damn warning !

Without this validation, the vehicle cannot be started: "this is important because the scooter remembers the last mode used. By restarting in electric mode, we could be surprised or surprise the person to whom we lend the scooter", remarks the Italian engineer in charge of presenting the Hybrid MP3 to us..

As on other MP3s, a security prevents the scooter from starting when the rider leaves his saddle. Better to know and remember it before calling the dealership or taking your MP3 apart !

The ride begins in "Hybrid Power" mode, the mode that offers maximum performance: during acceleration, the heat engine is constantly supported by the electric motor. But you might as well say it right away: the 3.4 electric horsepower and 15 Nm of torque instantly available do not revolutionize the dynamic performance of the MP3 125…

Paolo Capozzella, responsible for the electrical and electronic part of the project, nevertheless assures us that "the acceleration of the MP3 Hybrid is equivalent over the first 60 meters to that of an MP3 250 ". Despite this, the" little "MP3 leaves bikers hungry:"a 400 cc hybrid version is considered in the event of success of this 125 version, considered more universal", explains Piaggio France.

Initially, a lag time is always observed: the 30 kg of additional equipment (battery, second motor, wiring and electronics) add inertia to the whole and reduce the maneuverability of the scooter at low speed…

The interest of such an electric gas plant remains obvious: the drop in gasoline consumption and therefore that in polluting gas emissions. Our journey of only ten kilometers in the west of Paris unfortunately did not allow us to establish an average consumption, but Piaggio announces "consumption of 1.7 l / 100 km and CO2 emissions of 40 g / km, against 3.8 l / 100 km and 90 g / km for a classic scooter".

A crucial point to check urgently during a real Site test, but this first handling nevertheless allowed us to judge other important criteria.

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