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Scooter Review: Peugeot Vivacity 125

The 125cc Vivacity is Peugeot’s way to close up that chink in their armour by introducing a stylish but affordable machine to sit between the Sum Up 125 and the Satelis 125.

It’s aimed at a broad spectrum of riders, from city commuters to youngsters, college kids and everything in between, so the Vivacity 125 should fill the urban gap quite nicely. We were invited to the recent press launch in Lisbon, a perfect location for this city scooter. With its mixture of cobbled roads, scenic tourist spots and warm climate it gave us a chance to try the scooter out in its natural environment on a variety of road surfaces.

The Vivacity isn’t new; it’s been around in 50cc form for the last two years, but the larger capacity makes the machine much more useable. The engine is the same power plant as fitted to the Sum Up 125 and is a basic carburettor fed four-stroke, air-cooled lump. The engine has been treated to a few modifications though, including an uprated drive belt and clutch. They’ve also introduced carb heaters to make cold starting easier and it has a new air filter and painted stainless steel exhaust. The engine mods have given it an extra 5mph over the Sum Up, so the work was worthwhile.

Although the Vivacity isn’t the most powerful 125cc scoot on the market, it has quite a tractable engine and during my time on the scooter I saw an indicated 62mph on the flat, which isn’t too bad and it pulls away well from a standing start. One of the main benefits of a scooter (other than being very practical) is their relatively low running costs and eco friendly nature. Peugeot claim 83 miles to the gallon and by way of comparison the Vivacity emits 30% less CO2 than a small town vehicle.

The Vivacity is a user friendly scooter, with a nice low 790mm seat height. It’s ideal for shorter riders and it’s also quite light, tipping the scales at 118kg, so it’s easy to shift around at a standstill. Low speed stability is second to none and it’s got a great turning circle, making it perfect for creeping through the city traffic without the constant need to dab a foot down to steady yourself. Braking is taken care of by a twin piston front disc and a drum rear; both are up to the job, as are the Hutchinson tyres which gave plenty of grip, even while negotiating slippery cobbles and damp tramlines.

Peugeot’s Vivacity scores quite highly on practicalities. Not only does it have a roomy underseat storage area, (complete with handy 12v socket) which can accommodate most full faced helmets (not my Arai though), but it also has an innovative front boot. Simply press a concealed button and the front of the fairing opens to reveal a space which is large enough to store a jet style lid (or anything else you care to fit in there). Simple, but ingenious and very useful – a great use of this often wasted empty fairing space. Be careful how you shut the front boot though, because I managed to scuff the paint on the corner of the front panel while closing it for the first time.

If you like clean angular lines, you should be impressed with the look of the Vivacity. It’s plain in a stylish kind of way and will get you noticed, especially if you’re riding through a busy city centre in a swarm of 20 riders (like we were)! Apart from the obvious clean looks of the scooter, it also comes with a modern dash layout complete with digital screen with a clear blue display giving time, trip, outside temp and a fuel gauge, as well as a classy looking analogue speedo. Slightly less plush are the switches, which feel like costs have been cut a bit. The indicator switch had a clunky feel to it and felt a bit awkward to begin with, although I got used to it after a while.

The Vivacity 125 is a great addition to Peugeot’s range. It may not be quite as plush as some learner-legal scooters, but it will be ideal for use as a regular workhorse and has just enough style to make every journey a pleasure. It costs £1999, comes in a choice of white, black, red and ivory and is available from your local Peugeot dealer now. Don’t forget to let them know that we sent you.

Iggy