Here's the complete low-down on scooters !

The lowest rank is Chinese mainland scooters. Many claim to have Honda or Yamaha engines - dont believe it. They may have used those blueprints, but the material quality and fit will not be the same and the engine covers will NOT say Honda etc.. You can expect a lot of difficulty getting parts like transmission drive belts (which wear out). Most of them are sold by fly-by-night eBay sellers who dont carry parts. Last caution - most are not really DOT approved and most insurance companies will NOT cover them therefore registration will be not doable. Having said that, these scooters are only $1000 for a 150cc unit which is fun to drive (45-55 mph max not 65 like advertiised). The 50cc scooters will not attain street-worthy speeds. 27 mph max. You should buy 2, one for parts. Seriously.

I've gotten a lot of email from eBay sellers complaining about my statements re Chinese scooters. Here is further advice: Before buying a scooter, call the 'dealer' and order 2 critical parts - example a drive belt and a front brake disc. Their non-response and inability to deliver critical parts (or any parts at all) should tell you all you need to know. If indeed they have the parts, then and only then Id consider giving them the order. There is no rush most scooters are listed over and over and over. They are not one-time 'deals' on ebay.

Also getting email asking for a recommendation on one brand or another (usually unknown). I cant advise beyond the brands Ive mentioned here - advice there is to find out where its made and compare the pictures to other Chinese knockoff scooters.

Brand names are meaningless with most of the Chinese scooters, they will put a decal with whatever brand you want if you buy a container of them. Please dont email me asking whether 'XTREME FOO FOO SCOOTER MAJESTIC DIM SUM' is a really good scooter brand. No, it is not. Thats why people pay $2500 for a real Yamaha Suzuki or Honda.

There is an amusing derivative of Chinese scooters - the Chinese knock-off of another Chinese scooter. That's right, looks the same, same lousy quality, lack of parts etc. Why they dont follow the 1950's Japanese pattern of exactly copying German or other high quality stuff is beyond me. There are 4 or 5 very large scooter factories in China  (Geeley being the largest and soon a car exporter to US) and probably 200 knock offs. If you call them, they'll send you a shipping container of scooters for $600 each, and off to eBay they go. No parts, no warranty, no technical support.

The Taiwanese and Korean manufactured scooters (Kymco being the largest) are a ways above Chinese mainland scooters. This is also the source of many smaller Honda-Yamaha branded scooters. Kymcos are good units but tend to be a bit over priced in the United States. I'd compare features carefully and buy if it looks like a good deal financially.

Next rank - Classic Vespa knock offs like the Stella (India) and Bajaj. These are more or less OK but rust fast.

Next, Italian and Korean scooters (Aprilia) etc. These are a mixed bag and the prices start to approach Japanese scooters. However they are licensable and there is some parts availability.

Real Vespas. These are very slick, expensive $5000-up - and all-metal. They rust fast in damp climes. Quality is otherwise pretty good but the engines are smal for the money.  Example a 150cc Vespa is $5000 same as a 250cc or even 400 Suzuki.

Next up, the Yamaha and Honda Chinese./Taiwan-licensed scooters sold under house name like Vino, Metropolitan etc. These are all right units with the advantage you can get parts. The Vino 125 is a pretty nice small scooter, 47 mph very high quality.

Next up, the larger plastic Vespas/Piaggio, like the X9 etc. These are all right but not price and feature competitive with the following category..especially in storage, dependability, service ease etc.

Suzuki Burgman 400 and Yamaha Majesty 400 scooters. There are very nice units priced $4900 and up. Excellent machines, they rival many cycles for performance and reliability.

Next, Honda Scooters. These are pretty expensive $4500 and up but very reliable units. The Reflex 250 is particulerly good, but same price as Suzuki and Yamaha 400's so Id have to think about that. The Big Ruckus 250cc is interesting but no storage and no floorboards to speak of.

Finally, maxi-scooters - Suzuki Burgman 650, Honda Silver Wing 600. These are really excellent long distance tourers, great commuters, capable of over 100 mph and carry a lot. Expensive, but worth it.

Final note: there are a few Vespa restorers selling on ebay, offering gorgeous sidecar Vespas from Indonesia or Viet Nam cheap. Somebody, please write a review of these !  Their feedback is good but there must be a  few gotchas.