QUIKSPIN: Piaggio Typhoon 125 - Gone With The Wind

"Ha ha ha," I imagined everyone at the office chortling before I started at AMCN. "Let's give the new guy a 125cc scooter for his first test bike. It'll be hilarious, because he weighs 100kg, has a shaved head and tattoos, and will hate it." The concept was sound but, well, the joke's on them because I didn't. I certainly found a few elements of scoot commuting to be a bit difficult but the Typhoon is a pretty nifty little package.

As with everything in life, the first thing I noticed about Piaggio's latest scooter offering was the looks. Aesthetically, it's pretty rad - those big, fat tyres, the sharp lines and pointy front end look fantastic. The stickers crack me up, too; little splashes of vinyl reading "max speed" and "no signal", plus a few circled stars which combine with the grey colour to make it look like a little no-winged fighter jet.

The motor leaves much to be desired, though. My lawnmower has a bigger engine capacity than the Typhoon; but the scooter is nowhere near as good at cutting grass. Believe me, I checked. Hopping on to pilot it home for the first time, I had to give it full throttle to get my hefty carcass up the big, steep ramp out of our basement car park, and even then I honestly didn't think it was going to make it.

But it did and I was on my way- at a staggeringly slow pace. I'm definitely not the target market for this thing and my 30km run home is probably a bit much for a little 125cc single... and it showed. I basically had to strangle the throttle to keep up any momentum, and planning a million kilometres ahead became a necessity if I hoped to retain any forward momentum at all.

It may not get up to speed all that spectacularly, but once you're up and running at a decent velocity - I managed to just touch 110km/h with a big run-up - you'll find it's got solid stopping power. Those chubby tyres provide a decent contact patch and the 300mm disc/twin-piston caliper combo up the front backed up by the rear drum brake hauled me and the Typhoon to a halt quite sharpish.

Piaggio really pimps the fact that the Typhoon is compact and I can see how that would be beneficial. Lane-splitting is a breeze, as with nearly all scooters, but length-ways it's way too tiny and I had most of my butt parked on the pillion seat during our time together. If you're a behemoth, this scooter probably isn’t for you.

The front forks are seriously tiny and look like PVC pipes holding up a wheelbarrow tyre, but they were surprisingly effective. The condition of the roads on my commute are a joke (but then, this is Sydney, so which ones aren't?) and I was busy picking my lines around the bumps and holes to avoid any spine-crushing suspension compressions. I buggered one up and accidentally dropped the front wheel into a big gaping hole, only to find the Typhoon dealt with it better than I was expecting.

It's not Ohlins, but it's definitely better than some of the junk I've dealt with on scooters before. If you're a regular height and weight, and you're looking for a tough-looking little scooter for around-town duties, then the Typhoon could be the answer for you. Big people might need to look elsewhere.

Protect your Piaggio. Call Shannons Insurance on 13 46 46 to get a quote today.