Lady Florence NormanBritish social campaigner and suffragist. using her Autoped in London in 1916 Wikimedia Commons
The Autoped was an early motorised scooter, developed and manufactured by the Autoped Company of Long Island City, New York[1] from 1915 until 1921. It was also manufactured under licence by the German company Krupp from 1919 until 1922.[2]
The scooter is powered by an air-cooled 4-stroke engine mounted over the front wheel, driving the wheel via a circular clutch. The original American version uses a 155 cc engine, whereas the Krupp variant makes use of a slightly larger 191 cc unit.[2] The vehicle is controlled entirely through the steering column: pushing it forward engages the clutch; pulling it back operates the internal expanding brake on the front wheel; and twisting the left grip operates the throttle.[3]
The Autoped had a claimed top speed of 25 mph (40 km/h) on a level road.[4]
Ritz, John, and Fan Szu-Chun. “The Scooter: Evolution and Impacts.” Technology and Engineering Teacher, vol. 74, no. 5, Feb. 2015, pp. 30–35.
Staff writer. “The Autoped – A Compromise Between Skates and a Motorcycle.” Scientific American, vol. 115, no. 10, 2 Sept. 1916, p. 215.
Wilson, Hugo. The Encyclopedia of the Motorcycle. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
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