Triple Your Fun

MotoMatt tears it up outside the PopSci headquarters

Good things really do come in threes. Three wheels, that is. Piaggio’s newest scooter, the MP3, is the coolest machine this motorcycle enthusiast has ever ridden. The scooter’s three-wheeled design—with one 12-inch wheel in the back and two up front—provides exceptional agility in traffic and maintains comforting stability at high speeds. The two independent, tilting front wheels, which enable up to a 40-degree lean, allow for precision cornering with no fear of spilling. And they handled New York’s infamous pot hole-laden streets with ease—something most scooters struggle with because a single front wheel is more likely to slip.

Piaggio has produced a machine so fluid and user friendly that even a novice motorbiker can hop right on and fly like a bat out of hell. However, the smallish 244cc engine may limit the whole “out of hell” part. Overall, the MP3 is an engineering marvel and a riding experience like no other. I’d buy three
if I could.—MotoMatt Cokeley