The Honda Ruckus
is to scooters as the Volkswagen Thing is to beach buggies. They are
rugged, industrial, and just plain cool—all wrapped up in an adorably
tiny package that is cheap, cheerful, and uniquely fun.
As with all things quirky, cheap, and motorcycle, Honda’s
Ruckus has become a cult classic in two-wheeled tuning communities.
Chief among Ruckus tuners is California-based Rucksters. The shop’s
array of blinged-up and bored-out Ruckus customs is impressive.
Ruckster’s
latest project is said to be inspired by Louis Vuitton, and gets a
Vuitton-esque palette of champagne and bronze in homage to the fashion
icon. The skeletal frame stands in stark contrast to the anodized metal
and designer seat. The combination brings flashy aesthetic intrigue to
the humble scooter platform. It’s low-fi cop bait with a Liberace twist.
An
upgraded 150 cc scooter powerplant and exposed drive belt brings both
drama and street cred to the party. That’s a 300 percent boost in
displacement over the Ruckus’s stock 49cc unit. The GY6 engine and a
combined weight south of 200 pounds give the Ruckster a good platform
for performance to match this rig’s looks.
The longer
you look at the Ruckster LV Project, the more questions you ask.
Questions like: “Why is the rear tire stolen from a golf cart?” Who
cares why? It looks awesome. That’s why.
Why is there
a Yoshimura exhaust? Who cares why? It sounds awesome. That’s why! Why
is the suspension fully adjustable? Well, because sometimes it’s fun to
make things needlessly complex and performance oriented. That’s why.
There is a good chance you may not quite understand the appeal of this custom scooter,
or any custom scooter for that matter, and that’s okay. If you have to
ask, we probably can’t explain it to you. The fact remains that in a
world of hipster-toting Vespas and Vespa replicas, custom Ruckus builds
provide genuine individualism and self-expression.
If
you’re looking for a bike that makes people chuckle at the same time
they nod approvingly, we’d argue this is a prime candidate.
