While I am working here and selling Honda Ruckus Parts and living in Southern California, I can't help but notice one thing. I have started to see more and more scooters on the road. It's not just Ruckus, Zuma, or their Chinese counterparts, but I have seen or have been asked about parts more and more for Vespas, C3s, and a multitude of other scooters. Not only that, but I have seen an increase in the output by manufacturers for scooter parts, not just Ruckus parts, and higher demand from the popular forums as well. There are reasons we are seeing this, one is very obvious, one is based on "science," while the other isn't as obvious or as impactful to the average person.
The obvious reason is the ever rising cost of fuel. While it does affect scooter riders, too, it doesn't take as big a hit in the wallet as it does the person driving a car every day to work. Many car drivers are looking towards lowering their fuel costs to keep the same level of living as they had prior to $4+ per gallon gas. On usually less than 2 gallons of gas, you can fuel a scooter for nearly a week of riding or more, depending on how you ride. I know many guys with GY6 swaps who have gone a couple of weeks of steady city riding without filling up again. While cars are getting more fuel efficient, they still have fuel tanks larger than 10 gallons. That $5 you spend on gas goes much further on your scooter than it does in a car.