I’m thinking of buying a Luggie mobility scooter. It’s lightweight and easy to transport, but I’m concerned that it won’t be powerful enough to use on hills etc. It may only be good for shopping centres.
Does anyone have any experience of the Luggie?
It’s expensive, so I want be sure it’s suitable on pavements etc.
John H.
Hi John, I haven’t got one, but their website has a video of how to fold it up and lots of comments from people that have got them. Yes expensive, but they do look great for travelling.
Pat x
Hi John,
I have one and absolutely love it. I take it out and about but hills are going to drain the battery very quickly and shorten the life of it. It can handle small hills and short slopes but I wouldn’t use it in a very hilly area. My town is extremely hilly and I use my big scooter for getting around the town and the luggie lives in the boot of my car to use at the supermarket and for zipping in between shops on the main street etc. Great for malls but it has also tackled 3 different zoos in the last few weeks with various gradients and surfaces with no troubles. I guess it depends on the sort of terrain you have around your place. Certainly for reasonably level footpaths and the average High St it will be fine. But I wouldn’t expect it to manage in the Yorkshire Dales for example
I adore it because it is so light weight and small but I wouldn’t rely on it as my only scooter. For me it is a replacement for my manual wheel chair as I can no longer self propel. Using just my big scooter wasn’t an option as I can’t get it in and out of my car and I can’t afford a special van to accomodate it so having 2 scooters for different purposes works for me.
Hope this helps,
Belinda
Thanks for the information, Belinda. It seems that it can probably manage the gradients where I live. I really want a scooter that can easily be transported in nthe car. Looks like the Luggie will be okay.
John
Have fun with it John. It has been the best thing I have ever bought; absolutely love mine 
A tip for putting it in the boot; I don’t fold mine down into the most compact form, I just lay the seat and handle bar down and then lean the front of the luggie against the lip of the boot and wheel it up and in. That way I don’t have to bend down and try and lift the dead weight. It is so easy even I can do it with literally one hand
Enjoy your freedom,
Belinda
Hello John,
Look at the Travelscoot. I bought one last July, taken it on trains, planes and cars, ridden it across London from Euston to Victoria and back. Reviewed it on my website http://www.aid4disabled.com/travelscoot/. Also look at the video on Youtube
I have been told that the Travelscoot is both lighter and cheaper than Luggie and I doubt if the capabilities are any different.
Personally I have not used a Luggie so cannot talk about it with any authority.
Whichever you go for will give you independence and improve the quality of your life
Patrick
I loved the look of the Travelscoot when I was researching for my scooter. Sooo cool… But for me the drawback to it was that it doesn’t have a reverse gear, you have to use your feet to push backwards. That made it a no-go for me. But I love the way it folds down and is so light. If they would just add that reversing lever!
Also for me I was a bit nervous about a 3 wheeler preferring the stability of 4 wheels.
Isn’t it great that there are so many types of mobility aids coming on to the market? I would have hated being disabled a20 years ago…
As Patrick says John, either one will change your life for the better. Can you test drive both?
Belinda
Hello Belinda,
You do need to be mobile for the Travelscoot. I agree stability is an issue but I have learnt to ride it safely. It has a high centre of Gravity and you must always be aware of that but you can make it lower with shopping etc… Is the luggie totally stable?
The big advantage of both Luggie and Travelscoot is the fact that they use a drycell (Lithium) battery, that makes them so light. I do not think there is another equivalent on the market
Patrick
Hi Patrick, the luggie is pretty stable unless you are a complete maniac and take a corner too fast. Who, me? Never…
The other great thing about the Lithium batteries is they make air travel so much easier.
For a light weight scooter I really do think these two are the best currently on the market. I just love how small they are. You probably don’t have this problem, but on other scooters such as the GoGo, I find myself dragging half the clothes racks out of dress shops with me. Very embarrassing. But the luggie and the Travelscoot are so small and manouverable you can pretty well go anywhere you would go if you were upright.
Enjoy scooting Patrick.
B
There is another candidate for inclusion in this class of mobility scooter: Mobie see www.mobiemobilityscooter.co.uk/
Comparing the vital stats of the various scooters:
Luggie — weight 55.5lbs incl battery, width 17.5in, length 40in, turning circle 38in
Mobie — weight 48.6lbs incl battery , width 17in, length 39in, turning circle 25in (I think this is incorrect given the wheelbase)
Travelscoot — weight 35lbs incl battery, width 17in, length 37in, turning circle not given.
Hello Numrod,
I had not heard of the mobiemobility scooter, will do some research
The Tracelscoot can turn on its axis The outer wheel is the motor wheel, the inside wheel acts as the cenre of the turning circle. The turning circle is 80 cm or 31"
Travelscoot does not have a reverse gear, this is done to keep the weight to a mimium.
Do you know relative prices?
Patrick
Relative prices? Only from what each supplier declares on the internet.
Luggie and Mobie circa £1895 though interestingly on eBay the Luggie is also listed as a ‘make an offer’ auction. I also see there is a ‘live’ auction in progress which ends in three days. Current bid is circa £700.
Travelscoot is quoted at €1855 including VAT. However, for UK residents the item is zero rated and the price is therefore reduced by 19%. To buy at the zero rated price you need to complete a declaration form. Plus a delivery charge of €44.
Relative prices? Only from what each supplier declares on the internet.
Luggie and Mobie circa £1895 though interestingly on eBay the Luggie is also listed as a ‘make an offer’ auction. I also see there is a ‘live’ auction in progress which ends in three days. Current bid is circa £700.
Travelscoot is quoted at €1855 including VAT. However, for UK residents the item is zero rated and the price is therefore reduced by 19%. To buy at the zero rated price you need to complete a declaration form. Plus a delivery charge of €44.
My wife and I fell for the Mobie whilst on a 6week holiday in Orlando last year, all was going well until she had a slight (and i mean slight!) altercation with a kerb! she was approaching a dropped kerb and as we where in a crowd we where right at the edge where the pavement started to slope upwards she heard and felt a slight bump as the kerb nicked the underside of the scooter, we thought nothing of it and carried on. It wasnt until I tried to fold the scooter i realised how flawed the design actually is!! The slight nick had caused one of the metal struts to bend slightly (and i mean slightly!) and as a result the scooter would not fold! I wouldnt have been too bothered if we had really damaged the scooter but it was no more than a slight tap! With great difficulty and the help of a very coureous (but expensive) private hire minivan driver we got the scooter back to the resort where reception where kind enough to arrange a hire scooter for my wife (a gogo type machine that I had to break up) while we sent the mobie to be repaired. TWO WEEKS later they got the scooter back to us pretty much in the same shape as it was!! We where furious! Apparently the strut is all one part and to replace it would be very expensive and not under warranty as it was damage! (again i stress she barely touched it!) We decided as we where flying home a week later and unaware of whether we could get service in the UK we paid the $370 dollars to have the bit of metal replaced for a new straight one and went away with a bit of sour grapes but now aware of the frailty of the scooter! Anyway we got home to freezing weather and the scooter went straight into the shed! Last week we got the scooter out and the battery was completely flat and would not charge (it was fully charged just four weeks previous), we emailed the company in america and apparently if you dont charge them for 3 weeks the batteries can die! They wouldnt help us under warranty and tell me they couldnt even ship one if they wanted too as they cant airmail their lithium batteries (strange and slightly worrying given the fact we’d just taken ours on a flight!) At this stage I marched the wife down to our local shop and part exchanged our mobie nightmare for a nice new GoGo elite sport with all the bells and whistles. I just hope UK customers get a better service as I am sure you are going to need it!
I have a Luggie and I love it, I have taken it on a plane and ridden it around the hotel complex, take it in the car every week to go shopping…however I wouldn’t use it on uneven surfaces/pavements, up and down kerbs etc as I just don’t feel stable. I tipped over on it once and it made me really nervous. It is however fantastic in shopping centres and on level surfaces and I wouldn’t be without mine as it suits my needs perfectly. It all depends on your needs - lightness and the ability to easily get it in the boot of the car were my primary concerns.
Hello Perky,
I’m sure the Luggie is great on flat even surfaces. It seemed to be damaged very easily and then the aftersales service was not at all good. For many disabled people a scooter is their independence & represents a significant investment, the luggie is not cheap
As for the battery dying if not charged every 3 weeks, that really is very poor design. I own a Travelscoot and no such problems with its Lithium Ion battery.
If I were a Luggie owner I would not be a happy bunny after reading the note from Daveymartin.
Patrick
Patrick,
daveymartin was referring to the Mobie scooter, not the Luggie, when he was outlining the problems he experienced. As a happy Luggie owner I can vouch for their robust build and battery longevity and here in Australia anyway, my after care service has been impeccable. Not that I have needed any repairs done in the nearly 18 months of solid use my Luggie has had Only one standard service at the 12 month mark. And I have had no trouble flying with mine either…
A very happy Luggie owner,
B
Hi
Apologies for the mixup.
Patrick
No worries Patrick… thought I had better correct the record though
B
The thing about a Luggie, is how do you lock it or make it secure if you need to leave it for a while and you are out and about?