Type of motorcycle
The Puch Maxi is a moped that was manufactured by the Austrian manufacturing company Puch through the 1970s and 1980s that is well known for its reliability, ease of maintenance,[1] and fuel economy (up to 120 mpg).[2] These mopeds gained wide acceptance during the 1973 oil crisis and are still widely available for aftermarkets, and mint examples are still valued by collectors today.[3] It is started using a pedal start mechanism where the user provides the force needed to start the 49.9 cc two stroke engine, or can be ridden like a bicycle when the engine is disengaged. The later models feature a kick start mechanism.
Models
The Puch Maxi comes in several models:[4]
- Maxi S: this is the full suspension model with the single speed E50 (one speed) engine/transmission.
- Maxi D or LS: same as the S, but with a longer seat for a passenger.
- Maxi Luxe: A Maxi with a stock Hi-Torque head and mudflaps.
- Maxi N: A rigid frame lacking a speedometer that was the cheapest model, and dubbed the "Poor man's maxi".
- Maxi Sport MKII: Has a full suspension, mag wheels, the ZA50 (two speed) engine/transmission, a longer seat (but not long enough for passengers like the maxi D or LS model).
- Maxi Nostalgia: was only available in 1976. It is a black/gold Maxi with decals styled after Puch's turn-of-the-century motorcycle logo. Its predecessor is the Newport.
- Newport: Same as a Maxi S, but has different decals and hand pinstriping and sometimes a brown saddle, and comes with reflective whitewalls.
- Newport L: An updated Newport with swoop decals instead of pinstriping, a black transmission and flywheel cover, and a puffy saddle.
- Newport Auto-start/Oil Inject: A newport that features metallic paint, oil injection, and lacks a clutch lever.
- Newport II: Newport that features the ZA50 (two speed) engine/transmission.
- Maxi Guam Edition: a few Maxis that showed up in the United States that claimed to be manufactured in Guam. These have Honda-style controls where the switches integrate into the lever/throttle housings and come stock with turn signals and sidecovers that enclose a battery. Guam built Maxis are claimed to be built better than the USA models.
- Maxi BMX Special: Produced as a limited run in 1976 to celebrate the success of the company's BMX bicycles, production lasted only three months due to poor public reception. It featured the single speed E50 engine/transmission.
[5]
Engine
The Puch Maxi uses a 2 stroke 49 cc gasoline engine that comes in three horsepower ratings: 1.0, 1.5, and 2 HP that limits the speed to 20 mph (32kmh), 25 mph (40 kmh) and 30 mph (48 kmh) respectively. However, these can be modified by de-restricting the airbox, carburetor, exhaust manifold, pipe, and the use of aftermarket and performance parts.[6][7]
Transmission
The engine is coupled to either a single speed E50 or a two speed ZA50 transmission. The versions of the transmissions can be identified by the shape of the gearboxes: The E50 has a round gearbox whereas the two speed has a rectangular gearbox. Both transmissions use a centrifugal clutch, the E50 has one, while the ZA50 has two. (one for each gear)[8]
