In a survival scenario, a motorcycle could certainly be a good option for transportation. However, it's loud, heavy, and requires a fair amount of practice to ride. Conversely, a bicycle has none of these flaws, but instead it's slow and tiring to ride for long distances. What if the advantages of both these vehicles were combined? Well, a company called Motoped has done just that. We first spotted the Motoped at SEMA by the OPTIMA Econoline van, and were immediately interested to learn more about this rugged motorized bike company.

The Motoped Cruzer has a cool urban look that would appear right at home in a big city.

The concept of a motorized bike is nothing new per se, but Motoped certainly takes a new approach to this mode of transportation. They offer three different bikes: Cruzer, Pro, and Survival. The Cruzer is the sort of street-oriented motorized bike you may have seen before, but with some unique wood, leather, and bare metal elements that give it a sort of beach-cruiser-meets-steampunk look. Next, the Pro resembles an ultra-lightweight dirt bike, complete with rugged fairings and knobbly tires.

The Motoped Pro echoes the styling on a motocross bike, but on a lightweight and maneuverable frame.

Finally, there's the Survival, which is the bike that really piqued our interest. It features off-road-ready design, a universal gear rack, and two side-mounted fuel tanks that can extend the bike's range to up to 300 miles. All Motoped bikes offer a 49cc 2-horsepower motor and fully automatic 2-stage transmission standard, but the Pro and Survival bikes also offer a more powerful 125cc 7.8-horsepower motor as an option. You can even install your own motor with up to 155cc, as long as it uses a standard E-22 Honda-style frame bolt pattern. Of course, you can still pedal the bike normally when you need to do so.

The Motoped Survival bike is ready to handle just about any terrain, and it's loaded with two extra fuel tanks.

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Any of these three Motoped models can be ordered fully-assembled, partially assembled (minus an engine), or as a DIY kit in a box. The bikes' MSRP ranges from $2,299 for a Cruzer DIY kit, to $3,799 for a fully assembled Survival Bike with 125cc engine. They might not be cheap, but they combine the best aspects of bicycles and motorcycles, and they're just downright cool. We definitely hope to get our hands on one someday for a full review!

To learn more about the Motoped line of bikes, check out their web site: Motoped.com.

Written by Patrick McCarthy