Peugeot Satelis RS 400 Peugeot’s big Satelis has been re-engined – Pete Henshaw rode one to three cities to find out more... ig scooters are supposed to tackle inter-city trips as easily as slipping through inner city traffic, so the logical way to test one was to do just that. In the case of the new Satelis 400, the plan was to ride Bristol to Birmingham to London sticking to A-roads as much as possible, but throwing in a bit of motorway and lots of traffic. Peugeot’s biggest two-wheeler is in danger of becoming the forgotten big scooter and with so many 300-400cc machines on offer, it’s easy to understand why. It’s been around for a few years but in its latest form it adopts the 400cc engine of the three-wheel tilting Metropolis, offering 36bhp and replacing the 500cc bought in from Piaggio. In some ways the Satelis is a simple scoot – its three-wheeler brother is clearly trying to tempt car drivers, with its keyless ignition and tyre pressure sensors. But the Satelis is virtually free of gizmos and has a standard auto transmission and no ABS. OUT ON THE ROAD Simple is supposed to be efficient and that’s what I was hoping for as we threaded our way out of the heart of hip and bohemian Bristol, past some authentic graffiti and what looked like a genuine Banksy. We were on the A38 (which actually doesn’t start in Bristol at all, but in Bodmin), meandering its way across the Southwest and Midlands to Mansfield. A TV doc on the road (yes, there was one) called it an “English country lane”, and that’s about right. It’s a slow climb out of Bristol and the city changes as you ride further out – fewer baristas, more chicken and chips. Then we’re into suburbia and the further out we get, the leafier the trees and the bigger the houses. Meanwhile, the speed limit creeps up from 20mph to 30 and finally 40 as we cruise through Filton, home of Concorde and where Rolls-Royce still builds jet engines. OING TH ’
Transcript
Peugeot Satelis RS 400Peugeot’s big Satelis has been re-engined – Pete Henshaw rode one to three cities to find out more...
ig scooters are supposed to tackle inter-city tripsas easily as slipping through inner city traffic, sothe logical way to test one was to do just that. Inthe case of the new Satelis 400, the plan was toride Bristol to Birmingham to London sticking toA-roads as much as possible, but throwing in a bit
of motorway and lots of traffic.Peugeot’s biggest two-wheeler is in danger of becoming the
forgotten big scooter and with so many 300-400cc machines on offer,it’s easy to understand why. It’s been around for a few years but inits latest form it adopts the 400cc engine of the three-wheel tiltingMetropolis, offering 36bhp and replacing the 500cc bought in fromPiaggio. In some ways the Satelis is a simple scoot – itsthree-wheeler brother is clearly trying to tempt car drivers, with itskeyless ignition and tyre pressure sensors. But the Satelis is virtuallyfree of gizmos and has a standard auto transmission and no ABS.
OUT ON THE ROADSimple is supposed to be efficient and that’s what I was hopingfor as we threaded our way out of the heart of hip and bohemianBristol, past some authentic graffiti and what looked like agenuine Banksy.
We were on the A38 (which actually doesn’t start in Bristol atall, but in Bodmin), meandering its way across the Southwest andMidlands to Mansfield. A TV doc on the road (yes, there was one)called it an “English country lane”, and that’s about right. It’s aslow climb out of Bristol and the city changes as you ride furtherout – fewer baristas, more chicken and chips.Then we’re into suburbia and the further out we get, the
leafier the trees and the bigger the houses. Meanwhile, thespeed limit creeps up from 20mph to 30 and finally 40 as wecruise through Filton, home of Concorde and where Rolls-Roycestill builds jet engines.
Enjoy... some sections of the A38really are this wide and quiet
But it’s not until we get clear of Thornbury, a fewmiles out, that we finally jettison the 40 limit and seethose lovely derestriction signs. Creeping out of thecity I’d had a hint of the Satelis’s power riding awayfrom the lights, but it only really shows when youget the opportunity to open it up. This might be abig scooter – it weighs 213kg – but the punchy 400ccsingle gives strong performance.
A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERYIt’s all good fun and overtaking is never a problem.The A38 (at least this bit of it) is a good road todiscover this, as most of the traffic is on the nearbyM5, but the A-road is still wide and well-surfaced,even three-lane in places. Judging by the number ofThink Bike signs it’s also a favourite biker playground,but there are plenty of 40 and 50 limits to slow thingsdown. Still, it’s a scenic ride, nice to cruise through,with glimpses of the Severn Estuary below us and theedge of the Cotswolds over to the right.Straight and flat to Gloucester, round the town
on a sort of bypass that crosses low-lying marshyground on a series of low bridges – it’s easy to forgetthat the city was once a significant port, linked tothe Severn by canal. The docks are still there, but allcobblestones and coffee, so I’m told, as opposed tothe toting of barges and lifting of bales.
The road gets twistier north of town, but in thenicest possible way; lovely sweepers that wereprobably put in about 70 years ago to ease trafficflow on what was a trunk route. The Malverns loominto view, then we’re in Tewkesbury, which is wherehalf-timbered buildings go to die, or so it seems. Infact, real and fake Tudor architecture is a constantall the way up to Brum; at Worcester, a half-timbered1930s pub faces the road, proving there’s nothingnew about nostalgia.
Droitwich Spa lives up to its name, a leafy spatown with lots of green space and an Edwardianbandstand in the park. But it’s deceptive, because
we’re within sniffing distance of Brum now,and the traffic’s building up, the A38 nolonger a forgotten playground, more thesame sort of congested space as mostBritish roads. Under the M42 and itheads straight for the Bull Ring, somedual carriageway, a real boulevardwith mature trees on the wide centralreservation.Reality sets in as we hit
Birmingham’s inner ring road and along, long wait at the red lights. Follow
A38 signs through the city and stop for acuppa by what used to be the massive Fort
Dunlop tyre factory – they do still make tyres here,but not so man . In fact if ou’re into old Britishbikes, any ride across Birmingham is like a litanyof industrial failures: signs to Small Heath (BSA),Redditch (Royal Enfield) and Selly Oak (Ariel) – sad.
The Abbey Tea Rooms stilldoes Green Shield Stamps,apparently. Talk abouta time warp...
Wooden Don Quixotestanding guard on aroundabout. Don’t askus why
PEUGEOT SATELIS 400
WHAT THE ROMANS DIDI miss the old A38 out of town, but it’s a relief to getback up to a 70-75mph cruise again. We pop out onthe A5, the second of our A road trilogy. But beware.Just follow the A5 signs and you end up on a boring,dull dual-carriageway. Instead, at the A38/A5roundabout, take the minor road signed ‘Weeford’,which is the old A5 – its straighter than the newroad, but slower with a lot more to see.
If you get the chance, ride from London toHolyhead. Thanks to the Romans (this used to beWatling Street) and 19th century roads engineerThomas Telford, it’s not great for curves until youget into Wales, but travelling the A5 is like ridingthrough history. Through Tamworth, over a canaland past where they used to make Del Boy Reliants,while the Battle of Bosworth happened just up theroad. Past Hinckley and we’re onto a long and lonelystretch, the road running high through the wideopen spaces of Northamptonshire. It’s odd, givenwe’re still close to the teeming Midlands, but that’show the A5 feels up here. Civilisation returns atWatford Gap (now there’s a phrase I never thoughtI’d write...) as our road, the M1, a railway andcanal all come together to squeeze through what isliterally a geological gap in the hills. Weedon Bec isthe nearest town – it might not look like much, butif Napoleon Bonaparte had invaded back Britain in1810, the King would have been holed up here.
Next morning (you didn’t think I’d done all thisin a day?) I’m on the outskirts of Milton Keynes,ignoring another ‘A5’ sign and sticking to the oldroad through Stoney Stratford. It’s a bit sticky, witha bit of one-way and road humps, but the rest is veryclear. Do this and there’s barely a corner betweenTowcester and the other side of Dunstable. Andyou’d hardly know that Milton Keynes sprawls awayto the east of the old road.Dunstable is always busy and don’t use the bus
lane, because it’s one of the ones we’re not allowedin. Finally out the other side, and past M1, the A5becomes the A5183, though it’s still much thesame. Confused by St Albans’ one-way backstreets, I head out on the wrong road, butbacktrack and take the right one overthe M25 to Elstree, where I fail to spot thefamous studios.We’re entering London commuter land now,
with yet more half-timbering, but Edgware feels
You’d expect the Satelis to be athoroughly competent big scooter andthat’s exactly what it is. Peugeot’s own400cc single is quiet and punchy, witha smooth pick up, and the transmissionkeeps it in the 4000-6000rpm rangemostof the time. It’s really very entertaining,as fast as you could ever want forcommuting, and handles very well too,backed up by superb brakes. They maynot be linked or have ABS, but the Nissincalipers are the same ones used onTriumph’s Street Triple.Like most feet-forward scoots, it’s
really comfy over distance, and the seat
is fine with good back support – I had noproblems over 10-hour days. As I foundout on the North Circular, it loses out tosmall scooters when the filtering gapsget really narrower, but certainly nomore than any other big scoot and it iseasy to control at low speed. The fairingkeeps the legs dry in light rain, there’sbags of room under the seat, which canjust swallow two full-face helmets, andthe tank gives a range of nearly 200 milesat 70mpg.At £4599, could this be the
straightforward sports scooter for thosewho can’t afford a Tmax?
like the start of London proper. Mid-morning, thetraffic’s not too bad on the Edgware Road, but stillaiming to get back to Bristol, I’m running short oftime. The North Circular turns out to be jammedalmost solid. Being a big scooter, the Satelis doesn’thave the ultimate filtering ability of a tiny 125, butit’s still pretty good. It’s easy to balance the rearbrake and a touch of throttle to keep things smooth.This older part of the North Circular is narrow,despite three lanes, and with trucks on the road it’snot always possible to squeeze through. Then theheavens open and I’m sitting there getting wet.
GO WESTEventually we get spat out at Chiswick roundaboutand there’s the opportunity to play catch-up. It’sclear that I won’t have time to follow the A4 (thethird and last of our three A-roads) all the way toBristol, so I hop onto the motorway to get clear ofwest London’s sprawl. This is where the Satelis’sextra power shines. And so does the sun! Sittingin the outside lane at an indicated 80mph, mywet kit starts rapidly drying out and all’s wellwith the world. The Satelis feels well within itslimits at this speed and I love that feet forwardriding position. The only problem with theSatelis RS test bike is the Ermax sportsscreen, which looks mean but is too low, thewind buffeting you at motorway speeds. I’mtold the standard higher screen is a simple retro
fit.We come off the motorway at Reading, hopping
onto the A4 and hoping for a repeat of the A38/A5 experience. But it doesn’t work like that, as theroad’s slow and busy all the way to Newbury, whichitself is a bit sticky. But I should have had faith,because out the other side of town the A4 reverts toa classic A-road, with swoopy corners through widevalleys, while much of the traffic has melted away.Through historic Hungerford and Marlborough;then more glorious A-road into Wiltshire’s bonanzaof ancient sites (or New Age mysticism) – Avebury,Silbury Hill, the Ridgeway. It coincides with the roadclimbing onto higher ground with brilliant viewsover the chalk downland.A long, long tailback through Calne reminds that
I’m still in the 21st century and haven’t really gottime to get back to Bristol, whether by the A4 or anyother road. Time to peel off and head for home.Words/images: Pete Henshaw
Birmingham claims more canalsthan Venice – this one's at Fazeley
