Driving to and from work, to put it bluntly, stinks. Rush-hour traffic is a necessary yet stressful part of the daily routine. And with the cellphone and other gadgets in every pocket, your business duties are apt to start before you even leave the driveway. Sure, the commute is necessary, but there's no reason it has to be a necessary evil, especially when you can merrily riff through the rush-hour blues on a scooter like Honda's Reflex. Moreover, using one of these fuel-stingy scoots emphasizes your economic acuity and environmental sensitivity while furnishing the perfect excuse to, at least briefly, stick the company cellphone where the sun don't shine, under the seat.

Motivationally Speaking
Keeping up with the Joneses, and everyone else, is a serious concern in traffic. The Reflex is powered by a 249cc, liquid-cooled, SOHC, four-valve motor that makes quite respectable power for its size, and it easily nudges past the speed limit, even in those 65 mph zones. Granted, this scooter won't be running down 'vettes and Hummers in the fast lane, but that's alright with me - I can just relax and let them distract the troopers. Around town, it's a different story. The agile nature and zippy power of the Reflex will have you jumping away at lights and weaving pleasurably through the slowest of urban crawls. And while your confined coworkers' rolling cages are spewing tons of noxious CO2 into the atmosphere, your Reflex is keeping you on the Earth-friendly list by meeting current CARB (California Air Resources Board) and EPA emission standards, all while delivering 55 mpg or better.

Morning start-ups are choke-free affairs managed by a fully transistorized ignition and an auto-enriching system. Just hit the starter and off you go. And you needn't worry about the Reflex getting hot under the collar in the stop-and-go slog: a fan-cooled radiator ensures a cool, constant, running temperature.

Shifting gears can be a wonderful thing, but not when in the clutches of heavy traffic. To that I say: Welcome to Scooterland, Home of the Shiftless Traveler! Working through traffic is as easy as twisting the throttle. Honda's V-matic belt drive employs a nifty three-stage operation that effectively matches the engine's strong low and midrange performance to a wide variety of operating conditions. For easy cruising and around-town duties, stage one puts out smooth, quiet power delivery. When it comes time to pick up the pace a bit, stage two yields a moderate power increase for brisk acceleration. And for those hostile takeover bids, stage three lays down full power and top speed. Fun, functional, and fully automated, this little 250cc has the goods to take care of business.