Illinois laws according to the office of Sec of state

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Pinkelephant

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Oct 23, 2012
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Effingham, IL
I saw alot of back and forth debate about the laws in IL (moped laws confuse people and cops)
I sent a clear, detailed email to the Sec of state office with no wiggle room.

Q:
MESSAGE:
I am about to install a 48cc motor to a bicycle to make a "low-speed gas bicycle" (625 ILCS 5/11-1516 new) to ride on rural country roads.

There is a lot of confusion online about legalities.
reading (625 ILCS 5/11-1516 new) by itself seems to imply the bike is legal to ride without registration/license/insurance when built and operated under the restrictions listed. Am I correct in that?
when letting others ride my bike, as long as they are over 16 years of age, are there any other requirements? (drivers license? Helmet?)

A:
Thank you for directing your questions to the Office of the Secretary of State via the Internet.

In general, low speed bicycles must follow the Rules of the Road for bicycles. A person operating a low speed bicycle does not need a valid driver's license, insurance or registration plates. Helmets use is not required.

625 ILCS 5/11-1516. Low-speed bicycles
Sec. 11-1516. Low-speed bicycles. (a) A person may operate a low-speed electric bicycle or low-speed gas bicycle only if the person is at least 16 years of age.
(b) A person may not operate a low-speed electric bicycle or low-speed gas bicycle at a speed greater than 20 miles per hour upon any highway, street, or roadway.
(c) A person may not operate a low-speed electric bicycle or low-speed gas bicycle on a sidewalk.
(d) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, the provisions of this Article XV that apply to bicycles also apply to low-speed electric bicycles and low-speed gas bicycles.
(Source: P.A. 96-125, § 5.)

Here is a hyperlink to the Rules of the Road for Bicycles:

http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/publications/pdf_publications/dsd_a143.pdf

cb
 
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Fugi93

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Dec 30, 2011
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illinois
Pinkelephant;435116MESSAGE: I am about to install a 48cc motor to a bicycle to make a "low-speed gas bicycle" (625 ILCS 5/11-1516 new) to ride on rural country roads. [/QUOTE said:
If you're running a motor at 1 or more hp in Illinois, you are not legal, country roads or not. Any 48 cc motor will produce more than 1 hp. You need to be around 23 cc on a 4 stroke and about 12 cc on a 2 stroke. They don't make it easy to comply. Just stay below 20mph if you don't have a valid license, for sure.
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Pinkelephant

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Oct 23, 2012
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Effingham, IL
so the 48cc vs 66cc argument is moot. the IL definition of a "Low-speed gas bicycle" (below) says nothing about cc's.
do they make a 1hp motor???
Sec. 1-140.15. Low-speed gas bicycle. A 2 or 3-wheeled device with fully operable pedals and a gasoline motor of less than one horsepower, whose maximum speed on a paved level surface, when powered solely by such a motor while ridden by an operator who weighs 170 pounds, is less than 20 miles per hour.
(Source: P.A. 96-125, eff. 1-1-10.)
 
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Fugi93

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Dec 30, 2011
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illinois
Pinkelephant said:
so the 48cc vs 66cc argument is moot. the IL definition of a "Low-speed gas bicycle" (below) says nothing about cc's.
do they make a 1hp motor???
Sec. 1-140.15. Low-speed gas bicycle. A 2 or 3-wheeled device with fully operable pedals and a gasoline motor of less than one horsepower, whose maximum speed on a paved level surface, when powered solely by such a motor while ridden by an operator who weighs 170 pounds, is less than 20 miles per hour.
(Source: P.A. 96-125, eff. 1-1-10.)
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According to Illinois law, it has to be under 1 Horsepower. CC's usallly are a good indicator of horse power. Like I said, stay below 20 mph.
 
miked826

miked826

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Aug 6, 2011
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Los Angeles
Fugi93 said:
According to Illinois law, it has to be under 1 Horsepower. CC's usallly are a good indicator of horse power. Like I said, stay below 20 mph.
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Basically if you attach anything larger than a weed-eater engine to your bike then you're illegal. Your best bet is to go electric and take a black sharpie to any specs listed on the battery pack. Cops won't have a clue anyhow on how to convert watts into hp. Just make sure and fake pedal if you are going over 20 MPH. Pedaling under the posted speed limit is still legal. Works for me. LOL
 
miked826

miked826

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Aug 6, 2011
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Pinkelephant said:
well, 40 miles NE of here the Amish are riding them and 45 miles east of here the college kids are riding them. I will print my email and act stupid.
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An Amish Revolution? Good for them. If enough people go rogue then Illinois will be forced to change the law or go broke trying to enforce it.

In New York they state on their DMV site that, "you're subject to arrest" if caught on a gas powered bike on a public street. If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.
 
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Fugi93

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Dec 30, 2011
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illinois
Pinkelephant said:
I called a motorized bicycle dealer in Clinton, IL.
they said the only people they know getting harrassed are people with revoked licenses
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Unless they prove they are over 1 HP, it would be illegal to even harrass a revoked driver. The law clearly states that "it removes the requirement to have a valid license". BTW, you can limit HP just by putting a throttle limiter on the engine. I use a speedometer sensor on the throttle cable to accomplish that.
 
biknut

biknut

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Sep 28, 2010
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Dallas
There's a lot of ways to limit HP. When I got my motorcycle license, 15 yr olds were limited to 5 hp. Honda 90s had 8 hp, but they sold special 5 hp models. The only difference was the 5 hp model had a reducer in the intake that supposedly reduced the hp to 5 hp.

My bike didn't have one, but no one ever ask, even though I got pulled over all the time. My point is there's a lot of ways to limit hp, and there's no way for a cop to tell how much hp you have, and doubt they'll waste time trying. If you're not going over 20 mph they probably won't care anyway.

My question though is how you going to keep it under 20 mph lol?
 
FileStyle

FileStyle

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May 27, 2008
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Decatur,IL
I ghost pedal when I am going faster than twenty, and that is most of the time! the law says you cant go faster than 20mph if powered solely by the motor. I let my motor power me up to twenty and pedal my way to 38mph, that way the fuzz cant really say anything about how fast Iam going. It's all about how you ride, and what kind of head you have on your shoulders!
 
miked826

miked826

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Aug 6, 2011
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Los Angeles
FileStyle said:
I ghost pedal when I am going faster than twenty, and that is most of the time! the law says you cant go faster than 20mph if powered solely by the motor. I let my motor power me up to twenty and pedal my way to 38mph, that way the fuzz cant really say anything about how fast Iam going. It's all about how you ride, and what kind of head you have on your shoulders!
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Speaking of 38mph, here's me the other day taking my daily trek around L.A. at 38+mph. My pedals cease to function after about 5mph because of the gear ratio on the pedal side. LOL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1maimbCB3M
 
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