Maxi
About 1.8 million built. The moped most people picture when you say Puch.
Full history →From the Moped Motel fleet
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Puch
Austria's moped legend, from Graz to your garage
// The story
Johann Puch opened a bicycle workshop in Graz, Austria in 1889 and founded his own factory there in 1899. Motorcycles followed in 1903. In 1934 the company merged into the Steyr-Daimler-Puch group.
For moped people, Puch means the Maxi, the Magnum, the Newport and the Cobra. The Maxi alone arrived in 1969 and sold about 1.8 million units. Puch engines also ended up in mopeds sold through Sears and JCPenney under store brands, and Tomos in Slovenia started out building mopeds under a Puch license.
Puch sold its motorcycle business to Piaggio, the Vespa company, in 1987. The mopeds never really went away, though. Puchs are still all over moped meets, some on original E50s and some built way past stock.
// The models
Puch models
Magnum
Built for North America. The tank on top made it look like a small motorcycle. The LTD was a numbered run of 500.
Full history →Photo: Uzetheforce, CC BY-SA 3.0
Cobra
One of the last Puchs built for America. The white 1986 ones are the rarest.
Full history →From the Moped Motel fleet
Sears Free Spirit
A Puch sold through the Sears catalog in three trims.
Full history →Photo: BitBoy, CC BY 2.0
MS 50
Built almost unchanged for 28 years. Austrians nicknamed it the "Stangelpuch," and the Austrian post rode them for decades.
Photo: Dnalor 01, CC BY-SA 3.0 at
DS 50
A two-seat moped scooter. DS stands for Doppelsitzer, German for double seat.
Photo: Duke of W4, CC BY-SA 4.0
X 30
The Maxi's pricier half-sister, with a slim tank and big chrome spoke wheels.
Photo: Markus Zinnecker, CC BY-SA 3.0
M 50
Built because buyers wanted mopeds that looked like real motorcycles.
Photo: Der.krusche, CC BY-SA 3.0
Maxi S
The standard full-suspension Maxi. The 'D' or 'LS' version added a long seat for a passenger.
Photo: GT1976, CC BY-SA 4.0
MV 50
A Maxi-era Puch with a motorcycle-style tank. Britain's postal museum keeps one from 1980.
Photo: Priwo, Public domain
Maxi Sport
Cross mag wheels on the Maxi. The two-speed Sport MKII followed in 1978.
Photo: Zeitblick, CC BY-SA 4.0
Magnum MKII & Magnum II
Silver with green stripes. The MKII had hydraulic suspension, mags and oil injection; the 1980 Magnum II kept the look with spring suspension. Shown: a silver-and-green Magnum.
Photo: Jared eberhardt from Los Angeles, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0
Magnum LTD
The last Magnum. Only 500 were made, in white and red with a fairing, black chrome and a numbered Monza-style dash plate.
Photo: Uzetheforce, CC BY-SA 3.0
Supermaxi
The last evolution of the Maxi, sold as the LG1 and LG2 from 1991.
Photo: Christoph Waghubinger (Lewenstein), CC BY-SA 4.0
More Puch models and versions (no free photo yet. Got one? DM us)
- Maxi N Rigid frame, no speedometer, the "poor man's Maxi." US 1975–76
- Maxi LS / D Factory long seat for a passenger
- Maxi Luxe / Luxe II Hi-torque head and mudflaps; Luxe II with ZA50 two-speed. US 1977–78
- Maxi Nostalgia (Nostalgic) Black and gold with old-style Puch logos, 1976 only
- Maxi II ZA50 two-speed. US 1978–79
- Sport MKII Cross mags and ZA50 two-speed. US 1978–80
- Euro Maxi versions L, E, P2, GS (off-road), Plus, Super S, N Chopper, N Off Road, Casablanca (1972–73), Strada, Turbo Sport (four-speed foot shift), Mini Maxi
- Puch GN Hard-tail frame. US 1976–78
- Series B Wine color, trapezoid tank, CEV switches. 1980–81
- Newport A Maxi S with pinstripes and reflective whitewalls. US 1977–79 merch →
- Newport L Swoop decals, black covers, puffy seat
- Newport II ZA50 two-speed. 1980
- Magnum XK The base 1978–79 Magnum: red, spoke wheels, E50
- Magnum X Kickstart dirt bike with a 3.5 hp E50, the strongest automatic Puch 50. 1978–79
- Dart Step-through with a plastic tank and 14-inch wheels, called the Mini Maxi in Europe. Early-mid 1980s
- Austro-Daimler (AD) Porsche-designed, E50 or ZA50. 1984–86 merch →
- Korado Piaggio-era Puch with an updated E50. 1995
- Macho Kickstart E50, sold in Europe
- JCPenney Swinger 1 & 2 Cheaper Pinto line; the rigid blue Swinger 1 is now the rarest
- Murray US-built frames with a Puch E50, sold in department stores. 1979–82
- Bombardier The Maxi as sold in Canada
- Sears Allstate Puch-built Sears mopeds and motorcycles of the 1950s–60s
- X 30 / Condor Z50 two-speed manual, sold in Europe and Switzerland
// Printed to order
The Puch collection
Every design starts as a photo of a real bike. Tap any item to see sizes and colors on Etsy.
+ The Puch Rug Crest collection (4 t-shirts) →
T-Shirt
Puch Mopeds Mirror Logo T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Mopeds Motel Sign T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Tangerine Dream T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch LTD T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Service Specialist T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Mopeds Collection T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Mopeds Neon T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Speedometer T-Shirt
$25
Hat
Puch Corduroy Hat
$30
Hat
Puch Dad Hat
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Wordmark T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Chest Logo T-Shirt
$20
Hoodie
Puch Österreich Hoodie
$40
Jacket
Puch Windbreaker
$30
Hat
Puch Rope Cap
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Mopeds Österreich T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Sverige T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Nederland T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Osterreich T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Moped Motel Graphic T-Shirt
$25
T-Shirt
Puch Blaster Cash Money T-Shirt
$23
T-Shirt
Puch King Snake T-Shirt
$25
Hat
Tangerine Dream Dad Hat
$25
T-Shirt
Tangerine Dream T-Shirt (Small Graphic)
$25
Beanie
Tangerine Dream Beanie
$23
Mug
Puch Moped Mug
$10
Hat
Tangerine Dream Dad Hat (V2)
$25
Glass
Bike Trio Pint Glass
$15
Sticker
Puch Square Sticker
$2.75