Days Strider Mobility Scooters: A First Look

The Days Strider mobility scooter range has been re-designed for 2010 with six new models from the light weight boot scooter the ST1 to the heavy duty Strider ST6. Unusually Days have decided to do away with many of the middle range scooters such as four and six mile per hour compact scooters, and three wheel mobility scooter to focus on either end of the market. The first three models (the Strider ST1, ST2, and ST3) are all collapsible boot scooters, and the remaining three t(the ST4, ST5 and ST6) are all class three road legal scooters.

The Strider travel scooters all share Days new split chassis disassembly. The split chassis allows you to split the rear wheels and drive mechanism from the main body of the chassis without having to disconnect any wires or detach connectors. This gives you an even more compact and lighter disassembled scooter that can fit in most car boots. Another advantage of the split chassis is that the weight of the heaviest piece is lower.

The Strider ST1 and ST2 are ultra lightweight boot scooters aimed at users who want a very compact mobility scooter for short jaunts. They both feature the Days split chassis mechanism for greater portability, and both have a heaviest component weight of around forty pounds. The Strider S1 and Strider ST2 are designed as light use scooters suitable only for smooth surfaces such as pavement, and have a limited range per charge of around ten miles. As such the ST1 or ST2 would make a good second scooter suitable for shopping trips or holidays where it would be impractical to take a full sized mobility scooter. Both of these scooters are available for around £500 online; expect to pay more in-store.

The Strider ST3 is Days Medical's top of the line travel scooter. It is an mid range travel scooter competing with the likes of the Pride Go Go Elite Plus and Sterling Pearl. Like the ST1 and the ST2 the ST3 features the Days split chassis mechanism, although the heaviest piece is slightly heavier than the other models at about forty two pounds. The ST3 is also slightly wider than the ST3, about an inch, which gives it greater stability when cornering and allows for a larger maximum weight capacity of twenty one stone (as compared to 18 stone for the ST1 and ST2). The Strider is available online for between £750 and £850.

The remaining three models in the Days Medical Strider range are all class three scooters, although they are all targeted at vary different markets; the Strider ST4 is a compact class three scooter in the mould of the Mercury Neo 8; the Strider ST5 is a heavy duty or bariatric scooter with a weight capacity that compares well with the RMA Shoprider Cordoba; and the Strider ST6 is a full sized luxury mobility scooter who's styling and features put it in a class alongside the TGA Breeze and the Heartway Royale.

The first of the class three scooters is the ST4, a compact 8 mile an hour scooter a little over 50 inches long, and a little under 25" wide. It has three inches ground clearance, and is supplied with large 11" pneumatic tires and full suspension both front and rear. The ST4 is designed with a low centre of gravity, giving it good stability even during corning, a real plus in such a compact scooter.

Days bariatric class scooter, the ST5 has a maximum weight capacity of 35 1/2 stone, this is almost as much as the Mercury M48 GT. The Days Strider ST5 is larger in almost every dimension than the STR: the batteries are 25Ah bigger (75Ah against the ST4's 50Ah); its wheels are a full two inches bigger; its range is 5 miles longer (30 miles to the ST4s 25 miles) and it is ten inches longer and three inches wider.

Unlike the ST4 however, the ST5 is supplied with a wrap around delta tiller that provides comfort on longer journeys, allowing you to change your grip to alleviate arm strain. At around £1,700 the Strider ST5 offers a good low cost option for those who need a true heavyweight mobility scooter

The top of the new Strider range is the Strider ST6. It is a full sized luxury mobility scooter with features to match. The ST6's styling reminiscent of the Heartway Vita and Royale.

The ST6 is proportions are similar to the Heartway Royale, it is an inch longer at 63 inches. The Strider however has a greater total capacity of 35 ½ stone, and a greater range of 35 miles per charge. The Strider ST 6 has the high specification you would expect from a luxury mobility scooter; it is supplied with 15" pneumatic tires on split rim alloy wheels; the suspension is oil damped at the rear suspension and coil sprung at the front; a luxurious upholstered adjustable swivel reclining seat with headrest is supplied as standard.

The main advantage the Strider ST6 has over the Royale is its price: the ST6 retails at around £2,900 which is well below the price you would expect to pay for the Royale.