by "ImmoralMinority" (araimondo)
Published 08/30/2017 at 22:03
by "ImmoralMinority" (araimondo)
Published 08/30/2017 at 22:03
No Tags
STARS: 4
I have been told if it is not an all-metal, tempermental, and smoke-belching manual transmission 2-stroke, then it is not a real Vespa.
It has a 4 stroke LEADER engine, which is a remarkable engine. Simple and reliable, it led Vespa’s return to the US. Easy to work on, if Vespa hadn’t placed the thing into an inconveniently small space. It has a body-on frame design, with the metal body attached to the frame, with a bunch of screw on plastic panels to complete the look
I upgraded the headlight, cleaned up the neglected engine, fixed the brakes, and added a sweet hand-made Italian exhaust.
I still need to have some dents repaired, and the whole thing painted, but that project is on hold because Cressida and super fancy refrigerator. But I still love it.
I row gears in the Sunchaser, so I have no overriding need for a manual. It is fun to just scoot around town and navigate traffic. I also have a surprising amount of fun wrenching on it.
I hadn’t ridden it in a while, and I took it out a little yesterday and today, and it immediately made me smile. Maybe someday I will sell it and buy a “real” bike (as one of my friends is quick to remind me that I failed to do when I bought it), or a scooter that would earn the approval of our own Jersey Ben.
But until then, I am having too much fun.
"wafflesnfalafel" (wafflesnfalafel1)
08/30/2017 at 22:11, STARS: 2
Mmmm... yes, people that communicate that something is not real or not adequate to enjoy and love can bite themselves.... “Really? Thank you for that feedback! Perhaps you should re-exam your self-esteem?”
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
08/30/2017 at 22:16, STARS: 1
Don’t ever sell it. It’s cool, and it’s yours.
My scooter’s exhaust pipe cracked right in half. Two attempts to patch it both failed. I’m having a hard time finding a replacement. Scooter part websites are all turrible!
"Svend" (svend)
08/30/2017 at 22:20, STARS: 2
I can’t stand those people.
‘Your Land Rover works, it isn’t a real Land Rover’, ‘Your car hasn’t broke down, it isn’t a real Skoda’, ‘The Fiat 124 isn’t a real Fiat, it’s the same as a Mazda MX5', etc...
I just tell them to sod off.
"Jesse Shaffer" (7esse)
08/30/2017 at 22:22, STARS: 0
The reason we don’t like these is because they’re a tool of fascism. A Zuma is just as good if not better and not priced for the brand name, even though Yamaha should incite a lot more loyalty than Vespa. You got a beat one for (hopefully) cheap, and a good price justifies the purchase. Enjoy your two wheeled experience! Obviously you didn’t buy that one as a status symbol, haha.
"Manny05x" (Manny05x)
08/30/2017 at 22:28, STARS: 0
Never sell your vespa! You are our Vespa guy anf i will like to keep it that way.
"bob and john" (bobandjohn)
08/30/2017 at 22:47, STARS: 2
Thats nice of you
I usually tell them to blow me and go back to wrenching on their piles of shit
"415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)" (415s30)
08/30/2017 at 22:53, STARS: 1
I knew one person that had one of those in Hawaii, eventually I think they got a gran turismo so I have no experience on the smaller ones. I still have a 1966 150 Super with no engine, it was from Japan originally and I just packed it as I went. All the other Vespas and the Lambretta are gone. I used to work on them a lot, I was a bit tired of it and I had to move across an ocean so.. But I thought maybe throw an LML reed valve motor in this one someday. Something interesting to have in the garage, if I ever get a garage. It’s covered in storage now.
"Svend" (svend)
08/30/2017 at 22:59, STARS: 0
That’s me being extra nice, otherwise I tell them to f*** off if I’m really annoyed or simply, ‘well your an idiot’.
"Kiltedpadre" (kiltedpadre)
08/30/2017 at 23:08, STARS: 1
I’ve had a “real bike” and most likely will again. Right now though I’d rather have a scooter. They’re just so much fun to hop on and take off down the road. If I had the time for long rides a bigger bike would be the ticket, but that’s not what I’d be doing right now.
Who cares what others think anyway? You said what mattered, you’re having fun!
"RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars" (rallydarkstrike)
08/30/2017 at 23:09, STARS: 0
You and shop-teacher are the ones who make me want to get my bike license and a cheap scoot of my own! I have no real want to get a ‘real’ bike, but I much want a scooter instead! :P
"jminer" (jminer)
08/31/2017 at 00:06, STARS: 0
Scooters are under-rated and a ton of fun. I started as a kid on dirt bikes, but my first street bike was a scooter and I loved it! I continued to ride it for years after I picked up a ‘real bike’. I only sold it when I moved out to the sticks and had nowhere near the house I could ride it (55 MPH two lane highways to get to anywhere).
"bhtooefr" (bhtooefr)
08/31/2017 at 08:18, STARS: 0
I really hate the whole meme in automotive communities that unreliability, poor ease of use, and high emissions/fuel consumption are requirements for a vehicle to have “character”, and that a vehicle without those attributes is a “soulless appliance”. Flaws do sometimes give character, but they’re not the only way to have it.
It’s a good thing that “they don’t make them like they used to”.
As an aside, although definitely a bigger class of scooter than this, I’m looking at a Honda Helix after work, with the intent of replacing my Miata. (Ultimately, I want an electric, but the styling of the Helix speaks to me, and the scooter I really want isn’t available for purchase outside of Taiwan for now.)