Can’t believe none of us have woken up to this on a rally Sunday morning: Vespa covered in abusive graffiti by vengeful lover. Ouch!
Via Vespa Lexington (a month ago, sorry).
When scooter news breaks, we put it under a tarp in the garage.
Can’t believe none of us have woken up to this on a rally Sunday morning: Vespa covered in abusive graffiti by vengeful lover. Ouch!
Via Vespa Lexington (a month ago, sorry).
As mentioned here before, The Scooter Republic out of the UK and SE Asia has developed a new disc brake option for a few old Vespa models. Sam from TSR, a 2SB sponsor, sent along some pictures of the disc brake mounted on a Sprint-style fork. Compared to the previous posting on that prototype it looks like it’s gotten quite the polishing job. Bling.
The smallframe, old-style, hub version has also gotten the anti-dive design worked in as well and is currently available via their Ebay store. But as yet I’ve not seen that model mounted. If someone wants to trade me a set of old v90 wheels, hubs and fork and 592.52 USD in exchange for a PK fork with Paoli shock complete with wheels drop me a line and I’ll try to arrange a test!
I haven’t talked about the new BMW scooters much here, mainly because I’ve always felt once you hit 350cc or so, there’s not much difference between a scooter and a motorcycle, aside from an automatic transmission.
Continue reading “BMW Scooters: Lost in America?”
Jason Bateman and Olivia Wilde on a handsome vintage trap-headlight Vespa Sprint, filming “The Longest Week.”
Someone fine me a photo of Justine Bateman on a scooter, then we’re talkin’.
Via Vina Vroom, reading celebrity news so I don’t have to!
David Letterman gave Regis Philbin a red Vespa LX as a retirement gift last night, and it didn’t go so well. What a Domer. Continue reading “Arrivederci, Regis”
Jeb (of FIDO fame) spotted an interesting badge on the electric car shown at 4:28 in this video collage of electric vehicle photos from EICMA…
Our first Britney Spears-inspired headline heralds the (maybe? sorta?) return of famed Lambretta maker Innocenti in a story that hasn’t garnered any media coverage, but once we blow it out of proportion here, it may send a few Austrian IP attorneys into a tizzy.
Jeb (of FIDO fame) spotted an interesting badge on the electric car shown at 4:28 in this video collage of electric vehicle photos from EICMA:
Continue reading “Not So Innocenti…”
Italian police confiscated Kaitong’s knockoff of the Piaggio MP3 at the EICMA show in Milan.
If that’s a thing… that… can be done, it’s surprising it doesn’t happen more at motorcycle trade shows. Surely it wasn’t a good idea to show up on Italian soil during the financial crisis on the week the Prime Minister resigns (incidentally, Berlusconi was slated to speak at EICMA but cancelled), and display a knockoff of one of Italy’s proudest exports. But one would hope authorities would afford the same attention to other imitators, too.
In other MP3-ish news, Vectrix is promising their 3-wheeler for 2012.
Via Scooterism.
This is just a short post to beat Bryan and the new cub report, Matt, to the punch.
It appears that rumors are true (but are secrets really lies?). LML has shoehorned an automatic into a PK body. They are showing it off at the big bike show EICMA, in Italy. I noticed the photo posted in Scooter Mercato‘s facebook feed. Thanks, Dave.
Discuss. (Likely more analysis to follow.)
The British rider Danny Webb has put the Mahindra Motors Racing 125cc Grand Prix motorcycle on Pole Position for the final round of the 2011 Championship at Valencia, Spain. This is significant on several levels.
Mahindra Motors acquired the Italian firm Engines Engineering prior to the 2011 season in an effort to go racing. Engines Engineering had be entering machines in Grand Prix racing before, but it was under the Lambretta name in 2010 with Marco Ravailoli and a raft of temporary guest riders. While the young Italian and his teammates made valiant efforts under the Lambretta Reparto Corse banner, the switch to Mahindra racing colors and new riders, Danny Webb and Marcel Schrotter, has resulted in a better points placement this season. German and British hands seem to be able to get old Lambrettas going a bit quicker.
The Lambretta to Mahindra conversion also mirrors an Indian continuation of the Lambretta efforts. Interestingly, Scooters India Limited (SIL), the company that took over producing Lambretta models in the subcontinent, is up for sale. Piaggio, Atul Auto and Mahindra have all thought about acquiring the state-run factory, but have reconsidered in recent months. If they had bought the currently money losing company it would have made for a very tidy story!
The saddest and most important part of this event is that it is the last time two-stroke machines will compete at the top level of World-Class racing. It’s not that four-stroke 125s haven’t raced before and been magnificent. But for the last 40 years two stroke machines have dominated at least one class of Grand Prix racing and now it comes to an end. Not by lack of competitiveness, but by simple rule change. Manufacturer goals have changed and that sweet 2 Stroke Buzz plays no role in these aims. The new class will be single-cylinder four-stroke engines and Mahindra and others including Honda and KTM will field machines. But it certainly won’t be the same. Not the same noise, the same smell, the same simple beauty of the two-stroke steeds.
If you’d like to see the event, you can watch live from MotoGP.com for a price. The race starts at 4:00 AM CST on Sunday (tomorrow) morning. Less than an hour later will be a distinct end of an era.
SIP Scootershop posted a history of the Hoffman Vespa on their community blog. It’s not fluff piece and it’s worth a read. Anyone with a Hoffman GS out there, raise your hand.
Two Italians are participating in the Pharaons International Cross Country Rally taking place across Egypt on two specially prepared P200’s. Check out their bikes and short video here and lets hope not everyday is like this.
A few years back, Lambretta Clothing teamed up with The Who to reissue some of the band’s Mod-est attire, including the famous parka from the cover of Quadrophenia, pre-stenciled for your convenience. Apparently Lambretta marketing contracts aren’t worth much these days, so with a new Quadrophenia CD/DVD “Directors Cut” box set coming out, they’ve switched alliances to Vespa. Mancunian twit Liam Gallagher will display a new PX125-based Quadrophenia scooter, film memorabilia, and Who-insipired fashions–including (again) the Quadroparka–at his Pretty Green clothing store on (where else?) Carnaby Street.
In other news, Noel Gallagher has installed turnstiles at Easington Colliery, charging punters £5 to urinate on a lump of concrete.
Quadrophenia, aside from its obvious charms to scooterists (and I admit a compulsion to watch it occasionally), isn’t much of a film and is even less of an album, so it’s interesting to see it repackaged yet again. Confusingly, (“Director’s Cut?”) this new 6-disc set doesn’t include the film at all (the DVD is surround mixes of the album), and omits all the great music (by the Who and other R&B greats) that appeared on the original soundtrack, which was re-released in 1993 and 2000.
The album (as opposed to the soundtrack) isn’t horrible, it’s just neither the Mod music that’s the subject of the film, nor the Mod revival music that sparked its release. It’s exactly the noodly late-’70s stadium rock that Revival Mods and Punks were rebelling against at the time. It may be sacrilege (and completely against the point), but I’ve always felt, aside from a couple tracks, the film would have been better off with all music from the mod era. The book included in the box set is the most compelling component, I’d be far more interested in the backstory and Townshend’s memories than hearing demos and gimmicky 5.1 mixes. Townshend calls it “…the best album that I will ever write,” but it says a lot that the album was blocked from #1 on the charts by Pin Ups, David Bowie’s great ’60s cover album… containing two early Who songs.
Via Scooterism, of course.
Our old friend David Smith reports on Beijing’s first Mod all-nighter. Awesome!
Just what Brooke was hoping for: Motoblog’s report (and great photos) from the Lingotto Special event from Motoblog. I didn’t realize how unique the Lingotto test track is, that must have been an incredible experience!
If you happen to be in Turin Sunday, you won’t want to miss the Red Bull Lingotto Special, a vintage Vespa/Lambretta race at Fiat’s Lingotto test track. I especially dig the creepy neofuturist poster.