I’d been holding off on a “scathing” (ha) appraisal of Italjet/Diamo until the EICMA show, to see if Italjet even had a booth there. According to The Scooter Scoop, they do. As far as I can tell (Diamo’s site doesn’t show any Italjet models, and doesn’t list dealers, and ItaljetUSA’s site is slow, short on info, and hasn’t changed since last winter), their only model currently available in the U.S. is the Torpedo, which is apparently made in Asia, so if that Dragster on display in Milan is actually new (unlike the old one they dusted off for DealerExpo) and actually a production bike, it’ll be interesting to see where it’s being built and when it’s coming here. (Their booth is in the Asian pavillion, if that’s any indication). Our analyst Brooke suggested that the whole Italjet/DiamoUSA deal was a scam to lure dealers to sell other Diamo projects, and I was frankly starting to believe him, now the question is if Italjet is anything more than an office in Italy buying trade show space and licensing their name (and their late-90s designs) to Asia and India. Time will tell.
(UPDATE: DiamoUSA appears to be displaying the same Minarelli-powered five-year-old Dragster 50 at the Cycle World shows that they had on display at the Dealer Expo nine months ago. See comments for details.)
The dragster in the fuzzy photo appears to be a 2 stroke 125/180 version. It does not have the hoses associated with the piaggio 200+ 4 stroke motors and does have the water pump cover that is indicative of the 2 stroke Piaggio motor. It looks like a similar strategy as the US show where they just took an old model, in that case a pre 2003 Minarelli powered 50cc version, and added a decal badge. I’m sure this isn’t a sign that the new incarnation will be a 2 stroke but just evidence that they don’t have any new product to show. I seem to recall the Diamo rep in Indianapolis claiming that the Rollercraft was just hung up in customs. No sign of it yet either. There has been a few sightings of mysterious dealers trying to move the new version of the Italjet Torpedo on craigslist. They appear to be CFMoto E-charm or E-jewel models with slightly different bodywork. So their progress in bringing Italjet scooters to the market seems to currently consist of a mainland china produced CF moto product that has been brought in under many incarnations by at least a half dozen other importers at ‘bargain’ prices. I’m not sure what is harder: reproduction of an old model or inovation. But there is no evidence that either struggle is at issue with the current Italjet USA incarnation.
Here is a better picture of the italjet Dragster 50 at the Cycle World Int’l. Motorcycle Show in Houston (11/3/07) Diamo rep gave very little details about it, but sure the engine ain’t Italian. You know, to me it still looks like a cheap knock-off of the original. (Photo: Lindsay Harris)
Rakuchina, that Dragster at Cycle World looks like an older Dragster with a Minarelli engine, not a new Dragster with a Piaggio engine that Diamo’s Mathu Solo described in January. In fact, that looks like the same exact bike Diamo had at Dealer Expo in February.
Yup, that’s as beautiful italian as you can find in a motor since the end of the vespa smallframe. Pure Mina. (Then again, it could just as well be a yamaha engine but the lines get blurred with that genus.) Alas that breed is near Death as well.