The latest in scooter badge engineering: PSF’s Andretti Scooters.
Yes, that Andretti.Purchase Point Media Corporation, who recently bought Power Sports Factory, (who sells Chinese-made “Yamati” and “Strada” scooters) has licensed auto-racing legend Mario Andretti’s name for a line of scooters.
The “Andrettis” are Benelli scooters rebadged for the U.S. market. Benelli has a proud history in italian motorsports, and they made a splash at motorcycle shows a few years ago with their “Adiva” covered scooter (which is now produced in Asia and sold as its own brand), but the marque was purchased around the same time by Zongshen in China. Benelli scooters never appeared (at least in reasonable numbers) in America, and it’s unclear whether these new “Andrettis” are manufactured in Italy or China.In any case, they’re not even fluorescent red-orange with STP decals on them, they’re just another generic-looking plastic twist and go (one is even, sadly, Scarabeo-looking) with a plastichrome script logo.
Mario Andretti was indisputably my favorite motorsports dude (even bigger than Evel!) when I was growing up, but any excitement about a scooter with his name on it is tempered by the number of companies involved in this project and it’s likely orgin. I’ll see if we can get PSF reps to buy me enough drinks at DealerExpo to change my tune.
UPDATE: the Spec PDF on PSF’s site reads “designed by world-renowned Italian motorcycle manufacturer, Benelli,” which generally means “Made in China.” But, MARIO ANDRETTI will be AT THEIR BOOTH. So hopefully I can ask him in person.
I am going to make a point of meeting him in Indy. Maybe I can convince him to come back to the Corazzo/Scoot!Q party and slug some beers. That would be picture gold!
Hey, I didn’t get my invitation to the Corazzo/Scoot! party yet! I promise I won’t hit on Josh this year.
First Guzman, now Andretti???? Next week Beeb will be quitting coudal to work for Wildfire.
http://thekneeslider.com/archives/2005/09/15/benelli-bought-by-chinese-firm/
The news hit in 2005 – Andretti got involved last year and we’ve gotten no less than a dozen e-mails from them asking us to carry their product. Typical “CJ / Yamati / Strada / Vento / Lifan” Chinese stuff.
PowerSportsFactory has a very bad reputation on the Chinese Scooter forums on yahoogroups, customer service appears to be the absolute last alternative in their business plan.
http://stradascooter.blogspot.com/
I thought we’d been through this a while ago, maybe it was on the dealers-list.
Despite their original claims to keep production of the Benelli scooters in Italy the very next run of scooters launched by Benelli / CJ were 100% Chinese production with heavy (bordering on criminal) “Italian” marketing promises and styling. Another case of misrepresentation and the hijacking of an established moniker to deceive the public, I guess when calling your scooter Yamati, Suzuky, Viaggio or Fespa doesn’t work you just buy up a company on hard times and take over their “History”.
http://www.google.com/interstitial?url=http://www.qjiang.com.cn/ (DON’T CLICK ON THIS – GOOGLE WARNS OF BADWARE) in any case this is the corporate site for Qianjiang in China. They are one of the largest manufacturers of the wide variety of Chinese Clones you will see at the Indy Dealer Expo.
Maybe we can have a daily blog of just “Latest Chinese Scams”. I’m ready for some “scooter news” that will actually point me to a product, service or event I can actually use.
GRRRRR!
Phil
POC
I’m waiting for the Foyt to come out…
How about some news about something OTHER than the latest Chinese scooter being touted as something European? Maybe I’ll come up with something interesting at the Indy Dealer Expo…probably not.
Re – Made In China.
Kymco = made in Taiwan and now China?
Vespa made in Italy? Not – Taiwan! Zongshen soon? Harley same?
Peuguot by Qingqi?
Corporate QJ website is at: http://www.qj-motor.com
Below website is owned by former China based importer related to Qj employee…
Enter at your own risk.
http://www.google.com/interstitial?url=http://www.qjiang.com.cn/ (DON’T CLICK ON THIS – GOOGLE WARNS OF BADWARE) in any case this is the corporate site for Qianjiang in China. They are one of the largest manufacturers of the wide variety of Chinese Clones you will see at the Indy Dealer Expo.
Maybe we can have a daily blog of just “Latest Chinese Scams”. I’m ready for some “scooter news” that will actually point me to a product, service or event I can actually use.
GRRRRR!
Phil
POC
http://bigassmotors.com/v-web/gallery/andretti