Category: Manufacturers

Genuine Stella 4T 3,000-Mile Review

Eric (and probably Eric alone) has been riding a 4-stroke Stella for a few months now, and has racked up 3,000 miles, here’s his review.. You’ll likely find it more insightful and more up-to-date than our review of the prototype from two years ago.

My take remains the same: It’s good for the environment, and good for gas savings, and to the untrained eye, it looks just right, the only downside (compared to the 2-stroke) is reduced parts and accessory interchangeability with the Vespa P-Series.

Vintage Vespa fans may find one other complaint, which Eric summarizes nicely:

All those vintage faithful prematurely complaining about the Stella 4T’s performance may have some newfound respect for them once they ride next to one. Or they’ll just hate it because it doesn’t sound and smell like a 2T.

Return of the Honda Motocampo?

Scooter Station features photos of a new Honda Motocampo concept, a modernized version of the scooter that was designed to fit in the back of the Honda City automobile for the 80s Japanese market. It was a great idea then, and still is, but will Madness be available for the television commercial?
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Timoni out, Martinez in at Piaggio USA

Sources (SDG at Modern Buddy,, Hell For Leather, Scooterism, etc…) report that Paolo Timoni, CEO/President of Piaggio Group Americas since 2005, has left the company. Piaggio has yet to confirm or deny the rumors. PGA imports and markets the Piaggio, Vespa, Aprilia, and Moto Guzzi brands in the U.S.

Update, new prez/CEO is Manuel Martinez, formerly manager of Piaggio Spain.

Scooters and Guns:
A Match Made Somewhere In Europe

The Ride The Machine blog, formerly known as The New Cafe Racer Society, posted this photo worth sharing. I think the views of scooters in the US would be very different if such applications were reality. But instead, I think something like this Vespa TAP that Steve from The Scooter Scoop posted about on Facebook would be more highly admired.

Via The Velobanjogent, another good site to watch.

LML, Cairo, February 11, 2011

If you’re truly obsessed with scooters, you’ll spot the unmistakeable corner of a legshield from a mile away. I was scanning through thumbnails of photos of the Egyptian celebrations on Flickr and this great photo by Joel Carillet jumped right out at me. It was taken on the 6th of October Bridge on Friday night, after Hosni Mubarak stepped down. This photo of an Egyptian family waving the peace sign as they cross the bridge four-up on an LML scooter is suddenly and permanently locked in place as my mental picture of the celebrations.

February 11, 2011 — Cairo, Egypt, originally uploaded by Joel Carillet.

UPDATE: Another great one!

Scooter Riding Thieves Thwarted By Nora Batty

On a cool Northampton afternoon a small pack of thieves armed with sledge hammers attack a jewelry store with their accomplices awaiting their bounty on get-away scooters. Enter a fine citizen with her shopping bag loaded with what must have been bricks. The woman, seen in the video, charges down the street and scares off the criminals who clumsily try to make tracks. During their exit one of the gang was knocked off their scooter and was able to be pinned down until police arrived. Video shows that the rider who didn’t get a way was riding a Vespa LXV. A sad end for a fine scooter. The hero of the day remained un-named by news reports. Modesty prevails.

The New York Post report

Andretti Family sues Power Sports Factory

This Dealernews article sheds light on Power Sports Factory’s dealings with the Andretti family, and PSF’s optimistic hopes of using the Andretti brand to sell Italian-designed, Qianjiang-built Benelli scooters in the U.S. PSF introduced three Benelli models in 2008 and ceased operations in October 2010. Plans to add more Benelli models and less-expensive “Yamati”-branded scooters to the Andretti line never materialized.
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Scooter Superstores Closed

We reported a few months ago that Florida/Georgia scooter dealer chain Scooter Superstore of America (SSTAM) had filed for bankruptcy. Several sources tell us SSTAM’s shops officially closed at the end of January. These court documents call for SSTAM’s collateral and inventory to be returned to GE Commercial Distribution Finance Corporation. Mechanics from the Hollywood, FL location have opened a new service center, Vespariva.

Another Disc Brake Option For Classic Vespas

Sam from The Scooter Republic wrote to tell me about a new disc brake they have available for Sprint style front ends. I wrote about their smallframe disc brake back in May of 2009. Now they have an alternative to putting in a more modern P-series or PK-style front end to add modern front stopping power. Until now, the only option for adding a disc brake to this variety of Vespa front end was from Worb5 Scooter Parts in Germany. The TSR version claims anti-dive properties and the requirement for a small bracket to be welded to the fork tube. The part is not for the average Vespa rider, but looks like a nice addition to the scoot that otherwise has it all. Estimated price is 320 GBP and promises of photos of a fitted model were made and will be shared when we get them.

Lance/SYM deal confirmed

After last month’s rumors, we’ve received a copy of an email Lance Powersports is apparently distributing to dealers announcing they’re SYM’s new distributor in the western United States. It’s unclear if eastern states will continue with Carter Brothers or move to a new distributor, but either way, Lance clearly isn’t making any efforts to be Carter’s BFFs…

You will see a renewed passion for this wonderful line of scooters, supported with wonderful customer service including parts support, tech support, and an attention to detail that we believe was missing from the previous distributor, Carter Bros.

The memo promises Lance will stock “a limited amount of scooters/parts” “very early in 2011” and will build up their inventory going into the spring and summer.

Piaggio/Vespa and other distributors have tried regional distributors in the past with mixed results. If memory serves, Derbi and Kinetic had regional U.S. importers as late as the early 2000s. A regional approach seems a bit anachronistic and overcomplicated today, but we look forward to seeing what Lance can do to get SYM back on track in the U.S.

WebBikeWorld on the Piaggio Museum

We’ve always loved WebBikeWorld’s great reviews, Larry Gebraski points out they have a good writeup on the Piaggio Museum with some solid advice for travelers.

(When you visit, ask how the extravagant new Massimiliano-Fuksas-designed museum that was scheduled to open in 2007 is coming along. Be sure to remind your tour guide that the museum hype came a month before Piaggio’s stock offering, then was never mentioned again.)

Lance, SYM, and the Cali Classic

UPDATE: As of early January 2011, Lance has allegedly notified dealers they’ll be taking over the western U.S. from Carter Brothers.

Mike Hickman, National Sales Manager of Lance Powersports, contacted us regarding the rumors that Lance will replace Carter Brothers as SYM’s U.S. importer.
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