Modern Vespa

Who would have guessed??

Piaggio MP3 500 LT
It does fall under the 125cc licensing category but it is not a cheap scooter.

But it is good looking.

http://www.scooter-station.com/Marche-scooter-2013-Voici-le-top-50.html

Hmm I would have guessed the 400 since most of the french mp3s that I see here are 400s. I guess the Fuoco is just too darn ugly for France.

Wow, interesting to see how it sells many times more than either the standard 300 or the Yourban - which are both cheaper as well. If this translated over to cars, you would have Range Rover outselling Ford, and most of the cars with V8s.

Nothing is too ugly for France. Have you seen the Pompidou?

Wow that really surprises me. I rarely ever see those in Toronto.

A SYM GTS 125? Ouch, that thing must be a dog. But I digress.

A person on the SYM Owners Forum posted that Peugeot get the Piaggio 500 engine for its Satelis. Peugeot isn't in the Piaggio Group, is it?

I was in Paris a couple of months ago with my wife and we saw MP3's everywhere! I am not at all surprised that they sell that well.

So many people we saw with one hand on the bar, and the other with a cigarette. Must be the extra stability when driving adds to their popularity.

... or a Citroen DS?

and

As a French gentleman said, "Living in French Canada is interesting. The people actually think they are French".

If I am not mistaken, the MP3 LT models have a couple of mods from the standard MP3 that allow them to be ridden without a motorcycle endorsement in most European countries. That could add to the popularity.

Havent seen it firsthand,,,but I would have assumed Euro-makes would have dominated the list.
I need some learnin'

I guess I should get out more


Cheers,
Tross

Why would you buy a 400 when you can have a five? Oh and Europe hasn't been able to buy the Fuoco version for at least a couple of years as Piaggio discontinued it.

Wait for real? I though they just renamed it and call it a Sport.

You can still get the 'normal' Fuoco in Italy and a couple of other countries, although in France it's only the Fuoco LT.

Yes

[quote-"RangerAJ"]Havent seen it firsthand,,,but I would have assumed Euro-makes would have dominated the list.
I need some learnin'
[/quote]
- half of the top 10 are Piaggio and most manufacturers are in Asia not Europe so I can't say I'm surprise. Though I'll admit I never heard of MBK before today. So I learned something.

How can you call that car ugly????

It was gorgeous and so revolutionary when it came out in 55!
Still is in some respect, compared to today's cars.

Absolutely. And, as you'll know Al, they love the big scooters over there in real Europe (see the TMax at No. 3 in the sales rankings). The combo of 500ccs, being able to drive it on your car license, and it being significantly cheaper than a TMax makes it a natural top seller in France, I'd have thought.

Agreed. Iconic.

The stunning complex housing the largest collection of modern art in Europe, and an Italian sculpted auto ugly? STFU

And so very Italian. The DS is to cars as the Vespa is to scooters, for me. Pure style. Not to mention a great drive. "Two horses" qualifies as ugly, an yet a classic beauty too.

Check it out:

It's part of Yamaha. So is Minarelli.

MBK are pretty much rebadged Yamahas and built in France and sold at a lesser cost than the Yam.

I remember in the late 80's when Yamaha brought out what is known here as the Zuma.
The MBK version outsold it, mainly also because it had cooler stickers on it..

Apologies, so you can... but EUR8250? Are they nuts, it used to be £5000 or so. I thought Gilera had been ditched altogether, but it appears you can still get the Runner 50 and 125 in the UK. Or at least the chavs can...

My father had a sequence of its successor, the 1970s CX. I loved those cars, especially the basic one with the 2 litre engine.

Yes you should, I really haven't seen one in a long long while.

Nope, here in the UK, the 500 is the same body as the 400 had in the US with a tiny facelift and matt black or grey paint. Same rear storage flap as well. Over the years it has had a few tiny additions, like a windscreen that can be screwed in at a few positions and a usb socket behind it, as well as 12V power lighter socket under the seat. We haven't seen the Fuoco for a few years as well.

David