Modern Vespa

My Vespa is on the table at Scooters Originali in Allentown Pennsylvania. I towed it up last June when I told Gene there was no hurry and he took me at my word. He had a couple of complicated Lambrettas ahead of my 1979 P200E and they took a while.
My brief was to have the Vespa restored to mostly factory trim for use as a daily rider, but not have it restored to museum quality original specs. To that end it won't be painted even though it is a shade of slightly odd pearly white which I quite like. That's saving a ton of money however for you do it yourselfers the bill will be quite interesting I expect.
The plan is to refurbish the engine and clutch which were rather tired when Gene tore them apart and it will need a new crankshaft and several clutch parts. The cables and wiring will be replaced along with a new halogen headlamp being fitted and the 12volt accessory charger (thank you Bitsa!) from England. New suspension and ties and bodywork parts will also be included.
The Vespa is a pre-mix battery free model, Gene says its a bit mysterious but it is a Euro spec with a speedo in kilometers and labels in English.
I find Gene is very easy to work with and he is very responsive to my requests and ready to explain what I need to know as the process goes on.
My estimate so far is $2200 and I'm expecting to close in on three grand before I'm done. Whether it's worth it or not is a question only you can answer but I wanted to put it out there for those wondering what a restoration by a pro could cost as not everyone wants to fiddle with their own machine.
After all is done I expect to have a well tuned daily rider that should be as reliable as anything. Whether or not this is a fantasy only time will tell but I do plan to ride this bike so this very thorough restoration was the path I chose.
I hope this will offer good for thought for those pondering a purchase and a plan to rebuild. This job does not include a rusty or badly corroded paint or body work.

You'll be happy with it when he's done, I'm sure. And I would not be surprised if you get 3-5 years before anything, besides maintenance, needs to be done.

He is very meticulous and has helped me many times, to find the right answer.

I am going to. I am interested to see what will need to be done as time goes by. Gearbox oil, spark plugs and tires which mercifully I can do at home. Other than that I see nothing much. No cvt belt at least...

I have found that through my Rally engine rebuilds, that as I go along I get better. So, if that holds true for Gene's work, then you can guess the rest.

Please update as that way we can live vicariously through you. Thanks

I would honestly wouldn't put money on it other than the bare basic like replacing the worn out tires and maybe doing the shocks if they are blown but other than that it looks like a very healthy scooter in great condition.

Invest on a good quality two stroke oil like the Motul 800 or 710 and just enjoy riding it. Is your money but what I am trying to say is that often you don't get the money back from your investment/restoration.

You want a daily driver and a P200 is the scoot for that. Scooters O does top notch work. I can't see how this could get any better. Good Luck.

It is good looking but it did not run right. Gene has found quite a few issues principally lots of air leaks owing to incorrect fasteners, loose fasteners (!) however happily the rotary pads are good though the crankshaft woodruff is worn and the crankshaft will be replaced. Bearings are dry and worn etc..
That pleases me because I wanted an early P200 and would have been disappointed had I had to put a whole new engine in. I wanted premix and battery free magneto operation and I also hot by happenstance a Zeuro model so it seems a complete wiring harness can be had.
I ride a lot, my 2007 Bonneville has 78,000 miles on it because I live in a very mild climate. The Vespa will become my main daily rider if all goes well and the Bonneville, in order to preserve it, will br saved for fewer commutes and longer trips. It has been extraordinarily reliable and easy to ride so the P200 has big shoes to fill.
I expect to make the 1200 mile trip to Allentown in Spring and make road trip of it with my wife. I will report on what the Vespa is like.
I wanted to post this to give people an idea of a budget to do a professional restoration. I plan to get my money back in fun and miles. I have no interest in resale value. My bikes are my life not my investments or my pension plans.
Cheers
Michael

I should point out it was running horribly lean and burned holes in two pistons in 30 miles roughly despite accurate stator measurements etc...

I've followed your saga since you first were looking for a P200 a couple years back and made the ill fated trip to pick it up. Hope this turns out to be everything you hope for. I wondered where the scooter ended up going for the rebuild.....

I look forward to your updates, and will continue to periodically peruse through your blog....

its funny to follow your saga is similar to mine and we both live in the keys with the same bike...
its weird i haven't seen you around!

Scooters O did mine as you know after i holed a piston and he had to rebuild/replace almost everything inside as the previous owner did a shit job in trying to make it fast.
i only sent him the motor though.
he replaced a (actually rebored) the cylinder,new piston, clutch, crank, all new bearings, gaskets and seals, cruciform, rewired stator, put in a used head and flywheel. he totally rebuilt the motor and it was 1303.78 plus about 75 or so shipping back. and he had it done and back to me in in about a week.
i just found the invoice today.

id send him my smallframe if i wasnt so into the project!
good guy. solid work. my P runs like a champ.

hit me up, lets go for a ride!

Dabears: this is the "what JerryH would do" restoration if he would release his death grip on his cash! I'm afraid to post in ADVrider for fear of creating another shitstorm...
Jsunstar you haven't seen me because I haven't been riding the P200! Gene says the Vespa should be ready mid January but I expect to get it home in the spring. Then you'll see! A ride to Sparky's for lunch and a photo op on the 7 mile bridge will be in the plans....
My wife took this picture of a hack at the college. Oddly I passed it while I was driving into town at Smathers Beach.

haha, nice.
that was monday. i was doing an inspection of the theater stage for Tennessee Williams.
ive got a smallframe project in the works. its white too, im sure you will see it around soon. (or at leas hear it whiz by)
im rebuilding the motor myself this time as i have the time to learn and the help and advice of these guys here at NSMMV as well as other good SF sites around the WWW.
lemme know when hes done w it...

maybe it's me but i wouldn't send a p to get restored professionally as some don't consider them to be true 'classic' vespas.

i've also got one of those weird euro model p's, no oil tank, premix, etc...

you know what they say about opinions right? i dont listen to such nonsense...
ive restored a dozen 1995-2002 buells. put more money in them than they are probably worth because i think they are cool, sorta rare and worth every smile... i mean mile.

I rely on one for daily transportation in rain, shine, heat and (rarely below 65 deg F.) cold and wouldn't dare do so on an old classic. i hate walking.

someone told me once that the P is the AK47 of scooters and i agree. thats good enough reason for me to keep it running. basic need i guess.
I read about the guys who tour on older vespas, they are almost always P vespas.

true classic? thats an opinion. maybe they are, maybe not but its still an italian made vespa and it makes me happy...

if your blows up, are you gonna rebuild it or scrap it? if you scrap it, lemme know. ill take it.

and i mean no offense or anything, just my $0.02

yeah, people can knock P-series for being from a later era if they want, but my damn thing is 33 years old, hardly new... has survived a botched theft, an accident, being hit by a snowblower, has hauled me hundreds of miles in a day over mountains and dirt roads...

Good machines, and I think they have a masculine "military" kind of styling if you have to put a label on it.

The funny thing to me is when the New Line came out in 1977 I was living in Italy and I thought they were awful. Until I got one and reluctantly agreed they ran well. I hated the ET4 revolution and now I steal my wife's every chance...
The thing is I want a Vespa that can keep up with 55/60 mph traffic and be less maintenance intensive than a cvt scooter as I ride a thousand miles a month. The p series,has split rims and is tough. A GS160 would be lovely but infinitely less practical.
The P200 is the ideal combo for me. That is where the value lies. I hope!

I recently got another e-mail from Gene at Scooters Originali where he has been ordering parts for the stripped down P200.
It has been a very long list of bodged fittings,incorrect gaskets, improper fasteners etc...most recently he has located one wiring harness suitable for the "P" series as opposed to "PX" to re-wire the hopelessly worn out original wiring. He has also discovered the carburettor has been improperly bolted in place and warped so that is being replaced.
Fortunately the original rotor pad was good so the frame and motor stay..! Wiring cables, overbored cylinder with new piston, new clutch, muffler, fasteners new halogen headlight, suspension etc etc... This should be as near as dammit new P200E by the time it is done.
I had hoped to be picking it up this week but the unobtainable eriving harness has delayed things till this summer probably. I hope.
The wiring if not replaced would have been an endless source of short circuiting problems so it had to be done and I wanted it done right.
Frankly I am astonished the Vespa ran at all when I bought it considering the number and variety of air leaks....
I try to be patient with a very long but I expect worthwhile process.
Cheers
Michael
Key West.

What time you coming mate?


Sparky

It's all a matter of weather, whether I do or whether I don't...

here ya go... google search. early P wiring harness. light a fire under his ass and get that scoot working!!

77-79 models
http://www.scooterwest.com/item_details/Wiring-Harness-Loom-Early-P200---Double-Yellow/8227?clear_cat=true


80 and up models.
http://www.scooterwest.com/items/?_pageCCS=t#page=/item_details/P200E-wiring-harness---1980-1983---single-yellow-wire/8226?clear_cat=true

boom. in stock

Apparently not in stock. Mine is coming from England and the last one on hand.
It's been unavailable for months... This one better last the rest of my life.
Havent seen you around town much. Though I have been working a lot.

work work work, eat if i have time, sleep a few hours and back to work...like in the keys...
you will hopefully see my white smallframe around soon. im gonna put the sidecar back on the P after im done building the smallie's engine....
prolly gonna paint thesaidecar to match the P too: rattlecan white.
maybe do it up all R2D2 or something.... not sure. time will tell.

scooterwest's site says its in stock. hmm. strange. owell, if yours is ordered, your in like flynn

Stop. Posting. About. Your. Scooter. And. The. Shop. That. Is. Working. On. It.

Seriously. It seems like "complaining" and then saying "but I'm not complaining." It is tacky. Especially with the other flip-flop wearing dude saying how "strange" it is that Scooter West/Motorsport has it but yours has to come from Euroland. If I were working on your scooter I would tell you to come get it and shove it up you know where.

I wasn't complaining. I thought there was an interest in the restoration of an old Vespa.
There had been nd updates for a year. The end if the process is in sight.
I am delighted with the thorough hands on work Gene is doing.
I am less and less delighted with the manufactured drama of internet
Web fora.
I don't leave remarks on the discussion forum to avoid drama.
I am sorry my foray here has upset you.

Wow.
OK.
Well I hope your reunited with the P soon. Are u going to drive up or have it shipped when they complete the project?

I am.planning around late July. I left a trailer in pennsylvannia in storage. It will he a dreary drive home. Looking forward to seeing it do.e.

We do have the 1977-79 versions in stock. I'm assuming that's what you need.

I relied on Gene to locate it. Unlike SFvsr's rather unpleasant rant would indicate I have expressed complete faith in Scooters Originali to Gene and he is fulfilling my brief with no interference from me.
I am not intimate with the particulars but it seems I have an early Euro specification P200 that requires a particular harness.
Locating such has held up the rebuild but I have borne the delay with patience. I told Gene to do as he sees fit, which is what he is doing.
I have never indicated otherwise.
While I appreciate the vigor and joy of scooter ownership expressed on Modern Vespa I have lived a full and satisfying enough life that taking invective from strangers, particularly when misplaced is not part of my life plan.
I have taken the time to.post here as a way of informing those who do wish to do their own work to show what math be involved in a professional restoration.
That this thread has been attacked amid an attitude of general appeasement has led me to believe this was a mistake.

maybe to some but i have been following and enjoying it!
we are the only members of the southermost vintage vespa club... haha

More than one vintage seems a lot in a town dedicated to twist and go... At least I sill gave one person I can show my new ride off to when I get it home!

I have one Gene did 10 yrs ago,runs like a top.

I am hoping for great things. I told him I wanted it restored to stock and he took me at my word. So I'm hoping I too get ten years of trouble-free use!

Just got back from the swap meet. Holy shit, Gene and Andrea are good people.

thanks for the pics!