Modern Vespa

New member here. Last week I bought a used 2011 LX150ie on a consignment sale from a local scooter dealer in Southern California. The scooter was in really good condition and I have been looking for over 9 months for a good used Vespa within my budget. I was so excited about my purchase because I love Vespa's. When I brought the scooter home I noticed the fuel gauge was 1/4 full so I drove my scooter to the gas station to top it off. I then noticed the scooter was full and the fuel gauge was broken. After finding this out I searched on the Modern Vespa website and found out this is a common problem with other Vespa's. Other owners have the same problem of there fuel gauge not working correctly. I called Piaggio Group American and a man representative answered my message said he never heard of any fuel gauge issues. I notified him of the posts on Modern Vespa about other Vespa owners who have fuel tank sender and fuel gauge needle problems . I am curious how many of you have fuel gauge issues. I have owned other bikes and I have had no problems with the fuel gauge.

Scooters and motorcycles in general have notoriously inaccurate fuel gauges. It maybe working just fine. For example, on my Vespa when my fuel warning light comes on, I typically still have half a tank left. The same on my BMW C600.

I'm not excusing the rude CSR, but nothing may be wrong with the fuel gauge.

Welcome to MV.

I haven't heard of this 1/4 full gauge problem.
If you would like some help please edit out the personal attack in your post.

Hi Edmakated The fuel gauge just stays in the 1/4 full position. The tank is full. As a new Vespa owner I am a little concerned? I have had Honda's before and their gauges worked fine and they were much older bikes.

Hi Znomit, I have read with many other posts that they gauge sticks in one position or they gauge does not move to full when filled up. It is a fuel sender problem. I will edit the post and bring it up with Piaggio executives. I am sure if you were in my shoes you would be upset at this man named Miguel. As an adult you should not be treated that way too.

Piaggio USA won't be the least bit interested in the duff gauge - they never deal directly with owners. The gauge is simple enough to replace - or better still, as you have to drop the tank to get at it, the original can be cleaned and re-positioned to work properly. I bet it's just twisted slightly and the float gets stuck on the side, or the float arm has got bent in assembly.

If it sat a while with 1/4 tank, your float may be stuck. Sometimes they'll free up with use. Keep your tank topped up and add a little Seafoam or techron - sometimes that'll help free up a sticky float.

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I am going to run the take down and see if the float is the problem.

as much of a joy as customer service is on both ends, everyone else is right in pointing out that it isn't Piaggio's issue.

If you bought it new from a dealer, the dealer would fix it and bill Vespa. Since it's used, you're on your own, and will have to fix or replace it.

Also, on most p2w vehicles, the fuel gauge and speedo are usually a bit off on the best of days.

Welcome to the adventure.

This was exactly my experience with the same symptom. My 2007 LX150 sat in the original owner's garage for nearly 5 years, amassing an astonishing 300 miles. When I bought it on consignment from the local (and sorely missed) Motoretta shop, the gauge was stuck at about 1/4 full.

With a couple of tanks of fuel and some Seafoam additive, it freed right up and works as it should now.

The speedometer, however, is a different story. It has always told me how fast I was going, not how fast I am going!

Love the Italians!

I will give the Seafoam product a try on next fill up. Thanks for the help.

My Honda speedometer is GPS verified accurate and the gas gauge is also accurate.

Cause the Honda is Japanese and it actually works right lol

I have a Toyota 4 Runner. A Japanese made truck with over 200,000 miles on it with zero problems. The Japanese make good cars and bikes. Used to have a Jeep Wagoner before that and it always broke down.

Hi, I have a GT200 that has fuel gauge issues. When my tank is full, the gauge shows the tank is just under 3/4 full. It can be fixed but that does not mean it will not happen again down the road.

Skully93 on the forum introduced me to Fuelly.com. With Fuelly, you can determine how many miles ridden vs. the amount of gas you put in the tank. I think a good think to do is to fill you tank and ride till you get as close to empty as possible (make sure to do this near a gas station ). Then, you will know how many miles you can ride before needing to refill.

For me, I know the GT200 has about a 2 gallon tank and that I can ride 140 miles comfortably before knowing I need a refill.

I hope this helps.

Best,
Ross

Thanks everyone for your advise.

I have a 50 that only goes to3/4 when full and have 1/2 gallon when light comes on.Not bad for me.

My '07 LX fuel gauge has never worked right. I bought it from CA so it was flown here. When i started it up the needle was on E. Thought they drained most of the gas because of the flight. Only a mile to the gas station so i chanced a ride there. Went to fill it and gas went everywhere. It was full. Never thought to look in there. Sigh.Now it goes to 3/4 when full. I supposed if i lived in CA i could of gotten it fixed under warranty but i wouldn't let the Vespa dealer here touch it. Back in '07 even if you did get it fixed they still didn't work right. Guess Piaggio has gotten them right by now. Yellow light works tho.

any updates on this? Just had my full tank today and it just stayed on the 3/4 full level. I was wondering how did you guys solve the problem? and how did it go with the seafoam?

You can replace the fuel sender (on your dime). I live with mine. My yellow light comes on when i have a over a gallon left. I get about 70MPG. Not worth the hassle and expense since i'm never more than 20 miles from a gas station. 3/4 is now my full point. Owned the bike for 9yrs and have over 40,000 miles on him and never ran out of gas.