Modern Vespa

Hi All,
This mights take a while...

I've been away from scooters/motorbikes for a good few years now & I'm living in the sandpit (middle east), where motorbikes are not a good idea... mostly due to the terrible quality of driving here. In the past I've has an ET2 & a PX125 (disc) before driving motorbikes for a while.

I want to invest in a Vespa, back home (Ireland) for a couple of reasons. 1. I want a fun machine for sunny days, to go to the seaside, go for coffee and hang out with friends. 2. I want to do a roadtrip on scooters, possibly to Italy.

After my last stint driving bikes I no longer want to commute by bike. So I want a machine that will be purely for leisure, but I also appreciate the benefits of modern standards & technology. I'm not keen to get another PX, as I find the styling boxy and like the softer designs of previous generations.

There is a guy back home that will restore a bike for me, put in new cabling, tyres and a PX 125 engine, so I presume it will be somewhat reliable. Are there any downsides to this? Would it be possible to use a PX suspension with disc brakes too?

What are the best bikes to use for this type of project? I like the idea of a Sprint, but which are the best most solid and models to use? Is it considered okay to modernise the bike, or do the scooter community like to preserve as original?

Sorry for the long winded post, but I want to start this project from a good place

Thanks, B

http://www.tassouk.co.uk/bodykit.html

That does look cool, even though the front cowl looks a little awkward. Thanks, food for thought.

I'd be grateful for any other feedback. Thanks.

I don't know how easy it is to find a scoot in Ireland, but if it was me I'd get a T5. They never were imported here, but that's the model I would want. But if you don't like the "boxy look", and you can get a donor P125 engine a sprint would be at the top of the list. It already has the 10" wheels and is probably cheaper than say a Rally. If you want to stay original. all the way, then I would say a Rally 200.

I think a rally will cost upwards of 3k in the uk but the odd older 10" wheeled bike with a p200 engine which would be great and parts easy to come by. Hang the expense, go the Rally!

Thanks all, plenty to consider... Allot of the vintage bikes in Ireland seem to be imported from Europe or the UK. Anything with a 200cc seems to add allot of cost.

From your comments, it seems the ideal options are a reconditioned PX125 with the Tasso kit, or a Spint with a PX donor engine & rewiring. Both similar in cost...

The PX is appealing because of the disc.

Btw. If you're on FB have a look for groups there. There is Vespas for sale there and some interesting scooters come along. There are some good guys on this forum based in Dublin that may know some scooter clubs etc about and they may have members with bikes for sale. Good luck.

I would still go for a T5. I know it's boxy looking, but you won't be looking at it when your riding - and I heard they ride real nice. Jackson ought to be in on this discussion.......

Thanks Tierney, I'll keep my eye out for T5's but even 10 years ago when I had my PX, T5's were rare as hens teeth.

Get a "reliable" PX, change horncast, side panels for after market retro style (I found mine via the scooter republic), modify the top cowl of steering, and viola, a classic