Modern Vespa

...if something feels or sounds strange, have it looked at. Do not continue riding.

For a couple of months I have had this strange clunking sound, from the front of my GTS, when braking hard. At first I thought that it was my lock, in the glove compartment, that made it. When I found out it wasn't the lock, I mentioned it to my mechanic a couple of week ago. I decided to have him look at it later, and continued riding.

Then last week the handling began to feel strange. I checked the tire pressure, and it helped a little, so I continued riding. At least until wednesday this week. I was riding down a residential street with speed bumps. Most of the gentle, but the last one was nasty. A couple hundred meters down the road my handlebar locked completely.

Lucky for me, the road was straught and empty, and my speed was only around 50 km/h. It is extremely difficult to keep your balance with the handlebar locked. I stopped halfway in the opposite lane. It could have been very bad, had it just been a couple of hours later, with heavy rush hour traffic.

I hope this does not get too expensive to fix.

/Andy

Wow Andy,

That's sound scary.

Make sure you let us know what happened mechanically when you get it sorted out.

yes me too.. very curious why this happened. What were the symptoms before the lockup. Happy too hear you weren't hurt. It could have been a disaster at the wrong moment. This is also the first time i heard of this happening.

Sounds like your steering bearings have collapsed. Should be an easy fix.

That's crazy scary!

Wow and glad your alright .Please tell us what they find. You have a new scooter. My steering bearing (the ring they stay in was rusted and in bits). Glad they were in a cup (top end ones). We didn't have any replacements so we just packed them in with grease. Got it changed out a week ago and have extras. My scooters 7yrs old so the rusted out makes sense. If it is them i wonder why? You have a newish scooter.

I will try to be present when it is taken apart next week, and take some pictures. According to my mechanic, it is probably the steering bearings, but the symptoms should have developed slowly over time, and not suddenly.

The scooter is 2010 model, bought new in 2011. I must admit that this experience makes me thinking about selling it, and buying a motorcycle instead. I know the same could have happened with a motorcycle, but I am getting tired of the fact that maintenance is so difficult on the Vespa.

Since the Vespa is currently standing very exposed, I went back today, to try to get the handlebar turned, to lock it. I had to use a lot of force to turn it, and it gave some interesting sounds. But it worked, and the handlebar now turns again, but is very stiff.

I am thinking that my many kilometers on gravel roads, with a lot of holes, has worn out the bearings more quickly than normal. It is not the best roads for the Vespa, which is also a reason for buying something more suited for this.

/Andy

Glad you are OK Andy - that sounds like a serious clench moment. How many miles do you have on your GTS? I'm surprised it is having issues like this...

keep us informed with good pics of issue.

I have seen bearing balls break in half. When they do, they can jam the bearing.

Here's what mine looked like at 7yrs. I keep him garaged and don't do dirt roads but live in a really hostile environment. Salt spray and a rainy season.. However they might be better than our paved ones here. Had no symptoms. we found it when putting on my new front fender. I've lost both of my headset tabs so water does get down i there. Not the greatest setup considering what under the headset. Good luck