Modern Vespa

Just bought my new Sprint 50 not long ago. I love it. I commute 8 miles(r/t) miles to work daily on it, as well as riding it often around town on weekends. I seriously love it, but I rode a friend's 150 last weekend. Now I'm itching for something stronger that I can move a bit faster with..especially considering I live in a popular tourist town where the snowbirds can get to be a huge hazard on the roads.

My local dealer has a new 2015 Sprint 150, as well as a used 2010 GTS 300.
http://www.grannysmotorsports.com/new_vehicle_detail.asp?veh=191763&pov=4081951

I'm soliciting advice from you guys [/url]

What kind of riding would you like to do? Do you just want to stay in town and ride under 60 mph? Or would you like to escape on the weekends or even go on an out of state adventure?

Both are nice choices. However, I think the GTS 250 or 300 is the way to go. With a GTS, you can do pretty much everything (except serious off-roading of course).

You can ride around town, leisurely tour through the countryside, or kick it down on the interstate.

Our scooter club rode to New Orleans to attend the AmeriVespa scooter rally and even rode up to NC to ride in the mountains. To New Orleans, we rode all the back & country roads. On the return trip, I kicked it down with a couple of other riders and we took I-10 the whole way back to Jacksonville. Roughly 600 miles cruising at 75-77 mph (actual GPS speed).

And lots of riders have even rode an Iron Butt Association's SaddleSore 1000 on them. I rode my GTS from St. Augustine down I-95 to Alligator Alley, went west & then up I-75 all the way to I-10, headed west to Tallahassee, turned around, and then rode all the way back to St. Augustine for my Iron Butt. A little over 1,000 miles and I was cruising around 75-77 mph the whole time. Took me around 20 hours.

So it really depends on what you want. If you are a taller/bigger rider, there's more room on the GTS.

Get the GTS 300. I was in a similar position recently except I started with the 150 and then moved to a BV350. If you get the Sprint, you'll just be doing this again next year !!

357 miles on the 2010 GTS.

How can you own one of these and not ride it?

I would get the GTS, but if your riding will not include a need to go over 63 mph (I clocked one recently using my GPS) the Sprint is very cool.

And, demo the Used 2013 Piaggio BV 350 i.e. while you are there.

http://www.grannysmotorsports.com/new_vehicle_detail.asp?veh=328944&pov=3980158

You can always ride a large scooter as slow as a smaller one, but can't go as fast on the smaller scoot.

Easy, get the GTS 300.

All depends on use. The Sprint will do fine as long as you only want to ride in town. It is light and has quick steering. Now, if you see some highway and longer distance riding in your future - get the GTS.

(that is the trouble with the 50, it is like a gateway drug - it just gets you involved but doesn't really do the distance - unless you live on Sanibel )

There's no pricing there, so it's hard to say one vs the other of the specific bikes. There's also warranties to consider, and your comfort wrenching on them.

What I advise newer riders to consider are these things:

1. Is this your only means of transportation? If yes, you need dependability.

2. How comfortable are you with doing your own work, and are you able to do it? For instance, I have what is basically a full shop with a lift, two 44" roll away chests for the 'common' tools, etc., living in an apartment where the manager won't let you field strip the bike is a different situation in the "able to" question. Also, consider the time you'll have available to do the work.

3. Does the bike fit you?

4. Can the bike be adjusted to fit you, or will it require modifications?

5. Can you afford it?

6. No, really, with insurance, financing, etc., can you afford it?

7. Okay, *should* you afford it? You've set up rainy day and retirement accounts that get fed just like the toy fund, right? Yes, it's not fun to think of that stuff when looking at a shiny bike. Do it anyway.

8. Will you be able to ride it and get the 'extra' you're looking for out of it? Less of an issue with smaller scooters, but still a consideration. I have no idea of your skill level or experience, but moving from a 50 to a 300 is a legitimately large step in how fast you will be capable of going.

9. What do you lose in going from one to the other? I do things on my little Zuma that I'd never try on some of my bigger bikes.

10. What do you gain with the new bike? Seriously, write it down, list it out. If you have numbers from comparison tests, use them to quantify. Then put the prices with the bikes. Are you willing to pay that much for what you'll gain?

You need to answer the questions for what *you* would do. What anyone else would do is irrelevant. They aren't you, and can't consider all of the factors in your life that bear on a decision like this.

For me, garage space is the primary concern. I have 17 bikes right now. I've purchased a three cylinder, two stroke bike that was literally in boxes, with a bare frame, transmission gear sets, bare crank in need of disassembly to put rods on it, wiring loom, etc. I have purchased tires by the bundle (10 at a time, of one size only) when I was pretending I could race (for a slow guy, I'm fast, just not compared to guys that are actually fast).

What would I do if I were you? Listen politely, say 'thanks,' sift through the advice (there is almost always something to be gleaned from it), and figure out what best suited my life.

I had the sprint 150, and traded for the 300 GTS Super with ABS. The 150 was great, but no comparison to the 300. The 300 is the way to go. Way more power and better ride on the highway.

I don't know the average speed limit in florida, but here in SoCal its about 55. Sure there are a select few streets that are 35, but even then people drive around 50 mph on these streets.

This was a huge factor for me in deciding whether I wanted a 50cc, 150cc, or 250+cc scoot.

If you look at it as a 150cc scoot goes around 60mph, that will do just fine for putting around town. But, a 250cc scoot will have a little extra oomph for getting out of the way when the landscape truck behind you floors it to pass you/somebody/whatever they want to pass and doesn't pay attention to you. Plus californian drivers are some of the most aggressive drivers I have ever seen.

But thats just my opinion.

Best option is to keep the 50 and buy a 300, why not have both?

THANKS for the advice, guys. It's a lot to consider.

I'm not a gearhead by any stretch of the imagination. I'm eager to learn the Vespa mechanics, as I'd eventually dig being able to go on long rides. More immediately, I'd like to be able to do my own basic maintenance/tuning-up (I'm 2/3 of the way towards my 600 mile service. I'd like to tackle this myself in the future). I only own basic homeowner's tools.
This is my primary transportation. Reliability and warranty are paramount.
I can live with this 50cc scoot, for sure. I just feel like I'm treating it poorly by running it wide open so often (40mph) to keep up in traffic. One of the more active scooter groups in my area has a 50mph requirement. I'd like to be able to take part in their meetups and such.
I'm going to the dealer tomorrow to chat about it.
I'm really interested in finding out if they'd offer a warranty on the GTS.
The initial numbers are:
2015 Sprint 150 ABS - $5199
2010 GTS 300 - $4699

I'd be trading in and financing

Sure, the jump from 50cc to 300cc is a bit intimidating, but so was driving off the dealer's lot the first time. I'm not a leadfoot...just trying to be safe and rational

300 GTS is powerful, but so boringly bulky and heavy compared to Sprint 150. If you'll like to have lots of extra power and high top speed, you'll have to take the 300 though. Sprint accelerates pretty fast, but it does so because it's light - the difference is a bit like driving a small, fast and agile Japanese car vs. an old powerful, but a bit more relaxed muscle car (OK, I'm streching a bit here...). A matter of taste. Plus the need of high top speed, that comes only with the 300.

Get em both. The 150 for tossing around the corners and traffic and the 300 for touring. You can never have too many scooters.

This is important info you should of stated in your first post! If you're still learning then it wouldn't be a bad idea sticking with the current bike for a while just to get your skills in place. I know I suggested the GTS 300 before but it's easy to make costly mistakes when you haven't got much experience and you're jumping onto a bike that's heavier and more powerful. You won't lose any more on the current scooter selling it at 2000 miles rather than 400 miles.

My intro to the World of Vespa was a test ride on a Derbi 50cc. I purchased a LX150 instead. Within a couple of years my wife took it over and I got a GTS Super 300. The LX150 did not last too long with my wife as she sold it and got an Aprilia Sport City 300.

If you have the choice go for the GTS 300.

Yeah, I'm not too ambitious to appreciate this.
It also appeals to me in the way of 'getting something done while nothing is being done' (so to speak)....meaning: I can still use to cut my teeth a bit on the 50 while the dealer can take the bait today when I go in and light the fuse. I've definitely got patience in the world of negotiation.

At the risk of sounding plum dumb...is there a mechanical mod that can afford my Sprint a little more power?

Robinm has the right of this. Get another 500 miles under your belt and then consider what you really want to accomplish. My 150 has a (dead flat) top speed of about 65 mph. The 250 (almost the 300) can hit 75 ish and do it more quickly. With storage added, the 150 could do everything except cross-country Interstate travel.
And I'll tell you, I-95 70 mph scooter transit can be done with a 250/300, but it ain't fun after an hour or two. There's a reason there is great respect for Iron Butt and Cannonball achievements!
My suggestion is another few months on the 50, an MSF course if you haven't already, and then some thought about sharing 75 mph highways with truckers and cagers vs wandering the countryside at 55 mph.

Technically, yes.

Practically, no. Look at the money you'll spend on whatever the suggested mod is. Look at how much it will cost you to buy a bike with more performance, stock (150 vs 300, for instance). What did you get for the dollar spent? It's a basic concept of min-maxing, paying as little as possible for as much as possible. There is a sweet spot for you, and everyone.

Also, consider the impact a substantial change will have on your warranty, and on the resale value of the bike. Performance hop ups get very little of their cost back when you sell the bike later. A bigger bike will retain more of that value when you go to sell it or trade it in on your next bike.