Modern Vespa

Hi guys! I'm looking to tap the collective wisdom here at Modern Vespa to address an issue I'm having w/ the ride quality of my '07 GTV 250. I'm a fairly new rider (2 year) & purchased my bike used about 1.5 years ago. My bike has 16k miles on it & is in excellent condition! I have it serviced regularly by my local Vespa dealer & the stock suspension has been dialed by them for me & my weight!

The issue I am having is with the front suspension & is an extremely jarring impact when hitting even minor imperfections in the road! To give you an idea of the magnitude of the issue; I recently hit a rough spot around a manhole cover, in a major thoroughfare at 35 mph, & the impact was jarring enough to knock my iPhone out of my RAM mount! This seems to me to be excessive!

So, I am wondering if installing aftermarket shock absorbers, like Mallosi's or Biturbo's would improve this ride characteristic. The rear suspension seems to perform well as it is, but I am definitely open to installing new shocks all the way around, if it'll improve the ride quality significantly! So, what are your thoughts & experiences?

Btw, I am a big guy, 5'10", 300 lbs., & my weekly coastal rides are getting as long as 160-180 miles in a day. So, I'd really appreciate any help you could give! Thanks in advance!

Yeah, a new front shock absorber would help. Even a new OEM vespa one would help. Fancier, more expensive aftermarket shocks are adjustable.
Does the front end lift up on fast take offs? If it does, then its time for a new front shock.

I would highly recommend the Front Bitubo as they are fully adjustable, even at its lowest setting, it is a bit stiffer, but improvement on both rebound and compression, helps in many riding surfaces. Haven't tried the Malossi, but I have used Both on my Modern and Vintage. Well worth the money. If on a budget go OEM.

I am surprised this thread is not getting a lot of responses. I think the 300 is great in every dept except the front suspension which is awful really. It is okay if you take it easy but get moving a fraction quicker and it just mashes as the spring cannot compress any more. I am amazed the problem exists as everything else is pretty much sorted. I am interested in the better aftermarket shock and all my efforts to find out suggest the Malossi is better. But why doesn't Ohlins come up with something? There is a huge market.
Everything has moved forwards on the GTS with a great engine, larger capacity, good brakes etc but the shock is stuck in the past by at least a decade. If the suspension was truly sorted then I'd be happy with just a vespa as my sole ride. But it looks like I'll have a couple of bikes into the future, BMW's that can really handle multi-day touring which is the pinnacle of motorcycling for me.

I had a similar problem in the first year or two of my LXV which I bought new. It turned out to be my head bearings. The bike would almost clunk and rattle when I'd hit a bump or pinch the front brakes.

Got them tightened and haven't heard a peep in nearly 6 years.

P.S. I've had a number of stints in San Francisco and dreamt of how nice it would be to have a Vespa there! Lucky you!

I have Malossi's on my LX (front and rea) and i love them. Had a Bitubo on the rear for a while (at the time the rear Malossi was uber expensive) and i think the Malossi is a better shock. Stocks ones suck on the LX. Good luck

You are completely, perhaps dangerously, in need of new suspension, especially with your mass.
I don't know what aftermarket units would be "best" for you, but I would NOT use new OEM.

On my 2009 GTS, I noticed the stock suspension was much less effective after four or five years, so I replaced the stock suspension with Bitubo.
The new suspension made a huge difference, but with the minimal travel of the GTS front suspension, you are never going to have plush.
That is just how the GTS is-steer around stuff, don't go over it.