Modern Vespa

Has anyone ordered from SIP and had items shipped to a stateside address? Does the order get held at customs? What has your experience been?

Thanks,
Bob

I've done a couple. No hold ups....actually think I should have last-week's order on my steps today or tomorrow. If the shipping costs aren't a problem for you, go for it. And while I'm at it, if you're not a member of Vespa Club of America, you're missing a 10% discount.

I am a VCOA member... how do I get the discount. Don't remember seeing that during the checkout process.

Hmm.... not sure. I do remember that somewhere on the SIP site it did confirm my status.

BTW, the best way of all is to pick up your order directly. Landsberg am Lech is a pretty cool town (besides it's former association with the Hitlerjugend etc. ).

Saves a ton on shipping costs.

Regrettably I left Germany in 2004.

I have done a few orders and is really quick without problems. About the discount SIP sent an email with a new customer number and password.

I have ordered from them 5 or 6 times. I live in Utah. Orders are here in 3-5 days.

It's no problem unless you order bearings, for some reason ball bearings can cause issues at US customs

So are you saying the US doesn't have the balls.....for ball bearings?

I ordered a "Euro-spec" tinted Vespa Flyscreen and Cuppini crashbars from SIP last year; no issues.

I've also placed several orders from them without any shipping issues.

I ordered something from SIP a day before the SIP VCOA discounts were announced. They still gave me the discount anyways after I pointed that out to them.

easyparts.nl, which is also in Europe, is one of the sites that I order from or at least check prices of items, especially large items. Parts tend to cost less but more a little more to ship, usually resulting in an overall lower price.

The US is strict on imported bearings and will sometimes check out an order if you have a bunch (like for an engine rebuild). Never had a problem with SIP.

I've had nothing but good experiences with S.I.P. They have an excellent customer service department and are very responsive. Most of my orders arrive a day or two earlier than promised.

SIP shipping is pricier but they are good at what they do and it arrives way faster than you expect.

I've actually found lower prices with a lot of their stuff. A good example: I bought a Polini 9 roller Variator from S.I.P. for $157 including FedEx. The Scooterwest price was $250 plus shipping. I've seen similar attractive prices on other items.

it helps to double check prices with other euro scooter firms:

belt at SIP $98
https://www.sip-scootershop.com/en/main/base/Details.aspx?ProductNumber=M6116069

belt at Scooter center 67 euro:
http://www.scooter-center.com/en/product/M6116069/V+Belt+MALOSSI+Kevlar+955x226mm+Piaggio+250+300+cc+Quasar+long+casing+replaces+M6112855+Beverly250300+Carnaby250+Carnaby+Cruiser+300+Derbi+Rambla+250300+Aprilia+Sport+City+Cube+250300+Scarabeo+250300?meta=M6116069*scd_ALL_en*s3014858106320*bv350%20belt*1*1*1*16

etc. YMMV.. now if someone can find me a BV350 belt that doesn't cost US$100 to my door FML...

Well i ordered a windshield on jan 9 and it still in shipping, says going to customs for their last 3 days, Now there going to send it in the mail super slow.

I have gotten packages from amazon from italy in like 3 days.

Is this normal to take this long?
So if you like you packages in a week or so don't order from them?

It depends on what shipping company you use. I stick with UPS now and haven't had any issues yet. I get my stuff within a week every time and I'm in California. It's worth the extra cost to me.

Most have been okay. One order a mirror was "lost" (stolen? fell out? who knows) because the box wasn't properly sealed up. SIP swore it was on DHL and I had to talk to them. DHL refused to talk to me because I wasn't their customer, SIP was. When I told SIP that they said "oh yeah, that's true we're their customer not you." then that was all I ever heard.

Just typical German-ness of "this is what's written down in front of me so this is obviously the only resolution that could possibly exist" with a complete inability to do any sort of critical thinking and address real issues rather than the checklist.

Overall, ordering is easy and shipping is usually pretty quick (though it's advisable to have a larger order of at least 100-150 USD because shipping isn't cheap, so for one or two small things it's not worth the expense). It's generally been a very good experience unless/until you need post-sale support, especially if there's a shipping cock-up. That's where they falter. Riesig.

I ordered a Tucano Urbano Termoscud from SIP-Scootershop on December 10th. They shipped it via FedEx on December 12th.

The package was delivered to me in Central Pennsylvania on December 23rd. That seemed good to me considering the holiday rush of shipping.

Did you choose the cheapest shipping option? DHL? Once it clears customs it switches to USPS. It can take up to 30 days.

I've learned my lesson with SIP and now only use UPS

thks i did not know that

I have ordered once from SIP a replacement Speedo for a 2007 GTS250. Have had problems with it and despite repeated emails to them about it, I have had no response and it has been 6 months since the original purchase.
I have given up and will never order from SIP again

I ordered some parts from SIP and a few other places a week ago Sunday. Here are the results so far 1 week later:

SIP - Expectation 4 Business days, shipped Monday FedEx economy, still somewhere (Tracking doesn't give details).

Scooterpartsco - Expectation (From USPS tracking info) delivery last Friday, shipped previous Monday, no update from USPS tracking other than the switch from "expected Friday" to "In transit to next facility, arriving late."

Amazon - Expectation next day, arrived next day by Amazon truck.

Cycle Gear store to store - Expectation next day, arrived 2 days later.

All of them shipped the next day so the vendors did their part. It's a bit disappointing that FedEx and USPS don't provide any detail of where your package actually is but then again I am not sure what difference it makes. I suspect they will show up unexpectedly.

I get package location from both FedEx and USPS via their apps - you have to register. Sometimes it's just "in transit" between sites, but new info appears once it's been scanned in again.

My order came today so I can say for a sample size of 1, SIP takes 7-8 days depending on when you start the clock. Matte black oil pan looks great.

I strongly agree with this. I bought a topcase from SIP and the rack they recommended to go with it. The rack was wrong, and they just kept telling me I should have ordered the rack they recommended, which I had. We went back and forth (with their replies being very slow) for about six weeks. I never got a satisfactory resolution. I will not order from them again.