Modern Vespa

Hi all,

I have been in the market for my first Vespa for awhile now. I came across a 2015 Primavera in good condition with 4,500 miles for $3,000. The scooter has been dropped and has some paint damage to the rear and a minor scrape on the front legshield trim. The owner has kept up the maintenance and recently changed the spark plug, did an oil change and replaced the brake pads and tires. He also has both the master and spare key. I did not notice any rusting. Out here in South Florida, it has been extremely tough to find well maintained Vespas with minimal body damage.

It seems to me like this is a fair price and the buyer is not willing to negotiate down. I took it for a test drive and everything seemed very smooth, it had a consistent idle, and there was no hesitation under throttle.

Is there anything else I should be aware of? I would love hear other's thoughts.

Thank you all in advance.

Go for it!

Welcome to MV!

Let me second that sentiment.

Sounds good to me. Nothing else to worry about, at least that I can think of. 2015's still pretty new....

If you like it and can afford it, buy it!

Life is too short to wait any longer.

Bill

Not much to add, just to comment that I had a 2015 Sprint, virtually the same scoot as Prima. It was a solid bike.
I had the one same issue that some of the early ones, that the bike sometimes stalled at idle. I can't remember what they did at the Vespa service, but mine worked perfectly after they fixed that.

Is this the 50cc Primavera? If so you can probably get a new 2018 model for $3,799 (MSRP) - maybe a little less if the dealer is willing to negotiate to clear space for the 2019 models. A 3-year old Primavera with 4.5k on the odo for 3 grand seems high to me.

I had a 2015 Primavera (50cc). It had the idling problems the previous poster mentioned - had to do with the emission controls - took a while for the dealer to figure it out. It was also difficult to start in colder weather probably due to the same emissions problems. But overall I was happy with the scooter.

Sorry I should have been more specific. It is actually a 150cc.

Have you checked the going rate for one that doesn't need bodywork and then figured out what it will cost to make it worth that much?

Buy it, some leg-shield trim and a tub of car polish?

Can you post pictures of the damage? Doesn't take much damage to total a Vespa. If the frame is damaged in anyway, I would consider it a salvage title even if it's a clean title.

It's difficult for someone in a place like where you live to get a sense of how much it costs in the US to get minor bodywork on one of these fixed. It's the same with cars. A friend did (3 US body shop estimates) between $5500 and $7000 worth of front end damage to a year old VW cabriolet. I called the VW dealer in Tijuana and asked where they took their cars for bodywork. Drove it down to the shop they recommended. It was around $900, using VW factory parts. The paintwork was incredible.
Probably 95% of the Vespas that are totaled in the US would be on the road for another 25 years in most of the world.

It shouldn't need new brake pads at that low mileage.

Fair point. My 1000km service at Piagio dealer was $20. Incl. fluids

My point was more about fixing easy things and not worrying too much about the difficult things.
We haven't seen the panel damage but a little bit of patina is OK.

In Chile, I had a shop spend five hours getting the brakes right on my MZ Baghira, and get some brake pads made, as well as a general service, and it was less than $100. They had to take the calipers off and point the bleed screws completely upward to bleed the brakes, and get the new pads made. In the US, that buys you about an hour of service.

You can get a 2017 Vespa Sprint with 111 mikes in perfect shape advertised by a dealer in Daytona for $3295

Heck you can get a 2019 Sprint 150 for $3,699 https://www.cycletrader.com/listing/2019-Vespa-150-S-5005221103 though I suspect that one is a typo and should be a 50 not a 150

A 2012 LVX in Lakeland advertised for the same $3295

https://www.cycletrader.com/Used-Motorcycles/motorcycles-for-sale?type=Motorcycle%7C356953&make=Vespa%7C2321150&condition=U&seller_type=OD&zip=32804&radius=400&sort=featured%3Aasc&cmp=GoogleCTOLTypesUsed&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIh82biJPr3wIVER6tBh3ewQv8EAAYAiAAEgLc5_D_BwE

Is be more interested in the GT 200 advertised for $2099 https://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/mcy/d/miami-beach-vespa-gran-turismo-200cc/6780017477.html than a Prima Vera with body damage for $3k

So personally I think the price is too high but I'm not the one buying it.

I think the price is a bit high, but Miami prices are always a bit high. So my thought would be to look farther north into Broward or Palm Beach county. Also, stay with a 150cc model. 50cc will get you run over in Miami traffic.