Modern Vespa

Hi all.

The steering column on my PX is getting quite wobbly and lose (mostly at the bottom it seems), and also tends to jump up and down when I brake. Makes a bit of a plastic rattling noise when I drive as well. When the scooter is on the stand, there is some give front to back and up and down... Weirdly, the headlight is now also slightly rubbing onto the top of the leg shield and, below, the mudguard also against the leg shield.

Clearly, the steering bearings must be changed. Yes?

I was going to do that in two or three week during a trip to my real Vespa vintage mechanic (he's three hours away). But in the meantime, I am going on a scooter rally this weekend (drive there + rally = 7 hours driving at least) and my local mechanic is telling me it is very risky to drive with this situation. Something about a ball bearing that could crack or jump and cause the steering column to jam!

See little video: https://streamable.com/g5evr

He can do it before the weekend, but the bottom line: parts and labor = EUR175... Yikes!

Questions for ya specialists out there:

1) is it indeed a big safety issue?
2) If so, should it be done before my trip this weekend or can it wait?
3) If it should be done, does 2 and ½ labor sound realistic to you?
4) Should I just try to tighten the steering nut! lol

Thanks everybody.

1) yes
2) yes
3) no. I think it might take closer to 3+ hours.
4) no. I'd replace the upper and lower bearings and races for sure.

WOW! Thanks so much for confirming. I'm definitely getting it done then.

Since the upper and lower bearing races should be replaced as well, it will take a fair amount of time to remove the front fork completely from the frame. That means that the hyro brake assembly needs to be disassembled. It's going to take extra time to rebleed the brake system when it comes time to reassemble. It sounds like a quick process, but it takes longer when you actually do it. And I'm not taking into consideration about those little "surprises" that pop up when the headset is removed...chafed or broken wires, kinked cables, blow fuse (because the battery wasn't disconnected before work was started)ect...