Modern Vespa

My tilt lock was stuck, its alarm beeping all the time, and the scooter won't ride because the throttle doesn't release.
Eventually, my mechanic directed me over the phone how to resolve this.
There's a small electric motor above the right front wheel. This motor is a part of the tilt-lock mechanism. It has a small black rubber cap that you need to remove, revealing a little valve you can turn with a slim flat-head screwdriver.
Just turn that valve a little to the left and to the right, turn the scooter off and on again, and try to release the tilt-lock again (you can put the scooter on the rear stand so that it doesn't fall when the tilt-lock releases).
If it doesn't release with your weight on the seat, try tapping the release button twice fast.
This worked for me just now, and now it's working fine.


1. Front view

2. Closer look

3. Black rubber cap

4. Valve (you can see the little place for the screwdriver to turn it)

Fixed my issue amazing outcome , advice.


Did exactly as the post said. It freed the wiper motor and hydraulic pump

Most appreciated

Was a throw the bike away mode as not economical to fix.

I had a continuous beep in which I was unable to disengage the tilt-lock with the switch on the handlebars. This solution worked to resolve the issue. I am now able to disengage the tilt lock (and never plan to engage it again!).

Thanks!

yeah i tried it too. Damn screw was frozen. In fact i think i stripped the head a little. Tilt lock is still stuck on.

update: screw is still frozen. But i found the real problem. The cable-actuated, tilt locking caliper is operated via a arm which has a return spring that pulls it to the off position when not engaged, and the arm in turn actuates a micro-switch that tells the computer when the caliper is off. I found a spring that was put there by the previous owner, was clearly not stock, and didn't work. The caliper arm was not retracting all the way. Problem solved.

Last edited by mikewax on Sat, 17 Dec 2022 00:18:31 +0000; edited 1 time

I am happy to know that this resolved yours problem however it is important to understand what you are doing by turning this screw.

actually this screw is for adjusting the 12 degree, 12 degree is the most important calibration for tilt-lock system because this is the base calibration for this system, by this adjustment the system know the point of starting and stopping the motor.

the right way to adjust this screw is to mount one leg of the voltmeter at the middle leg of the motor potentiometer of tilt motor, and the second leg at the ground, than you need to get 1V and 4V between locking and unlocking position.

when the system is not aliment two bad think can be happened in long term:
1. the motor of tilt system will work Harder as result of trying to poll the cable longer., mean high consumption and wear for the motor...
2. the master cylinder of the hydraulic system will be at higher pressure mean higher wear for the hole hydraulic tilt system.

I think it is better to check those steps before:
1. check your battery
2. at lock position, check the micro switch of the roiling system working well.
3. try to connect external 12V directly to roiling motor (two direction) enefort to validate the healthy of the motor
4. check 1 & 4 volt.

well here's another version of the infamous Tilt Lock problem. Or i should say another solution.
After i fixed a fault in the micro switch, the one that tells the ECU when the tilt lock caliper is disengaged, the bike was running fine, UNTIL i hit the button to turn the Tilt Lock ON, which it dutifully did, but now, no matter what i do, the damn thing will not UNlock. Turn the key to ON and the horn starts blaring, BEEP.....BEEP.....BEEP louder than a fire alarm. I hit the Tilt Lock Off button and the BEEPing stops, but the TL motor doesn't budge, it's still depressing the hydraulic piston, suspension remains locked, TL indicator (yellow light) stays on, TL warning (red light) stays on, and the engine is rev-locked. I try absolutely everything they say to do, no luck.
So i finally shut the engine off and unplug the TL motor from it's connector. It has two wires comin out, green and red. Jump one of them to ground and, with the engine running, jump the other to a 5 amp fuse which instantly blows. Jump to a 10A fuse, instantly blows. I measure the resistance of the motor, 0.4 ohms between the two leads. OK that's why they blew. Didn't have a 30A fuse so i said screw it and jumped the lead right to the positive battery. Real quick, just a touch, nuthin happens. Try again, nuthin.
I reverse the polarity of the jumper wires and try again. VOILA, the TL motor reverses and retracts the hydraulic piston, releasing the tilt lock. Idiot lights go off. Easy Peazy.
I plug the TL motor back into it's regular connector, open the right handlebar button housing and unplug the Tilt Lock switch.
Now i have a bike again.

PS. sorry no i did NOT notice which polarity made the motor retract. And i suppose if i really wanted to use the TL again, i could wire up a permanent button to unlock it whenever necessary. Easier than screwin around with this shit.

this is why I wrote this
"3. try to connect external 12V directly to roiling motor (two direction) enefort to validate the healthy of the motor"

before changing calibration adjustment