Modern Vespa

Hi everyone!

I’m considering getting my first Vespa, the elettrica 70.

Does anyone have experience with it?

Specically:
How is the acceleration?
I read somewhere that it does 0-60kmh in about 20 secs. Seems slow.

Is it possible to tune it?
I don’t need much range, so would happily pay with a lower range.

I LOVE it. An amazing tool for getting around the city and enjoying it.

Happy to answer any questions.

Its acceleration is moderate. Plenty for driving around the city. But not a screaming throttle Plaid-mode Tesla.

It doesn't seem tunable. The software seems to be locked by the manufacturer.

That's where I am. I'm going to be buying a new Vespa in the next couple of weeks. Probably.

I'm looking hard at the Elettrica. In fact, I just sent an email to our local Vespa dealer asking about a test ride on both that and 300 GTS.

The thing is, though, I have two bikes. The Stella 150 which will cruise 55 nicely. That's for long rides. And then my Aprilia SportCity 50 for in town.

I'm definitely keeping the Stella. I really want the Elettrica, but I'm going through all of the "do I really need it?" emotions. Yes, I can afford it; that's not an issue. But my Aprilia will do 45. And gets close to 80mpg. And $7600 will buy a lot of gas. Just rough calculation, I can drive over 166K miles on that money. Probably further than that little 50 will ever go ( ).

The other issue is the Aprilia doesn't need tags and insurance. It costs me five bucks a year.

The GTS is actually cheaper. And either of the two will need tags and insurance. But if I buy the GTS I have two bikes that serve the same purpose.

So, here I am talking out loud hoping someone will make my decision for me.

When I purchased the Elettrica, I had no idea how much I would later value the convenience of charging it at home. I never go to the gas station. I hop on the scooter and go. It is the ultimate in convenience.

And the quiet is amazing. It is such a wonderful experience.

I bought a GTS HPE afterward, because I wanted long legs for driving in the hill country outside the city. It was a good decision, and I'm enjoying it.

But there's something special about the Elettrica. I know what I'm describing are intangible factors, and factors that are easy to poke holes in objectively. But the sum of the experience makes me conclude that, for in-city use, I couldn't have done better than the Elettrica.

I hope this input helps your decision.

I’ve owned a GTS125 super , a PX200 , and now an Elettrica 70 . Each scooter had its merits but the Elettrica is by far the best city commuter of the three . It is however not a highway machine and any longer journey would have to be planned around recharge stops . Saying that I’m visiting a local aviation museum tomorrow with a 31 mile round silent and non polluting journey !

A different observation or two. I have owned a Stella and a GTS. Based on my experience, they have very different capabilities.

About the Elettrica. I have been following the development of electric scooters for a while now. As you observe, the Elettrica hardly has the capabilities of your 50cc Aprilia. Seems like a bit more evolution of concept needs to occur.

It'll come of age when it can do a 100 mile trip at WOT on one charge, with a maximum 10 minute re-charge time.

The fast re-charge times are already here - already at least one cell chemistry can take a 100% charge in less than a minute.

It's the capacity vs size and weight that needs to be improved a bit still.

It depends on what you value. Zipping around town quietly, never having to stop at a gas station is a great capability, for my use. Others may prioritize highway speeds or longer range. When I want to go more than 45 miles -- which happens exactly zero times when I'm staying in the city -- I take the GTS. It depends on what you want.

I don't see any Vespa as the height of technical innovation. My view is they offer great design, aesthetics and experience. That's true of the Elettrica.

It is a city scooter. How often do people zipping around town need to go 100 miles without a break?

I wanna get the Electrica that comes with the surfboard rack!

From https://storeusa.vespa.com/vespa-elettrica.aspx

For those who have it as their only means of transport (outside of the US, most owners) there is always the necessity to get further afield on occasion.

What it is at the moment is a good start - but take up outside the centre of EU cities that have emission control zones is slim.

<sigh>

Yesterday I went to the Vespa dealer. Mainly to ask about the Elettrica. I was pretty sure that it’s the route I wanted to go, but I wanted to see it and touch it and ride it before I pulled the trigger.

The salesman had nothing but outright disdain for the bike. He said he’d never have one on the floor again unless someone wanted to order it because they took a loss on the sale of every one of them. They’d had a couple of 30mph models, but they cut the price on them $1500 just to get rid of them.

Needless to say, I was a little sorry to hear that. But it got me thinking.

I have the Stella for long cruises. I ordered a couple of parts last night. And I took the Aprilia for a ride this morning. Even at 50cc, I can cruise 40mph with a little left on the top end, hold speed up decent sized hills, it gives me at least a hundred mile range and refueling is less than two minutes. Plus it doesn’t have to have a tag, so it’s cheap.

The Elettrica would cost me a big chunk, I’d gain 5mph and I’d have to have a tag. I just can’t justify the cost. It would be wonderful to be on an electric, but Vespa just isn’t there. Yet.

The range and the top speed would be just fine for doing anything I do around town and I have a motorcycle for longer, faster rides. The cost of the thing, however, would make all the stuff I do around town unaffordable and I would then have nowhere to go, making the purchase pointless.

Vespa screwed its dealers. They released the faster Elettrica shortly after the dealers received their first shipments of the slower one.

I had the choice of taking a slower one from stock, or paying $100 more and waiting a few weeks for the faster one. Guess which way I went?

Nine months later, the dealer still has the slower ones in stock unsold. However, they can’t seem to keep the faster one in stock. It is in high demand.

Thanks so much for the answer!

A question: do you know if it’s technically possible to limit the top speed at the eco mode level? In other words: block/disablw power mode.

I’m asking because then I could drive ut without motorcycle license before I eventually get the license.