Modern Vespa

I must have been sleeping when this came out.

https://www.sip-scootershop.com/en/product/gearbox-kit-56-53-50-47-46-teeth-vmc-5-gear_40477000

https://www.facebook.com/377243309404809/posts/1330111774117953/

hot damn, that's some dough but relatively affordable in the grand scheme as far as these things go.

that being said, I can't see where having another gear on a smallie would really matter. with the amount of gearing options you can easily get virtually the same outcome and anything that can pull a crazy high top gear isn't going to suffer from gaps between each gear because it has the power to pull.

"but with a 5th cog I can have a higher top speed!"

yes, but do you want to ride your smallie at 80mph for ages?
(Mr. Owens, this does not pertain to you)

I probably would have sprung for that 5 speed if it was released a few years ago. Having a 5 speed isn't about having an "overdrive", it's about having pretty much the same final drive as a 4 speed, but having it as a close ratio. If you have ever rode a vintage scooter with an optimized close ratio transmission, it's pretty amazing. You can pretty much always be in the "meat" of the powerband and torque. That means that when accelerating up hills (or even on the flats) that you don't have to wait as long for the engine RPMs to wind up. I have a complete DRT close ratio transmission in my T5 racer. All that scooter does is accelerate (with no lagging), even up hills.

NOTE: I have a 5 speed in my Lammy, but I haven't test rode it yet. There are quite a few happy Lammy 5 speed owners up here in the PAC NW.

Guessing my 177 could have benefited from this, on flat ground I wanted another gear. Up hill I wanted more then 3rd but less than 4th. Maybe they'll come out with an affordable setup for a P200.

I got to see a 5 speed set in front of me, many years ago the local genuine scooter dealer was doing a set of a customer on a vintage vespa, back then it was in the mid to $400s. The mechanic said that the cross section of the gears was compromise meaning that when you fit more gears on the same space you have to make the cross-section thiner for the lack of space.

At the end of the day, if properly engineered/design I think that you can get a taller ratio for causing and a much more usable power band as describe by the gentleman above. It is nice to have but you can survive without it.

There was a 5 speed pre-EFL gearbox made by Meceur many years ago, but it was total crap...

To be fair, MecEur does not make anything. So who knows who actually made it, but junk none-the-less.

fair assessment.

however, nothing could be as bad as those FA Italia crosses from some years back!

to me that was a sticking point. so I have a high performance motor with thinner gears. granted this could be overcome with nitriding or coating or hardening or whatever but then it's onto a whole other can of worms where you decide strong and brittle or soft and flexible and where do you insert the sacrificial piece?

I always thought a nice mellow build with a 5spd would be kinda cool. P2 with some O-tuning on the barrel, GS piston, long rod crank, either a modified SI carb or something mellow like a 24~26 side draft, touring flywheel (like something in the 1800 range) and a box style exhaust would make a really nice touring machine. not enough power to really break anything and not revvy enough to tear itself apart.

A friend had one of those 5 speed transmissions in his Polini powered P208 back around 2004. I think it only lasted him about 100-200 miles before it was toast.

I don't every expect a strong 5 speed will ever be manufactured for a largeframe. I personally think that BFA should have jumped on the opportunity to build their case to except a full width 5 speed transmission, but that didn't happen. The shift cross should also have 6 legs and not 4!

my thoughts exactly. they manufactured a case that basically takes all their proprietary components, why not go whole hog and adapt a SF/Lammy style gearbox?

I mean, if I'm spending doubloons like it's going out of style I want something truly off the charts.

but same boat on any experience with 5spd stuff back when. shit just broke.

got my small frame up to 82 on a down hill. was stable as can be, no issues.

must plug these tooth counts into my spreadsheet and see what comes up... hope it's filling the 3-4 gap

I explicitly said you were excused from this exercise!

I've been up into the 80's as well on the PK and while it felt solid, it's not something I'd be wanting to do for any extended length of time.

but I'd be interested to see what the spreadsheet spits back out. the ability to lose an element from gaining a gear is tempting...

VMC 3rd = stock 3rd
VMC 5th = stock 4th

you will not get any more top speed out of this alone, but having another gear right between the stock 3rd/4th is really nice.