Modern Vespa

We had a garage fire at the end of January, most likely caused be a lithium battery belonging to a power tool. Four of my Vespas were damaged. One PX150 has gone to Vespa heaven due to insurance assessment. The other three are as follows:

- 1976 150 Super in original paint and in amazing pre-fire condition: front end paint damage, mainly to headset, front of legshields and mudguard. Anything plastic or rubber on the front has melted
- 2003 PX200, NOS, 2 miles on the clock from new, mint pre-fire condition: similar to Super, but looks much worse due to there being much more [molten] plastic bits on the front of a PX. Wiring loom is history.
- 1987 PX200E, freshly restored during 2021 lockdown and in mint pre-fire condition: this one was further away from the source of the fire, so some bubbling of paint on the front of the legshields and most frontal plastics distorted. Wiring loom behind horn cover 'may' be ok.

All three scoots are unaffected from rear of legshields and all the way back, with the exception of the seats. OK, there is a layer of soot that needs to be cleaned off, but the paintwork is otherwise saveable. There was no damage to engines and fuel tanks.

These three were deemed repairable and given UK 'Category N' status by the insurer. I was given the option to keep the salvage as part of the settlement, which I have opted to do. This means that I can put them back on the road, albeit with the stigma of being recorded as insurance write-offs. They have lost all of their provenance, but are fundamentally great scoots under all the soot, and I have emotional attachment to the '76 Super and the '87 PX. To me this has a positive side, alongside the many negatives. I can resto-mod them and have a bit of fun in the process

Photos and project plans to follow as we have other non-Vespa related things to deal with.

They should still be great scoots when fixed. Keep pictures of before with each scooter, take plenty. That way you can show next caretaker extent of damage.

Replacing tires, shocks, disc brake hoses etc isn't bad. Those wiring harnesses won't be as much fun.

That's a sickener SWA, but I'm sure you'll sort them all and enjoy the process.
Maybe my tatty and in need of (bodywork) TLC '83 PX150 (177)EFL might help you lose the Category 'N' status on one of them or replace the lost one? I've been thinking about passing it on for a while now, and you can have it very cheap – with a couple of spare 177/187 engines, and a complete disc front end too, if you want.
DM me if you're interested.

Hello Sime, I noticed that you were suddenly 'active' again after a break from MV, but it sounds like you may be exiting the scene altogether? Shame if true.

I'll certainly take this 'opportunity' to rationalise my Vespa ownership, so being down one scoot is not such a bad thing. The ones that I keep ('76 Super and '87 PX200E) will stay with me till I'm done on this planet, so the Cat N business won't be an issue for me. The 2003 PX200 is a different story altogether. I'm thinking the NOS 200 engine will be a nice upgrade for my Super, and the frame, panels and disc forks will end up as a custom or street racer project for someone else, maybe with a VR-One, Pinasco 251 or BFA based power plant. Once the molten plastic and scorched paint is stripped back, I'm 98% certain that it will be factory perfect bodywork ready for a trick respray.

"Edited Post"
I just edited my original post SWA.
When I consider what I wrote about experience with insurance compainies and shit, in hindsight its not really appropriate to what you want to hear at the moment…
Didnt mean to sound like an insensitive asshole…

As others have said the hours of work spent and the effort and planning can never be never be recovered…
There is also the memories and setimental side of it,
Anyway, I hope you can recover any special parts and get the Scoots back to there former glory….

No swa…. Sorry to hear about it…

Everyone's nightmare that is fire with vehicles…

But glad the scoots are with someone who cares…

Fack. That's horrible.
The recovery process in general is just a giant, prolonged PITA. Having some cherry scoots affected is even worse. Hang in there.

Does that mean you have to use the god damn Q reg plate to put them back on road?

No, they can keep their original reg numbers thankfully, but they will show up as Cat N on any DVLA search. The 150 Super has a pretty interesting 6 character suffix reg, which was an important part of it's valuation.

I'm so sorry you had to go through this ordeal. Sounds awful.

swa - hearing this just hurts. Traumatic event, to be sure. Hang in there!

Genuinely sad, what a thing to happen

Oh my, I do wish you the best. I never thought about the possibility of power tool batteries causing a fire. As a possible prevention for others was the suspected tool being charged?? What brand of tool/battery? Thank you.

SWA - horrific. Jeez.

Sounds like you managed to get it out before it did total destruction.
Ironic: the designation will only be on the title - which, many of us rarely look at. I suppose if you were planning to sell them it might have some meaning - but happy to hear that the insurance company is going to help them all be better than ever.

None were on charge at the time. I tend to charge on demand ie. when I'm half way through a job and the battery runs dry. This is probably why so many of my home projects take such a long time, or never get finished !!

As many have said Charlie, we're thankful that it was contained. No one was hurt and the house was not affected, other than the smell of smoke in a couple of rooms. The benefits of working from home and being able to react very quickly. We're also thankful for the asbestos boarding on the garage ceiling. It stopped the fire spreading to the house, but it's proven a PITA to get removed due to health and safety. It's only just being done now, six weeks later. It's very effective as a fire break, but once damaged, it suddenly becomes public enemy number one.

Sad new's indeed, and of course happy that no one was hurt; and you were there to jump quickly.Wishing you the best to make the best of a bad sitch

I had a fire in my shop a few years ago that I am certain was caused by a generic battery in a Makita charger. It was in March on the eve of a storm and power interruption may have triggered the charger to over-charge the battery. Fortunately, the shop was closed up tight and the fire burned intensely and then went out for lack of oxygen. I am still dealing with black soot on virtually everything. Even inside drawers and cabinets.

This is such a nightmare scenario, I don't even like to think about it.

And, sadly, even with insurance, you will never be made whole, financially or otherwise.

I'm just glad that it wasn't any worse than it was and know that you'll get it sorted out to the extent possible.

I can't even imagine the horrible scene, swa. Feeling heartsick for you. So sorry about your loss.

Those beautiful mint Vespas are fire SURVIVORS now! Good luck restoring them. Will follow along…..