Modern Vespa

Greetings.
Longtime motorcyclist, scooter nooblet.
Looking for some guidance.
This thing is stock.

I spend a LOT of time at or near whatever amounts to redline (the upper end of the tach if it had one lol) and I'm wondering am I going to kill this thing prematurely?

I'm the 3rd owner & it currently has 6k miles & climbing.

Are there any mods or other chemicals/additives I should be aware of to minimize the heat & stress I routinely subject oh-so-FUN machine to?
Other than going slow.
No.
No.

- Thanks a bunch.

Aw, come on, just admit it.

You stole it.

Now, go for a ride.

What model year is it?

Feel free to ride it any way you like.

Just keep up with the oil, belt and tire services.

Bill

I'm thinking that if riding below the redline is too slow for your tastes...you might want a larger scooter....so both of you are happier 🙃

O.S.

Just check the oil and coolant levels, and then as Madison Sully said, ride it like you stole it.

I have never heard of anyone breaking a standard GTS by thrashing it.

some numbers from my HPE

riding for a many hours on a mid-warm day at 100kph(gps) which is around 7250-7500rpm the bike is able to keep it's temp at 85-86C. these are normal temps for the bike (same temp when spending a long time at half the speed).

riding at 110-115kph(gps) which is 8000-8500rpm for just an hour and the coolant will be around 89-90. so not quite keeping in it's ideal temp range but not problematic.


PS, the limiters are 9000rpm and 130kph(speedo), whichever is reached first depends if you accelerating to that limit or cruising to that limit or uphill/downhill etc.

I thrash my 2010 GTS all the time. ~41,000+ miles on the clock, ridden at WOT whenever possible - jack-rabbit starts, the lot. I do not treat it gently in any way, shape or form.

It still seems very happy.

I just bought a 2009 GTS 250. I get it next week. This response made me happy.

Just make sure you allow her to get up to operating temperature before going WOT. After that, enjoy it like a madman

Get a Garmin or other GPS, and tell us what your moving average is over 500 miles. I'd be surprised if it was much above 45 mph. We tend to think that we are running WOT all the time, but that's usually not reality. Granted you might be doing a 30 mile commute with 28 of it on a highway, and truly are at WOT all the time.

Me too. My Lola (2010 gts 300, 51k miles) takes me at 110-115 kph, back and forth, a few times a week to a town 30 miles away. And occasional longer hauls, to access farther twisty launch points.

It seems Lola enjoys any tarmac she takes on. So While I'm happier on country roads (and am still a fair weather rider), I'm encouraged by the experience of others who really use these great bikes.

Three weeks ago I rode Vanessa, my 2007 Vespa GT back home to Jacksonville, Florida from Northwest Mississippi.

700 miles in one, 12 1/2 hour day.

The last 400 miles were at or near WOT on I-10 from Mobile, Alabama.

Vanessa and I both loved the ride.

Bill

Seems like your 250 GTS must be pushing 15 years old. It sounds like it is fairly durable.

Wow! That beats my record of 621 miles in one day. Took me 14 hours, but I was 23 and riding a Vespa GS150.

Prepare to be surprised. 😁
OP said it's a GTS250. Many of us 250 / 300 MVers have been clocked at 80mph and above. The last speeding ticket I got said 75.

But the average speed over a 400 mile journey will be very lucky to get above 45mph. I always reckon on 30 as an average when doing long journeys away from freeways, and 45 if using freeways or equivalent. Even on Cannonball, where much of the time is at WOT, just a 5 minute stop for gas and a pee will ratchet down that average very quickly - as Patrick says, it's not how fast you go, it's how much slow you don't go.

The only negative I had from spending extended time at WOT was on the SCBR 2021, where I had a grove worn in at the top of the variator.

Ummmm. Ok.
My read of the OP is "Will I do any damage by riding wot for an extended period of time?"
rdhood's comment refers to a moving average speed over 500 miles. I understood that to include time you're moving, idling at stop lights, etc. not pit stops.
🤷‍♀️

Yep. I've watched my moving averages for a long time... both scooter and car... and I rarely average over 45mph (usually under 40mph) even though I perceive going WOT all of the time.

Luckily a new variator costs less than $50 from Scooter Parts Co. these days.

The outer drive pulley only around $20.

Easy to change too.

If I only had been smarter in 2014….

Bill

SCBR 2021 Day 6 - I did change the belt and variator as a precaution. Checked it in the fall when I got scooter back from CA and all is well. Still running with it and still have the same tires on that I started with in ME. Weather here has finally turned consistently nice so been out for some rides. Want to see how much more I get on the rear tire.

Rides can have a faster average speed as long as the rider is willing to ride fast and only stop when needed and for as short a time as possible.

Below is a GPS reading in Valentine, Nebraska on the 2016 SCR.

Overall average for 303.9 miles, including stops, 67 mph.

There were two stops for fuel, one using my 2.5 gallon spare, the other at a gas station.

3 minutes per stop.

All on a 2007 Vespa GT 200L.

Arrived in Valentine early enough to have a late breakfast with cdwise..

Bill

My GTS is 10 years old and have only done routine maintenance. Now living in AZ I have taken it out for some very hot rides and no issues.

Bill - what app is that?

Barry,

It is not an app.

It is an old Garmin Nuvi 3490 with a RAM mount to the mirror stalk on Vanessa.

I have owned two and find them to be great until it starts raining.

It has been supplemented by buying a Garmin Zumo XT that has the same features while being designed for a motorcycle.

Bill