Modern Vespa

Pics of the dragon

First Impressions from EICMA 2023 (Post 2659717)

Any changes apart from paint?

Looks like just graphics/paint.
https://www.vespatorontowest.com/vespa-2024-11th-anniversario-946-dragon.html

Thanks for sharing Lou.

Yes. A matching 'Varsity' jacket.

Yes. It makes the awful Cristian Dior look better…

In Italy, it's very popular to wear the colour beige - but will be curious how well it sells worldwide.

I'm not so keen on the animal years though. I much preferred when they teamed up with other companies - Armani, Product Red etc.

For example, they could have made an amazing Disney edition, rather than the Mickey Mouse Primavera.

Would any of us spend 946-money on a Disney edition?

I have a feeling piaggio knows exactly what they're doing and exactly who they're selling too, it just isn't to me. They're probably thinking of people from a place where horoscopes / astrology are a popular part of the every day culture.

I like many things about this; the adventuresome creativity, the whimsy, including last years "Rabbit", the nod toward Asian culture from a European manufacturer, and the matte avologente paint.

Moreover, nothing else looks like it, and no other brand is quite so bold

....but I'm really so perplexed by the choice of 155cc engine/frame vs 300cc

Jacket is 1300€

What they're smoking must be good…

Why?

The 946 is/was based on the Smallframe Chassis (like PV/Sprint) which means that a watercooled Largeframe engine does not fit into the the 946.

Yes, I understand that. It's more a question about the value proposition; $12,500 and only 11 hp....?

I think air cooled is more traditional, and closer to Vespa's roots. It's not about creating a high speed machine, it's about city cruising in style.

The price point is high, but then these are completely handbuilt. They're a very niche product, but that keeps them exclusive and rather special.

Mitleider & JakeM: it's not about driving/crusing -> it's about collecting/having.

And the 946 is 30% heavier. That same power has to move roughly 346 lbs lbs of 946 versus just 265 lbs of Primavera. Slower acceleration, greater braking distance, etc.

In Canada, out the door, you buy 2.5 Primaveras, or 1.95 GTS300s, for one 946.

I don't think anyone buying a 946 is worried about performance or value proposition. That's not what this little weirdo is about.

But... if I see an Armani 946 in good condition second hand one day... That thing was beautiful.

Considering its heritage (MP6, Vespa 98), design and name (1946) it's more of a wideframe and not a smallframe since smallframes were introduced in the 60s…

But technically it's a Smallframe.

Technically, all new Vespas are scooters

While the Dragon looks cool, I do not like the numbers on the right side and do not like the colours used. Maybe green with another colour but the beige is blah. From the teasers I was hoping it was a 2 tone matte or satin black finish. Now that would have been boss.

I always thought the 946 looked like a PEZ dispenser. Push down on the seat and a mint pops out.

GOLD

I think it looks like a parakeet.

I guess a lot of us are looking at it from a more pragmatic viewpoint.

Kind of like my wife's friend who frequently buys $1K purses. You'd think they'd hold a lot more for the price.....

It's the right size to sell well in Asia.

$4000 sticker.

Matte Cashmere Beige. It's a '90s Toyota Camry color without the clearcoat.

In any case, I liked the bunny from last year better

Fool's gold.

That's about 11 more horsepower than a Rolex watch.

Can I still get a normal garden variety 946?

Except one appreciates, and the other one has a cartoon dragon sticker on it.

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For an additional $2000, they'll remove the sticker at the factory.

I am with the "beige is blah" group. White or Red would have looked better. I think someone posted that beige is big in Italian clothing design lately.

Bob Copeland

But it is GOLD 🤷🤣

right "Gold" This would have looked amazing in a 2 tone black green Matte with the dragon on it

You keep using that word, I do not think it means what you think it means.

Inconceivable!

Where's the dragon character from? I'm out of touch with pop culture.. is it from a movie ?