Modern Vespa

I was just reading reviews of others and see one with a 6'4 rider thought it was going to be too tall for anyone shorter.

In my experience, probably. My wife is 5'4" and my GT is definitely too big for her. I'm 5'8", and it fits me reasonably well, although not perfectly.

I'm about 5'8, and I got a corbin saddle that was shaved 1". I can put both feet flat on the ground when I stop on my GT.

Len

Probably..

It's more the width that'll be the problemm.. LX may be a better bet...

i was thinking that it is a bit heavy as well. takes much more effort for a shorter rider to handle 300lbs of weight. stopping, parking, pushing off the stand...etc.

it would be expensive to drop the bike...repaint for scratches and/or minor dings.

I'm also 5'4" and am very comfortable on my GT. I can touch the ground flat-footed and don't think it is too tall at all. Then again my previous scooter was a Scarabeo 150 and that was even taller, so the GT feels small compared to that.

Karen

oooh, you must have nice long legs.

if you ever need a ride buddy...nevermind. i might be too distracted.

Interesting. Would that be both feet flat on the ground, or just one with a bit of a lean?

I can't get both feet flat at the same time, but am pretty stable nonetheless. I can get one foot flat with a bit of a lean.

thats what i was thinking jess...i'm 5'9" and "just" comfortably hit both feet on a standard seat.

otherwise, i think zz top said it best...cue music..."she's got legs..."

My fiance is 5'5 and rides her GT everyday. No Problems.

Go sit on one, on and off the stand.

-larry

I ride a lt150 and have to tip toe at a stop. I use my left foot and lean to stop. It seems to be ok. I was hoping the GT seat is just a bit shorter than the lt150. If so than it might be fine for me. I am short legged.

My Fiancee likes her GT better than my ET, as far as seating goes, because the way the GT seat is set up, you are not actually straddling the widest part of the frame. You are actually a bit ahead of it.

Try one out...you'll like it.

-larry

I am 6'2" and find my GT perfect, however my wife is much smaller and finds problem with it's width.

It must come down to the length of your legs, not Height. I'm 5'7" and I'm on my toes at a stop. I've ridden vintage scoots for years and the weight of the GT took a little getting used to. Go look at one, take it off the stand, sit on it and see what you think. It will either work for you or not.

Both feet flat. I don't have long legs or anything - just average like a 30-32" pants inseam (depends on the pants).

Karen

One more thing - men and women of the same height usually have a different proportion of torso/leg length. Women typically have longer legs than men of the same height, so even though I'm only 5'4" I might have leg length equal to a guy who's taller than me.

Karen

god bless women. we love you girls...and your legs.

Interesting. I learn something new every day. Also, you're 4 inches shorter than me and your legs are approximately 1-2 inches longer than mine. Which comes as no surprise to me, really, since I have short legs, but still.

My wife (who as I said is 5'4") is adamant that she cannot ride my GT because she has to lean too much to get her foot to the ground. Alas, she too is cursed with short legs.

I'm 5'4", short inseam, and made the low-profile sport seat the first mod for my ET4-- Lost the front hook and the buddy strap, but so be it. It permits me to flat foot pretty comfortably [esp. w my Sidi boots on ] The stock seat felt uncomfortably tall---

karen what is your exact inseam? 30-32 is a huge 2 inch difference. i just want to plug it into a biometrics software to see where you fall on the leg/torso ratio height curve.

My wife is an inch taller than you and my GT is way too tall for her. Inseam is the big factor here. Some 5'4" folks with long legs might be able to handle the GT (I see that's the case above), but the GT isn't just tall, it's "broad in the beam," too., unlike, say, the Scarabeos which are just tall. If you're interested in a "heads up" comparison between most of the scooters in that displacement range, try my Scooter Comparison spreadsheet, here. I've listed seat height for most of those scooters. Seat height doesn't tell the whole story, of course, but it's a good starting point.

I might have to get custom boots to get some leg length in order to ride my new bike. Bummer!

Does anyone know if you might be able to cut the seat down?

yes, you can have a Corbin seat made, or you can cut the seat down.

I am 5'6" and most of the time I think that it is just fine. reaching the ground with my feet is just fine. sometimes though, when I am tired and parked on a slope it is a challange to get the scoot of the stand. I usally write it off as needing to eat my wheaties.

Just checked and it's a little over 32" if measured to my instep in bare feet. It's hard to measure yourself.

And yes, the seat is very broad - if I sit way back, I'm not going to flat-foot this bike, but I ccan still touch the ground. In a normal sitting position the bike is fine for me.

Karen

I am about 5'5" and I have no problem with my GT. I find my seating position makes the difference. When I am in stop and go traffic or facing a series of 4-way stops, I sit forward on the seat and can comfortably get both feet on the ground.

When I sit farther back for long stretches, I can still get the balls of my feet down at a stop. The machine is so beautifully balanced that I don't need more than that.

Of course, it took me a few weeks of riding to really trust the balance and not worry about tipping off.

If you are concerned about the height - don't sit on it when it's on the centre stand. Have someone you trust hold the scooter up by standing in front of it straddling the front wheel -even somone at the back as well - and then start trying out different seating positions.

I'm another 5ft 6" girlie, with no problems with either putting my feet down with my GTS, or putting my leg over (Oh err missus!! )

It's definitely inside leg that counts, not overall height.


"On average" women have a longer leg length than men if they're the same height, but even that's not a guaranteed rule.

I've known shorter women with longer legs and taller women with shorter. There's no hard and fast rule. you have to try it and see if it suits.