Modern Vespa

I just bought this scooter, and haven't even picked it up yet. I ride a Vespa 250gts and was looking for something for my wife to ride with me. She was riding a Honda Elite 80, but it was just too slow, and the 10" tires and drum brakes made me worry about her safety. The larger wheels, disk brakes, and bigger motor were all the things I was looking for. The lighter 150 seemed to be the way to go.

I was also looking at Buddy 150s and Kymco People 150s.

Opinions wanted, if you have them.

It has 900 original miles, and is a 2003 model. It also has a windshield, not currently mounted.

nice !
my brother rides a Lt150

how much did you pay for it ?

I have one in BRG in the stable. The only thing i don't like about him is the fact on windy days i get knocked around quite a bit. Lighter scooter. It doesn't have any "issues" either. Like my LX does. Still has the original battery and evap hose. I think you'll like him. No storage but you have a top case. Enjoy

$1500

It was a no brainer, and I was surprised nobody else beat me to it.

That's good to know. She needs a lighter bike than my GTS, but a more capable bike than the Elite. Riding the Elite 80 we get tossed around pretty good, and the small tires do nothing to help. I'm really hoping the larger diameter rims do the trick.

Riding my 250gts is as stable as can be until I get out on Hwy 95. I try to avoid that as much as possible. Riding 10 miles at 80 mph on a Vespa is a friggin lifetime.

Good scooter at a good price. I would have paid that for one to use as a daily rider.

Wow.... I just picked it up, and this thing is really fun. It feels much smaller than my GTS, and has plenty of power. Much better than I expected. My wife road it, and after 1 block said she "loved it". It's really the perfect size for her. A long first ride ensued.

The color is a nice deep blue with some metallic in it too.

Lows:

I popped open the seat to see how much storage was under there, and saw the engine and battery where I usually keep all my stuff in my GTS. I have a removable JC Whitney gigantic trunk that I can mount on the back in place of the lunch box that is on there now, so no big deal.

This seat is as hard as Chinese Calculus. A gel seat pad or a softer alternative is in order, if I can find something tha fits. Any ideas?

It only came with the red master key, so I have to find a spare.

Get Jimh on here to copy one for ya. Yeah the no storage sucks. I have to be careful when i go from the LX to the LT. The LT has so much power and is lighter i can actually do a wheelie Just be careful in high winds it's not so good. Enjoy

Is the LT engine the same as the LX or the ET4?

I thought it was...

We have a Honda Aero 125 2 stroke that is way too fast for the frame size and tires and brakes. This LT150 feels as quick, but in a different sort of way. The 2 stroke is quicker off the line, but the LT seems to be great from 10-50 mph, and she was easily keeping up with me on my GTS at a brisk pace. The GTS is faster, for sure, but not as tossable as the LT, which makes you feel like you are going faster than you are.

It's just fun.

Who is Jim, btw?

1500 is a good price.
i have an et4 & the lt150.
i prefer the et4 much more.
it is almost like piaggo made the lt unfavorable compared to the vespa. the gas tank only holds 1.5 gall when the vespa is 2.5.
the glove compartment door opening doorstops always pops out of place.
i prefer the vespa grocery hook. the pigest is no stoage space @ all except the glove box.
the thing about the lx better is the tires are larger so i find i have less problems w/ruts in the road & taking a turn in the road feels much more shurer(sp?)
for the price all of the above doesn't mater it was a good idea to get it.
have fun

JimH at allmotorcyclekeys.com He had a banner here but it's not coming up. Stand up guy from maine. Shoot him an email or put need key after your LT 150 topic post.

nice LT, I love my 'Gina' will never get rid of it till the world gets rid of me

Great deal, I'm sure your wife will be very happy with it. I have an LT150 and love it! The only problem I've had is the fuel line cracked and started leaking and had to be replaced. It was easy to do (there are instructions on the Yahoo! PiaggioLT group). It's a common problem, I was warned when I got the scoot and sure enough... happened in the middle of MSF!

The Yahoo! group is not very active but searches turn up some good info. There is also a PiaggioRiders group.

Enjoy!

I've had my LT 150 for nearly four years and love it. Certainly agree with the comments about riding in strong wind and would definitely get a heavier machine next time around. I too had to replace the gas line.

I put 120 miles on the bike today, and half of that was in a driving rainstorm with wind. I am very impressed with the stability if this scooter. It never once felt squirelly, and absolutely no hydroplaning at all with the skinny tires.

The leg room is a problem for me, but I folded out the passenger pegs and they made it feel much more comfortable, and I begn to ride it more like a motorcycle than a scooter.

Very good brakes and suspension,with small motorcycle-like handling. Good top speed of around 68 mph. Very high fun factor.

Weak spots are a hard seat, small gas tank of 1.5 gallons limits range, and little leg room to stretch out.

This thing really makes me want a BV500 or something similar.

Liberty seems to be solid like a rock...postal services from all over Europe use this scooter (50cc and 125cc) for mail distribution.

These people here http://2globereporters.free.fr/NEW_site/Projet/liberty125.htm even made a tour across half the planet on Liberties...

Wow, that really makes my 120 mile jaunt yesterday seem pretty tame.
Thanks for the link. I just watched "The Long Way Round" last night, and kept wondering why they chose huge BMW 1200s when a smaller bike would have done nicely. I didn't think a bike quite this small could handle it, but that's really cool.

I wondered what an LT was... it's called the Liberty over here. I think it looks very cool.