Modern Vespa

What kind of tires do you guys have on your scooter? I have the stock ones, which I think have tubes. I noticed they look quite different than the ones I've had on my GTS. They seem to ride fine, but not quite sure what to make of them. I have seen pictures of other P/PX scooters and it seems there is quite variation with tires.

What tires do you have on and why?

Non-Stock


Non-Stock


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Stock

Len's ride is way super clean!

Yeah, for sure. Looks new!

First pic looks like Michelin S1's. The next two look like Continental Zippy 1's.

The last "stock" tires look like Continental Zippy 3's.

All are excellent tires. The Michelin S1 and Conti Zippy 1 are more sport type tires, though both good in the wet. The Conti Zippy 3's are more all weather tires. Not quite as good if you really like to lean hard into turns.

You have tubes in your tires. Your rims are split.

Andrea

It would be interesting to know what tires were on the scooters that were involved in rear tires slippage accidents. It seems to me that it is a common problem.

While it might be "interesting", Steve, I doubt we could find enough properly obtained technical information about the mishaps to know if the tires were a cause, a contributing factor or simply installed on the scoot.

First, manufacturers do recommend their various tires for specific usage and road conditions. That's a good starting point, but how a tire lives up to the manufacturer's claims requires carefully testing.

Consider this hypothetical: "Most low experience level PX riders that have tire traction related mishaps are riding PXs equipped with 'Boppalucci Rally 5' tires." One could conclude any of the following:

1. 'Boppalucci Rally 5' tires are not a good choice for low experience riders.
2. 'Boppalucci Rally 5' have traction problems
3. 'Boppalucci Rally 5' tires should only be used by experienced riders.

Thinking further, low experience level riders tend to have more mishaps, and the 'Boppalucci Rally 5' tire is the factory stock tire. Thus it would be hard to evaluate this tire solely on the basis of the information at hand, since few low experience level riders ride on any other tire than the tires installed at purchase.

Similarly, there's lot's of anecdotal comments available about the various tires and their qualities. But these are personal preferences, not technical facts empirically determined.

Yes, when it comes to "safety" issues, I am anal. That's due to my having served in safety and mishap investigation assignments during my flying career, and the purpose of Army mishap investigations is to identify causative factors what can be eliminated or controlled to reduce the probability of future mishaps. While every occurrence of an unsafe act does not result in a mishap, the vast majority of mishaps are caused by unsafe acts. Each of us must be the judge of what that means.

It would be great to have access to a testing lab's evaluation of various tires. Such controlled and disciplined data could be a boon to safety. But until that exists, anecdotal information is "gee whiz" at best, and misleading at worst. Thus, we should take it with two or three grains of salt.

Been off the safety soapbox for a while, so please forgive any "preachy-ness". When it comes to riding, I am not a wet blanket. I have taken risks, as have all of us. When it comes to making statements about safety, since it could influence the actions of others, I err totally on the side of sticking to verified safe practices.

Al

Well, personally, I have a feeling that my Zippy 1 contributed to my crash last weekend. My rear slipped on a wet streetcar rail. Of course, I can't say for sure that it wouldn't have happened had I mounted my Zippy 3, it could have made a difference considering the weather. The front ( a Zippy 3) stuck, but the rear slipped.

I will be swapping the Zippy 1 out for a 3 for the remainder of the rainy season.

choose tires dependent on the type of riding you do.

if you're a fair weather rider, and pound the twisties then a sport type tire is better for you.

if you ride in all weather and don't have a really aggressive style then a more classic allweather tread tire will be a better choice.

check out SIP's website for the latest in tires to fit your rig.

also, no matter the tire you wind up with be sure to always run good quality tubes.

best,
-greasy

Thank you all for your personal as well as professional opinions. The reason I ask is because the two P200e's I have bought over the summer have different tires. One with Continental Zippy 1's the other with michelins. As I get older I'm becomming more conservative in my driving habbits even though I'm new to scootering. In 1986 I bought a brand new Trans Am and drove the hell out of it. It came with Eagle GT's a very soft rubber witch worked well most of the time. I had few occasions of pushing the limmits. When those tires broke loose the car was completely out of control. I have been a proffessional driver/trainer most of my career and have taken a few courses at the CHP acadamy and no how to contrlol a car or busses in rear wheel skidding incidents. As winter approaches I still want to ride but I'm thinking of changing my zippy's to michelins. Anyways It was just a thought with the recent tradjedies that weve seen lately. Sorry if this went on too long its a quarter to two and I better get to bed now.

I've heard that the Contis are better than the Michelins, of course YMMV.

Not to get too far off the subject but I just installed the Guilari King/Queen seat on the black one and it rides so much different. Extremely comfortable. I'm 6'3" and I'm higher off the ground now.

+1

However, what I was getting at was that in a mishap there is a cause. Loss of tire traction is not a cause, it is the effect (result of a cause). A tire that looses traction in a turn while passing over an oil puddle will typically lose traction because of the oil, not the tire design, for example. Thus, my concern with using "loss of traction" testimonials to select the "best tire" is that most of us do not identify the true causes and or additional contributing factors, but tend to identify the effect.

Al

Yup, those are Zippy 1's on the P125, and I like the Zippys. I'm riding with Michelin S83's on my Rally 200 because the old school look goes better with the Rally, and the S83's are a good all around tire for riding around town, which is what I'm using the Rally for.

One other thing that affects handling is the age of the tire. When you buy a bike with old tires, even ones that have good tread left on them, it's amazing how much better the bike rides on some brand new tires. Having a classic scooter comes with it's own reward in the tire department: you won't be paying $140-$150 to have someone provide and mount a tire for you. Modern Vespas with their tubeless style rims require that you take the tire in somewhere to have it mounted, unless you have your own tire mounting equipment.

One other contributing factor to your scooter's handling is the suspension. When I first got that P125 the handling was poor in the curves, but upgraded suspension took care of that.

Ughhh,
No offense but this is how misinformation gets started.
First of all I am very sorry to hear you hit the pavement & hope you are allright.

I have pushed Zippy 1's & Michelin S1's much further than they should ever go & have never had issues. In wet & dry conditions.

The Pirell SL76's however I have had issues with them letting loose right at the edge of where the sidewall & tread meet.....(Completely dry & clean conditions...tires warmed up.)

I use Conti Zippy 1's with the best ALL ROUND results....Handling, mileage on three of my bikes....Michelin S1's on the other. (They wear much faster but stick well.)
Dying to try some Schwalbes & the Conti Twist race at some point.
If you ride even mildly aggressive....The Conti 3 sucks....the Michelin S83 sucks. Harder compound for more mileage but suffers in the "grip" category....


Anywhoo......
I am going to say that 99% of tires available would have slipped on a streetcar rail, wet street paint, etc.
You probably just got lucky the front didnt slip.



IF your Zippy was in good condition. (Check out the latest issue of "Scootering for a well put together article on scooter tires & determining condition, etc.)
I doubt it actually contributed to your accident.
There are certain conditions that no matter what tire you are running you are going to encounter slipping.

I have had my Avons on my street bike, completely warm just finished sticking when they shouldn't have?
Let loose on crosswalk paint....it happens.



Softer compounds stick: Michelin S1,Conti Twist, Twist Race,Zippy 1,some of the Schwalbe, Dunlop TT92 ,Bridgestone Hoops, Pirelli SL38 (ET4 fronts work on 10 inch),Bridgestone BT39SS.......


Harder compounds last: Michelin S83,Zippy 3,SC30 Pirellis,Conti K62's
Those crap Sava white walls....(fucking yuck)


I would choose a tire on my riding style, but I know some will choose for looks,etc.

zippy 3's on the px200e
zippy 1's on the gts

I heart Zippy1s but they can be a little slippery in the wet. I'm of the opinion that several years ago they used to last longer than they have in recent years. This may be pure bull, but its my suspicion that the rubber compound is a little softer, making for a better sporting tire that wears more easily.

My wife goes with the long-lasting, all-weather Michelin S83s.

I like the S83 on bikes that can carry a spare. it's not directional so you can rotate the tires spare>front>rear and get the most life out of the tires. They are predictable wet or dry and you run out of lean angle on most vintage bikes before you run out of grip.

Stepping up a notch, I like the Zippy 1 for both wet and dry conditions on my smallframe.

I like the Schwalbe RaceMan even more but only on dry roads. They are not horrible when it's wet but not as predictable as the Zippy 1.

good tubes with all is a must!!!!

I have to get new tires for my GTS this spring and from the recommendations here, decided on the Heidenau K61s.

Given their good performance, can Heidenaus be fitted on a P scoot? Anyone tried it?

You can look here and see where it says, "All tires were fitted to a regular, stock, Vespa 10 inch split rim."
Al

Thank you sir!

Here is a question then, sort out a couple of good tubes from the rest and tell me what makes them worthwhile?

I just bought a 02 px200 and it came with the Heidenau K61s I have not rode in the rain yet but the guy I bought them from said they held up pretty well. I normally ride Mich S1'S I really like them

An 02 PX200 in the US, very nice! Let us know your thoughts on the tire when you geta chance.