Modern Vespa

Does anyone know if a side mounted kickstand is available anywhere for the US version of the GTS 250? I'm told by my local dealer that the side mount kickstand is only available on European Vespas and is not available in the US, and I don't understand why. His explanation is that the frame on the US Vespas is different from the European version. I think that I'd much prefer to have a side mounted kickstand instead of the stock center kickstand. Probably some US requirement due to some silly lawsuit or something like that. Thanks.

Sidestands are available. Contact Motorsport Scooters, a forum sponsor. The story is that they are not "safe", so the DOT required them not to be installed on U.S. bikes. Be forewarned if you do get one, its position, (as compared to motorcycles) are far forward on the bike, not under the center, fore to aft. You have to use your heal and push out and away from you to deploy it, and then keep your foot pressed on it until the weight of the bike stops it from snapping back.

You'd be wise to only use it for temporary situations, on level surfaces, and hard ground. Otherwise, you WILL have to pick up your bike someday after it has fallen over. The center stand is much more stable.

We have a side stand on our GTS. Unless you like the idea of your scoot laying on it's side, I recommend saving your money. It is a bad idea. It is very unstable.

Agreed (bold)...I have one installed on my GT200. As recommended by volosong...make sure you have weight on the side stand before you dismount. My procedure is: heel to toe extension, hold heel against ground while I turn the wheels left, then I dismount and grab the left handle bar and passenger grab bar, turn wheel straight, level scoot and the side stand will pop up, put foot on center stand peg then rock and "feel" to make sure both feet are in contact with ground, push down and pop up on center stand.

I use my side stand all the time. My backyard patio has an uneven cement and is small area to park, so it's easier to have it on the side stand all the time at home. It hasn't fallen, and I haven't dropped it in a year. knock on wood.

I also use for it short shopping trips, coffee shop, farmer's market, etc. However, we don't have asphalt that melts here in the bay area, but we do have hills, so when at work, or parked for long periods of time, I use center stand.

I bought my sidestand from Motorsports, and I love it. I use it daily and Im glad I bought it.

You gotta use a little common sense when using it, and after you learn how to deploy it its a snap. I havent ever had the problem of pant legs catching, but then I dont wear bell bottoms. paint it to match the color of your scoot, I painted mine silver to match my scoot.

I think your dealers wrong about the frames being diff.

Good luck

Manny

PS not too difficult to install either.

I put a side stand on my LX 150 and I never use it where someone might bump the scooter. It pops up way too easy.

About the only place I use it is in my garage or for a very short stop. I use it in the garage because the floor is so slick the center stand just slides when I try to get the scooter off of it.

If you install your sidestand with only one of the springs, it will be less inclined to retract unexpectedly.

I've owned motorcycles since the mid 70's that have had this type of stand and have used them frequently with no problems. A little common sense and awareness will go a long way when using the sidestand. Presently, we have them on a GTS and a GTV and in fact, we leave them parked in the garage on the sidestands when we're not riding. If we park somewhere for more than a couple of minutes away from home, we always use the center-stand because the scooter can be pushed over easily when it's on the sidestand. Just be very aware of where and when you use the sidestand and I think you'll find it to be a great accessory for your scooter.

It's always fun when its on the side stand and a dumb ass friend doesn't realize its a CVT... decides to give it the old rev-a-roo.

It is kinda nice on really long rides, lots of gas fill ups, with gear... to not have to pop it up on the center stand every 80 miles.

I've also used mine in traffic jams, or slight up hills when sitting for awhile, holds you in place well. =)

DOT law requires the side stand on an automatic to have a kill switch integrated so that the the side stand kills the motor when it's put down. When faced with the decision to re-wire the bikes or just remove the sidestand for US-market, they understandably chose to just remove the sidestand.

I'll try taking one off. Right now it really snaps up !

I was on a ride a couple of weeks ago following a vintage Vespa when I saw something come off his scoot and go bouncing across the road. He pulled off and I told him about it. He said he heard something come loose but everything was still working. I told him what it looked like and he said "Oh that's the spring holding the center stand up No big deal" He put a bungee cord on it and away we went.

Putting down the center stand on smooth concrete is not a problem...but getting off of of the center stand can be challenging (in seated position).

My brother (who is well versed in this stuff) told me to put my right foot on the ground in front of the center stand and then to roll it forward...your foot acts as a "stop".

Things to make sure of...do not apply the brake, let it roll and get your foot out of the way! You can then mount the bike...or (since I have a side stand)...I engage the side stand...turn the wheel left...mount the sccot carefully (you don't want it to pop up until you're ready)...right the scoot...up pops the stand and you're set to go.

In the UK the switch is only mandated for side-stands that 'snick' into position and won't retract when the bike is pulled upright. The switch and wiring is extra expense, hence the sidestand is an 'immediate swing-back' type. Bloody dangerous IMHO.

I'm wondering if the GTS sidestand could have the top spring hook point moved so that the stand stays put when the bike is pulled upright.

If it could be done, I'd also want to add a switch into the kill-switch circuit mark ewe...

Didn't trust that option on mine.
Those springs are what hoilds that sidestand UP while you're riding!
So I like having two...

Does the aftermarket, non piaggio, side stand offered from Scooterwest.com have the same problem with popping up unless its supported by the weight of the scooter as discussed earlier in this thread wrt poor support? THx. Miguel

I'm pretty sure that's where mine came from.

Ron, Scooterwest offers two side stands, the Piaggio and an aftermarket, second party, side stand. Which did you get? Thx. Miguel

The two sidestands are identical in build and just differ in manufacturer and price.

Thanks everyone for your responses - I appreciate them all. I still think I favor a side kickstand, but as some suggested, one just has to pay attention to what they are doing when parking the scooter using the sidestand. Have not purchased one yet, but have checked them out on the website of the place that sells them, and will be purchasing one to use. Have checked underneath the scooter on the frame, and the bracket is already welded in place - all that needs to be done is to bolt the kickstand into place and install the springs. I didn't like the suggestion to use only one spring, either. If it's designed for two springs, there must be a reason - if only for safety in case one of the springs broke there'd be the other one left to still hold the stand up out ofthe way so it wasn't dragging on the pavement.
Again, thanks all for your input. Once I finally get one and install it, I'll come back to this topic and give my opinion on it!!!

I prefer the sidestand in operation. It's easy. 1 foot down, lean, off the scooter. Haven't had a problem in my (admittedly short) ownership. Mainly I just don't look cool when using the centrestand although I'm going to look even less cool picking the bike up off the floor

At first, I thought this was going to be one of those, Here we go again threads , but I must commend all of the posters for carrying on a civilized, pro vs. con discussion. Good information backed by facts and experiences. Kudos 8)
oh and cheers!
ride safe all, look out for the other guy...

Like I said before I'm very careful where I put the scooter on the side stand.

I'd never leave it in a parking space where it might get bumped or in the library lot where some kid might decide to sit on the seat.

But in and out of the coffee shop in the morning I'm fine.

Thank you for the clarification. I stand corrected! I did give you a plug. You guys have always taken good care of me and my needs, (a good compliment to my local Vespa shop).

no worries. Just settin' it straight.

Glad I had the side stand

https://modernvespa.com/forum/topic49538

Installed my side kickstand yesterday, and think I will like it. Installation was a breeze. Took longer to get out my tools than to actually bolt it on! Yes, it is obvious that the scooter is more prone to falling using a side stand, but still think I will prefer it to the center kickstand.

Mine came with one.

I put one on my GT, and it works great. The bike won't just leap up and fall over, and the side stand won't retract on a whim. As has been said before, it just takes a little common sense.

I probably would choose to use the center stand if I were leaving my scooter unattended in public, just in case someone decided to move it or sit on it without my permission.

You also have to make sure the side stand is fully extended forward before leaning the bike's weight onto it.

It's a convenient accessory.

I bought a side stand from Motorsport and have been using it daily for about a year. I prefer it over the center stand - it's faster to use. I did install it with only one spring. After scraping it on a turn, I bent the part that sticks out upward, closer to the scooter bottom, and haven't scraped it again.

My bike has wires that extend down to the side stand, but have the ends sealed up so it's not connected to anything. So it looks like most of the stuff for the kill switch is already set up. Weird that they wouldn't just provide a kill switch like everyone else...

The wire that you're probably referring to is your outside temperature sensor. There is no pre-wired kill switches installed for the sidestands for GTS models in the USA version and the European/UK versions don't use a cut-off switch with their factory installed sidestands.

Carry a small piece of wood or a coaster for when you put the side stand down on the grass or in sand, or your scooter will fall right over, and ruin your day.

The temp sensor is right by/in front of the sidestand?
Huh.

Yep, that little black wire. Others have also thought that it was related to the sidestand but it's been discussed in previous threads and verified to be the temperature sensor.

I agree - it will usually require a small gust of wind, a passing pedestrian to nudge it or perhaps a car to touch it while parking

I do agree that they're fine if you have to park on very uneven ground where you can't use a centre stand or if you're parking where other people can't accidentally bump into it. Must admit I always use the centre stand - with practise it's very simple to use.

I had a side stand on my GTS 250, I so seldom used it because my GTS almost fell over once while on it, I got paranoid and didn't continue to use it. When I picked up my new Super, I decided to leave the side stand on the old bike and not transfer it to my new bike.

I have the Buzzetti one from Motorsport on both of my scooters. The LT only has the side one since the center one got trashed. Been using it for almost 3 years and no problems. Use common sense and also over time they lose that quick retraction that it had when new. Great to stabilize the scooter when you have it loaded up with groceries. Easy to install i would get it.

so has anyone figured out how to do the proper mod which would be modifiy the sidestand mounting so that it stays down until kicked up AND put in a kill switch? I think the mechanical part might be easy to figure out but the electrical part could be trickier. My first, off-the-cuff thought would be to put a sidestand activated switch in series with the handlebar kill switch so that the handelbar kill switch would have to be engaged AND the sidestand would have to be up. Deserves more thought but I'm working a couple other mods right now (blinker relay and Stebel horn). I'll likely revisit and think about this later but would appreciate any other insights.
Miguel

Miguel: Piaggio makes a sidestand that stays down until you raise it and that is connected to a cutoff switch. I have one on my BV500.
This stand is mounted differently and looks different, when compared to the GT/GTS/GTV sidestand.
There is a thread or two on this forum where someone took a grinder to the swivel part of the stand and made it stay extended when it was down but they didn't tie in the kill switch. You could probably look at the electrical schematic for the BV500 and see how they have wired the sidestand if you wanted to do this on your scooter. Frankly, I don't really have a problem with it springing back up on the GTS or GTV and have never come close to having a scooter or motorcycle fall over when using this type of sidestand. The first BMW that I ever bought in 1976 had a flimsy sidestand that would spring back, just like the accessory stand for the Vespa (except, the Vespa stand is much more sturdy). BMW sold a lot of motorcycles with these stands and a lot of buyers complained but I saw a lot of Beemer riders use these stands when I would attend gatherings and never saw one fall over. If you're careful and deliberate when using the Vespa sidestand, you'll probably never encounter a problem.