Modern Vespa

I'm done modifying my MP3 500. Here's the list, and I'll try and post some photos.

Givi E55 topcase
Givi Windscreen
Custom Seat by Don Weber of Mr. Ed's Moto
Gas Door handle (Home Depot)
Stebel Horn
K&N Air Filter (part # RC-2330)
K&N PreFilter (part # 22-8028PK)
Airbox Removed
K&N Crankcase Breather Filter (part # 62-1030)
90degree 3/4"ID hose for breather
J Costa Variator
Leo Vince 4Scoot Exhaust
DB Killer cut to 4"
CRG Bar-end Mirrors

Looks nice...

If you don't mind, about how much did Don charge you for the seat, and how much modification did you guys do? I've been thinking about taking mine over to him to do, but I think I want to do a little more work than most people have done... But kind of curious to know what it might cost me.

Looks good, we need to get an Oregon MP3 ride together sometime... I know of now you, me (a 400) and another guy with a 500 up in Portland area. I've seen one other 500 in town here, pulling a trailer, I'd love to know who that was, might have been from out of town, but still...

Starting to see a few more MP3's show up... theres at least 1 or 2 in the club too... So we could easily get 3-4of us together sometime.

You'll want to give him a call and ask. I'm a frequent customer (my 10th seat with Don), so he treats me well.

He uses the stock seat pan, rebuilds all the foam padding, and custom fits it to your butt. Then he sews up and puts on a new cover of your choice (material, color, and pattern). Plan to spend the day with him. He's booked out into Nov last I talked to him. Tell him Ray sent you.

So you took the whole air filter off , how's that work for you and what kinda of filter are you using now??

Read the original post. The K&N part numbers are listed, and you can see it in the 4th photo. I added the pre-filter to help keep any moisture out, although it's pretty well protected tucked up in there. You can also look up those parts on KandN.com. That part number fit right on the throttle body. No mods required.

It seems to be working great. But I've only taken a 10mile ride so far. There is less popping on decel. I'm not noticing any lean conditions that others had warned me might happen. It seems to accelerate quicker. It certainly revs fast...crank it from a stop and it hits 7k right now. No wheelies or anything like that though. It sounds really good (for a scooter). Nice bark from both the intake and exhaust.

The only one of those above that I'd endorse is the J Costa. Although it does increase 'off the line' performance, that's not the reason I'd endorse it.

It hugely improves slow-speed control. That alone is worth all the money.

Thanks Ray... yeah Don already knows me a bit too... knew him a bit from a previous job I had, before I even had a bike... and when I got the bike, I bought all my jackets, helmet, etc from him... I'll have to just talk to him one of these days... maybe this winter, or first of the year...

Convienient bieing in town too... I go by the shop probably once a week or 2...

Hey Ray,
Can you post a picture that focuses on the seat?
I would love to see what you cam up with.

Mike

Did you do all the engine/transmission mods at once? Or did you by chance do the intake exhaust after the JCosta? I'm trying to gauge your perception of the performance increase.

Thanks,
Steve

Looks great! Really Great, do you Know if that air filter also works for the 400?

jimc what do you think of the airfilter?

I'm no expert in engine tuning - but if more air is available to a fuel-injected motor, I can't see that being a problem - but beware those caveats about leaning out that others have expressed. I'd suspect you'd hear some pinking under load if that was happening though. But as I said, I'm no expert on these matters!

Thanks for the quick reply

Sorry for the delay, Steve. I've been out of town for the week.

I did the variator and exhaust at the same time. Then I did the air filter a few hundred miles later.

If you're looking for the best bang for the buck performance wise, I don't think there was one. Although all of the mods were relatively inexpensive, none really provided any sort of magnificent difference...again, performance wise. The windscreen, seat, and top case, however, all are highly recommended.

That said, the performance mods all work well together. It seems to rev much faster and accelerate harder. The popping on decel is much less than it was stock. There doesn't seem to be any sort of lean condition as some had worried about. No pinging (US...pinking in EU), no surging, no issues. And, of course, there's the overall unsprung weight savings, much better sound (my opinion, which is all that matters with my MP3), and much cleaner look.

Thanks for sharing. Can you tell me more about your top case and why you chose the particular model. I have the E46 which I like but I like the added lighting on yours.

Sure. I chose it because it had the most space available, and a shape that wasn't either too wide or too tall for the look of the MP3 500. I didn't get the optional lights or electronic release, so what you see as lights are actually just reflectors.

How are you determining there is no "Lean Condition"? You can't tell by listening for pinging, you have to look at the spark plug. It should be a nice tan color.
Here a chart to diagnosis the plug condition
www.spark-plugs.co.uk/pages/technical/diagnosis.htm

Wayne B

Thanks for the info.

...and here are a couple of photos of the seat as requested. It sits quite a bit taller than stock. It was designed for me and my 6'4" frame.

Seat looks comfy, how much did you raise it?

Sorry, I don't know. I didn't take before and after measurements. Don just builds the seat to fit the rider.

I'll be checking the plug, but no use now as I don't have enough miles on it yet to get a good reading.

Really? I know from reading other posts your not a fan of performance-type mods, but no endorsement for even the windscreen, top case, Stebel horn, CRG mirrors, etc?

Hello,

Please tell me more about the CRG Bar-end Mirrors? Which model are they and how are they working our for you verses the stock mirrors?

I'd advocate a windscreen and a top-box, but which ones are a personal choice - so I'm not saying one is better than another. Me, I used the OEM ones, and they do the job adequately.

I'd never use those mirrors - they would make filtering near impossible.

I'm using the CRG Hindsight mirrors. I use them on every bike I own where practical. They give a great view...better than stock as they're positioned outside your shoulders.

If your local LEO allows lane splitting (I assume that's what JimC refers to as "filtering"?), they also offer the Lane Splitter model (LS). Those fold in easily for those times where you need to fit through a narrow path. But lane splitting is not allowed where I live.

Thank you for the info. The only state that allows lane spliting or filltering is CA.

If you decide to go the CRG route, I also purchased the $20 mounting kit for each one. The only part of the kit I used was the mounting bobbin. I cut the small end off that would typically fit into the bar, then just used a bit longer bolt to secure it to the bar through the bar-end weight.

I thought I'd better post this here for consistency sake. I posted this in the K&N filter thread after another member accused me of not following up on the results of my mods, which was all too true.

I didn't really feel good about posting any performance changes earlier, as I wanted to spend some quality time in the saddle first. And I really don't have any special way to measure any performance gain or loss, other than seat of the pants. It's not important enough for me to spend $$$ on a dyno run. If a local shop wants to offer me a run for free, I'll be there!

That said, my seat of the pants says performance has improved. My butt-dyno says maybe a 5-7hp gain overall, with similar gains in torque. The MP3 feels quicker off the line, quicker to accelerate and pass, revs much faster...revs quick to 6.5-7k under hard acceleration, etc. And I'll add that the sound, from both the exhaust and intake is really pleasant to my ear. It's loud, for sure. But that's what I like. And I also like how clean the MP3 looks with these changes. I'll bet I shed over 20lbs of un-sprung weight. It also seems to be getting better fuel economy. I ran 160 miles on my last tank before the fuel warning light came on. Before the mods, I think it was more like 135 miles.

Keep in mind my perspective on this whole thing. I don't expect big things from a scooter. It's a SCOOTER for cripes sake! I have a stable of other bikes I ride too. All of which can blow the doors off any MP3, if they had doors. I have a scooter for "twist and go" fun. I have one because it's different. It's not my daily driver. I won't be the guy that puts over 10k miles a year on it. I just like to fiddle with stuff to make it my own. I like to try aftermarket parts out, and if they work, great. If not, I'll take them off and try something else. It's what I do. Sort of a hobby I guess. I hope this helps shed some perspective on the subject.