Modern Vespa

First the bad news--my camera got broken (I think it was the cat), but here is what I did in text. I did get a couple of very crappy cell phone pics of the finished job, they're included at the end.

Purchased a set of Oxford Heaterz. This is the "normal" model for 7/8" bars. There are others (Sport, Custom, etc.), but the regular model is correct for Vespas.

Install on GTS:

1. Remove windshield (17mm under the bars), horncast (pry off Piaggio logo from the left side of bike--you'll see a slot. Make sure you protect your paint with a rag as you pry). Under the logo is a phillips head screw. Remove the screw and lift up, then out to remove the panel. Unplug light and set panel aside.

2. Remove mirrors. Pop up rubber gasket. Small allen (3mm?) removes brake reservoir covers. Pull forward, then up--don't break the fingers that hold down the back of the covers. 17mm wrench loosens locknut, then unscrew mirrors by swinging the whole assembly around.

3. Remove front of "headset". Bottom center (under the headlight) is a black phillips head screw. Remove this. If you drop it down the hole it will be lost forever, so I lay a rag over the opening to catch the screw if I drop it. (Edit: I forgot something) Remove two tiny screws facing backwards under the rear of headset, below the switches. At the top it is held in place by tabs and fingers. Carefully work it up and away. Eventually it will pop off. Try not to break anything, it takes patience.

4. Remove bar end weights.

5. Remove original grips. Left one is glued on with gummy stuff. Get a screwdriver under it and slide around to break the bond. Mine pulled of fairly easily, but some WD40 may be necessary.

Right one was not glued but was really tight. I got the WD40 straw in here and gave it a shot. After that it pulled off fairly easily. Clean up WD40 and glue. I used acetone, then wet rag then dried.

6. Right side sleeve for throttle has a lip on the outer edge which prevented Oxford grip from fitting. After thinking about this for a long time I removed the sleeve (2 phillips head and undo cable) and sawed the last bit off. Cleaned up cut with a knife and file then reinstalled.

Oxford insists on dry fit here, so I did it but it was a pain.

6. Left side grip gets some glue--I did one line along the axis of the bars, and two around. Slide on the grip and get the wire facing forward, parallel to the axis of the brake lever.

7. I didn't glue the right side as the sleeve has ribs (no jokes please). Align the wire same way.

8. Left some slack, bent wires back towards the handlebar outside of the brake reservoir and loosely tied on with cable ties. Remember to leave enough cable on the throttle side for full range of throttle. Routed wires towards the center of bike, taking care not to interfere with switches, cables and windshield mount.

9. There is no place on the headset to mount the control panel without lots of drilling and cutting. I won't do that. I ended up mounting the panel on the left knee pad. See photo. Fed wire up and center. You want everything close to the center line so there is no interference with steering.

10. I did not wire to the battery. I wanted it switched--despite electronics that won't allow the heaters to be on when bike isn't running, I a) don't trust it and b) it senses battery voltage and shuts off after battery is somewhat discharged. Doesn't seem like a good idea in cold weather to have a "slightly" discharged battery. I wired to switched terminals of alarm connector. It should handle 10 amps, grips only use 4 on max. If I have a problem, I will rewire with a relay.

Reassemble, check for free movement, test and go. The bar end did rub against throttle grip. I removed the bar end and spaced it with a washer. No more rub.

Took about an hour.

I guess I screw the throttle pretty hard to the stop sometimes as the grip did start moving a bit. I pulled it off and put one thin bead of glue longitudinally and reassembled. Now it's fine.

P.

I have had Oxford grips on all my winter scooters. I hate that push button control unit though, as it is big and bulky. I wired mine in via a relay, which means the grips only come on when the engine is running, to the battery and lost the control unit completely so that the grips were on full heat whenever they were on. I control them with a little thumb operated switch under the left grip which you can see in the picture. Forget the extra wires, one is for a Zumo and the other for a headlight modulator.

Those are nice grips, I've always had the controller installed in the glove box though,
If I need to switch settings, Then I can do it in a pinch at a stop light.

Hey, I am in the midst of doing this now. How did you connect the heated grips wire to the switched terminal? Can you show us a pic or just tell us the color of the wire where you put in your heated grip wire? Did you put some solder on the end of the stranded wire from the grips before inserting it into the alarm connector terminal?
any specific details you can offer would be very much appreciated.
Thanks

Here you go.

Sorry, not a complete answer.

I tin the bare end of wire, hammer it flat and jam it into the connector.

Then bend around and use a zip tie to fasten the wire to the side of the connector.

That's it. You get a nice strong connection and it is fully reversible as you don't modify the connector in any way.

Paul.

THanks Paul G.
THat is exactly the info I was looking for.
I thought I had to take the wires out of the connector, but thanks to your pics, I suspected there was a better solution.
I want to plug the hot grips I have into the white wire connector spot, now.
I assume I only need to run one 5 amp fused wire into it
Curt

Very gratifying to see my little sketch making the rounds.
Here's an "improved" version I worked up only today:

No disrespect John, I've always paid attention to your posts. Hope there's no copyright infringement--just trying to help out a brother.

P.

No disrespect taken at all; quite the contrary!! Anything I post is for free use, I'm just happy it's thought well enough of to be used!!

These grips sound like a very good idea for me too.

I guess I can hook them up to the key switched wire (white) on the spare anti-theft terminal. This is where I have also attached my Garmin Zumo GPS power.
I never use the red emergy button to kill the engine, so this way engine will always be running when heating is powered.

I was thinking of 'hiding' the fugly control in de dash cabinet. Controlling it by opening the hatch before a ride.
Proven by Big Foot, so that would not have to be a problem...ordering/getting a pair is however

PS: DougL, Is this your Garmin TMC antenna hidden inside the steering housing? I let mine run up-down on the windshield stands...visible, detachable (use in car) and not anti-theft.

My garmin doesn't have TMC. Must be an older model. TMC is pretty irrelevant on bikes anyway!

Actually true...but it is a naugthy FUN advisor
5 miles of cager annoyance ahead

The TMC receiver is an add-on for Zumo 550-660 connected via a mini-usb connector...barely visible on the pic, but it is plugged onto the motormount at the location of the windshield mounting 'screw'

My Oxford Heaterz arrived last week and I attempted the install today whilst the weather is ok. But no luck...
When I turn the grips on I get the blue/30% LED and can toggle through the settings to 100%. But the LED goes out after a couple seconds and I don't get any heat at the grips.
I assume that the LED should stay on whenever the grips are being heated?

Is the engine running while you're testing? They will not run if the voltage goes below 11 volts or so. Make sure your battery is in good shape and test it on a little ride. Mine have performed flawlessly on an almost daily basis for the last couple of months.

P.

Yes, I tested with the scoot running and the headlight unplugged.
I haven't had any battery issues to date; it is about 2 years old.
I charged the battery overnight on the tender, then started the scoot and the heater worked only long enough to heat the grips, then turned off.
Since then the controller has returned to the same behavoir, just turning off without any ceremony. The Oxford manual says the blue LED should blink if the battery is too low. But it just goes out.
Guess I'll call Lockitt and see what they advise. I'm guessing I'll have to spring for a new battery to rule that out.
Tim

Update - Got out the multimeter today. The battery is fine. I found that the turn signal beepers quit working. They are plugged in next to the alarm fitting on the same electrical dohickie. Apparently they were shorting or something, and that effected the grip heater. So I fixed the turn signal beepers and the heaters now work.
T

Nice, never cold hands again. Enjoy!