Modern Vespa

From todays GTS 300 review at Motorcycle.com

"Beneath the retro-styled plastic exterior... "

Last time I looked the GTS was still a pressed steel design. Sure it has some plastic bits but come on....

I didn't read the entire review. When this came up so early in the article I became very disinterested in their opinion.

Dave

The review was fluff. They mentioned soaking the pet carrier with gas if you're not careful, but didn't mention you can take the carrier out..
They mention a complete/full set of instrumentation. Which is not entirely true compared to a 250. They mention it's only $200 more than the 250 - which it is - but do not mention any of the standard equip differences.

But really, calling it plastic bodied was horrible.

Still, they gave it a positive review which ultimately is all one could ask for.

The rest of the review was OK though. I cannot believe that they thought the GTS had a plastic body, duh.

believe it or not sometimes us scooter people are misunderstood.

I give them some credit for including a scooter!

I actually thought the article was very positive. I don't think that motorcycle people or other scooter people are as turned off by plastic bits. Most other 2 wheelers are mainly plastic. It's just offense to those of us with Vespas

I like that he referred to gassing up as an aptitude test. Obviously, he failed, since he couldn't figure out that the pet carrier was removable Didn't his come with a manual? Has he never tried to take apart anything?

Positive in the end, but doomed to fall upon deaf ears ("blind eyes"?) over there. I like that site overall, but scooter reviews seem to be "hole fillers" more than anything else with that site.

for what ever reason, I find calling a scooter, esp a fine one like the super a "grocery getter" is really annoying and patronizing. Sorry you can't take your typical motor cycle to the grocery store with ease, but don't be snarky about the fact we can get a ton of groceries in/on a scooter

It wasn't a bad review. I think overall positive on a scooter for a motorcycle magazine. I think he was trying to be too funny with some of his terms, such as grocer getter (my ElectraGlide held 2 cases of beer in the TourPak). But he did leave the Vespa in a good light, and that might just be enough for a motorcyclist to cross over to a scooter. I was having a bad day, but your word "snarky" put a smile on my face. Thanks.

I'll give them a pass on the "plastic" and "grocery getter." I thought the review was overall very positive.

I was disappointed to find out how much of my GTS's body IS plastic...

As a very plastic-y Burgman rider, I'll admit to harboring a bit of 'steel body envy' for the Vespa, though I'd really prefer Aluminum so I could polish the bejeebers out of it.

Yesseree Bob! I loves me some polished aluminum!

Did you know that Aluminum spoken backwards is pronounced 'Moony-moo-lah'?

Polished aluminum. (I wipe the drool off the keyboard )

I thought it was a positive article. The filler is tricky and he described the performance well enough. It's a good article for a motorcycle riders.

They call it a 2009 GTS300 Super

There is no such thing in the USA anyway



If it is a 2009 Super it is a 250


If it is a 2010 it is a 300

nope, can't get mad about it. hard to care that much.

I wrote to them last night and told them about the faux pas. I figured they may want to change it.

I didn't really like the "grocery getter" comment either ... but it is after all a motorcycle mag. A little bit of snarkiness is expected. Otherwise, it was a positive article!

I can understand the grocery getter comment, although its very limiting in the eyes of the reviewers. Sort of puts what scooters can do and what they're for in a much smaller (and unfair) light when its put that way.

Yet, if you look at it from their perspective, ie its only for touring if its got a large displacement engine, you can understand a bit more of how they see things. How most motorcyclists tend to see things.

One of the great things about getting into these scooters is that it reminded me any bike which can get out of its own way can be touring capable. Even the dimintuitive 50cc, if ridden wisely, can tour state to state. In fact it can be its own kind of fun, unlike any other faster scooter or motorcycle available. Its its own niche and it shouldn't be overlooked.

What I get out of these types of reviews is another sample of poor journalism. Laziness. No one's really asking, What can these things really do? What are they capable of? How comfortable are they on the longer rides? What advantages are there to scooters which can handle (or accel) at 55mph or better speeds? What are their limitations?

I recently sold my 1980 Kawasaki KZ550. You would think, based solely on the displacement that this is a touring capable machine. That it would be an excellent candidate for freeway style touring. But it isn't. Its geared for squirting through traffic and begins to complain when ridden much past 55 mph. Its a go-to-work but stay of the expressway type of bike. There were other bikes in its class and day which were and still are much better for that kind of distance riding. But without riding it you wouldn't think this was the case. Its a fun backroads burner. Right in its zone when paired with my LX150. Which, according to my friend who bought my KZ, makes the LX150 the better bike. And both machines exhibit about as close to factory-to-showroom condition as one could expect. Ok, the LX has tipped on its center stand but mechanically both bikes are as they should be.

And the KZ comes with nil storage in factory form. Just like every other motorcycle save the tourers.

Advantage: The grocery getter.

Harv

I still have people tell me they would LOVE to have one of the new VW Beetle's but just can't drive a car that is so unsafe since the motor is in the back. Sheesh, the New Beetle was released in the US in 1998 for crying out loud, so 11 years later and so many are still wrong about the engine placement, so I'm not surprised about a plastic body Vespa.