Modern Vespa

Right!....

Had a bit of a scare yesterday (on Monday that is). Went to my local Starbucks in the morning to grab some breakfast then head off to meet some friends.

Was queuing up, very long que got quite bored, so decided to admire my Vespa for a bit as it was parked right outside on the road.

Just as I was about to turn away I saw a van pull up in quite an aggressive manor and two blokes jumped out walked behind their van and began glancing around my scoot!

I did have a grip lock fitted, although they looked as though they could have lifted her into the van.
However, last week I received in the post my Tracker system warning stickers off eBay. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CAR-VAN-SECURITY-STICKERS-ALARM-TRACKER-GPS-WARNING-/230484293689?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item35a9ef3839#ht_3695wt_1029

I fitted them just under the rear grab rail on me scoot on both sides just as a deterrent and I can honestly say they worked!!
unbelievable I know but amazingly I saw both the blokes look straight at the stickers and point at them, they then said something to one another and walked off back into the van!

Really strange situation and one I've been itching to share. Although I actually wouldn't recommend the stickers as a long term thing and something I would buy again.
I've ended up having to remove them as they were originally intended for the inside on car windows. So I ended up having to place a clear vinyl over the top to secure them onto the scooter surface but with the rain they pealed and fell off
Give them a go if you'll fit them where there is no worry of rain getting to them, if not don't bother.

Wow - driving up in broad daylight and just lifting it into a van?!!! Perhaps the cops should start leaving shiny scooters out as honey pots.

Unbelievable !!! On plain day light !!

Man, that's infuriating! I would certainly have had to go medieval on their asses... (with a pair of pliers and a blowtorch)...

Job well-done on discouraging the theft of your scooter Lloyd!

LOL atl...I was never good at history...who knew tools consisted of pliers and blowtorches during medieval times? Next year I'm telling my student's I got nothing when they ask for help with their history assignments.

It's actually a line from Pulp Fiction (the movie). Ving Rhames says it to Zed after they, ummm, well, strap him over something and, umm... Well, you get the picture.

Ouch...got the picture...and now back to the lucky young man who did not have his scooter stolen!

Yikes!! That's pretty scary. Glad they thought twice about it. I'd have taken down their plate number all the same to at least report it as a suspicious vehicle. Might not have accomplished much, but if it had been me, I'd have felt a little better.

Sure hope they don't go around scouting scooters on a regular basis.

I've seen videos of stuff like this, pull up in a van and steal a motorbike within 10 seconds.

Don't try to contact your local PD or get the license plates of the van.

It would be funny if next time they succeed stealing your scooter because you did not act against it.

Glad nothing happened with you or your scoot...

Just my observation on theft related postings....seems that there is an inordinate amount of thefts that happen in the UK...perhaps just due to the number of scoots on the road.

Aren't there a number of video cameras on your roadways that serve as a deterrent towards bike thefts...just wondering.

I <3 Pulp Fuction references.

Did you get the info on the van? I would have.

whats the point in that? Did you think for one moment they were just looking at a beautiful ride.. There is no crime in looking at a vespa.

Just kidding dude !

Was pretty worrying at the time. I tried to catch the number plate, i got the top line (because it's a van there's two lines of reg plate not one long one) but that was it. it was an oldish vauxhall van (02 plate) in a dark blue.
Tbh it happened very quickly they literally walked over to it looked at the stickers and left about 30 secs at most. I was about to get out of the line and run but they got back in the van. Thats when i got the top line of number plate.
I suppose it's a warning to you guys, I had the feeling before that "it would never happen to me!" but it almost did.

On the UK's Scooter Shack Forum, there has been reports of Vans, in the middle of the day, collecting Scoooters in London....
Guess it is a big problem in the UK.....

Statistically (all vehicles not bikes but probably representative?) the UK is the third most likely place to have a vehicle stolen on a per capita basis -- the US is ninth. The worst on a per capita basis is Australia!!! No convict quips will be seen as jokes!!!

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_car_the_percap-crime-car-thefts-per-capita

Great to hear your deterrent worked. I'm not surprised this happened to you. There are theives everywhere and unfortunately you have to be very cautious. I chain my bike up most of the time, unless i'm stopping to get gas and a pack of smokes, I can watch the bike while I go inside and get the smokes. Even then I'm worried some dudes in a van are going to pull up and yank the thing.

It seems the police need to set up a few decoy scoots around town with the actual GPS tracker on them. Find these guys since they seem they do not just hit one scooter and stop stealing. Cops find these guys hiding hole, find all the scooters and bust them on large theft charges. Maybe my idea just seems to hollywood. Who knows. It just seems a theft ring like this would be rather simple to bust.

+1 on this. Our police are lazy so they won't, but we can dream!

Glad your scoot is safe. I really like those stickers. Too bad they aren't "weatherproof".

Mine was stolen in broad daylight from the gated company car park; from right in front of a massive picture window. Three hoodies in a stolen van with a mattress on the floor. I saw it all on CCTV footage the next day. Hopefully they've all died painfully since.

First of all I know that there are some good law enforcement officers out there doing their job.

With that being said, at our County and/or State Legislative sessions when a law is being contemplated being passed...this is just my observation on what I can ascertain via the media...a common remark from those representing the Police Union will oft times comment "that will be difficult to enforce...hence should not be passed".

Well there's a fine line but a big difference between a law being difficult or cannot be enforced.

If the bad guys out there know that they can get away with what may be difficult to enforce...maybe that's the reason we (State of HI) have one of the highest rate of crimes (MC and auto thefts). Hence, I always warn residents and visitors alike to be careful and watchful of their possessions.

Incredible, that was so fortunate that you had those stickers on your scooter. I wonder if we could get a mass order of these things made for our bikes in the proper vinyl material to last!

I was actually thinking a GPS tracking system to actually go along with those stickers....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Do-Not-Screw-Vespa-Scooter-Warning-Stickers-Decal-Funny-/270389899007

Ouch, really starting to think about investing in some form of anti-theft device...or 2

You should. I know the pain of having one stolen. It sucks big. Get an alarmed Xena U-lock with chain so you can anchor it to something nearby. And if you can't you still get the alarm.

Ill look into this. Any idea where i can pick one up?

This is the puppy I got
http://www.xenasecurity.com/product/bullett/main/XULSeries/XUL102/page1/

Get one of their heavy duty chains with the lock. It's very rugged and can extend the reach of your lock to an anchor point better.

There is/was a rep from the company on this forum, but I don't know they are around any more. A lot of people here get the disk lock - which prevents the front wheel from rolling and will trigger the alarm with motion. However, I think the U-lock with alarm is a better buy because it allows you to anchor to something. When my scoot was stolen it was lifted into a truck, not wheeled away. If you run the chain (or lock if you buy a big enough U) through your rear wheel it will also prevent rolling if you have nothing to anchor to.

I also try to cover mine as often as possible with a non-vespa cover, so it looks larger than it is, and not particularly attractive. Most likely if they tried to get the cover off it would set the alarm off before they even began messing with the scoot, especially if the lock is run through one of the grommets on the cover.

Keep in mind if they really want it, they'll probably get it. But I find this combo has led to nobody messing with my scoot any more (I used to find it tipped, keyed, etc) before the cover and alarm.

Wow, thank you so much for all the information. I have a cover i use when parked at home, but thats it. Ill def look into this. So far i havent had any problems, thats what makes me nervous haha!

No problem! It might be less likely with a larger scoot like your GTS... but I wouldn't want to bet on it, especially given that it looks even nicer and is worth more. Still light enough to get ripped off.

Don't get too paranoid either - I mean at some point you could stop enjoying going for rides if you have to bring 14 locks slung over your shoulder, a rottweiler in the pet carrier, and a tinfoil hat on your head to keep the aliens out. But man it sucks to have your ignition broken with a screwdriver (happened to me), your seat slashed (happened to me), the scoot tipped (happened to me), or worst of all stolen (happened to me). Doesn't hurt to have the scoot anchored to something and drawing attention to itself with an alarm if someone tries to monkey with it

haha that would be pretty badass if i carried all of that around all day.

Did all of this happen to the same scoot!?

All of it to my ET2 plus more, except for the theft. That was my Piaggio Typhoon. The police found it totaled in a gutter three years later in a different town, so that was a loss (no insurance in MA on 50cc back then).

Dont you guys have insurance ? I dont worry about the small stuff, if they take it i just put my claim through insurance and get a new one. No big deal...

No insurance on 50cc until this last year in MA (more or less). Plus, even with an MC... I'd rather keep the one I have and am attached to than just get a replacement.

I have a similar sticker on my Vespa, but instead of a beating, the perp is gettting curb stomped. (can't seem to find it online just now).

Hi there,

It is very good news to hear this story of the Tracking Stickers working! I produce these stickers, and am glad they have helped in some way and done the job I designed them to do.

I just wanted to add that the stickers can be used for the outside, and should not come off easily, as I produce external stickers with the same material.

Anyway, thanks for the purchase, and again I am happy they helped.

Regards,

Andy
PP

So if you produce them where can we get one that would stick on our scoots and not be in reverse.

Hi there,

All you need to do is simply state that they are for external use when you purchase. You can do this in the payment section, or send a message straight after payment.

Regards,

Andy