Modern Vespa

All,

I am seriously considering pulling the trigger on purchasing a GTS 300, but the BV300 has intrigued me. Please chime in on the benefits and down falls of Large wheel scoots when compared with small wheel scoots. Also, anyone knows when the BV 300 will come state side.

Hi CC, I've owned both large & small wheel scooters over the last 3 years so here's my very personal opinions. I found that large wheels are much more stable over bumps and at slow speeds but the GT200 that I currently own is more agile in traffic and is able to change direction a tad better plus theres more storage areas due to the smaller wheels...for me they are the essential differances apart from personal taste (I like all that bodywork on the Vesp) not very scientific really...how about a Saints-Jets SB?

in my garage i have Vespa GTS, BV 250ie, Beo 500ie.... for the larger wheel scooters are much more preferable! The larger wheeled scooters are more stable and seem to have a higher top speed too. The larger wheel scooters feel way more planted at high speed and also on bad/bumpy roads.

I've had motorbikes and scooters with large and small wheels.
After a year on a large wheel scoot I got on my GTS300 for the first time and it felt a lot less stable. However after a while on the GTS you learn to allow for it and it's much more nimble in traffic but not as stable at high speed.
But if you want high speed stability get a bike!

Not sure when the bv300 is coming. I initially heard July so they may be appearing at dealers now. Personally, I think that the bv300 is the altimate scooter. I have a bv200 with 18,000 miles and just love the bv line. I also have a Honda Reflex with small wheels- 13" front and 12" rear. They are both capable but different. The bv handles like a motorcycle -very stable and smooth. The Reflex is also stable but the steering is quicker. I like the handling of both- they are just "different".

Bob

All thanks for the input, I'm hoping we get some here soon so I can test ride one! As far as the Dem Jets..... I don't think they ready yet, I would give them one more year and then they can play with the big boys. I see the colts in it again this year and the Saints if we get our defense sorted out.

Interesting - had no idea a 300 BV was coming out. Assume it is the GTS300 engine? Anyhoo, the big vs. small wheels thing depends on the majority of the use you will put it to. Riding all city miles at 30mph average, love the small wheels and ability to turn on a dime. Traveling over crappy roads at 45mph+ more these days, I love the larger wheels. So +1 on the test ride and think about where you will be riding it.

Everyone knows I love my BV500. Just put 140 miles on in the last two days. But I do a lot of highway riding as well as secondary roads.

Hate to think how a small wheel scooter would handle some some of the bumps and crappy pavement I just rode over.

Like most of the write ups, I have had small and larger wheel scoots.
Zuma 49, Honda CH80 and the latest is a Kymco People S200 with 16" wheels. I just purchase a 2006 Vespa GT200. I loved the Kymco and the 16"
wheels. Better handling, better control on country black top (asphalt/tarmack). Even with the smaller wheels on the GT200, I think I like it better with more power.

While I don't have a large wheeled scooter per se, the wheels on my Fly are bigger than it's 150cc Vespa counterparts. SDG and I have had this discussion a few times when I'm at the shop and I've mentioned that if a LT/Liberty crossed my path I would get it in a heartbeat. Why not? The lightweight flickability of a 150 and the large wheels of a tourer???

The larger wheels of the LT are not the larger wheels like the GTS. I have ridden the LT and the wheels are tall and thin, almost like bicycle tires. They feel hard on city streets. If they had the width of the GTS tires, they would rock!

Yeah. Like the BV or the Honda SH300i, which you haven't gotten over there. Yet.

I tend to agree that the taller tires are nice, But lack the width,
Also the taller tires are squirrely on roads that have been grated with grooves,
They leave behind grooves here in Canada before resurfacing,
They can be a little unnerving on skinny tall tires.

One moment you are cheerfully going along on the highway and then bam,
You get hit with a long strip of roadway that is waiting to be resurfaced,
It ain't nice, Especially when you are going 100 k/ph, It's scary with skinny tires.

The smaller and wider GTS tires are a bit better, But not the Sava's,
The Pirelli's are a bit better and it does take some skill to navaigate.

Once you decide which one you want to ogle in your garage then it really is a matter of test riding if at all possible. Although the BV's are more stable on the highway, I have never had an issue with the handling or stability of the GTS series. Admittedly my BV 500 was a more relaxed highway ride but some of that may have been because of the larger engine...

If I was pressed today to make a decision between the two I'm not sure which way I would go. The classic lines of the GTS's really tug at me but the BV's are extremely good looking in their own right. It might even come down to price. With the $1500.00 (CDN) saved buying the BV I could buy accessories, insurance and gas!


Dave

I had a Kymco 250 with the large wheels at the same time as my 250 Vespas(3 of them). The Kymco was better on the Freeway and felt more stable than the Vespas especially when I was competing with 18 wheelers. In the city and on winding roads you cant beat the small tires of the vespas for quick maneuvers. Jack

Curious, if you notice better gas mileage with the larger wheels. I would think the top speed would be higher also.

My 2 cents. A scoot is best with small wheels unless it's a substitute road bike.

I'm not the world's quickest or most confident rider, but I'm very happy with 12" wheels on my GTS250. I'm a long time road bike rider, and I thought I'd get a large-wheel scoot to make the transition easier. Not so. The skinny 16" wheels just disolved my confidence. Yikes!! I took the test bike back after about 5 mins - scared me silly. I ride with 120/70 17 F & 180/55 17 R rubber on my road bike - haven't had a front under 120/70 F in a decade, and even my older bikes were 110/90 18 F. I don't know which contact patch is smaller / larger but the skinny 14 and 16 wheels spooked me.

For my first real scoot, I tested the Aprilia SportyCity One 125 (?110/90 14?) and the Piaggio Fly (120/70 12). The Aprilia felt more bike like but the smaller wheels were much more nimble .. so I went with 12" and bought the Fly. I was nervous at first, but then surprised at how quickly I got used to the small wheels - and looking at the tyres, I was using the whole tyre (no "chicken strips") and the wide, low profile tyre simply imparts more confidence. Maybe it's familiarity with the 120/70 profile.

A personal view, but I wouldn't use a large capacity, large wheeled scoot because a road bike does that job so much better for me, given where I ride at speed (back roads in open country). For city work with some fast arterial rodas and the odd freeway stretch, GTS250 manages very well - and the compromise on city bumps is OK.

The gas mileage on my bv is usually 72-74 mpg- it's a 200cc. The Reflex constantly gets 75 and it's a 250cc. I haven't really pushed the Reflex over 55mph but it does seem that the bv is quicker and faster. In regard to tall wheeled scooters having "skinny" tires- that was true on my LT150 but it felt as stable as anything I've ever ridden. The tires on the bv are probably wider than those on the Reflex. No difference is felt in that respect. I've ridden the bv many more miles than the Reflex so I'm much more confident leaning way over in curves knowing that I won't scrape anything. The ONLY big difference I see is that the smaller wheeled scoot turns in easier and quicker. That is noticeable when I transition from one scoot to the other in the same day. Once your on either one they feel as natural as it should be.
There's nothing "wrong" with either style -they are as I said in a previous post, different. It kinda depends on what type of riding you like best as to what style of scooter suits your needs-even though either will work just fine. Around town the small wheels are a bit more nimble and on back roads the taller wheels a bit more stable. But either bike can do both senarios with ease and confidence.

Bob

A 120 series tire should fit quite nicely on the front of the BV, that should take care of those concerns.
FWIW my riding style is not relaxed and where I ride is far from straight/flat but the 110/70 16 Michelin on the front of my BV 500 was never a source of clenched butt cheeks...


Dave

I have ridden motorcycles all my life and have scooters too.

My daily rider is a SYM HD 200 and the big wheels/ tires are great.

I don't feel as safe on my small scoots.

The SYM rides more like a MC. Sure it is not Vespa cute, but I really care more about getting to my destination in one piece : )

Take a big scoot for a good long test ride and see how it feels.
Laura

I have a LT and a LX. By far i enjoy the smaller wheels. The LT rides like a dirt bike IMHO. Don't get me wrong i love the LT but i enjoy the LX much more. The LT is a solid scooter and it has taken a lot of abuse (accident etc) and it always starts up and is fast off the line. I can do wheelies with it To bad my LX wasn't made as well In the end it essentially comes down to personal preference.

Bikes with larger and smaller wheels use different gear ratios to maintain the appropriate relationship to power curve of the engine (otherwise a larger wheeled bike would ride like it was in overdrive all the time - higher ratio of speed to rpm but reduced torque). With a chain drive motorcycle, for example, the rear sprocket is changed to alter the effective gear ratio if desired. The same can be done with a CVT by using different geometry in the variator.