Modern Vespa

Hello.

I've had my Piaggio Fly 150 for just over a year now (~2900 mile) with no problems. I took it in for routine maintenance (1 year) last week and now it dies at idle after warming up. This happened immediately just after leaving the shop but my schedule didn't allow me to turn back at the time.

I've tried adjusting the idle but it continues to die unless the engine is running so fast that the rear wheel is fully engaged - threatening to take the scooter off its stand. That seems wildly unsafe to me.

I know the mechanic adjusted the spark plug gap - he opened it up. Could that be the source of my problem? The shop deals in Kymco, Sym and Genuine scooters but with the market the way it is it was the closest recommendation I could get from the Vespa shop in Dallas.

I'm taking it back to the shop this week but thought it would be good to get a round of opinions first.

Thanks.

The gap almost never, ever needs opening up, this is CDI after all. Very occasionally a new plug or two is needed.

My plug was replaced during my 1-year service (@10,000 mi). If it was gapped, that is probably the issue.

Serious mileage for a first year! At one year and 3500 miles -- no problems except the occasional puff of white smoke at start up.

I bought it 6mos. old used with 5,300 miles on it. The first owner loved it as much as I do.

Next investment: 190cc kit or just upgrading to a GTS.

Sounds to me like the old gas in the evap crap system. My S150 that runs the same engine as the Fly 150 did the same thing when I wasn't careful one day filling up. If the evap is still on your Fly check that and you might also try checking the air filter. According to the mechanic at my dealership some gas can find its way to the filter if it made it into the evap canister.

The problem always manifests itself when the engine is warm and trying to idle.

That's an easy thing to try on a Fly. Take off the cover inside the pet carrier and follow the Wiki instructions for disconnecting your evap system on a 150. If it works, either empty the canister or remove the whole system. It's just a hassle to have anyway...

It *could* potentially be a clogged idle jet, as well. The symptoms are the same - bike won't run unless throttle is applied. However, the "why" part of the idle jet being clogged doesn't fit. Typically, it happens when a bike has sat for a while (i.e., a couple weeks). How long did you leave it in the shop? It's entirely possible that some little piece of crud - dirt, gummed up fuel, whatever - found its way into the idle jet after the work was completed causing the condition you currently have. I'm not certain of it, but I'd definitely check it if it were my scooter.

The scooter was only in the shop about 4 hours. But I'm willing to look at any possible causes.

I've seen the Wiki for the evap system. Is there one for clearing the idle jet if I want to try that option?

Aloha and welcome to the forum. Try throwing some SeaFoam in there, a double dose of it. Put some in run it thru until your yellow light comes on and repeat if needed. Hopefully it will fix the problem and at the very least it won't hurt it. It might just get the junk cleaned out. Today's gas sucks with the ethanol in it IMHO. I put some SeaFoam in after every fill up. I don''t ride both scooters everyday. You can buy it at any auto,marine shop or WalMart. Hope it helps.

Thanks for all the input everyone.

She's up and running again. The shop picked up the scooter, installed a new spark plug just to be safe and delivered her back home... and they didn't try to charge me extra. I'm really happy with the way they handled the situation.

This did make me open up the scooter for the first time - removing all the panels below the seat - and having a real look around. I feel a little more confident to try some light maintenance on my own in the future.