Piaggio debuts the 946 Vespa in New York

Piaggio debuted the Vespa 946 in North America, a few days ago, on October 25, 2013. The presentation took place in New York, at one of Manhattan's most exclusive shops, the Bulgari flagship store on 5th Avenue.

As of October 25th, the 946 is available in the USA for a price of $9,946. The Vespa 946 2013 edition will consist of only 3,600 scooters worldwide, so it is definitely a limited edition scooter. In fact, the production of the 2013 lot in the Pontedera factory in Tuscany, Italy, will be terminated in November of 2013.

At the event, Piaggio Group Chairman and CEO Robert Colaninno said, "2013 has been a remarkable year for Vespa. The 946, an exclusive and elite product, is about to be joined by a completely new model to be launched at the EICMA motor show in Milan in early November. Given the style content of this second scooter, we've decided to give it a legendary name, one of the most significant in the history of the world's most famous scooter: Vespa Primavera."

Mr. Colaninno also stated, "The introduction of new models, all of them faithful to the original Vespa design, but implementing innovative style and technology, and the development of new industrial and commercial initiatives around the world are the secret of this exceptional brand's growing success over the years."

(see a short video of the event, below)

Piaggio Group worldwide Vespa sales in the first nine months of 2013 totalled more than 146,600 scooters, an increase of 21.3% from the 120,900 two-wheelers sold from January to September 2012. These figures are further confirmation of the extraordinary progress of the Vespa: from 2004, when sales totalled 58,000 scooters, the brand has grown to 100,000 shipments in 2006, 122,000 in 2009 and 165,000 Vespa scooters produced in 2012, a record that is about to be broken in 2013.

In the USA, marketing of the Vespa 946 will enhance the offer of the Piaggio Group Americas division, which, from its head office in New York, markets all the Piaggio Group brands in North, Central and South America. A benchmark player on the US scooter market with a 23.1% share, rising to 36.5% in the over 50cc segment, in the first nine months of 2013 Piaggio Group Americas reported aggregate sales for the Group brands of more than 13,300 vehicles in North America and South America, an improvement of 7.7% from the first nine months of 2012.

Besides its sales division, in the USA the Piaggio Group also has an R&D centre, set up on the West Coast in 2012. The Piaggio Group Advanced Design Centre in Pasadena (California) operates closely with the Piaggio Group Style Centre in Pontedera and the Group R&D centres in Italy, China, India and Vietnam. Its mission is not only to work at the cutting edge of design, but also to follow key research projects in urban mobility technology, with a special focus on engines with low or zero emissions and use of alternative forms of energy.

The international development of the Piaggio Group’s industrial, commercial and research operations is at the basis of the important award Roberto Colaninno received in Washington DC at the 38th Anniversary Gala of the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF), on October 26, 2013. The Piaggio Group Chairman and CEO was one of the Italian and Italo-American honorees at the ceremony organised in the US capital – where other recipients included the former CIA director and US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta – where he received the “NIAF Special Achievement Award in International Business”.

- Information for this article was obtained from Piaggio Group's online press release.

PLEASE HELP FUND "THE SCOOTER DIARIES"!

A scooterists favorite dream: to hop on your scooter, grab your significant other, then ride off into the sunset on a long, long adventure to far away places you've never been before. This is a dream that most scooterists do have, yet few ever actually do.

Well, in November of 1959, one scooterist, named Ron Bowman, actually did. All the way from Canada to South America.

And he did it on a 150cc Series I Lambretta.

Insane.

Add to the fact that once he got to Mexico City, his soon-to-be-wife joined him on the back of his scooter for this epic journey, and a lot of folks in 1959 probably thought they both should have been committed.

A fantastic photo of Ron and Tove taken along the road to Managua, which we didn't know existed until recently. (February 25, 1960, Nicaragua)

But, this type of an epic journey probably came along with a bunch of great stories. And it did. And now, Ron's son, Gordon Bowman, is trying to get all of the stories related to this romantic and fun adventure published for everyone to enjoy.

But he needs a little help.

He is using the project funding website, Kickstarter, as a way to raise enough cash to be able to publish his Mom and Dad's story of a ride to South America.

But, he's only got until October 20th, 2013, to try and raise enough money. That's the way Kickstarter works: if the funding for a project does not reach it's goal, it does not get funded.

So, I am encouraging every scooterist reading this to throw a donation his way. I, for one, would love to read all of their stories. I'm sure it would be a very fun, and relatable, read to all of us who ride two wheels, whether on a scooter or a motorcycle.

Ron Bowman passed away in 2004. But it's nice to know that his son, Gordon, has been fighting ever since, to get his mom and dad's adventure filled story to all of us. If you can, please fund Ron's story.

Click here for the link to Gordon's Kickstarter campaign, and a cool description of how he came up with the idea to do the book.

Click here for a few excerpts from the book.

AMERIVESPA 2013

The end of June saw AMERIVESPA hit the West Coast again for the first time in over a decade. San Diego was a great choice for the scootering weekend, which happened June 27-30. Here is one of the "official" write-ups for the event:

Amerivespa Mexico Ride, w/ SBSC member, Alex, in the middle

"The weather was perfect in sunny San Diego for this year’s Amerivespa. An estimated 2,000 Vespa and scooter enthusiasts invaded San Diego for VCOA’s annual scooter celebration. Over the four day event six scooters were raffled off in addition to many other prizes donated from our sponsors.

Thursday’s highlight was the evening meet and greet at Vespa Motorsport, the local Vespa shop and co-sponsor of Amerivespa. About 500 early arrivers enjoyed food, drinks and an art show and a raffle which featured a custom Vespa LX150 to one lucky recipient, Rich Glass of Vespa Club Los Gatos.

Every day would start out with a choice of rides that were led by local scooter clubs. The highlighted ride was the Friday ride across the Mexican border to the seaside town of Puerto Nuevo. It was only a 140 mile round trip, but ended up as an all-day venture as the return trip back across the border to the USA was a slow checkpoint for every scooter. The heat rose to close to 100 degrees, but everyone made it back and checked off “Scooter Ride in Mexico” off their bucket list.

Friday was also the start of the two day vendor show with many of the local and national brands exhibiting their products replete with plenty of giveaways. The show would end on Saturday with the traditional scooter concourse and gymkhana. In the evening, a concert and dance at Town and Country Resort was headlined by the English Beat who provided some great music to dance the night away.

Saturday, the vendor show and concours de elegance continued with the most attendees visiting on the weekend. Our Saturday evening awards and dinner banquet featured a fashion show, stand-up comedy by former owner of NOHO scooters, Mike Frankovich, two scooters raffled and music from the Inciters. Mike Bobadilla announced that he was resigning as president of VCOA and that the new president would be Jac Carolan from New Orleans.

Sunday the final ride was to Paradise Point for our closing raffle and BBQ. Our party was curtailed quickly by the park rangers who called in the local police for reinforcements. It seems someone forgot to secure permits. “Oops!” We were asked to leave the grounds. No problem. Everyone got back on their scoots and reconvened at Vespa Motorsport. Our version of a moveable feast moved quickly to our improvised location. The final BBQ and raffle was completed and another Amerivespa was completed. Next year Amerivespa returns to New Orleans. Hope to see you there!"

For the "official" pics from AMERIVESPA, click this link.

Vespa 946 Pricing and Release Date Announced

As reported on ScooterFile.com, by Eric Almendral, the pricing and release date of the much anticipated Vespa 946 has been announced.

Much has been said and debated about this model (including whether or not it will be 125cc or 150cc in the U.S.), but, basically here is the lowdown:

• It will have a MSRP of $9,946 (quaint, matching the price with the model designation, right? right....)
• It will be released here in the USA in November of this year (June release date for Europe)
• It will be the first scoot to feature both ABS and ASR traction control
• It will come with aluminum side panels and front fender (instead of plastic)
• It will have the new 3V injected engine

It seems that all indications are now pointing to this being a limited edition run, specialty scooter, as it is not expected to replace the LX model line. A new LX, or other mid-size scooter model, is supposed to be coming out, and may be revealed this coming Fall.

Guardian, Astonishing Steampunk Vespa by Pulsar Projects [Photo Gallery]

Vespa scooters are a milestone in the 2-wheeled world with their iconic design which is as simple as it is unmistakeable. However, their classic attire can be transformed into something new, with a character so striking and unique that it really makes us gape in awe. And the Guardian, Pulsar Projects' steampunk Vespa is such a scooter.

Created by sculptor Cris Cofitis, the Guardian is anything but the Vespa we expected. With a painstaking care for the minute details, Cris has managed to create a scooter which resembles more to a sculpture on wheels.

What's even more striking is the fact that Cris Cofitis was able to retain all the vintage character of the Vespa, with its massive apron and fat side covers, while at the same time leaving absolutely no part unmodified.

This steampunk bonanza is even more alluring because of all the stylish details: far from simply loading all sorts of brushed metal parts and bolts on the basic scooter, Cris has made full use of his expertise as a fashion designer to carefully trim everything into place, maintaining a wonderful balance between art and mechanics.

Original source: the autoevolution website.

Click on the thumbnails below for larger images.

Piaggio Aims to Sell 100,000 Vespas a Year in India

So far Piaggio only sells the Vespa LX125 in India, and this automatic transmission scooter is quite expensive in comparison to other similar vehicles. That's why we (and Indian customers) will most likely see more models rolling out from the Vespa factories.

Ravi Chopra, chairman and MD for Piaggio Vehicles hints that the company is looking for way to increase the sales figures up to the 100,000 bar. The production capacity is now 150,000 units a year, but Ravi Chopra hopes to see it growing by October.

At the same time, new variations of the Vespa scooter are being considered, a sporty one and a more widespread presence of disc brake-equipped vehicles being only some of the objectives.

Considering that only 25,000 Vespas sold since the LX125 was launched in India (April 2012), these plans may seem a bit too confident, but considering the immense Indian market, we might see an interesting development in this direction

Original source: the autoevolution website

NoHo Scooters' Post-Mortem

NoHo Scooters had their farewell party, sale & ride last Saturday, December 15th, 2012. If you recall, we posted owner Mike Frankovich's "going-out-of-business" statement in the last blog post. We all bid a fond farewell to NoHo Scooters last Saturday, by showing up sometime between 1-5pm.

There was free pizza, chips, soda, as well as some pretty good deals on some of the last remaining articles in the shop. I saw a couple of people getting some good deals on scooters, in fact, while I was there. A lot of people from the scooter scene showed up to say goodbye to NoHo throughout the day.

You can view some pictures by clicking here and here.

All in all, it was a nice sendoff, followed by one last Holiday ride, led by Eric and Justin of the Los Angeles Scooter Group.

Of interesting note:
The mechanics, who formed NoHo Scooters' Service Department, said that they will be staying open, even though Noho Scooters is going to close this month. "SCOOTER SERVICE" scooter repair shop will stay open in the alley behind NoHo Scooters' old location. Mechanics Greasy, Jano & Junior will continue to service scooters in the old NoHo Scooters' service bay for the next few months, until the building they are in is leased. In the meantime, they will be looking for a more permanent location - details will be announced in this BLOG when that happens. Their PHONE NUMBER is (818) 861-4640; SCOOTER SERVICE is behind 5144 Vineland Ave., North Hollywood, CA (in the alley off of Vineyard and Harstock St.).

NoHo Scooters to close - Dec, 2012!!!

BREAKING NEWS: NOHO SCOOTERS IS CLOSING!  :(

From Mike Frankovich, owner of NoHo Scooters, on 11/28/12:

"It is with great sadness that I must announce the closing of NoHo Scooters at the end of the year. I started the business with my father back in 2002. I kept the shop open through good and bad times including the death of my father in 2007. We have been LA’s premier scooter shop and have had the pleasure of representing many great brands. Our support of the local scooter scene and the LA Scooter Group has been a highlight of the past ten years. We have had the best customers, many of whom have become great friends. I’m not going to go into the reasons for the shop’s closure, as there are many. I don’t consider it a failure, as it has been a great pleasure taking care of the scooter riding public in Los Angeles. It has not been an easy decision to close, but I know now that it is the right decision.

Effective immediately we will no longer take in any service or repair work beyond a quick service, tire change, brakes, etc. Anything beyond that will be sent to Route 66 Riders in Marina Del Rey, as they are a dealer for all the same makes as us (except Kymco). We are going to keep the service department open as long as we can to get existing larger jobs finished. We still have an inventory of new and pre-owned scooters and motorcycles, which will be part of a blowout sale beginning today. Out of respect of other dealers in the area, I will not be advertising our sale prices.

On Saturday December 15th, we will be having a going out of business party. Our annual Holiday Lights Ride will take place after closing at 6PM. Our last day of operation for the showroom, and service drop-offs will be Saturday, December 22nd. We will keep the service department open the following week to get existing work finished. Thank you once again to all of our great customers and friends for the past ten years. I’m sure I will see you on a scooter ride in the future."

Editor's note: Sad to hear. As one of the centers of the LA scootering community, NoHo will definitely be missed! Wishing Mike, and everyone who works at NoHo, the best of luck with everything.

New Vespa 946 production progress!

(Please note: new info added towards the bottom of this post)

So, it seems that the new Vespa 946 is definitely getting closer to becoming a real production model! From the 2012 EICMA show in Milan, Motoblog.it is showing a new promo picture where the supposed 946 model has clearly been fitted with the accessories one would expect from a street production model. Items that were missing from last year's prototype, that are now on this pre-launch version, seem to include the controls, center stand, turn signals and mirrors.

I would have thought they would have gotten rid of that new seat, in favor of one like the one on the current LX150's, including under seat storage space, but that doesn't seem to be the case... Maybe it will be different on the one that actually comes out next year? And, I'm not really a big fan of the new handlebars that house the mirrors. They look really cheap and plastic and, dare I say, even Chinese made...! Liked the prototype version a lot more (see previous post below).

Anyway, here is the new picture (click on the image below for a larger picture), as well as the translated text, from the Motoblog.it website:

Preview Vespa 946 2013 

At the 70th edition of the International Motorcycle Show in Milan (EICMA 2012) will make its official debut the new Vespa 946 anticipated in last year's show in Milan. Vespa 946 is inspired directly to the head of the history of the scooter most famous and popular in the world, the MP6 prototype, first embryo from which the Vespa was born in the spring after the war, the most famous scooter in the world, unsurpassed example of style and Italian creativity. 

Distilling the purest essence of those traits that marked forever the aesthetics of individual mobility, the Pontedera Style Centre projects for sale in a new generation in which tradition and innovation come together beautifully. The masterful build quality and nobility of the materials used differ Vespa 946 from any other two-wheelers. The use of aluminum contributes, as well as the definition of a stunning aesthetics, the greater lightness and therefore to an increase of the energy efficiency. 

The heart of the Vespa 946 is a modern engine that reveals the lines of development of the engine near future, characterized by reduced consumption (more than 55 km per liter), and removal of gaseous and noise emissions (-30% emissions). The single cylinder 125 cc four-stroke, 3-valve, air-cooled and powered by electronic injection represents the state of the art technology of the Piaggio Group in engines for scooters. 

The Vespa brand, in the first nine months of 2012, confirming the steady growth of its sales in the world - more than tripled from 2003 to 2011, from about 50,000 to more than 150,000 last year - amounting to approximately 121,000 units sold from January to September 2012.

NEW INFO (updated 11/12/2012):

Tech Specs:

For the first time, Vespa is moving away from its steel body to an aluminum alloy for reduced weight and improved fuel economy. Another first for Vespa is the horizontally-mounted rear shock absorber which also features four adjustable preload positions. Like other new Piaggio-family scooters such as the Aprilia SRV 850 and Piaggio BV350, the Vespa 946 comes equipped with ABS and traction control. Other modern touches include LED lighting and LCD display.

Powering the 946 is Piaggio’s fuel-injected three-valve 125cc air-cooled single cylinder engine which was introduced in 2012 on the LX and S. Low friction components and the three-valve timing system help improve efficiency. According to Piaggio, the engine increases maximum power by 7.1% to 11.4 hp at 8250rpm and torque by 10.3% to 7.9 ft-lb. at 6500 rpm, compared to previous 125cc engines. The fuel economy improvement is even more impressive with Piaggio claiming a 30% increase to 129.4 mpg at a speed of 31 mph. Maintenance intervals were also lengthened to every 10,000 km (6,213 miles).

Piaggio presented the prototype at its North American dealer meeting, saying the Vespa 946 will be imported to these shores. The word now is that it will not come to the United States until the 1st Quarter of 2014.

Pricing:

Piaggio has announced that when it introduces the 946 in Europe, in the summer of 2013, it will be priced at around 8,000 Euros. That currently translates to around $10,000 in US Dollars!! Yikes! Kinda high for a 150cc scooter. It will more likely be priced between $5500 and $7500 here in the US (I am thinking), but it will still be a probably high priced item, especially since it will more than likely be a limited production run model.

NEW INFO (updated 11/14/2012):

Check out this new publicity video, showing all the angles of the new Vespa 946 model (with added audio track):


 


NEW INFO (updated 11/17/2012):

And here are new publicity pictures of the Vespa 946, showing the initial two color combinations it will be offered in: White, with red seat and handlebar grips, and Black, with gray seat and handlebar grips. Again, it is now expected to come to the USA in the 1st Quarter of 2014, so start saving your pennies.