VESPA MOTORSPORT 3955 Pacific Hwy. San Diego, CA 92110 For the largest selection of parts and accessories in North America, please visit our website: WWW.SCOOTERWEST.COM Thanks for viewing!
I am the proud owner of a 2009 Genuine Stella. I get complaints from people saying it's not a "real Vespa" IMO, that's just a technicality. It is pretty much the same as a Vespa PX150. 99% of the parts are interchangeable. A "real" Vespa P series engine will bolt right in. The frame is heavy and rock solid. I weigh 240, and I NEVER get on it with it on the centerstand. I always push it off the centerstand before getting on. A few years ago I had to replace the stator, and at that time I removed the electric starter and put it in a box in the closet. I have been told they are failure prone, they are super expensive, and the Stella is super easy to kickstart, even with your hand. I got rid of my turn signal beeper. They will kickstart and run without the battery, but the lights will not work at low rpms. With either a "real" 2 stroke manual shift Vespa or a Stella, it does take some practice leaving a stop. Because of the extreme rear weight bias and the very light front end, If you give it a bit too much throttle and let the clutch out a bit too fast, it will take off with the front wheel in the air. I did that a few times when I first got mine. It you try too hard to avoid that, you will stall it. The sweet spot is right between the two extremes. The Vespa /Stella can be short shifted, they don't have a huge gap between the gears. You can take off in second gear by slipping the clutch just a little and giving it a bit more throttle, not that I recommend doing that. First gear runs out very fast, you will need to shift in the middle of an intersection. Yes the shifting is a bit clunky, and I love it. It has that crude, primitive mechanical feel. A very visceral riding experience. It's an actual MACHINE. My fuel gauge no longer functions. The needle can be all over the place. I don't need a fuel gauge, I go by the odometer. I could replace it, but I don't really have a reason. Stay away from the 4 stroke Stella. Not only are they junk, and impossible to get parts for, they defeat the whole reason for owning/riding a 2 stroke scooter. I do recommend replacing the exhaust on the Stella with a Vespa exhaust, the Stella came with a catalytic converter in the exhaust, which not only kills power, but will plug up right away, and can even damage the engine. You may need to rejet the carburetor when you do that.
Hi. I inherited a Piaggio that looks just like the one in the video. It works, but, only with kick start. I have one question that hopefully you or someone here may know the answer. The glove box on mine have one of the two hinges, not broken, but, separated from the 3 dots of what I guess was a welding of some sort. I don’t know how to fix it. Would normal welding work? Or putting screws? I’m uncertain because both would change the original configuration. Is that even important? The other question is if it’s worthy to try to keep it, maybe restore it someday?? Or as I read in your comment, just ignore the problems and just use it as is. Thanks in advance if you take the time to respond.
@@GnarledSage Ok, yes, I see what you mean. My Stella has three "spot welds" sometimes called "plug welds" that hold each hinge to the glove box door, in a triangle pattern. You can see them on the hinge, but not on the front of the door. There is no way to reweld them without ruining the paint, and even then it would require a really good welder to weld such thin metal. I have never been able to weld anything that thin without burning through it. It might be possible to use an epoxy, like JBWeld, or just drill out the three broken welds and attach the door to the hinge with small screws, nuts, and washers. That's probably what I would do. If it was made by Piaggio, and looks like the scooter in the video, it is a P series Vespa. Yes it is worth keeping and restoring, or at least keep it running. A lot of people like older Vespas with some "patina" (the weathered look) Nobody makes manual shift 2 strokes anymore, so they are becoming more and more rare and hard to find. Prices are going up. And the best part is, 99% of the parts are still available. The PX150 was sold in some countries up until about 3 years ago.
@@geraldscott4302Yes, the hinge is with those 3 spot welds (now I know how to call them. Thanks 😂). I guess that weld can be only done in the fabric or with some specialized tool. I guess the best option is to drill them and use some screws then. You gave me an idea of the model, at least now I can search with the reference you said. And also made me think better of the bike. I liked because it was a Vespa, but, wasn’t sure if it was a waste of time to even keep it. I’ll try to fix as much as I can, but, sadly I guess that I some point I will have to paint it. It has some bad spots on the removable parts of the sides. I know with antique things is best to keep the original paint, but, it doesn’t look good as it is right now. Thank you very much for replying.
Owned many Vespa px and T5s and LMLs over the years... Much prefer them to the modern Vespa's, only because I find them more comfortable and like a geared bike. It would be awesome if a new vespa came with grears but I guess that will never happen 🤷♂️ enjoyed watching this post.👍.... Harry 😎
I'd say one of the hardest bikes to "ride well" that a rider is ever likely to experience... Everyone should try and have a go at least once. They're idiosyncratic in every way imaginable. They require lots of patience and on-board time to get the hang of them... I've had 4 all up Vepa and LML's, used most of them as daily transport. It's not until you reintroduce yourself to modern Vespa where you REALLY appreciate a twist and go for busy modern cities 😁. Nevertheless they are strangely appealing and if you choose one, have fun, it sure will fulfil all your quirky, loud, characterful and antiquated needs and wants 😊.
Late PX-es doesnt have a reserve position of the fuel lever, it's just on and off. If you turn this lever 12 o'clock you' ll run out of gas pretty quickly, when your carbueratter will dry out. I found that myself, after one old LML owner told me that I'm doing all wrong on my 2013 PX, and turned that thing in up position.
Yup. When I got my PX I couldn't get it to start. I thought I got ripped off as I bought the bike from the net unseen. Started taking things apart. After doing some research I found that the lever has to be all the way to the right.
I'm from SD living in Japan now. I bought a newer px200. Maybe the last year made. I had a rally back home and a small frame. When I got my PX I couldn't get it to start and sat there for a few hours wondering why. The gas tap on the newer bikes have to be all the way to left to turn it on. I guess the US market ones are different.
3:24 i know this video was from while ago, but i was wondering if there's any way i can avoid adding more to stroke oil from happening because i plan on putting a cylinder kit and new exhaust pipe on my stella
I just got an old Vespa that has been on the family for a while. From what I know is from the 90s, but, I haven’t been able to find the exact model. I’m in Colombia so the models that got here are not the usual ones. After watching many videos (quite a lot of them from your channel), I finally see a bike that is almost the same as the one I have. Mine doesn’t say Stella anywhere, it says Piaggio, in the center board if I remember correctly it says “bertroli”. I put oil and gas and it started fine with a few kicks, I guess the battery is dead since nothing else works, besides the frontal light (that thanks to your video, now I know that it’s independent from the battery). The bike works, but, it’s in a bad shape. Is it worthy to fix it? Or zits best to just use it as is, with a basic maintenance. It’s not easy to find parts here and it would probably be way to expensive to restore it. Any suggestions is appreciated. I’m not sure what to do, and I’m also not in the best place money wise. I thought about fox some things myself, but, after watching your videos it seems that is not an ash task, and that it requires a lot of tools, knowledge and experience to even try it. Another thing is if there’s is something that I can look to find out what model do I have. Thanks in advance for any reply.
Congratulations for the excellent work you do, I would like to ask you, I have a vespa, px mod 1997 and the first time during the day I put it on, as soon as I click the first gear it goes out, as soon as I put it on there is no problem. Where could this be due to? Thanks in advance!
When did the PX vespa become a classic😂 Only decent vespa were the small frame vespas. They sell PX’s at supermarkets they are usually called shoping carts😅
In the UK, P range Vespas were the mainstay of scooter rallies from the late 70's onwards. Some of those machines are now over 40 years old. That makes them a classic. Small frame vespas were no good for long distance, 2 up.
@@alfretonred my vespa primavera with galaxy exhaust / five plate clutch used to leave the standard PX standing going to Morcambe in the 80's. apparently the five plate clutch was not invented then , Len Turners scooters sold them 😀 when i got on a kitted large frame i thought it was broke😀 Only decent large frame was the T5, my mates small frame was a ETS which did 70mph as standard....fact My Lambretta is reed valved , kytronic and loads of other nonsense....all fettled by my self. And i have a proper Nothern soul collectoin from proper alnighters...........................keep the change😀
@@Zacky12345 Fair play if you are knowledgable and have the facilities to tune a small frame Vespa but not everyone then was, or is now, bothered about tuning. Nor bothered about Northern Soul. You probably overtook me going to Morcambe but I didn't know we were racing. The last point I'll make is,, I like all scooters and there was no need for your "shopping cart" remark.
