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Piaggio Vespa

by Andrew Pattle

Take a look at this picture:

1964 Vespa moped

A scooter?  What's a scooter doing in Buzzing?  Now take a closer look (well, don't look too closely at the front wheel because I drew that; the rest of the machine is alright though).  No, this isn't a scooter, it's a moped.  This Vespa doesn't have foot boards but pedals.  This 1964 model with its 50cc engine was obviously aimed at the younger rider about to buy a first machine.  In many countries in mainland Europe, a machine of this sort would be exempt from most of the licensing requirements that a 'proper scooter' would have to adhere to.  I don't know much more than that about it.  They were not marketed in the UK but must have been reasonably popular in other countries.  In France for example, Motobécane perceived it as enough of a threat to produce a rival machine - only a prototype though, it never made it into production.


First published - October 1995


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