OUCH!! It hurts my eyes it's so wrong!!During my travels around the web over the past few years I've come across many references to Asian imported Vespa's and the massive market they are filling in the USA, Europe and also Australia.
Vespa's by definition are of course original italians but what the fine print should say is, "Yes, 40 years ago it was indeed all original but has since then has had a very hard life in Asia and is now made up of so many after market and home made parts it's probably not a Vespa anymore but an ugly, tacky copy that could well kill you when it snaps in half at 80kph."
There are some tell tale signs you can look for to help you determine whether you might be riding a Vietscoot or Frankenscoot as they are commonly called in the scooter fraternity.
Some easy to spot issues, 2 tone paintwork and matching 2 tone seats, front legshield gloveboxes, coloured rubber trim, chunky chrome side panel bling, 10" conversions on 8" models, yellow tacky rubber stand feet, headlights on mudguards (some old french ACMA models had them, as well as the very early italian vespa's but they are way too rare to be selling for $3999 out of Ho Chi Minh City!)
These death traps are often full of bog or "Bondo" and are a far cry from anything you could call original.
An old Vespa should cost you no more than about $3000-$4500 for a very good local restoration. If it's from Asia it should be cheaper as in my experiences acting as a broker, a "landed" classic scooter in fully "restored" condition costs about $2500, rarely more.
Do your homework first, find something local and save yourself the heartache!
This is a good source of information for anyone wanting to know more about Asian Restored Scooters. It's from "scoot net".
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