The art of the Vespa: Celebrating 76 years of an Italian classic
When I was growing up in Dhaka in the '60s, my downstairs neighbour was one Mr Patrick Whitbread and his wife.
Mr Whitbread used to work in Adamjee Jute Mills and like clockwork, every morning at 6:30, he would wheel out his blue Vespa VBB to the lawn and kick it to life. Blue smoke filled the air as he sat astride his scooter in his impeccable suit ready to leave for office. His missus would give him a peck on the cheek and he would shift to 1st gear with a thunk and pass through the gate gaining speed with the rising whine typical of the two-stroke Vespas.
As two-wheelers go, this one doesn't have the crowd-pleasing features that one is used to seeing on the roads today. It doesn't have the wide 18 inch tyres of the growling beasts that weave in and out of the maddening Dhaka traffic, rather these ride serenely on two ten-inch by 4 inch tyres, in old-fashioned terms, some of the even older ones ride on mere eight-inch tyres. No angular fibreglass body kits and anthropomorphic headlights are bolted on to the basic body to put on the kind of feral, aggressive look to give them a marketing edge these days. Rather its pleasingly curved, almost sensual, pressed steel monocoque body does not look outdated. And even after 76 years, these two-wheelers have been zipping people around the globe. It is as popular as ever to a set of select people who adore the timeless style, name value, reliability and camaraderie from the other users.
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A simple 150CC, single-cylinder two-stroke engine powers it pretty adequately, it does not have disc brakes, but its drum brakes are more than enough to stop on a dime, and the hydraulic suspensions keep the rider shielded from the shocks and bumps of the road just fine.
Vespa is one of the most enduring cultural icons, maybe after the pizza, to have come out of Italy that has given the world such art, fashion and glamour icons like Da Vinci, Ferrari, Armani, Mastroianni, and Sophia Loren.
Who can forget the exhilarating chase scenes from the movie Roman Holiday where Gregory Peck, a down and out correspondent posted in Rome whisks away the bored princess Audrey Hepburn from her staid minders for a weekend of short-lived freedom, on a Vespa! After the movie became a hit the Vespa also achieved a cult status that exists still today. There have been many imitators from Japan, China, India, and Taiwan producing similar looking two-wheelers, popularly known as scooters, but there is only one Vespa that quickens the heart and gets the blood racing in the veins of a true Vespa aficionado.
The buzz of a Vespa
The Vespa was born in post-World War II in Italy, 1946 to be exact. Designed by Corradino D'Ascanio directed by Piaggio boss Enrico Piaggio who felt the Italians needed a cheap two-wheeler to move around on the war devastated Italy and roads of poor condition.
The first prototype had the now-classic Italian conceived curves, narrow waist, and a smoothly rounded behind. The high-note emitted from the engine sounded like the angry buzz from a wasp, its handlebars looked like the antennae of the insect and it was named the Vespa, Italian for a wasp. It became so popular that within 11 years, in 1956, Vespa sold its one millionth unit.
The Vespa has gone through many upgrades in its engine and brakes since the first model. There are models with 300CC water-cooled engines and disk brakes. Modern models have automatic transmission– no need to twist the left handlebar while pulling on the clutch lever and hearing and feeling the solid assurance of the 1st gear engaging with a thunk.
Most popular models now have 125 and 150 CC engines. The illogical limit on engine capacity here bars the import of the higher capacity Vespas. Gone are the days of the oil-burning, blue smoke emitting, high whine engines. All Vespa engines are now four-stroke conforming to strict European emission control standards. An electric model has also hit the market but it is still not available in Dhaka, but maybe one day.
Most vintage Vespas that still roam the streets of Dhaka do have the smoke-emitting two-stroke engines. There are a few four-strokes among the vintages as well but they are few and far between.
The founder of one of the largest business conglomerates, Akij Group, in Bangladesh, Sheikh Akij Uddin used a Vespa VBB in his early days to run around in pursuit of business. He did not forget his trusted Vespa even when became a billionaire. Until recently, that same Vespa was on permanent display in the centre of the entrance lobby of the Akij Group corporate house in Dhaka. A Vespa can kindle such loyalty in its owner's heart.
Is it as fun as they claim?
While Japanese brands, though mostly made in India, and other Indian makes are the commonest scooters on the streets now, Piaggio made Vespas were a popular street ride in the 1960s in Dhaka. One could easily identify an approaching Vespa from its distinct high pitched whine of the two-stroke engine. When it passed by, its oil burning exhaust left a lingering blue pall in the air. The world was not woke to the environmental impact of the burnt oil so nobody batted an eye. Those Vespas did not even have a battery for the horn and so the pitch of it went up and down as the flywheel alternator speed varied with the engine speed. Most Vespas were painted in the typical Vespa blue in those days with a few white ones breaking the monotony.
New Vespa imports dropped in the early to mid-nineteen seventies but picked up again in the late seventies when LML of India started to make the NV Vespas. Bajaj was also making their own version in the Chetak and quite a few Vespa hit the street in those years. A brand new LML Vespa NV cost Tk40,000 in the 1980s. When LML and Piaggio ended their Vespa production agreement in 1999, import of new Vespas petered out. The vintage Vespas one sees on the streets now are the last remaining LML made Vespas. Lately, Vespa itself is producing the latest models in India and a local assembler is marketing them here but the cost has gone up at least five times than that of the Vespa NV from the 1980.
Many suit-wearing men preferred to ride the Vespa in those days. The all-steel, semi-enclosed body would protect their clothes against the mud and dust of the tropical weather. Indeed, there is an event now-a-days – Distinguished Gentleman's ride – organised all around the world where the riders don their sartorial best and go on rides together displaying a certain sophisticated air with three-piece suits, scarfs and golfer's caps. Their well-trimmed whiskers and moustaches upturned at the end with wax certainly make them look "distinguished".
Several Vespa riders' clubs in Bangladesh organise this special event as well in addition to frequent rides out together.
Can you make a vintage Vespa your daily ride?
How do the vintage Vespa riders feel about their passion for this Italian masterpiece? It is certainly not a modern scooter compared to the current technologies that dominate the two-wheeler market now. Even if one is being charitable, it can't be said Its look is contemporary. Its engine is carburetted, not the electronic fuel injected ones available in the latest brands and versions. Moreover, the two-stroke engine has its distinctive tang-tang-tang exhaust note when idling, something that is often irksome to others, and the smoky exhaust makes others raise their eyebrows nowadays.
But the vintage Vespa owner could not be more happy with what they have. That metallic exhaust note is music to their ears.
No matter, it does not top out at 120kmh, or the 2T mixing oil is not readily available, and the atrocious mileage that would bring tears to the eyes of any daily rider, the vintage owner is the happiest when he is out on the road with his "baby". Yes there can be annoying breakdowns without any warning because the instrument panel is basic and most often non-functional. But the issues are simple. The commonest seems to be a broken gear cable or clutch cable. Or something a quick cleaning of the spark plug would not fix. Spare parts are aplenty. Just go to Bangshal. There are several shops that exclusively carry parts for Vespas. Tyres are no problem at all. If one needs some mechanical fixes, there are a number of Vespa mechanics sprinkled across the city who are known as the "wizards" to the vintage lovers. A common sight on any Friday morning at these workshops is the throng of vintage Vespas waiting to be serviced. The customers are old-timers who have been patronising these workshops for decades. And one would be struck by the easy camaraderie among the riders. Many belong to the same Vespa club and go on rides together. And that's why, there is this saying among the Vespa lovers: If you've never owned one, you'll never understand.
They may belong to one of the many clubs like the Vespa Club Bangladesh, or the Chittagong Vespa Club, or Bangladesh Vespa Community, to name a few. The clubs count their members in the tens of thousands. Each club has a very active social media page with many members and they keep in touch there all the time. If anyone has any trouble on the road, a quick post on the page can bring in help shortly, as the posts attest.
They would also love to decorate their Vespas but the law does not allow them to affix any extra lights or make any other modifications, which is a shame! Because the British Vintage Vespa scene is full of fantastic mods.
How do you mod a Vespa
When the first Vespas hit the British market, it was a perfect time for mods. The fad-driven rapidly changing youth culture was looking for something easy and cheap and the Vespa was the perfect choice. It was cheaper than cars, and allowed them to go home from concerts and clubs after public transportation had stopped running for the night. They loved to customise their Vespas with lots of chrome, extra rear view mirrors – lots and lots of them, and footrests.
While the Mods started to move on by the mid-60s, Vespas began to enter the mainstream. British TV and movie stars wanted to project the "hip" Mod image, and they took to riding Vespas on screen and off, in advertisements for the latest model and promoting Vespa contests. American celebrities would not be left behind- stars like Gregory Peck, Henry Fonda and Audrey Hepburn were pictured on Vespas. Once Vespas were associated with celebrities, their popularity spread worldwide.
Vintage riders in this country console themselves with painting the bikes fresh every few years while others love the "patina" of age on theirs. Imported high performance parts are also loved by those who can get their hands on them.
More than 70 years after they were created, Vespas still inspire a devoted following among an international scooter-loving subculture. Vintage Vespas and retro remakes are lined up for club meetings, day-long rides and even long-distance runs. Niche magazines cater to the Vespa enthusiast, and decades-old scooters are sent to restoration experts to be returned to their original glory.
Viva la Vespa!
