Presentation of the scooter Vespa

The model Vespa 98cc Series I is presented to the public at Golf-Club from Rome in April 1946. Features of the models are a cast iron horizontal cylinder 2 stroke engine, baffled piston and forced air cooling. The exact displacement is 98 cc, hence the name.

The first scooter Vespa manufactured in 2 thousand copies the first year, has singular characteristics that distinguish it from other motorcycles. The wheels are fixed laterally (as with aircraft landing gear, presumably a legacy of the "aeronautical" origin of the Vespa (wasp in Italian)), which makes it easy to take them apart; the fork becomes a simple arm, which notably facilitates the changing of the inner tube and tyre. The motor is protected par the hull and is mounted directly on the rear wheel par the intermediary of the gearbox, which frees up a place for the feet at the front and makes it possible to protect the legs par a fairing (the transmission chain having been removed). The opposite rear wing allows the fitting of a small boot or the installation of a spare wheel.

Le Vespa 98 will allow Piaggio to be reborn from its ashes. VSar the reception from the public is such that Piaggio will constitute its own network and do without the network spear. At the end of 1949, it will be 35 thousand models sold to exceed 000 million models ten years later.

Drive a Vespa is not only an innovative choice for reasons of efficiency and low fuel consumption; it is rather an approach to life. Since the first campaigns of the brand in the 50s and 60s, Vespa makes us dream of escaping the daily routine, of reaching distant destinations and rediscovering contact with a clean, happy and living world.

The Vespa Clubs

In the aftermath are created the first Vespa Clubs, associations that bring together enthusiasts of Vespa for all kinds of events (walks, discussions, auctions, etc.). Following the creation of the first club in Italy, in Viareggio, in 1949, lovers of Vespa around the world were quick to follow suit: in 1952, a European union (five years before the Treaty of Rome!) of drivers of Vespa was born, bringing together Italian, French, German, Swiss, Dutch and Belgian clubs.

The latest edition of Vespa World Day was held in Interlaken (Switzerland) last June. More than 1,000 lovers of Vespa coming from 27 countries found themselves in Switzerland. The 2024 edition will be held in Italy, in Pontedera from April 18 to 21.