#elettrica

You really haven’t lived until you’ve been on back of a big-bore Vespa driven by a blissfully unaware person who just got her motorcycle license, pounding semi-floatingly over the expansion joints of an LA freeway at top speed on those tiny tires. Say, does the front end feel a bit light up there? No, that’s just our spirits, dear.

A new trademark filing for an “eSR1” logo may suggest an electric Aprilia scooter is on the way. The Aprilia eSR1 will likely share technology with another member of the Piaggio family, the Vespa Elettrica scooter.

The Electric Wasp. We were turned loose, a silent swarm of nocuous moto-journos descending upon the city, sneaking up on the unsuspecting fashion-forward folk of Milan, only to be seen as a flash of silver and blue as we sped by. An exaggeration? Possibly, but nevertheless, we were there to test Vespa’s 2019 Elettrica, and we wouldn’t stop until we had fully exhausted the scooter’s battery and our fellow commuter’s patience.

After first announcing the Vespa Elettrica project at EICMA a year ago, the electric Vespa is now ready for production, with Piaggio confirming it will be available worldwide, with orders being accepted in the spring.

“The Vespa Elettrica will, first and foremost, be a true Vespa, bringing the very latest in electric technology to a vehicle that will retain all the features that have been vital to its success. The style, agility, ease of use and riding pleasure will be the same as the Vespa we have always known, with the addition of technological and innovative connectivity solutions. A perfect mix of excitement, technology, and environmental friendliness that only Vespa can create. Like it has always done in its first seventy years of history.”