Description
This vhehicle will be sold at the Bonhams|Cars Zoute Sale on Sunday 12 October? Desirable early Faro Basso model? Rare matching scooter/ sidecar combination? Engine and transmission rebuilt in 2018 (bills available)? Virtually impossible to find in this stunning condition? Comes with Belgium registrationAlong with the rival Lambretta, the Piaggio-built Vespa mobilised an entire generation of Italians in the immediate post-war years; the hitherto humble scooter going on to become part of youth culture in the 1960s as favourite transport of the fashion conscious Mods. The name 'Vespa' (wasp) is said to have been inspired by the buzzing sound made by its single-cylinder two-stroke engine. "Just like Henry Ford put the workers on wheels in America," company boss Enrico Piaggio told Newsweek, "we put automotive transport within the reach of people who never expected to travel that way." The first step towards the Vespa was taken in 1944 when Piaggio engineers Renzo Spolti and Vittorio Casini designed a motorcycle with enclosed bodywork: the MP5. Disappointed with the result, Enrico Piaggio commissioned aeronautical engineer Corradino D'Ascanio to come up with something better. That something was the Vespa. Since its introduction in 1946, millions have been made and countless different versions come and gone, yet the Vespa of today remains recognisably related to the first one made some 70 years ago. Classic? Most definitely. This Vespa Faro Basso (low headlight) model is the same as that used in the 1953 movie Roman Holiday starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck, which brought the Vespa scooter - hitherto little known outside its native Italy - to the attention of a wider world. This model has partly aluminium bodywork, unlike later Vespas. This rare and beautifully presented Vespa scooter benefits from a comprehensive overhaul of the engine and transmission, undertaken in 2018, and as a result is said to be in excellent condition and very nice to ride. The matching sidecar too is described as in excellent condition. Such a combination is extremely rare and virtually impossible to find in this stunning condition. Homologated for use on the road, this charming early Vespa is offered with an original tool kit and invoices relating to the aforementioned rebuild totalling over ?2, 750.
