Shared Knowledge

 

“Vespa ET-4”

 

12 September 2005

Updated: 18 April 2006

Updated: 14 April 2007

 

 

 

 

I have a 2004 model year Vespa ET-4, which was given to me as a Christmas present by my wife. I now have a little over 3000 miles on it so I have ridden it a good bit and have done all the maintenance on it so far, so I know some about maintaining it.

 

If you are thinking of buying a scooter and are considering a Vespa or have a Vespa and want to start doing some of your own maintenance, consider what I share below:

 

-         I like the Vespa, especially because it has an automatic transmission. Nice around town not having to shift gears.

 

-         No, it is not a Harley and I cannot jackrabbit away from a traffic light but with me weighing in at 260 pounds, the ET-4 lets me run the speed limit, be it 55 or 65MPH. Yes, the scooter does slow down on significant inclines but so what. I have had the ET-4 to 70MPH and a little faster but it does not feel comfortable to me at that speed, I am not sure why.

 

-         The ride is good although the seat has little or no padding and after an hour or so, your bottom gets sore. I think there is a better seat available on the secondary market but am not sure.

 

-         The ET-4 I received as a Christmas present came with the rear “lift the rear end onto a stand” but no bicycle type kickstand. The kickstand, which the scooter is already pre-threaded for, apparently was an option on the ET-4. I ordered one and installed it and am glad I did. I do use the rear stand sometimes but if you are a small person, like my wife, I doubt that you will be able to hoist the rear end up on the rear stand and so you will want the kickstand installed before you take delivery.

 

-         Besides the kickstand, I have also installed a sissy bar so that my wife can ride on the back and have a back support and I have also installed the foot pegs so she has somewhere to place her feet when we ride together. Again, the scooter is predrilled and threaded to accept these options\upgrades.

 

-         As I am a big person, I found the mirrors, which came with the scooter, to not stick out far enough so I could easily see traffic behind me. I ordered chrome mirrors from an outfit in California over the Internet but they turned out to not stick out any further than the stock mirrors. Maybe the newer models have better mirrors. It is a problem I would like to solve but am not sure how to yet.

 

-         Changing oil and the oil filter is a much harder and a much messier job than it should be (perhaps Vespa has solved this problem on newer models). According to the shop manual, you are supposed to completely remove the muffler from the scooter and then use a 24mm socket or wrench on the large oil drain plug which is on the rider’s right side, directly behind the muffler. Could Vespa have put the oil drain plug in a harder location to get to? Anyway, I have found that if you do remove the bolts holding the muffler to the engine and frame and then loosen the 2 nuts holding the muffler to the exhaust manifold, you will be able to move the muffler out of the way enough to get a 24mm wrench on the drain plug and also get your hand in behind the muffler to hand unscrew the oil filter. Note that there is a small screen type filter inside the oil drain plug hole and it might fall out when you finally get the drain plug out.  If it falls out, make sure you reinsert it, open end towards you, back into the hole before putting the drain plug back in. Also note that I have yet to figure out a way to keep some oil from dripping down and not getting into my oil pan. Seems like the drain plug is so close to the rear kickstand it is impossible to really position a drain pan right under the plug to catch all the oil. Maybe you can come up with a good way of catching all the oil. The oil filter might be on tight to begin with but with a small oil filter wrench, you should be able to get it off. Once you have a new oil filter on and the drain plug tighten back up, you refill oil on the rider’s left side and the system takes exactly 1 US quart of oil with a filter change.

 

-         Changing the air filter is also harder than it should be. The air filter is located on the rider’s left side right up under the rear cowling. Bolts are used to hold the air filter cover in place and some nuts can be tough to get to but it can be done either from up under the outside or down through the hole under the seat after you remove the plastic carrying bucket, which is located there. Sometimes, rather than hassle trying to get my hand up under the cowling back there, I simply remove the lower piece of cowling which is only held one with 2 bolts.

 

-         Spark plug replacement is no different than the other 2 maintenance procedures already described. The plug sits at about a 30-degree angle to the centerline of the scooter, the wire attachment tip towards the front of the scooter but the plug tilted down into the head at about a 15-degree angle. It is pretty deep inside the hole under the seat and tough to get to and to get a spark plug wrench on but it is possible. Here, having hands, which can “see” really helps as taking the plug out and inserting a new one, really has to be done by feel. I have changed the plug one time and am not looking forward to the next change.  Also the plugs are strange and rare and not available at your local auto parts store. They carry a special “made for Vespa” number on them, which I have yet to find any sort of translation chart, which shows me what other “Champion” or other brand plug I could use. So far, I have bought plugs from a Vespa dealer although they have been out of them one or more times I have asked about acquiring spares to keep here in my garage.

 

-         Finally, the only other maintenance I have had to do is to adjust the rear drum brake cable several times. Oh, how I wish Vespa had installed a rotor and calipers on the rear wheel instead of the drum brake and cable. Anyway, there have been times when I went to squeeze down on the rear brake handle and there was just nothing there.  Adjustment of the rear brake cable is easy as the cable is threaded through 2 nuts and you simply loosen one nut, use a wrench to move the nut closest to the front of the scooter towards the front, spin the rear wheel up on the rear stand and then try the rear hand brake and see what you have. If the wheel spins freely when the hand brake is not applied but tights down nicely when the hand brake is applied, then simply wrench up the second nut until it is snug against the first nut so neither nut can move on the cable.

 

-   As I said above, I like the ET-4 but be aware that it does not like to start when the outside temperature is below about 45 degrees Fahrenheit. I have read that not wanting to start is common to all lean burn engines, of which, the ET-4 is one. (Updated 18 April 2006. Received an email from Paul DijKstra who suggests that the ET-4 is easier to start in cold weather by simply placing your left hand or a rag over the air intake duct located right under the very front bottom of the seat. By doing this and then turning over the engine, you will cut off air and make the gasoline to air mixture richer or with more gas. As it is now spring and have no problem starting the engine, I have not personally tried this method of cold weather starting, but makes every sense to me. Thanks Paul.)

 

-   The ET-4 has very small tires and thus the rider must pay attention to the road surface much more closely than when you are driving a car and probably a motorcycle. A pothole or loose gravel is a real danger on the ET-4 and I find the worst is parallel groves in the direction I am riding. If I do not watch out and allow the scooter to get into one of these grooves it feels like it is stuck in there and wobbles the scooter to the point of scaring you.

 

-    Update 25 April 2007. Went to start up ET-4 after its long winter's nap and battery was dead. Charged it but will not hold a charge. Why does everyone insist on putting cheap, short life, batteries in their new products? Oh, yea, they save a dime in production costs! A 1 year or less warranty on a small battery is not uncommon and thus you could wind up replace the Vespa battery fairly often! I hate small motorcycle batteries as they are not "real". Thoughts of mounting a full size car battery in plastic tub under the seat.

 

-   Update 28 April 2007. Rear tire is shot at only 3100 miles. Front tire looks like new but rear tire has no tread at all in the center of the tire. Not sure yet if cheap original tire or Vespa just going to eat rear tires. Looks like to me that tire pressure was too high but sure set to recommended.