Har för andra gånget fått problem att att packningen mellan avgasrör och ljuddämpare på min GT200 2004 går sönder. Är detta ett känt problem eller bara jag som haft otur? Tycker väl det är något som borde hålla ett antal år...
/ Jan Carlsson
/ http://www.bunkerbild.fotosidan.se
Avgaspackning GT200
Det verkar vara ett vanligt problem. Sök efter det på det utmärkta forumet Modern Vespa:
http://www.modernvespa.com/forum/index.html
/Jörgen
"she's got a motor scooter with a little rubber tooter and I fall to the ground when I hear that sound"
http://www.modernvespa.com/forum/index.html
/Jörgen
"she's got a motor scooter with a little rubber tooter and I fall to the ground when I hear that sound"
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Bergfors</i>
<br />Det verkar vara ett vanligt problem. Sök efter det på det utmärkta forumet Modern Vespa:
http://www.modernvespa.com/forum/index.html
/Jörgen
"she's got a motor scooter with a little rubber tooter and I fall to the ground when I hear that sound"
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
Tack för tipset!
Tyvärr verkar det som sagt vara ett vanligt problem....
/ Jan Carlsson
/ http://www.bunkerbild.fotosidan.se
<br />Det verkar vara ett vanligt problem. Sök efter det på det utmärkta forumet Modern Vespa:
http://www.modernvespa.com/forum/index.html
/Jörgen
"she's got a motor scooter with a little rubber tooter and I fall to the ground when I hear that sound"
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
Tack för tipset!
Tyvärr verkar det som sagt vara ett vanligt problem....
/ Jan Carlsson
/ http://www.bunkerbild.fotosidan.se
Här har du något att bita i, ifall du vill serva Vespan själv (se även not om avgaspackningen):
MV Maintenance Clinic, SF, 2007 – First Day notes
I am a habitual (or is the word “obsessive”?) note taker, and have lots of notes from the first part of the MV Clinic where Rolf went over general maintenance, and Tom did an oil change. Since the video tape of this portion was lost, I thought I would type in and share my notes with the rest of MV.
Disclaimer: the following is my capture of Rolf’s lecture, taken as he was giving it, in a very noisy and informal environment. I don’t claim that I’ve captured everything he said perfectly. There are likely errors, so please verify anything I write here before using this information in a way that might put your Vespa or yourself at risk! Also, some of what he said is controversial – don’t shoot me, I’m only the reporter!
The Clinic officially started (after the coffee and bagels provided by SF Vespa) at around 9:30, when Curt introduced Rolf Soltan. Rolf is a Vespa trainer, who has personally trained most of the certified Vespa mechanics in the US (over 2500 trainees, he reports – including Tom the SF Vespa mechanic, and MV’s very own Greasy). Rolf went over all the basics of Vespa Maintenance, which I will detail below. A very interesting and engaging speaker – you could tell he knew his stuff, and had done this talk many times. He spoke in an informal style, punctuating his talk with lots of stories about his experiences troubleshooting and fixing Vespas over the years. So my capture of his words is a bit disjoint, and his answers to questions are thrown in as they occurred.
VESPA MAINTAINANCE
1. Engine Oil
a. Check engine oil once a week, with the engine cold. -- It’s important to make sure your oil is at the proper level. Not only for lubrication, but because the oil is part of the cooling system of the engine, especially on the air-cooled models. Fill to the top of the cross-hatched area on the dip stick. Check level by removing dip stick, wiping off, threading all the way back on, then removing again to see where the oil level on the stick is.
b. Change the oil every 2000 miles. -- “It doesn’t matter what type of oil” – they are all basically the same. The weights aren’t crucial. 5W40 is recommended, but hard to get. 10w40 or 10w30 is okay. 20w50 is good if you do lots of distance riding, especially in the heat. 10w40 is good for cold climates. The factory puts Synthetic oil in all their engines. He recommends “full synthetic”. (Basically the message is: better to have the proper amount of the incorrect weight oil, that the right weight oil but the level is too low).
c. Change your filter every time you change the oil.
d. When you drain the oil, the center stand will be in the way So loosen the filter and drain plug then have someone hold up the scooter while you drain it, replace the plug and filter, and then put it back on the center stand to refill. You might want to tip the Vespa to the side slightly to be sure to get all the oil out when you drain it.
e. There is an oil strainer filter behind the drain plug. Pull it out when you drain it, clean it off, and replace it. It has an o-ring, as long as that stays attached you can reuse it, don’t need to replace
f. When you replace the drain plug, first put some oil on the gasket and threads, then tighten “snug”. You are threading into aluminum, which is soft, so don’t overdo it.
g. There is “no break in period” needed on the modern Vespa engines.
h. It is okay to mix oil types/brands when topping off your oil. (Tom the SF Vespa mechanic disagreed with this).
2. Transmission Oil
a. Check it often. The dip stick has 4 marks – crazy! Fill line is the second mark from the end (the first major mark).
b. Use 80/90 high-point differential oil. Change every 3000 to 5000 miles.
c. Each Vespa model uses a different amount of transmission oil. If you put in too much, it comes out the bleeder tube. It also may get into the ventilation system, and is a mess to clean out, requires disassembly.
d. The easy way to fill it is to get an oil “squirter can”. Put in the oil until it’s full (by checking with dip stick), and count the number of squirts it required so you’ll know next time.
e. You’ll need an allen wrench to undo the drain plug – which is reached from the OTHER side, reaching between the spokes on the rear wheel. (Use a cookie can or cut-up Tupperware container to catch the oil so it doesn’t get all over the tire). Note: there is a copper washer on the drain plug – don’t loose it! Copper washer can be reused.
3. Break Fluid
a. Use DOT 4 on all Vespas.
b. Vespa says change every 2 years. Do it more often if your area has a lot of temperatures changes or is damp. Break fluid absorbs water, then the break calipers stick. It doesn’t use much, so he says change it every year!
c. On LX the reservoir is inside the headset, have to open it up.
d. Easy way to change the break fluid is to put paper towels into the reservoir to absorb the fluid, instead of trying to drain it. You can also empty it, fill ¾ full with new fluid, then open the bleeder valve and pump the lever to force the rest of the old fluid out.
e. Fill the reservoir back up – full but not too full! Tighten the bolts back on EVENLY!
4. Water cooled engines
a. Vespa says change the coolant every 2 years. He changes it every year.
b. Make sure you use a coolant with special additives for aluminum engines.
c. When you drain it you have to bleed the system before refilling.
d. Hard to do – have to be sure to fill all the tubes in the system. Very bad if you do it wrong. He says just have your Vespa dealer do it.
5. Tires
a. Life of rear tire is 2500 miles on average.
b. On LX, the rear wheel and break drum are one piece, have to remove drum with the wheel. On GT and GTS it’s a disk, so it’s easier to remove.
c. Have to remove muffler on all Vespas to remove rear wheel. On the LX the muffler is one piece, undo the 2 bolts on the cylinder head, and 3 in the back that hold it up. On the GT and GTS it is two pieces. DO NOT detach the two pieces – treat them as if it were one piece when you take it off. He mentioned about the gasket failure problems we’ve talked about on MV, and how it melts your brake line. Said the new gaskets Vespa is using don’t fail.
d. You do not need to replace the gasket on the cylinder head when you replace the muffler. Be sure to tighten the cylinder head bolts evenly.
e. He recommends you do NOT use different brands of tires between the front and the back. You usually change rear tire 3 times for every front tire. When he went on a cross-country trip, he ended up swapping the front and back wheels, and it worked fine even though they are different sizes. Said the reason for the smaller front wheel is for better steering.
f. New GTS’s come with Salva tires from factory.
g. Some tires have tread patterns that are very skittish on road grooves. It’s the tread.
h. Be sure you inflate your tires to the right amount. Might be more than what the sticker on the glovebox door says. Depends on weight of passenger(s). Important to get it right. Don’t over inflate front tire or you will have steering bearing problems.
i. What do you do about flats on the road? He recommends the “Stop and Go Tire kit” which comes with mushroom-shaped plugs, and CO2 canisters to re-inflate the tire.
j. When you change a tire, it must be balanced. Many shops don’t have the equipment to balance (smaller) scooter tires. Harbor Freight sells a wheel balancer that works. Jess said he is working on making one (or has one?).
6. Valve adjustments
a. Vespa says adjust every 3000 miles. He says do it every 7000 – it “never” goes out of alignment.
b. How do you know it needs adjusting? Listen for a ticking noise – that mean’s its okay.
7. Brake Pads
a. Inspect by shining a flashlight between disk and caliper. Use a dentist’s mirror to be able to see easier. You can see how much pad is left.
b. Brakes usually last 2000 – 3000 miles in a hilly place like San Francisco. Do not have to change both front and rear at the same time, just when needed.
c. Squeaky brakes are not a problem. They all squeak, even expensive cars’ breaks. (You pay extra money to get that squeak on expensive cars).
8. Variator, Clutch, Belt, Rollers
a. The transmission all automatic scooters use was patented by a California company (“Salisbery”?) in 1922. The design hasn’t changed much since.
b. It is the same setup for all Vespa models, just different sizes but they all work the same way.
c. If you get excessive shaking on acceleration, that is a problem with your rollers. The rollers are plastic weights. They last anywhere from 2500 to 10,000 miles, depending on how you drive. They fail by getting flat spots in them, or even by disintegrating. You should use the same size weights that come with it, don’t use lighter or heavier. Vespa has optimized it for best acceleration and top-end speed. Most you’ll get on top end is 3 or 4 mph faster.
d. If you have lost 5mph on your top speed, then your belt is probably worn. It’s normally replaced on the 3rd service, or whenever you replace your rollers. You need a special tool to remove and to tighten the variator – it requires very high torque (60 lbs torque).
e. Change the belt every 9000 miles or as recommended by mechanic.
f. Clutches last “forever”. He has never seen one fail or wear out.
9. Shock absorbers
a. The GT has a “pretty ****ty one”. It’s too soft. But he says do NOT use Biturbo – they “break in half”.
b. For the GT, just put a GTS shock on it, they are better.
10. Batteries
a. They go bad if you don’t use them. Get a trickle charger/battery tender.
b. They can last 6 months to 4 years.
c. The factory supplied battery on the LX/Fly has “shortcomings”. The newer year models have 10 Amp batteries now.
d. Another way to save battery life is to go from a 50W to a 30W headlight bulb. You won’t even be able to tell the difference in brightness. You can also disconnect your turn signals and convert your running lights to be turn signals -- that saves some battery.
e. And you can put in an ET battery and ET battery pan in an LX to get a bigger battery.
11. Spark Plugs
a. “Oh boy”. They are very hard to replace. Hard to disconnect the cable. Hard to reach in there to unscrew. Only way to get the plug out is to use the tool that comes with your vespa, in the little tool case. Even the repair shops use that.
b. Basically the plugs don’t give you any problems. “When you put in a new plug, the only thing you get is that it’s new”.
12. Fuel Systems
a. He has seen deterioration of the fuel valves and problems with the carburetor because the Vespa will sit at the factory with gas in it for 1 or 2 years.
b. Starting problems:
- Take out the automatic choke. Spray it with carburetor cleaner, let it sit 30 minutes. Note: the automatic choke runs on AC only, so it only gets power when the engine is running, not from just the battery.
- Check the fuel lines. Replace if any cracks.
- The GT’s fuel filters are very sensitive to clogging. If your GT has surging problems, replace the fuel filter.
c. Don’t mess with rejetting your carburetor. Not even for high altitudes. You can do a ¼ turn CCW on mixture screw to richen mixture for higher altitudes. If it backfires on deceleration, then turn it ¼ turn back in, it’s too rich.
d. He’s tuned a lot of carburetors. He and 3 other guys (his brother and two friends) had to prep 1250 scooters for a Target store promotion (each store gave one away). They were all Red! They did 90 a day.
13. Fuel Evaporative Systems
a. If you dump over your scooter and it doesn’t start: there is a box in your fuel line that detects the scooter has fallen, and it cuts off the fuel supply. It’s a plastic box located under your fender. You have to remove it and clean out all the gas in it.
14. Other problems
a. Starter relays: if your battery gets too low, the starter relay could “close up and burn”! Charge your battery!
OIL CHANGE
This concluded Rolf’s talk. Next Tom the SF Vespa mechanic demonstrated changing the oil on an LX150. He recommended changing it every 3000 miles or every 6 months (i.e., every season change), whichever comes first. Here are the basic steps:
1. Supplies needed: oil filter, o-ring, a liter of oil (5w40 synthetic). Tom recommends the Vespa-brand filters and oil. They are not that much more expensive, and it’s what Vespa has determined is best for your scooter.
2. Put pan under the drain plug. Take scooter OFF the center stand – have someone hold the scooter or clamp the front wheel.
3. Remove the oil filter with Channel Lock pliers
4. Remove the plug with a 24mm wrench. Tap it in the up-direction with a plastic hammer to loosen (and save your knuckles).
5. Use needle nose pliers to remove the plastic filter that’s behind the plug. Clean it out (he uses denatured alcohol, aka PC Board Cleaner).
6. Check the fuel line while you’re down there, for cracks. Replace it with a clear silicone tube, ¼ inch diameter, so you can see clogs.
7. Clean off with a rag where the filter screws in.
8. Replace the plastic filter, o-ring side first. (You should lubricate the o-ring with some oil first).
9. Replace the o-ring and the plug (lubricating o-ring and threads with oil first). Watch while you are screwing it in, that the o-ring doesn’t get pinched. Not too tight – if you strip the threads, then you have to have it re-tapped, and there is only one tool in the country to do this (which belongs to Rolf).
10. Install new oil filter (lubricate threads and gasket with oil). Spin the filter on by hand only. Then take a 5 or 6 mm Allen wrench, put that in the slot in the end of the filter, and use that to tighten it. Should be “snug”, “pretty tight”. Spray the outside of the filter with cleaner.
11. Pour in 1L of oil. The Vespa oil has a built-in filling spout, very neat.
12. Put in dip stick and remove, to check oil level. May need to add more oil (from a second can).
13. Start it up, run a few seconds, turn it off – this circulates the oil into the system, and fills the oil filter. Then recheck oil and fill up. Start it up again, run, stop, and recheck.
That’s the end of my notes! After the oil change, Greasy demonstrated replacing the rollers on an LX, but I was too busy watching to take notes – it would really need pictures to describe, anyway…
If any attendees have corrections to the above, please let me know. Or feel free to post your own notes!
-Dan
"she's got a motor scooter with a little rubber tooter and I fall to the ground when I hear that sound"
MV Maintenance Clinic, SF, 2007 – First Day notes
I am a habitual (or is the word “obsessive”?) note taker, and have lots of notes from the first part of the MV Clinic where Rolf went over general maintenance, and Tom did an oil change. Since the video tape of this portion was lost, I thought I would type in and share my notes with the rest of MV.
Disclaimer: the following is my capture of Rolf’s lecture, taken as he was giving it, in a very noisy and informal environment. I don’t claim that I’ve captured everything he said perfectly. There are likely errors, so please verify anything I write here before using this information in a way that might put your Vespa or yourself at risk! Also, some of what he said is controversial – don’t shoot me, I’m only the reporter!
The Clinic officially started (after the coffee and bagels provided by SF Vespa) at around 9:30, when Curt introduced Rolf Soltan. Rolf is a Vespa trainer, who has personally trained most of the certified Vespa mechanics in the US (over 2500 trainees, he reports – including Tom the SF Vespa mechanic, and MV’s very own Greasy). Rolf went over all the basics of Vespa Maintenance, which I will detail below. A very interesting and engaging speaker – you could tell he knew his stuff, and had done this talk many times. He spoke in an informal style, punctuating his talk with lots of stories about his experiences troubleshooting and fixing Vespas over the years. So my capture of his words is a bit disjoint, and his answers to questions are thrown in as they occurred.
VESPA MAINTAINANCE
1. Engine Oil
a. Check engine oil once a week, with the engine cold. -- It’s important to make sure your oil is at the proper level. Not only for lubrication, but because the oil is part of the cooling system of the engine, especially on the air-cooled models. Fill to the top of the cross-hatched area on the dip stick. Check level by removing dip stick, wiping off, threading all the way back on, then removing again to see where the oil level on the stick is.
b. Change the oil every 2000 miles. -- “It doesn’t matter what type of oil” – they are all basically the same. The weights aren’t crucial. 5W40 is recommended, but hard to get. 10w40 or 10w30 is okay. 20w50 is good if you do lots of distance riding, especially in the heat. 10w40 is good for cold climates. The factory puts Synthetic oil in all their engines. He recommends “full synthetic”. (Basically the message is: better to have the proper amount of the incorrect weight oil, that the right weight oil but the level is too low).
c. Change your filter every time you change the oil.
d. When you drain the oil, the center stand will be in the way So loosen the filter and drain plug then have someone hold up the scooter while you drain it, replace the plug and filter, and then put it back on the center stand to refill. You might want to tip the Vespa to the side slightly to be sure to get all the oil out when you drain it.
e. There is an oil strainer filter behind the drain plug. Pull it out when you drain it, clean it off, and replace it. It has an o-ring, as long as that stays attached you can reuse it, don’t need to replace
f. When you replace the drain plug, first put some oil on the gasket and threads, then tighten “snug”. You are threading into aluminum, which is soft, so don’t overdo it.
g. There is “no break in period” needed on the modern Vespa engines.
h. It is okay to mix oil types/brands when topping off your oil. (Tom the SF Vespa mechanic disagreed with this).
2. Transmission Oil
a. Check it often. The dip stick has 4 marks – crazy! Fill line is the second mark from the end (the first major mark).
b. Use 80/90 high-point differential oil. Change every 3000 to 5000 miles.
c. Each Vespa model uses a different amount of transmission oil. If you put in too much, it comes out the bleeder tube. It also may get into the ventilation system, and is a mess to clean out, requires disassembly.
d. The easy way to fill it is to get an oil “squirter can”. Put in the oil until it’s full (by checking with dip stick), and count the number of squirts it required so you’ll know next time.
e. You’ll need an allen wrench to undo the drain plug – which is reached from the OTHER side, reaching between the spokes on the rear wheel. (Use a cookie can or cut-up Tupperware container to catch the oil so it doesn’t get all over the tire). Note: there is a copper washer on the drain plug – don’t loose it! Copper washer can be reused.
3. Break Fluid
a. Use DOT 4 on all Vespas.
b. Vespa says change every 2 years. Do it more often if your area has a lot of temperatures changes or is damp. Break fluid absorbs water, then the break calipers stick. It doesn’t use much, so he says change it every year!
c. On LX the reservoir is inside the headset, have to open it up.
d. Easy way to change the break fluid is to put paper towels into the reservoir to absorb the fluid, instead of trying to drain it. You can also empty it, fill ¾ full with new fluid, then open the bleeder valve and pump the lever to force the rest of the old fluid out.
e. Fill the reservoir back up – full but not too full! Tighten the bolts back on EVENLY!
4. Water cooled engines
a. Vespa says change the coolant every 2 years. He changes it every year.
b. Make sure you use a coolant with special additives for aluminum engines.
c. When you drain it you have to bleed the system before refilling.
d. Hard to do – have to be sure to fill all the tubes in the system. Very bad if you do it wrong. He says just have your Vespa dealer do it.
5. Tires
a. Life of rear tire is 2500 miles on average.
b. On LX, the rear wheel and break drum are one piece, have to remove drum with the wheel. On GT and GTS it’s a disk, so it’s easier to remove.
c. Have to remove muffler on all Vespas to remove rear wheel. On the LX the muffler is one piece, undo the 2 bolts on the cylinder head, and 3 in the back that hold it up. On the GT and GTS it is two pieces. DO NOT detach the two pieces – treat them as if it were one piece when you take it off. He mentioned about the gasket failure problems we’ve talked about on MV, and how it melts your brake line. Said the new gaskets Vespa is using don’t fail.
d. You do not need to replace the gasket on the cylinder head when you replace the muffler. Be sure to tighten the cylinder head bolts evenly.
e. He recommends you do NOT use different brands of tires between the front and the back. You usually change rear tire 3 times for every front tire. When he went on a cross-country trip, he ended up swapping the front and back wheels, and it worked fine even though they are different sizes. Said the reason for the smaller front wheel is for better steering.
f. New GTS’s come with Salva tires from factory.
g. Some tires have tread patterns that are very skittish on road grooves. It’s the tread.
h. Be sure you inflate your tires to the right amount. Might be more than what the sticker on the glovebox door says. Depends on weight of passenger(s). Important to get it right. Don’t over inflate front tire or you will have steering bearing problems.
i. What do you do about flats on the road? He recommends the “Stop and Go Tire kit” which comes with mushroom-shaped plugs, and CO2 canisters to re-inflate the tire.
j. When you change a tire, it must be balanced. Many shops don’t have the equipment to balance (smaller) scooter tires. Harbor Freight sells a wheel balancer that works. Jess said he is working on making one (or has one?).
6. Valve adjustments
a. Vespa says adjust every 3000 miles. He says do it every 7000 – it “never” goes out of alignment.
b. How do you know it needs adjusting? Listen for a ticking noise – that mean’s its okay.
7. Brake Pads
a. Inspect by shining a flashlight between disk and caliper. Use a dentist’s mirror to be able to see easier. You can see how much pad is left.
b. Brakes usually last 2000 – 3000 miles in a hilly place like San Francisco. Do not have to change both front and rear at the same time, just when needed.
c. Squeaky brakes are not a problem. They all squeak, even expensive cars’ breaks. (You pay extra money to get that squeak on expensive cars).
8. Variator, Clutch, Belt, Rollers
a. The transmission all automatic scooters use was patented by a California company (“Salisbery”?) in 1922. The design hasn’t changed much since.
b. It is the same setup for all Vespa models, just different sizes but they all work the same way.
c. If you get excessive shaking on acceleration, that is a problem with your rollers. The rollers are plastic weights. They last anywhere from 2500 to 10,000 miles, depending on how you drive. They fail by getting flat spots in them, or even by disintegrating. You should use the same size weights that come with it, don’t use lighter or heavier. Vespa has optimized it for best acceleration and top-end speed. Most you’ll get on top end is 3 or 4 mph faster.
d. If you have lost 5mph on your top speed, then your belt is probably worn. It’s normally replaced on the 3rd service, or whenever you replace your rollers. You need a special tool to remove and to tighten the variator – it requires very high torque (60 lbs torque).
e. Change the belt every 9000 miles or as recommended by mechanic.
f. Clutches last “forever”. He has never seen one fail or wear out.
9. Shock absorbers
a. The GT has a “pretty ****ty one”. It’s too soft. But he says do NOT use Biturbo – they “break in half”.
b. For the GT, just put a GTS shock on it, they are better.
10. Batteries
a. They go bad if you don’t use them. Get a trickle charger/battery tender.
b. They can last 6 months to 4 years.
c. The factory supplied battery on the LX/Fly has “shortcomings”. The newer year models have 10 Amp batteries now.
d. Another way to save battery life is to go from a 50W to a 30W headlight bulb. You won’t even be able to tell the difference in brightness. You can also disconnect your turn signals and convert your running lights to be turn signals -- that saves some battery.
e. And you can put in an ET battery and ET battery pan in an LX to get a bigger battery.
11. Spark Plugs
a. “Oh boy”. They are very hard to replace. Hard to disconnect the cable. Hard to reach in there to unscrew. Only way to get the plug out is to use the tool that comes with your vespa, in the little tool case. Even the repair shops use that.
b. Basically the plugs don’t give you any problems. “When you put in a new plug, the only thing you get is that it’s new”.
12. Fuel Systems
a. He has seen deterioration of the fuel valves and problems with the carburetor because the Vespa will sit at the factory with gas in it for 1 or 2 years.
b. Starting problems:
- Take out the automatic choke. Spray it with carburetor cleaner, let it sit 30 minutes. Note: the automatic choke runs on AC only, so it only gets power when the engine is running, not from just the battery.
- Check the fuel lines. Replace if any cracks.
- The GT’s fuel filters are very sensitive to clogging. If your GT has surging problems, replace the fuel filter.
c. Don’t mess with rejetting your carburetor. Not even for high altitudes. You can do a ¼ turn CCW on mixture screw to richen mixture for higher altitudes. If it backfires on deceleration, then turn it ¼ turn back in, it’s too rich.
d. He’s tuned a lot of carburetors. He and 3 other guys (his brother and two friends) had to prep 1250 scooters for a Target store promotion (each store gave one away). They were all Red! They did 90 a day.
13. Fuel Evaporative Systems
a. If you dump over your scooter and it doesn’t start: there is a box in your fuel line that detects the scooter has fallen, and it cuts off the fuel supply. It’s a plastic box located under your fender. You have to remove it and clean out all the gas in it.
14. Other problems
a. Starter relays: if your battery gets too low, the starter relay could “close up and burn”! Charge your battery!
OIL CHANGE
This concluded Rolf’s talk. Next Tom the SF Vespa mechanic demonstrated changing the oil on an LX150. He recommended changing it every 3000 miles or every 6 months (i.e., every season change), whichever comes first. Here are the basic steps:
1. Supplies needed: oil filter, o-ring, a liter of oil (5w40 synthetic). Tom recommends the Vespa-brand filters and oil. They are not that much more expensive, and it’s what Vespa has determined is best for your scooter.
2. Put pan under the drain plug. Take scooter OFF the center stand – have someone hold the scooter or clamp the front wheel.
3. Remove the oil filter with Channel Lock pliers
4. Remove the plug with a 24mm wrench. Tap it in the up-direction with a plastic hammer to loosen (and save your knuckles).
5. Use needle nose pliers to remove the plastic filter that’s behind the plug. Clean it out (he uses denatured alcohol, aka PC Board Cleaner).
6. Check the fuel line while you’re down there, for cracks. Replace it with a clear silicone tube, ¼ inch diameter, so you can see clogs.
7. Clean off with a rag where the filter screws in.
8. Replace the plastic filter, o-ring side first. (You should lubricate the o-ring with some oil first).
9. Replace the o-ring and the plug (lubricating o-ring and threads with oil first). Watch while you are screwing it in, that the o-ring doesn’t get pinched. Not too tight – if you strip the threads, then you have to have it re-tapped, and there is only one tool in the country to do this (which belongs to Rolf).
10. Install new oil filter (lubricate threads and gasket with oil). Spin the filter on by hand only. Then take a 5 or 6 mm Allen wrench, put that in the slot in the end of the filter, and use that to tighten it. Should be “snug”, “pretty tight”. Spray the outside of the filter with cleaner.
11. Pour in 1L of oil. The Vespa oil has a built-in filling spout, very neat.
12. Put in dip stick and remove, to check oil level. May need to add more oil (from a second can).
13. Start it up, run a few seconds, turn it off – this circulates the oil into the system, and fills the oil filter. Then recheck oil and fill up. Start it up again, run, stop, and recheck.
That’s the end of my notes! After the oil change, Greasy demonstrated replacing the rollers on an LX, but I was too busy watching to take notes – it would really need pictures to describe, anyway…
If any attendees have corrections to the above, please let me know. Or feel free to post your own notes!
-Dan
"she's got a motor scooter with a little rubber tooter and I fall to the ground when I hear that sound"