Vespa Sleeping with Ducati

Ly LX150 is spending the night with a Ducati GT1000. I hope they’re careful. The unlikely pairing came about after I delivered my non-starting scooter to Kissell Motorsports for diagnosis of the problem and a repair estimate. Over the past week I’ve heard or read a range of horror stories of dealer and repair woes so I thought I would give everyone a chance to follow the unfolding of this particular repair story. I’ll start by saying I’ve always been pleased with the service and support given by Kissell’s and don’t expect this experience to be different. If I have any apprehension it’s with the cost of the repair.

Paul Ruby and I transported the scooter in his truck to Kissell’s brand new facility. I spoke with Casey, their service manager, and asked that they determine what the starting problem is and call me with a repair estimate. I turned the red and blue key over with the suggestion “don’t lose the red key”. He smiled and agreed. The Vespa was brought around back to their service facility – WOW! What a nice place. Brand new, bright light, white walls, new Snap-On tool chests and machinery, wooden butcher block-topped work benches all working together to create the proper stage for shiny new Ducatis and Triumphs to keep my scooter company. This place reminded me of a NASCAR garage I visited. Professional.

Their new showroom is full of things to covet. A special section for Ducati’s that just gleam and sparkle. A long line of Triumphs and a bunch of Vespas. Kawasaki cruisers and sport bikes. To make the experience complete they have an espresso machine. Once can only assume that they’ll have tea for the British bike buyers and chocolate milk for the kids buying Ninjas.

I didn’t ask when the call would come with the repair estimate. I guess I like surprises. With the Vespa gone maybe I’ll organize the garage, put tools away and try and make the place look more like Kissell’s place. I’ll wait out the lack of riding as productively as I can. I’m pretty relaxed about it all.

With all the unseasonably warm weather we’ve been having here (almost 60 today) I’ve started wondering about the wisdom of having a second vehicle. Any suggestions or experience you have in this area and want to share I would appreciate it. Especially the argument you use to convince others of the merits of this sort of plan.