When I changed the head gasket and timing belt on my Mazda truck about four years ago I swore I would never again work on a motor vehicle. The one time high school romance of laying under a car sweating and cursing and getting rust in my eyes and a full time fragrance of petroleum oozing from my hands was gone.
So why am I wrenching on the Vespa? Short answer—-it is part of the riding experience. Not a requirement but I feel connected to the scooter in a way I don’t in a car. And to fill out that connection I need to know how to perform some simple maintenance and repairs. So I started with changing the engine oil and transmission oil.
True to every other mechancial task I embark on I find I do not have the right tools. I scratch my head at this because I have a giant Craftsman tool case, the one on wheels that you can put air tools and sledge hammers into. (Sledgehammers are for emergency use) The thing is stuffed with sockets and wrenches and so many odd tools that surely I am ready for anything.
Surely not.
Almost everything I have is SAE. The scooter is metric. I have a simple collection of metric sockets and wrenches that range up to 19mm. The oil plug is 24mm. Adjustable wrench can’t quite grab because the oil filter is in the way. Can’t get the oil filter off because I don’t have an oil filter wrench that small. You see where this is going.
In a fit of focused rage I twist the filter off with my bare hands. I am startled that I could free it without leaving any flesh of protruding metal. The adjustable wrench does not have enough leverage to break the plug free—no doubt coroded tight from salt from winter riding. A moment of insight brings a big SAE box wrench that sort of fits and I break the plug free. Oil drained, filter replaced, oil added and I am finished. I feel comfortable that I could do this laying along the road with a minimum of tools.
The rear hub oil requires a 6mm insert. I use an Allen wrench and pliers to break it free. By this time the engine is cooling and the transmission oil drips like sap from a tree.
Next time the change will be quicker, smoother, I’ll know what to expect and I will have the right tools. I am ready for something more complicated in another 1000 miles—spark plug and drive belt.
I feel better about the scooter right now. And I feel better about my place in the riding experience.
Bravo Steve!
Glad to hear that a non gear head can do this basic maintenance without much trouble. These will be my first go at scooter maintenance as well. I got my oils and filter this week.
Tom
steve,
I’m with you in that I prefer to have maintenance done by others. Yet, you touched the core of the matter by the “side of the road” thing. I hate the thought of being stranded by something I could have repaired on my own.
There is a certain connection, isn’t there? With the right tools, the right circumstances, and the right attitude it can even be fun to do your own maintenance. My only question is,
“When are all these going to come together for me?????”
Dan
Steve,
I’m not sure if LXs’ in the States have got both the center as well as the side stands but I’ve found using the sidestand makes for an easier oil filter changing as it gets the centerstand out of the way. Once the oil stops dripping, I’ll seat on the LX. This drips off the rest of the oil. 🙂
Malcolm
Tom: It was pretty easy, even without the right tools. Next time will be much faster. My next tasks will be an air filter cleaning, spark plug change, and drive belt change.
Dan: I don’t see myself getting a lot of enjoyment out of doing this kind of work, but I will feel better about longer trips if I know some basics about the scooter. I have this picture in my head of a broken drive belt hundreds of miles from the nearest Vespa dealer. If I had an extra with me I could push into the nearest garage and beg or pay for use of the space and tools and change it myself and be on my way. When will this come together for you? I guess when you’re ready to pick up the wrench…. *grin*
Malcolm: Only a center stand on the US models. I made an oil slide from a plastic soda bottle. I caught most of the oil but got impatient and pulled it early and got some oil on the stand. Wiped it off and everything was ok.
Steve,
This is nothing but GOOD! If we must operate these beautiful machines, we must understand them at their deepest level. To perform their periodic maintenance is just the bare minimum that we owe them for the pleasure they give us. No?
Ride well,
=gc=
Gary: It is good to feel connected to the machine by doing some basic maintenance. It expands the experience for me. I have been rereading some of Robert Pirsig’s “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” and while he goes a little further than I can appreciate I generally agree with his notion of being part of a larger experience.
steve