Scooter Review Vespa 150 ET4 125, 150 Fifty years after the first Vespa, the marque was reborn
- Rome, 1996. A press conference in the same room as the famous press conference scene from Roman Holiday saw the arrival of the ET Vespa series, the first four-stroke Vespa and an entirely new body. Of course, the new style very cleverly mimicked the original Vespa – and thus kept the dream alive.
Today, the ET4 is still going strong and after some 400,000 units of the ET range having been produced, the 2003 models benefit from a few tweaks: a lower seat height and a sidestand (so they got it pretty right back in ‘96...)
 The ET4 pretty much looks like the image most people have when they think scooter, so there’s no mistaking the marque, but the clean and quiet four-stroke engine makes life a lot easier, as does electric start ( there’s an auxiliary kick-starter for emergencies).
All ET-series Vespas have a stress-bearing steel body, and carry powerful brakes (disc at the front and drum at the rear) on 10-inch wheels with large tyres. Vespa claims “exceptional frame rigidity, making the scooter entertaining, responsive and safe to ride”.
 The ET4 comes in two capacities, the 125 (which meets the requirements for a NSW scooter-only licence) and the 150cc bigger sibling, and with a host of accessories, from leather bags to chrome trim.
One interesting thing was when we tested the ET4 125 back to back with a two-stroke, geared PX200E. Our tester, who had an 84km daily commute found the 200 not up to speed on the freeway, where the smaller 125 ET4 was a dream. Must be the march of technology.
As published in TW SCOOTER MAGAZINE - 27/10/2003
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