Piaggio Launches Vespa Notte At Rs 70,285 (ex-Delhi)

Piaggio has launched yet another variant of the iconic Vespa in the country. Called the Notte, which translates to night in Italian, the 125cc scooter features an all-black theme that consists of a matte black paint job, blacked-out mirrors, alloy wheels and some trim. The rest of scooter, including the analogue instrument cluster, remains the same as the Vespa LX 125, on which it is based. The matte black colour makes the Notte quite menacing rather than cheerful like other Vespas that are offered with many vibrant colour options. However, we wish Piaggio would have equipped the latest variant with LED elements in the turn indicators and tail lamp.

Powering the Vespa Notte is the same 125cc, air-cooled motor from other Vespas in the 125cc range. This engine produces 10.06PS of max power and 10.6Nm of peak torque. Power is transmitted to the rear wheel via a CVT transmission.

The frame is a steel monocoque unit with an old-school bottom link suspension at the front and a single shock absorber at the rear. Braking is via 140mm front and rear drum brakes. Sadly, a disc brake is not available even as an option. It does get alloy wheels with tube-type tyres, though.

At Rs 70,285 (ex-Delhi) the Vespa Notte is priced at around Rs 4,100 lesser than Vespa’s previous most-affordable scooter, the LX 125 (Rs 74,399, ex-Delhi). Part of the reason for this price drop is due to the scooter not having any chrome parts. Chrome parts require an electroplating manufacturing process, which is more expensive when compared to applying paint. This combined with the fact that it will be only available with drum brakes and tube-type tyres has helped Piaggio lower the price further.

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Thanks to its retro styling, the Vespa Notte sits in a segment of its own. That said, it will be vying for buyers’ attention along with other 125cc scooters such as the Aprilia SR 125 (Rs 66,764), Honda Grazia (Rs 63,994), the TVS Ntorq (Rs 59,650) and the recently-launched Suzuki Burgman Street (Rs 68,000) (all prices, ex-showroom Delhi).