4 Popular Old Indian Scooters That Originated From Italy

Lambretta

Image Source - Wikipedia

As much as the iconic scooter is reminiscent of the good ol' India, Lambretta was neither designed nor manufactured in India! Its origins can be traced back to an Italian brand based out of a suburb in Milan known as Lambrate! The scooter was designed and developed by Innocenti S.A. - the owner of the brand Lambretta.

So how did this Italian wonder make its way to India? Well, Automobile Products of India (API) acquired the licence to assemble the Lambretta 48cc scooter. The company also got the licence for the assembly of the Li150 Series 2 model again, under the name of Lambretta. Unfortunately, in the year 1976, API had to rename the classic scooter as Lamby owing to certain legalities.

One of the most transformative moments for Lambretta's popularity in India can be attributed to a scene where actor Shammi Kapoor is seen wooing his leading lady Sharmila Tagore in the movie An Evening in Paris, with numerous Lambretta scooters in sight, all across the frame. At the time, Indians still largely rode bicycles, but the movie and other such instances caught the attention of the average Indian and soon Lambretta became an aspirational vehicle.

A heavy scooter, with ample leg space, the ride could easily seat a family of four, with its unique sloping tail with a spare tire doubling up as a seat for the family's elder child. The younger one, as you might have guessed, stood in the front mimicking their dad's riding stance and action.

LML Vespa

Piaggio's Vespa proved to be an inspiration for the birth of more than one scooter brand in India. While the Vespa Sprint caught the eye of Bajaj and led to the birth of the Chetak, the Vespa PX was the design upon which the LML Vespa was based. LML or Lohia Manufacturers Limited got into a deal with Piaggio in 1986 to produce scooters. The first of that lot was the LML Vespa Alfa. But it was the LML Vespa Select, launched in 1993 that proved to be the more popular scooter and gave stiff competition to Chetak too. Both scooters had similar displacement - 148 and 145 cc respectively. But while the Chetak became a family scooter, the LML Vespa Select was touted to be a peppier ride, giving all the speed and performance that is possible with 8.6bhp and 11.3Nm torque.

Kinetic Luna

This entry might seem a tad surprising, considering everyone knows that Kinetic Engineering was founded at owned by entrepreneur H.K. Firodia! Well, yes that's true...But, the fact that the Kinetic Luna was derived from Piaggio Ciao moped is also true. It was in the 1920s that this unassuming moped became popular in Italy, which is when Firodia ran with the idea and gave India its first moped Kinetic Luna in 1972!

A 50cc moped, Luna was almost a cross between a bicycle and a motorbike. It was lightweight and easy to drive making it ideal for students and youngsters, and it was sturdy enough to help it earn a reputation amongst the adults!

In addition to ensuring some path-breaking advertisements, Luna's popularity can also be attributed to the fact that it was given as an award to the Man of the Match in cricket tournaments as well as to students who performed exceptionally well in academics!

Bajaj Chetak

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Bajaj Chetak was designed and developed after Bajaj Auto lost the licence for Vespa in India. The 145cc, 2-stroke scooter was originally based in design and functionality on the Italian Vespa Sprint. Even the Vespa design was only licenced by Bajaj till about 1980, after which Bajaj Auto opted for an entirely new form of the scooter.

This sturdy, roomy, and affordable proved to be ideal for riding across the poorly built Indian roads, and in fact, became the most used form of local and inter-city commute in the '70s and '80s. Moreover, its ability to function brilliantly in India's harsh climate, and work flawlessly despite heavy usage proved to be in favour of Bajaj Chetak. And that's not all! The scooter required little to no maintenance, and its servicing and repair were almost always truly inexpensive!

Since traffic regulations weren't as stringent back then, the sight of a couple along with 2-4 children riding the scooter all at once was highly common, which gave Bajaj an indelible image - that of being a Family Scooter, much like the modern-day Family Car.