A couple of weeks ago we caught up on the Lambretta RT 225 engine we built. In this second part, it’s time to find out how my Pinasco 251-equipped Vespa street racer is going.
It’s not so long ago when Vespa PX owners had a limited choice of tuning options, with the likes of Malossi and Pinasco being the top ‘off the shelf’ choice for many road-going scooterists. When my previous 210 Malossi engine was built and tuned by Ryan Saxelby back in 2005 it made 21bhp and for a Vespa engine, it was regarded as decent power. The thought of being able to buy complete ready tuned, aftermarket engine casings from reputable tuning houses was the stuff of dreams.
The modern world
Things have moved on massively over the last few years though. You can now buy a multitude of cylinder kits and various complete engine casings from the likes of Pinasco, Malossi and BFA. With states of tune from mild to extreme. 30, 40 and 50-horsepower Vespa engines are becoming quite easy to obtain. Power isn’t always everything though and choosing something suitable for the type of riding you do is more important. That’s why I wanted a Pinasco 251 – or Super T5 as we christened it when we first heard about the engine.
At the back end of 2021, we built a new Pinasco 251 engine to put into my PX. We covered the full engine build in an eight-part series of features with lots of useful videos to go with them. They’re very useful for tips and reference if you’re building a standard Vespa engine as well.
The engine was finished, back in the frame and on the road just in time to ride it to Southport in October 2021. It’s still running faultlessly after doing a few rallies and events over the last 17 months. I’ve not even changed a spark plug so far.
Mileage?
Admittedly, my mileage on this engine hasn’t been huge, just over 1000 miles so far. That’s partly because in 2022 I had to take a step back from events for a while so wasn’t out riding half as much as I usually would be. The other reason is because the scooter itself isn’t as practical as some of my others when it comes to carrying luggage. The frenched-in back end means I’m very reluctant to spoil the looks by fitting a rear rack, so I often opt to ride my Lambrettas. Although my missus sometimes takes my rally bag on her Series 2.
How does it perform?
This 251 uses the Pinasco ‘Touring’ box exhaust and it sounds like a cross between a PX and a T5 when you start it up. Which is pretty much what this engine is, a ‘Super T5.’
During the build, we had quite a bit of fettling to do to get the Pinasco Bull clutch to work but the clutch now works perfectly. It’s light and there’s no drag or slip. That’s the great thing about this engine package, it’s all so easy to live with. It’s pretty much like a PX on steroids, it feels like a standard scooter but with the extra horsepower and torque to ride with your mate on a Vespa GTS 300 and be able to beat him. In fact, there’s not much on the way to a rally that it can’t keep up with or overtake. It really is a fantastic fast-touring engine. It’ll do a GPS verified 83mph and sit easily at 70mph. It’s low revving as well, on the road it maxes out at just 6100rpm. I’ve heard of a couple of people saying their 251s run hot, mine uses a head temp sensor and it’s only getting to a maximum of 177ºC on my SIP speedo so I can’t really complain about that. It’s well within the safe limit.
Exhaust
I rode the scooter to Whitby last Easter and was smiling to myself all the way there and back, it’s just great fun but in a more relaxed sort of way than a revvier motor. The box exhaust helps to tame things, you’re not having to scream the nuts off the engine to keep it in the power like you do with an expansion pipe – the torque is always on tap. That is both a positive and a negative, I like the way it performs and the relaxed riding style but yearn for something that sounds more like a £4000 engine should. At some stage, I will swap to an expansion pipe of some description (if any exhaust builders are reading this we’d like to try one please). That extra noise, a few extra horsepower and the excitement of releasing more of that two-stroke powerband would make me happier. Sadly I’m a sucker for a fruity-sounding exhaust.
Ignition
One thing I will definitely be changing before the rally season starts is the ignition. The Pinasco Flytech does the job but doesn’t power the lights and indicators well enough for the road. The indicators barely flash at tickover and my speedo will power off occasionally I’ve got a SIP Vape Sport ignition in the garage, it was fitted to my previous PX 210 just before I got this engine. I just need to swap the backplate on the stator and flywheel to a T5 type and then that can be fitted. I’m also going to use a static regulator rather than the Sport’s variable one. We’ll revisit this once that’s up and running and been on the Dyno in a few weeks.
Fuel economy
Most of the riding I do on this PX is to rallies with a group of other scooters, so it’s mostly sat at cruising speeds, with the odd blip off into the distance if I get bored. Fuel wise it’s not bad at all, I was half expecting me to need to fit a long-range tank but it’s not as thirsty as my previous Malossi 210 (the Slave version of the 251 we used is reed valve so that helps reduce fuel consumption). 70 miles to the tank is easily achievable. With the cost of fuel (and oil) I didn’t want something that needed a fuel tanker following me to rallies.
Steady horses
Although there are plenty of Vespa engines making more power than this one I didn’t build this to show off the size of my penis. The scooter was built because it’s all I need for long-distance riding. If you’re looking for a high-horsepower engine to show off around town there are plenty to choose from. For me, a Vespa making just over 24bhp and with 18.8 ft.lbs of torque is a good compromise between power and reliability. It’s also easy to ride. I’m not planning on sprinting, except away from the traffic lights so a mid-thirties/40 horsepower engine would be overkill.
Update to follow
Once we’ve got the new ignition fitted and have had a chance to do some hard miles on it we’ll bring you an update to this feature and a video review out on the road. It’ll be sometime after Easter.
Coming up in part 3…
In a couple of weeks, we’ll be taking a look at the Quattrini M210 we’ve been running since 2018.
Good to read..keep at it