FOR SALE
Lambretta Li 125 Special
£3300
I’ve owned this Lambretta since November 2012. The V5C states manufactured in 1967, and research into the frame and engine numbers supports this. The engine and frame numbers are matching as per the V5C, which shows the date of first registration in the UK as 2010.
Obviously, zero tax as historic vehicle – and no MOT required.
If you’re not aware of the Li 125 Special, it was the forerunner of the GP125 and [apparently] has similar spec, but with an SX look. Can’t say they’re rare, but they’re not too common either.
The scooter's bodywork is in original condition – complete with scratches and scrapes – which is the way I like them … they’re only original once! You can even see the original dealer’s sticker on the rear light casing. That said, although the frame, body and engine are original, I am not expert enough to examine every nut, bolt, part and connector to declare it 100% as it left the factory. I have replaced some panel nuts and bolts with stainless steel ones. Also, remember it was used in Italy for 40-odd years and may have had minor repairs, replacements and/or changes in that time before it came over to the UK.
When I bought the scoot from a bike shop in Sheffield, the ad read:
“We have fully refurbished the engine with a complete strip down and re-build using brand new parts, however we have retained the original piston and liner due to very little wear and therefore allowing us to keep the engine very original and giving great providence. We have fitted new bearings and oil seals throughout and new clutch and control cables. The front forks have been fully rebuild and re-commissioned with new springs and bushes.”
Although I can't guarantee it, nothing over the nine years I have owned the Lammie has given me any reason to believe this was not true. When I agreed to buy it, I had them fit a top-of-the-range Varitronic electronic ignition with Stator plate, flywheel, CDI, lighting regulator and 12v conversion (over £300). I think this has a lot to do with how well the scooter has always started and run. I have also put a LED rear stop/tail light unit in and had a new Casa ignition switch to sort out a problem with the lights. There is no steering lock.
Apart from changing the gearbox oil regularly I have had nothing to do to keep the scoot on the road. It has never let me down apart from a fuel valve failure which dumped a gallon of petrol in a pub car park - fortunately, not far from home [I’d put a fancy new angled one on – but replaced it with the original 50-odd year old one and it’s been fine ever since]. I’ve always used quality Putoline 2 stroke oil.
One problem is on the headset - I over-tightened the screws when I first fitted a screen and mirrors to it. It's not a disaster, but it is visible [it's shown on one of the photos].
I added the mod stuff. The crash bars, mirror stems and rack are all stainless steel, and the four lamps cost more on eBay than I would rather admit [note that they're not wired up so are for show only]. The excellent sounding megaphone exhaust was also not cheap [nigh on £200].
The scoot is insured with Footman James for an agreed value through the Lambretta club for £3,800 which includes all the extras. I’m selling it complete with mod extras – if you just want the basic scooter you could sell the extras on eBay. I’ll also throw in a spare front crash bar which I put on for the winter as it takes up less space in the garage.
For the first couple of summers I had the scoot I did quite a few rallies, including from home in Sunderland to; Kelso, Whitby, Scarborough and the furthest to Cleethorpes. However, for a whole host of reasons (mainly health) the last few years have seen it do little more than go to some local scooter club meetings, to work a few times and to MOT tests [when they were mandatory].
Since its last MOT in Sept 2017 it’s done only 69 kilometres [around 43 miles], so I’ve decided it’s better off in someone else’s hands rather than sitting in my garage [which is integral to the house, so dry and warmish not like an old shed at the bottom of the garden]. In that time, however, I’ve started it up every few weeks and taken it round the estate occasionally to make sure nothing's seized up.
Speedo reading from MOTs are: 2017 – 5863 km. 2016 – 5804 km. 2015 – 5707 km. 2014 – 4932 km. 2013 – 4388 km. 2012 – 4402 km. The current reading is 5932 km. Obviously, I can only guarantee distances for the time since I bought the scooter, which is 1530 km [950 miles].
I’ll include the seat that came with it, but I cannot guarantee it is the original - though it might be, I just don't know.
Note that some of the photos [below] are from a couple of years ago - those with the panels off are from the last week or so.
I've listed the selling price as £3,300. I think that's fair - cheap compared to similar I've seen advertised. I don't do that wheeler-dealer-price-it-high-and-accept-a-lower-offer-after-haggling thing - so no offers please. If it doesn't sell at this price I'll just keep it in the garage for a while longer.
I'm not one of these people who is surgically attached to their phone, so if you're interested, start the conversation by dropping me an email on
alancharlesworth at gmail dot com
and I'll get back to you.
I’m in Sunderland and getting the scoot is the buyer's responsibility ... but I could trailer it a reasonable distance at 50p per mile one-way [e.g. if my house to your house is 100 miles I’ll charge you £50; 200 miles=£100 and so on].
