URBAN MOBILITY is going electric, there’s no denying it. And Vespa is jumping on the EV bandwagon as production of its Elettrica begins.
The ‘leccy model was announced at EICMA last year, and will go into production at Vespa’s Pontedera plant in Pisa next month, with online bookings starting from the beginning of October.
Delivery of the model, which will be priced in line with Vespa’s range-topping petrol models (around £5,500), will begin at the start of 2019 in Europe, with America and Asia following soon after.
It will reportedly offer better performance than a 50cc scooter and will have a guaranteed range of 62 miles with continuous power of 2kw (2.7hp) and a peak of 4kw (5.4hp). An ‘X’ version of the Elettrica will feature a generator alongside the electric motor, doubling the claimed range. And it can be fully charged in just four hours from a domestic wall socket or public charging station
The scoot will be finished in a ‘chrome grey finish with metallic reflections’ and with seven available detailing colours. Smartphone connectivity will be available, controled via a TFT dash.
According to the press release, it will be the first Piaggio Group product to adopt ‘innovative machine-man interconnectivity solutions’ and provide ‘a new richness of interconnection between vehicles and human operators’.
In shorthand, that means the Elettrica will be compatible with future artificial intelligence solutions, which are currently being developed for Gita, the robot on the drawing board at Piaggio Fast Forward in Boston. When Gita enters production next year it will allow the Group’s two wheelers to be aware of people and other vehicles neaby, as well as providing real time mapping and traffic data to contribute to improving the design of transport infrastructures.
An even bolder goal of Gita is for it to allow the vehicles to recognise their owners without the need for keys, anticipate their driving choices and interact with other devices and vehicles on the road.
While this level of tech is arguably a long way off, the Vespa Elettrica is certainly a step in the right direction, and with the current trend for all things electric, it’s likely to go down very well indeed.
