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Paris - Saigon on a 1973 Vespa 125 t.s. ... Paris - Saigon on a 1973 Vespa 125 t.s. ...
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Travellers' Advisories, Safety and Security on the Road Recent News, political or military events, which may affect trip plans or routes. Personal and vehicle security, tips and questions.
Photo by Andy Miller, UK, Taking a rest, Jokulsarlon, Iceland

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!


Photo by Andy Miller, UK,
Taking a rest,
Jokulsarlon, Iceland



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  #1  
Old 9 Oct 2008
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Paris - Saigon on a 1973 Vespa 125 t.s. ...
I would like to introduce myself.

Living and working in Paris, I enjoy the cool-look and the convenience of an old Vespa in the city.

I have already enjoyed summer trip with my everyday vespa to Italy, spain and recently the Balkans.

But these short trips are not enough and I have decided to follow the magic tracks I have discovered here.

Departure April 2009 : central Europe Turquie Georgia ArmeniaIran Central asia and if evrything goes well Pakistan India ...

I have already found plenty of motivation and advices here, and will continue on reading and asking.

Once I will be on the road, you will be kept informed here :
Au-delÃ* du Farghestan , where I have already given more information about myself and my project, but in french only...

So long,
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Old 9 Oct 2008
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Thumbs up Nice!
Good luck with your trip. It's sounds great. Keep us informed about the preparations and if you can, about the trip as it goes.

Kind regards

Nigel in NZ (former Lambretta owner)
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  #3  
Old 9 Oct 2008
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I'll echo that
Yes, good luck and please keep us updated.

Former Vespa Rally 180/200 nut.
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  #4  
Old 9 Oct 2008
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Awesome, what a great trip on a great bike!

Heres my baby.......

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Old 10 Oct 2008
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cool trip
i did bali to bangkok on a 71 vespa back in 87,managed10,000 km wiggling my way up ,one set of rings and a piston,my bit of advise is get a single springer seat ,your ass will love you and beef up the top shock mount on the rear ,mine broke 3 times with the rough roads in asia ,the main piss off with that is it makes your shock move across and rubs on your tyre ,then a blow out ,,causing a near death experience twice with me , go and enjoy they are a great tourer , i still have mine in the shed
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Old 10 Oct 2008
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A great idea.
As mentioned I highly recommend changing/altering the saddle as well...

Good luck with the prep. Ride safe.
Maybe we can meet somewhere in the middle, round Iran or Turkey.

Best.

N
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Old 10 Oct 2008
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Welcome Jean-Yves!

You are aware that you need a carnet de passages en douane from the French AA?
And that you can't normally take your bike into China?
And that Vietnam is closed to foreign vehicles altogether now, unless you have a special permit?

Bon voyage,
Peter.
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Cheers,
Peter.

Europe to NZ 2006-10
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  #8  
Old 10 Oct 2008
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Thanks for your encouragement, your advices and thanks to thecanoeguy for his warning !

@ beddhist : I am aware of these facts but prefer to keep on dreaming. There is a long road ahead before I will face a chinese custom officer, not mentioning a vietnamese one ...

@aussienat : It will be a pleasure !

I will keep you informed !

Cheers.

JY
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Old 10 Oct 2008
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My best wishes for your trip....my only question is to ask if a 2 stroke engine is suitable for long distance work.

Bonne route!
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Old 11 Oct 2008
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vintage vespa mmm
they are not a high revving beast ,but i did manage to run out of rings and compression ,a new piston and rings would be on the cards enroute ,just have to watch your fuel mixture ,you don't want to lean her out and seize her, but a nice steady 50 -60 kph and you will be fine ,smelling the roses on the way is what doing it on a vespa is all about ,oh yeah and avoiding any big roads as trucks will want to squash you
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Old 11 Oct 2008
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Quote:
Originally Posted by thecanoeguy View Post
,smelling the roses on the way is what doing it on a vespa is all about ,oh yeah and avoiding any big roads as trucks will want to squash you
That's what I have been doing for thousand of km in Europe. I thonk it will basicelly be the same across the Bosphore ...

Quote:
Originally Posted by thecanoeguy View Post
beef up the top shock mount on the rear
You are talking of the silent block, aren't you ? What have you done precisely to "beef it up" ?

Thanks
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Old 12 Oct 2008
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i think that is what its called
i got a guy in some little town in sumatra to change the mount system ,we found some thing and modified it ,what happene was the rubber broke and because it is mounted on the sloping part of the body it pushed the shock up and across and then the shocker spring rubbed on the rear tyre and next thing it gets a blow out ,i blew a tyre went straight across the wrong side of the road down a ditch over the bars and ended up in the mud .it was a funny sight i would say if you were watching ,caused a traffic jam as all the locals were wondering why a white dude on a pink vespa was upside down in a ditch covered in mud,good thing they have a spare

here you go i just found this having a quick look on google obviously a problem and some one has a cure
Vespa P series
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  #13  
Old 13 Oct 2008
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Jean-Yves,

Great idea, hope the planning goes well.

About two years ago I was in western Queensland, Australia, heading for Alice Springs on the Plenty Highway at least 600 km from any town. I came across a small group of Italian riders on 1960 style Vespas. They had travelled tens of thousands of kilometres over outback roads and were heading for Perth on the west coast. They were having a ball until one broke down. I gave a lift to one of the riders into Alice Springs, about 700km. He had to hire a Toyota utility to retreive his scooter.

One of the problems they had was dust into the engine as the air intake is low and cops the worst of the dust on dirt roads. The other was having enough food, water and fuel with the limited carrying capacity of the scooter. One had a trailer built for extra stores to take along, but would be a pain sometimes I am sure.

About you hope to get to Saigon, if heading through China the route will be expensive as you will need to hire a local guide to be with you will driving in the Peoples Republic. It has not been possible to travel through Burma (Myanmar) by proivate vehicle in recent years so to get from India to Thailand/Cambodia/Vietnam may need a flight.

Cheers for now.
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  #14  
Old 2 May 2009
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On the road !
I have not taken time until today to post :

I AM ON THE ROAD !

Already 6 000 km and one continent (Europe) behind. I am in Anatolia, heading for Cappadocia at my slow pace !

Cheers !
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Old 15 May 2009
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What a pleasure it is to be on the road
Jean, it was a pleasure to meet you. Best of luck with the rest of your trip.

I am privilaged that you had your first `proper bike` experience on my Honda! and I was able to try your Vespa. Not sure either of us convinced the other as to the merits of each machine, but fun nonetheless.

I camped for another night at that spot near Mustafapasa, and was joined by a pair of Turkish couples out for a BBQ and a healthy dose of Raki. They insisted on sharing both food and alcohol with me, and a good night was had by all.

Also found the most amazing road in the Samsun region, will post a ride report today sometime, but it`s the `main` country road North from Havza to Bafra. One of the most enjoyable roads I have ever ridden.
Give it a try if you`re in the area..
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