Lambretta Scooters

The word ‘Lambretta’ is a very familiar one to those whose families are steeped in automotive tradition. It is an Italian scooter manufacturing company that was founded in Milan, in a suburb named Lambrate, which is what the company is named after. The first model was produced in 1947. It was 125cc scooter with an air-cooled engine. A little over two decades later, the Indian government purchased Lambretta’s manufacturing machinery. 1972 saw the formation of Scooters India Limited and the Vikram three-wheeler was manufactured in India. Incredibly, the Vikram is still in production as of 2017. The first scooter for India was the Vijay Delux, which later became the Vijay Super. Lambretta itself closed down in 1972, was acquired by the British Leyland Motor Corporation. It was reborn as Innocenti S.A. and is based in Lugano in Switzerland. 2017 started a new chapter for Lambretta, with it announcing a new range of scooters that displace 50cc, 125cc and 200cc. They were revealed at EICMA in Milan, Italy, the home city of the brand. The V50 Special, V125 Special and V200 Special will be manufactured in Taiwan and exported around the world. They are stylish, upscale products that offer a ton of features like all-LED lighting, a mostly digital instrument cluster, and a 12V charging socket. Carbonfibre panels will be available as an option for select markets. Combined braking or ABS is available depending upon the displacement of the scooter, which means they are India-ready. However, meeting a price target will be imperative, so the company is evaluating a distribution network and maybe an assembly line at least, in India. 2019 should see the new generation of Lambrettas used in India, provided the company can overcome the legal hurdles that are posed by Scooters India Limited owning the name for this market and the oh-so-important pricing target.