Lately I have been scouring the used market on Gumtree NSW and Bikesales.com. It certainly can be a form of entertainment, helping also to establish price range accuracy and what could be difficult to unload. The best way to establish what isn't selling is go to the last page and work backwards.

Listed today on Gumtree is a 'nearly new' 15 Honda Dio. The further claim is that it has done 110 two up and topped 140kph. REALLY! I want my money back for mine; I must have purchased a dud. And why anyone would think that making those claims for a 108cc engined machine would be attractive to a respective buyer is beyond me. Entertaining, though.

Bikesales just listed a as new 2010 Honda SH150 with 1657ks only, including coded top box from original owner for $2.5k with current rego. Now that's good buying ... but Victoria.

When I originally started looking at the Vespa GTS 300, about 3 years ago, there were more used listings than now appear. A lot from older guys who just weren't using them enough to justify the money being tied up. But a good low mileage one is now harder to find. There have been very few offering of a used Vespa Sprint 150 since their first release.

The season is moving in my favour, so if the 17 SH150 does not rock my boat I'll just be patient for a used hobby scooter to run parallel with the Dio. Patience is the key. My late father was a master at sourcing some amazing exotic motor vehicles, which were his passion. Onya dad.

Yep patience is the key and then pounce with at least a %10 less offer and take from there

Asps, re those claimed speeds for the Dio, I think that the seller lives near some really B I G hills and quoted speeds are when rolling..

Think Blackheath down to Penrith, Toowoomba downhill to Brisso....that sort of thing

Someone has whispered in the Dio sellers ear, with the result that this ad has been modified. It still presents as a 'Wally' ad, with a rediculously ambitious price. We're still doing 110, though.

A lot of used scooters don't stack price wise.  Already starting from a low base price wise for new vehicles, by the time you include rego transfer (expensive here in the revenue hungry state of NSW), a portion only left of the annual registration, where you are in the service interval cycle of that scooter (short for some), tyre wear etc. and what if any is remaining on the warranty period, it needs to be well priced. Not to mention looked after. So, if you go to view say a Vespa GTS 250 whose owner has just tipped himself into a Ducati Streetfighter, it has you understanding how the Vespa might have been ridden.

All entertaining

Yes Asps, they do make for interesting and , at times , weird reading.

Some of the prices are ''aspirational", to say the least.

I hate the ones where they start with VESPA/LAMBRETTA/APRILIA in the heading.....and u find out that it's a Chinese no-name or, as U say, they say things like "great for weekend 2-up drives to the coast", and it's a 125 and motorspeeds are 110 kph.

is it just me, or are there less BS ads when U look at used cars?

Yep loads of bullshit when all I want to know is model year of manufacture colour number of owners kilometres done any accessories general condition price 

ROFLOL this the stock pictures description

Stock Photo - Old rusty scary Vespa scooter motorcycle parked on pavement at the mediterranean sea harbour of Malsaforn,Malta with Malta fishing boats on blue water

... so condensed Pyrah that translates to detection, bearing, range, point and shoot. Sounds no-nonsense to me.

Question: Scooter tyres .... at what time interval should you consider replacing tyres, even reasonable quality tyres with good tread? Assumes the scooter is not in the preservation class.

"scary Vespa scooter "

I like the pic ...and that would be the most Honda step thru-ish Vespa I ever saw!

Mind U , I think some folks would call anything scooterish around southern europe a Vespa.

My tyres wear out before they rot out. But I seem to get about 6-8 thousand from a rear and around 10 thousand from a front. Scooters generally wear rears faster as that's where most of the weight is, so I got told.

Tyres IMHO a lot will depend on the environment they have lived in but as a general rule , after 5 years if you throw the scooter around a lot if not change at 10 years . Don't forget to inspect regularly if any cracks in tyre or squared off tread down to wear indicators then replace . Replace if you are not comfortable with the feel or brand of tyres

Thanks Pyrah. So a very low mileage but older scooter might need to factor for tyre replacement 8-10 years (it's mostly about the additioanl labour cost moreover for scooters). Similarly I was made to replace at rego time my Made-in-Japan Subaru Forester tyres which still had good meat at 8 years. The claim was that they were starting to crack on the inside walls.

Here is a used Vespa for you click

Insurance companies are starting to take a great deal of interest in the age of tyres lately.
Any chance of rejecting a claim is a good one my cynical side suspects.