General Information

Serial #

523686

Part Number

1

Total Parts

1

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

METAL/ CHROMED REAR LUGGAGE RACK/ SYNTHETIC SEAT & REAR INDICATOR LIGHT LENSES/ RUBBER TIRES, HANDGRIPS, MAT/ GLASS HEADLIGHT LENS

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

198.0 cm

Width

68.0 cm

Height

105.0 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

122.47

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Motorized Ground Transportation

Category

Motorcycle vehicles

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

LAMBRETTA

Country

Italy

State/Province

Unknown

City

Unknown

Context

Country

Unknown

State/Province

Unknown

Period

Unknown

Canada

Innocenti also distributed their Lambretta brand via Montgomery Ward's catalogue during this post-Second World War period. These were the premier brands of scooters, bringing premium pricing to many, including farmers, who often made purchases through these catalogues.

Function

GENERAL TRANSPORTATION

Technical

Aeronautical engineer General Corradino D'Ascanio was hired by Ferdinando Innocenti to designing a simple, robust and affordable vehicle. D'Ascanio designed a revolutionary vehicle. It was built on a spar frame with a handlebar gear change and the engine mounted directly onto the rear wheel. The front protection "shield" kept the rider dry and clean in comparison to the open front end on motorcycles. The pass-through leg area design was geared towards women, as wearing dresses or skirts made riding conventional motorcycles a challenge. The front fork, like an aircraft's landing gear, allowed for easy wheel changing. The internal mesh transmission eliminated the standard motorcycle chain, a source of oil and dirt. This basic design allowed a series of features to be deployed on the frame which would later allow quick development of new models. However, General D'Ascanio fell out with Innocenti, who wanted to produce his frame from rolled tubing, allowing him to revive both parts of his prewar company. General D'Ascanio disassociated himself from Innocenti and took his design to Enrico Piaggio who produced the spar-framed Vespa from 1946 on. The final design of the Lambretta was done by aeronautical engineers Cesare Pallavicino and Pier Luigi Torre. Pallavicino had been Technical Director at the Caproni airplane factory during World War II before working on the Lambretta design. Torre was an engine designer at Italo Balbo's Idros; he designed the engine and organized Innocenti's factory for mass production.

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

STYLISED PLATE ON FRONT LEFT WIND LEG SHIELD READS: `LAMBRETTA/ TV175'/ RED, WHITE & BLUE PLATE ON STEERING COLUMN READ: `[LOGO]/ LAMBRETTA'

Missing

BATTERY

Finish

HEADLIGHT CASE, FRONT FENDER, WINDSHEILDS, WHEELS ARE WHITE/ STEERING COLUMN, BODY SIDE PANELS RED/ FLOOR MAT IS BLUE STRIPES ON BLACK BACKGROUND/ CHROMED REAR LUGGAGE RACK/ LEFT BODY PANEL SHOWS SIGNS OF BEING IN CONTACT WITH ROAD, SCRAPE MARKS

Decoration

N/A