Speed of the Scarabeo

[ebetzs]

I weigh 190 and with the large windshield from Mototeck, here are the actual speeds of the 150 after it is broken in.
My speedometer reads exactly ten miles an hour too fast at all speeds.
Actual speed:
Level road, no wind: 65 to 70 mph
Slight grade: 60 mph
Steep grade: 50 to 60 mph
The machine is not designed for the expressway but will maintain freeway speeds. There is little or no passing ability at these speeds however.
A 40 yr. motorcycle rider, this lack of passing ability is unsatisfactory for me. I have ordered an Atlantic 500 and hope for a big improvement. The big test will be acceleration from 60 to 80.

[KCBulldog]

is this a situation that involves a warranty call to the dealership to fix the speedo? If you did, I wonder if the dealership has the technical training in house to correct the problem?

[ebetzs]

The answer is an emphatic "no" from the dealer.
They tell me they have no way of correcting the problem
locally and Aprilia has no intention of correcting the problem. According to the dealer, although beautifully engineered and a great product, they are notorious liars when it comes to their speedometers. He tells me that all Aprilias that have a mechanical connection for the speedometers are at least 10% higher than the actual speed.

[loungescooter]

The only Aprilias with mechanical speedo are SR50, Scarabeo 50 and 150, RS50 and Pegaso. Everything else ie Mille, Futura, etc. are magnetic sensor on rear wheel and very accurate.

[ebetzs]

OK: So the ones you mention are mechanical and they are providing incorrect readings. Why doesn't Aprilia address this issue?

[ip]

thats because every brand of tire has slightly different diameter ,if you use taller tire and it wil read perfectly

[z3bum]

I have a Garmin Etrex Vista I plan on mounting on the Scarabeo 150. Anyone else use a GPS to help with speeds, etc?

[ferrisl]

Kostee's statement about changing to a different tire size should NOT be taken as correct. The tire size needed to 'correct' the speedo problem would cause other problems in regards to fit, handling and clearance.
And this is not considered the appropriate way to fix a speedo error.

For a solution, check out my Scarabeo web page at www.geocities.com/scarabeoitalia

Someone has fixed this problem, though it is detailed and you need a gps system to calibrate it.

Ferris