Ignitions for Vespa and Lambretta
- at SIP Scootershop
What good is the most beautifully restored scooter or the best-tuned engine if the Vespa or Lambretta doesn't start or the right spark doesn't come across? Every combustion engine needs a compressed, ignitable mixture that is detonated at the right time. The electronic control unit/ignition coil provides the electrical impulse, the spark plug the spark, the pickup the right moment. The fan wheel/pole wheel generates additional electrical current, which finds grateful consumers in the form of lights, indicators or horn. If a component is defective, it costs nerves and instead of the mixture you explode yourself.
What ignitions are available for my Vespa or Lambretta?
There are three ignition systems for Vespa:
Contact breaker ignition
With the variant also called "mechanical ignition" or "contact ignition", the current flows through the ignition coil by the induction of the magnets in the rotating pole wheel. The current flow is interrupted by the breaker. The magnetic field changes. High voltage is generated in the secondary winding of the coil, which leads to sparking in the spark plug. To dampen the spark at the breaker, a capacitor is connected in parallel.
The capacitor and the breaker are therefore subject to greater wear, should always be replaced at the same time and should also be included as a spare part on longer trips. Breaker ignitions are installed on all older Vespas, i.e. on all classic smallframe Vespas 50-125/PV except ET3, all wideframes and largeframes except the Rally 200 Femsatronic and the first PX models. Every Vespa with a contact ignition can be converted to a 12 V electronic ignition. In addition to the pole wheel and the ignition base plate, the appropriate voltage regulator, the electronic control unit, 12 V bulbs, the appropriate brake and light switch and a conversion wiring harness are also required.
Electronic ignition with fixed ignition timing
Here the pickup takes over the interruption of the current flow. This switching is done by a weak current generated in this small coil by induction. The e-ignition therefore works without contact and is very low-wear. The ignition timing can only be changed by turning the ignition base plate. The E-ignition was first used on the Rally 200 Femsatronic and can also be found on Primavera ET3/PK/PX/ T5/Cosa models.
Electronic ignition with variable ignition timing
The development does not stop at the Vespas. Every engine speed has its own optimum ignition timing. Therefore, a fixed ignition timing is always only a compromise. With the new ignitions with variable ignition timing, a computer changes the ignition timing depending on the engine speed, thus always creating optimal conditions. More power, higher revs and less consumption are the result.
All models back to the V30 can be retrofitted with this ignition. A perfect update for any old Vespa, whether it is only used for Sunday rides, on the North Cape tour or in racing.