Derbi Vamos

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Derbi Vamos M, with weather protection screen. The single bench seat typical of the M can be clearly seen in the picture. The mirrors you can see in the picture do not correspond to the original condition, but come from the free accessories.
Derbi Vamos G in neat original condition. The picture clearly shows the long double seat bench and the fold-out pillion footrests.

The Derbi Vamos is a scooter model from the Spanish manufacturer Derbi from the time before the takeover by Piaggio .

The Vamos is one of the best-known "plastic scooters" of the early and mid-1990s. This is not least due to the large number of items and its long service life.

Designed as a classic city scooter with 10-inch wheels (tire size 100 / 80-10), it is very agile. In addition, it offers a lot of space with the comparatively large glove compartment and the helmet compartment (which, depending on the equipment variant, is even illuminated). The long, high and well padded seat also makes it very comfortable. These practical properties were the main reason for the sales success of the Vamos in Germany, where it was one of the more expensive scooters with an initial price of 3990 German marks (for the Vamos G) and 4390 German marks for the Vamos FL. In addition, the Vamos was one of the first scooters with an unregulated catalytic converter (from 1994).

There was a wide range of accessories for the Vamos, including different sized weather panes, luggage racks and crash bars. Many Vamos that were bought by older drivers already received extensive additional equipment ex works. This is another reason the vamo's popularity continues to this day.

There were several variants of the Vamos, these were sold at the same time (with the exception of Vamos FL). The Vamos is unofficially considered the predecessor of the Derbi Atlantis. All variants are powered by an engine from the Italian manufacturer Franco Morini.

Vamos M

The Vamos M was a moped version offered ex works (25 km / h). This version is most common in Germany, as it was often bought by older drivers and the, not insignificant, costs for the subsequent throttling of the Mokick version were saved. A conversion of the Vamos M to the Mokick is not officially planned, but possible. Visually, the Vamos M can be distinguished from the G on the single bench seat and the missing passenger footrests.

Technical data Vamos M:

  • Engine: air-cooled single cylinder two-stroke engine
  • Displacement: 49 cm³
  • Bore × stroke: 41 × 37.4 mm
  • Compression: 7.4: 1
  • Rated power: 1.42 kW (1.9 hp) at 4500 min -1
  • Max. Torque: 3.3 Nm at 3300 min -1
  • Carburetor: Dell'Orto PHVA10

Vamos G and Vamos FL

The Vamos G and FL are the mokick version of the Vamos. Depending on the country of sale, the maximum speed was limited to 50 or 40 km / h. The FL represented an attempt at modernization, as the Vamos was already heavily outdated by the end of the construction period. Technically, the FL is largely identical to the G. The differences are primarily of an optical nature. In contrast to the G, the FL was a rather modest sales success and was discontinued after a relatively short time.

Technical data Vamos G and FL

  • Engine: air-cooled single cylinder two-stroke engine
  • Displacement: 49 cm³
  • Bore × stroke: 41 × 37.4 mm
  • Compression: 7.4: 1
  • Rated power 50-km / h version: 3.02 kW (4.1 hp) at 6500 min -1
  • Rated power 40 km / h version: 1.75 kW (2.4 hp) at 5150 min -1
  • Max. Torque 50-km / h-Version: 4.6 Nm at 6000 min -1
  • Max. Torque 40-km / h-Version: 4.1 Nm at 4200 min -1
  • Carburetor: Mikuni VM 14SH

Known problems with the series

Most of the vamos that are still in operation today show the typical signs of aging of plastic scooters from that time. Faded and brittle panels are a particular problem. In addition, there are often defects that result from delayed maintenance. The sometimes poor supply of spare parts through the very thin dealer network means that many vehicles are in relatively poor condition.

In addition to these age-related problems, there are some typical "diseases" that the series has always had to struggle with, above all:

  • Icing of the carburetor in cold and damp weather (mainly affects vehicles built before 1995)
  • the very thin manifold of the moped version quickly clogs on short journeys
  • Piston seizure in the moped model, which was not due to insufficient lubrication, but to broken piston rings!
  • Tearing off the speedometer cable
  • Leak in the final gear
  • in vehicles with helmet compartment lighting it can happen that this "sucks" the battery