Piaggio MP3

The 500 cc version of the MP3 scooter can really only be explained as the result of some kind of late-night lunacy at Piaggio‘s design centre.

Perhaps over-caffeinated designers scrambled about, pens in hand, doodling on walls, the drawings inspired by post-apocalyptic, sci-fi Hollywood epics.

That’s the only likely reason why the parent company of Vespa — the scooter maker that set the standard for scooter design — would produce an insect-like (as opposed to the friendly façade of the 250 and 400), three-wheeled contraption known as the MP3 500.

And then make it lean into turns no less. Sheer lunacy! That is, until you take the MP3 for a ride. Then this oddball scooter starts to make some kind of sense.

FAT FACED FACIA

Viewed from the side there’s nothing unusual about the MP3, but get a good look at the front end and take it for a spin and a different story is told. As the MP3 has two front wheels placed side by side, it has a massive facia.

The independent suspension uses a clever scissors-type lever arrangement that allows the front wheels to tilt into a lean while absorbing bumps independently. So, unlike other Y-platform three-wheelers like the Spyder, the MP3 actually leans like a two-wheeler.

It leans and it’s planted.

photo: Piaggio 

How does this work in practice? At first there is an odd feeling of slight resistance when you lean the bike over, somewhat like settling into a vat of Jello (you should try it) — just a hint of a delay — though you do get accustomed to it after a short while.

After that, the advantages of this arrangement start to show themselves. You can lean way over into turns and the front end feels extremely planted, even in conditions where other scooters would tend to wash out, like on gravel roads or wet pavement.

It isn’t a magic cure — push it enough and I’m sure you could lose your grip, but it’ll take a lot more work than a two-wheeler.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

Striped of all its clothes, the MP3 holds its motor and CVT transmission (inbuilt into the swingarm) like a scooter. Two front wheels deviate from the script, however.

photo: Piaggio 

The MP3 500 is actually a 493 cc single-cylinder with liquid-cooling and EFI. It claims a 244 kg (538 lb) dry weight and 40 hp, with a top speed of 143 km/h.

The engine is well designed for a machine that will likely see mostly city driving. Turning the throttle slowly won’t give you “snap your neck like a dry twig” acceleration, but if you keep on turning, ample power is available.

The machine easily got up to highway speeds, and while I didn’t hit the 143 km/h claimed maximum speed, I did get up to speed with the traffic on the 401 outside of Toronto — which moves along at 130+ km/h — with the MP3 feeling like it had a comfortable reserve of power at all times.

Braking, despite the slightly heavyweight nature of the MP3, is impressively good. With a disc at each wheel and three contact patches, it’ll grip where a single front wheel would give up and go find a new career on a wheelbarrow. It’s like braking on duct tape, sticky side up.

Three wheels work well on gravel roads.

Suspension compliance on pothole-rutted city streets as well as on gravel roads was impressive. Up to the limit of the suspension travel, it does a quite remarkable job of dealing with road imperfections, smoothing them out and not bouncing you around.

Where well worn, rutted pavement would tend to push a two-wheeled machine to one side or the other, the MP3 tracks straight and true.

STANDING STRAIGHT

Because this three wheeler acts like a two wheeler, it will flop over like a drunken Scotsman if not propped up at a stop. Therefore, those hyperactive engineers at Piaggio provide a front-end lock that operates with the push of a button. Hit the button when stopped and the MP3 locks at the angle it was at when you hit it.

Don’t forget to lock the leaning mechanism to stop it going floppy.

This is needed when parking the bike, but if your reflexes are quick, you can hit the button just before coming to a complete stop and the MP3 will stand obediently while you wait for the traffic signal to change.

You’ve also got to be careful not to hit the switch inadvertently … like if your foot slips on some sand and you tilt the bike over and hit the switch accidentally without realizing it. Then try and work out why it’s seized in this posture.

Not that I’ll admit to doing that, mind you.

Piaggio has incorporated a few safety features to prevent mishaps. For example, if you are not sitting on the seat and the throttle is twisted, the engine shuts off. Also, the suspension unlocks automatically when you are sitting in the seat and gas it, just in case you’ve forgotten to unlock things after the light turns green. This will prevent a potentially awkward moment at the first corner.

THE BUGGY BITS

Clocks aren’t easy.

There are some convenient features as well, including a remote seat latch and even an accessory outlet under the seat to charge your cell phone or plug in electric riding gear. Oh, and for some reason, Piaggio felt the need to install a front-mounted crash-bar that looks like it would also make a formidable roo bar Down Under.

I do have a couple of quibbles though; the red-on-black scheme of the dials is quite difficult to read with sunglasses on a sunny day, and the seat occasionally needed a bit of extra pressure to lock, causing me to double check to make sure things were latched properly.

And when you peer under the seat, you’ll find the under-seat storage is
quite shallow — you definitely won’t be putting a full-face helmet under
there without the generous use of a sledgehammer on it first. To offset the lack of under-seat storage, a functional rear rack allows you to tie down luggage easily, which does make it possible to carry a fair amount with you if needed.

Jamie digs the madness.

photo: Cindy Wilson

I found the MP3 500 a bit heavy for regular use as a city hopper. If you have to manoeuvre it into a tight parking spot, it’s just a bit too weighty to make the job easy.

It’s still quite manageable, but if you’re going to do most of your riding in an urban environment, you’d probably be better off with the MP3 250 that’s 40 kg (88 lb) lighter than the 500, though you’ll also lose a chunk of power.

At $10,495 it’s not cheap, but it’s also not the most expensive scooter either — priced $500 less than Honda’s 600 Silverwing and Peugeot’s Satelis 500, and they only have two wheels (the MP3 certainly provides surefooted confidence on wet days that traditional scooters just can’t match!).

At the end of the day I grew quite fond of the big MP3. Sometimes a little madness is a good thing.

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