Like many motorized bike owners, Vespa owners like to mount things on their scooters. The most popular items mounted are cameras, cell phones and GPS units. Mounting locations for a Vespa isn’t as easy as a motorcycle because there isn’t much of a handlebar. It’s a way different design from a conventional motorcycle such as a Harley or Suzuki.
There are three good locations for mounting devices on a Vespa which are reviewed below. Although you might be tempted to use a suction cup somewhere on your Vespa, we don’t recommend it. Suction cups in high vibration environments can become loose and fall off so we suggest using one of the three methods outlined below.
Mounts for a Vespa are hard to come by because, well, it’s not a motorcycle, it’s a scooter and this makes a big difference. There are dozens of manufacturers that make handlebar mounts for traditional motorcycles, but since the Vespa doesn’t have a traditional handlebar, the options are limited – so limited that we are only familiar with a single manufacturer that has mounts that fit a Vespa. Fortunately it’s a leading manufacturer that has been around for a long time. RAM Mounts come with a lifetime warranty.
Our phone recommendations below all feature the RAM X-Grip cradle which is an expandable universal gripper. We wrote a very detailed article on the X-Grip cradle which you can read here.
The most popular location for mounts is the mirror stem. The diameter of the mirror stem will vary but it’s typically .375 inches or thicker. This is quite a bit thinner than a traditional handlebar so many of the mounts that you may see for a motorcycle handlebar are unlikely to fit. The RAM U-bolt Mount for smartphones is a good pick for this location.
The RAM u-bolt base mount is an ideal starter kit for attaching a custom cradle to fit your GPS. A very similar u-bolt camera mount is available to attach to any camera that has a standard 1/4″ – 20 threaded tripod screw on the bottom . Be sure to use the RAM plastic inserts so that the u-bolt can fit the smaller diameter of the mirror stem. These mounts come with a lifetime warranty from the manufacturer. Most components are made of powder coated metal. These are real well made mounts.
A second location for mounting devices to a Vespa is the base of the mirror stem. To install these, you will need to remove the mirror stem, place the stem through the hole at the base of the mount, add a washer, then reinstall the mirror stem. It’s not difficult and the install may look a little cleaner than attaching directly to the mirror stem as outlined in the prior paragraph. The RAM mirror stem features an 11mm holes which will fit most mirror stems. You can add a RAM arm and X-Grip cradle to complete your phone kit. You can also add a tripod screw to complete the kit for a camera.
The last location to consider for a Vespa is the dash. A flat surface mount requires some drilling and you need to be ok with a permanent set of holes. The prior two locations we discussed are temporary and the mounts can be removed when you want, but this gets bolted down and isn’t meant to be easily removed. The RAM X-Grip Flat Surface Mount can be bolted to any flat surface and comes with their popular phone cradle.