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Piaggio Fly: A Comprehensive Review

A comprehensive review of Piaggio’s newest addition to it’s lineup, the Piaggio Fly.
Review and photos by Gerdie Francisco.

Piaggio Fly FirebirdThree weeks after I looked at the Piaggio Fly 125 at 2211 Works, I was ready to take it home. I felt like bringing a new born baby to its new home. Well of course, I don’t know what that feels like but taking home “Firebird” seemed to feel that way. Oh yes, my new red scooter’s name is Firebird. I named it after Igor Stravinsky’s opera.

Before taking it home, I had a taste of test-driving the unit just so I’d be familiar with the controls. It has been seven months since I’ve driven a scooter and so I wanted to make sure that I could still ride and control one. 🙂

Robby, from 2211 Works explained the basics which I needed to know in driving Firebird. The throttle, the breaks, the switches, what to expect, etc.

The Fly is automatic. Having gotten used to riding a geared scooter, I had to slowly learn to drive an automatic. Of course it was much simpler but it takes time to unlearn the old and adapt to the new.

It’s got an electric start and a kick start. Of course, the electric start is easier to use. Squeeze the left or right break controls, squeeze the throttle and press the start button. Sounds simple but believe me, it takes some kinda ’style’ to do all these. 🙂

The throttle. Don’t squeeze it too hard. Just a little bit and let the scooter work up speed on its own. Gently squeeze to your desired speed.

The rear break is on your left and the front break is on the right. Robby said not to squeeze the front break too tight as it really stops immediately. Actually, it was a bit confusing for me as I am used to the bicycle break controls positioned vice-versa.

Piaggio Fly Left and RightLeft and Right Signal light switch on the left side of the handle bar. Push to return to neutral position. This control is neat. 🙂

Ok! I’m ready to go. Oh, don’t go beyond 60kph till you reach 1000km. That’s called break-in period. Wow, I thought that was slow. 60kph. Anyway, follow the gurus and it will result to a better running scooter.

From Manila to Quezon City. That’s the trip for the night. So, I started the engine and off I went. I gently squeezed the throttle and was very cautious about it. The Fly just glided and true enough, I needed just a gentle squeeze. That’s the first thing I noticed. From stop to start, it smoothly glided and was a fast one.

Piaggio Fly CompartmentSince I was bonding with Firebird for the first time, I made sure I rode on the farthest right of the road. For me, it’s not the safest part of the street but at least I don’t get to irrate other drivers with my slow pace. 🙂

Did I say slow? Oh, that was a mistake. Relatively slow is what I would say. I was running at 40kph and tried to hit 50kph. I always had to tell myself that I was driving the scooter for the first time. Mind you, in the streets of Manila, driving at that speed was just right. You can’t go any further not unless you were in the main road.

It was early in the evening and I really liked the scooter’s bright lights. It beamed a little bit high and so I need to adjust that later on. Oh, I forgot to mention. Once you turn your keys to ON position, the lights automatically switches on as well. Just like the cars in North America. They’re always on even during daytime. I found that weird when I was living in Toronto but later on realized the benefits of it. Besides, the lights are automatic so it’s one less thing to remember when I start the engine.

Piaggio Fly CompartmentCompartments. It’s got one under the handle bars. At first, I thought that it’s just too small. It can only hold my cellphone, wallet and another small thing. Then I remember, it’s got another one under the seat and that’s big enough to carry my thermos, belt bag and lunch pack. 🙂 Not bad! Not bad at all. If I do my groceries, I could fit some items inside the seat compartment and still manage to have a few grocery bags hooked under the seat and resting on the foot panel. Oh! And I discovered, I could put my half-face helmet inside too. No need to carry with me wherever I go. 🙂 Sweet.

The horn. Now this one needs replacement. Oh, nothing wrong with the horn. It was working completely fine. It’s just that, it sounded like a bicycle horn. So faint. Definitely not for the streets of Manila. It’s just too tame.

InstrumentThe speedometer, odometer and fuel gauge. Very analogue but Firebird has a digital clock! 🙂 That’s cute.

Fuel Consumption. Firebird has accummulated 89km and used 3/4 of the fuel tank. That’s in a week’s time. That means, Php180.00 worth of gas.

The seat. It’s long and wide. 🙂 I can have a passenger and we can both seat comfortably. It’s also got a roomy foot rest for me and my passenger.

seatThe ride. Smooth I would say. Maybe because it’s got 12″ wheels which made the ride more stable. Plus, it’s got this rear shock-absorber which really bounces so smoothly and is perfect for some bumpy side streets. As a matter of fact, the next day, I took it to Valenzuela, Bulacan and the Fly made all those uneven roads feel like they were just ’small challenges’ to overcome. 😉

The engine. I should say I am happy with Firebird. He doesn’t seem to look extraordinary but he’s got a Piaggio 125 cc Leader engine and that makes him rock! 🙂 It makes him fast and it doesn’t use up much gas. I really haven’t maximized his speed yet. I could only go at tops, 60kph and at that, he’s already flying. I just couldn’t ride past 60kph yet because of the break-in period and besides, from my house to my work place, I couldn’t drive that fast unless I come home late at night.

Piaggio Leader 125ccOh, one last thought. If you are a femme and would like to own one, I suggest building up some muscles first. The Piaggio Fly 125 is heavy! I can move it around, no question about that but sometimes, I could do with some help from a brawn brod. 😉

Firebird. He’s my city road hero.

2 Responses to “Piaggio Fly: A Comprehensive Review”

  1. Edmund Umali says:

    Congrats Girdie. Your Fly looks “super fly”. Ride safe.

  2. Nani says:

    You really made a good review! Ride Safe always.

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