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African innovation of Piaggio Products
The old style Vespa scooter is very popular here, with most having been made under license in India or Taiwan, but the latest development and innovation is totally African, Vespa petrol tankers - you heard it 1st here on GeN
The hollow pressed box frame is being sealed and used to store petrol, which is state subsidized and very cheap at Naira65 per liter (£0.25)
Convoys of Vespa tankers then take the small bush tracks across the borders avoiding customs, into neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon where they are paying European prices for fuel, to sell at a high profit.
The other “misuse” of Vespa is most commonly seen after the Muslin Eid when they slaughter all the goats and rams they can find, after the big noshup the skins are sold to the tanneries, what is the most popular transport? - Vespa’s can go collecting skins from all the small bush villages where 4 wheels may not be able to go and fill up the step through opening of the frame with wet (heavy) skins, leaving no place for the riders legs, so his legs are stuck out like a berthing mother, but without the stirrups.
I don’t know how they stop as they regard front brakes as dangerous and disconnect them!! Due to lack of sensitivity between coconut and hand in a panic, they lock the front wheel and fall off, lock the back wheel, you leave a black line in the road but most times stay in control. But due to the amount of skins they can no longer get to the back brake peddle!!
So there they are with 1/2Ton of skins and no brakes and the suspension down on the bump stops.
You just have to smile.

More Vespa news
Like most of you I have no problem with clutch less gear changes, but how about hand less gear changes.
Seen yesterday coming home from work a Vespa rider with a large truck tyre across the back seat hanging down covering the rear number plate
The rider must have skills I don't possess, or is an Olympic standard dick head, as he was riding right hand on twist-grip and left hand holding tyre, I did not get to see how he coped with the next roundabout or stop start traffic ahead, you have to smile