1959 Car built in Fourchambault, France. Seems it might have been sold by the Boston Vespa Company on Comm. Ave. in Boston.

1973 Converted to electric by a local professor called Stan. He used a 185-lb forklift motor, 496 lbs of golf-car batteries (8x62lbs, 48v system), and a lot of U.S. Navy-surplus relays to control voltage.

1976 The last year it is registered and inspected. It is put away in a shed.

2019 Came my way through an awesome guy called Anthony as Stan moved out of his long-time home. Seems it was put away because the half-shafts on the independent rear suspension failed.

2019 Got it running with four 12v batteries (340 lbs vs 500 lbs) and some replacement pieces from a supplier in France.

2019 Stan and his daughter came by to see the old Vespa... 46 years after the conversion! (See pic below.)

2020 Covid came and I had time to put in an updated e-drive. 185 lb motor out, 65 lb motor in. Navy relays out (one stays!), Curtis sep-ex controller in. BUT... battery weight goes back up to 510 lbs with six 12v batteries.

2022 Got over my cheapness and bought Mustang Mach-E lithium batteries on the secondary market. Range up from about 20 miles to some unmeasured maximum (never ran out), and battery weight goes down from 510 lbs to 160 lbs.

2023 Transaxle fails - teeth break off the pinion gear on the final drive.  Not surprising; lotsa torque in e-motors and the original two-cylinder two-stroke motor motor only had 20 ft-lbs along with its 15 hp.

2024 Make a new drivetrain with BMW diff, Cushman three-speed trans, and the same 65-lb shunt-wound e-motor and Mach-E battery pack. Doesn't work smoothly, and parts stick out the back. Meh.

2025 Find a replacement transmission from a nice guy called Amin. Add that with a NetGain three-phase e-motor and lithium battery modules from a Hyundai Ioniq 5.

2025 Gould's Microcar Event comes, and I learn that I can go more than 100 miles on a charge. I need to see to a few things, but it is registered, insured, and going places.

At the time this pic is taken, it has been 46 years since the conversion.