One of our clients – who happens to be an avid vintage scooter collector – decided to take a chance with a loose contact, making an offer for a bike he knew little to nothing about except it’s ‘Dennis the Menace’ paint design bike. As it turned out, he’d struck a rare deal; unbeknownst to him at the time, the scooter was a limited edition Rallymaster Lambretta, valued at over £30k – a true barn find!
What ensued was a 16-month liaison as he tried to negotiate the purchase of the scooter from its owner, with little to no information about the bike other than its distinctive red and black striped paint job. But in the end, it was worth the wait…
Chasing a dream: the 16-month pursuit for the Rallymaster
After catching wind of the bike from a mutual friend of the seller, our client was immediately curious and decided to follow up with the friend to find out more. After a brief chat on the phone, the only information he was given was that it was an ‘old scooter’ and that it was painted like the iconic Beano character.
Despite repeated attempts to get photos and details, information remained scarce. Eventually, after a month, the friend got back in touch to confirm that the owner was willing to sell the scooter. Yet still no photos or descriptions of the make/model were provided…
After requesting that arrangements be made for him to speak to the owner directly, he was told no, it had to go through the mutual contact. He was told to make an offer, which given the (lack of) information to hand, was challenging. Eventually, they agreed on an offer that the friend believed was enough to make the deal.
Our client recalls, ‘at the time I was thinking at worst it could be an old ‘something’ with a folk art painting on it or slightly better it could be a Vespa PX or a Lambretta GP with a Dennis the Menace mural on the side.’
‘But I was intrigued by what had been described as the Dennis the Menace – of course I thought and hoped it could be a Rallymaster but I didn’t know the value of one. It’s the thrill of the chase for me, and the same for most people I think.’
To make matters worse, the owner’s son entered the conversation, urging his parent to take the scooter to Facebook to seek advice on its value. In order to keep it a private sale, the owner demanded more money. At last, a final price was agreed on and after sending the money, he was sent three photos around an hour later. To his astonishment, not only was the scooter a Rallymaster, but it was being stored in a portable toilet…
The story of the Rallymaster
The Lambretta is an LI 150 Series 2 Rallymaster, built by Innocenti in Milan in 1961. This model, produced in large numbers, was meant for worldwide export. With the introduction of new Series 3 models in late 1961 and early 1962, UK importers needed to clear their stock of Series 2 LI 150 machines. As a result, approximately 100 were converted into Rallymasters, a race/trials machine, to cater to the growing scooter sport market.
For the scooter geeks out there, the Rallymaster has several unique features:
- Unique paint
- A larger rear tyre
- A competitor number holder
- An inner legshield spare wheel carrier
- A metal dashboard
- Ball-ended levers
- A larger carburettor
- An extended horncast.
A piece of British Lambretta history
The LI 150cc, especially the Rallymaster, remains popular and extremely valuable due to their scarcity. Not only is this Lambretta model one of around 100 to ever be produced, but as of now, it’s the only one known to exist in its original state.
Our client got in touch with the British Lambretta Archive, an organisation dedicated to preserving the heritage of Lambretta, who stated, ‘to find a machine in its original state is very rare indeed’ and valued it at £30,000. They also stated that if the scooter were to be placed either for sale within the UK dealer network or via an established action house, then it would most likely be valued at a figure far in excess of £30,000.
Scootering Magazine said that the steal is ‘the only physical example that gives clear evidence of how a production Rallymaster looked.’
Restoring the ride: getting road-ready
Now busy getting his hands dirty, our client told us they have since spent some time on the scooter, putting air in the tyres, cleaning it, and taking off the rust. ‘I don’t want to clean it too much and take away the years of grime,’ they said, ‘it’s the scooter’s history and I want to keep that intact.’
Is the Rallymaster road ready yet? If so, have you given it a ride?
‘Not yet.. but I’m hoping so in the very near future. There’s a few jobs needed in order to get it road ready but I’m looking forward to riding it!’
Do you have any plans to restore or acquire any more vintage scooters after this one?
‘No.. but I’ve said that a few times now and always seem to convince myself into buying another. I’ve tried to limit my collecting to ‘British registered’ scooters made between 1957 and 1962, but there’s a few nice ones outside of that which have caught my eye and slipped through the net.’
A note on Howden motorcycle insurance
If you have a motorbike or scooter, whether standard, vintage or customised, and value speaking to fellow enthusiasts, it could be worth a quick call with us. You can contact our specialist team directly on 01206 821330
Alternatively, you can find our Motorcycle Insurance page here
Sources: Scootering Magazine, British Lambretta Archive
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This is a marketing blog by Howden Insurance.