I once owned a Piaggio MP3 400. I bought it for my wife to learn. She took the first day of the mandatory 2 day pre-rider training. By the middle of the first day she had lost her confidence and never did ride the scooter. I rode home from the dealer - 200kms and then to and from my work a 200km round trip. At the time I also owned a Kawasaki Voyager 1700 which I still have and I have since added a Suzuki Burgman 650 AN Executive to my stable of toys. My comment about the Piaggio are made in comparison to the Suzuki not the Kawasaki. Both scooters have a CVT although the Suzuki has a manual option (which I've never used) and a power option for extra revs when overtaking (I have never used that option either) The national speed limit in Australia is 110km/h. Both scooters could do this easily and in my opinion keep up with the bigger tourers, sports bikes and cruisers. The Piaggio has a powerband where there is a lot of power delivered at the top end of the band whereas the Suzuki has a more even spread of power. In both cases the CVT is responsive and allows for quick take off from a standing start at lights and so on. The Piaggio has two wheels up front and each has its own disc and there was a single disc on the rear. The brakes were operated by handlebar levers - being a CVT there is no clutch. There is also a parking brake for extra safety when parked. The Suzuki has twin discs on the front and a single disc on the rear. Again all are operated by levers. The Suzuki has ABS (it is a 2009 model) I do not think the Piaggio had ABS (it was a 2004 model). The Suzuki also has a parking brake. Both machines had plenty of information available through gauges and warning lights. There are two areas where the Suzuki is a superior bike - before I detail those I want to qualify them by saying bigger engine scooters were built as touring scooters as well as the daily commute. Because they are touring scooters the differences matter for the long days riding (at least they do to me). First important difference is the windscreen. The Piaggio comes with a non-adjustable cosmetic screen that provides no wind protection when riding at highway speeds. It is too low. There are after market screens but this adds to the cost. The Burgman comes with a electrically adjustable (while riding) screen with about 75mm of travel. This keeps the wind off the chest and reduces the strain on the arms at highway speed but I can be lowered to allow dfor more airflow at low speed. Second difference is on board storage. Both have under seat storage that will hold 2 full face helmets if packed correctly. In the case of the Piaggio the under seat storage includes a reach through boot whereas the Suzuki's in one area under the seat. However on the Suzuki there is in dash storage - 2 latched areas for phones and other small items as well as a lockable space with a charging point - the Piaggio has an under seat charging socket. This is only a minor point - if you are a lone traveler it might not be important. The 400 v 650 is only minor although the extra ccs would be handy for a long day's riding. I have left the most important feature till last. The Piaggio is a two wheels up front machine. This gives extra stability and an extra contact patch. It leans - to 45 degrees or the side stand scrapes like any other bike/scooter and counter steers as well. The front suspension locks when the bike is stopped so the stand isn't needed but it also means that at lights etc you don't need to put your feet down to keep the bike/scooter balanced - that was the appealing factor in getting the machine for my wife. I enjoyed the Piaggio - it was great for the zip down to the shops or the trip to work. It has a shorter wheel base than the Suzuki making it ideal for the city. I would recommend both scooters but I think if you are getting a scooter for the open road but want the 3 wheel stability the 500 might be a better option.

Thanks for a nice review...looks like it rides well!

Nice!!

Looks wise, in comparsion to the earlier model, its a little too conservitive.Also my old x9 500 had identical exhaust, they must have had a lot left over.although you can get nice aftermarket exhausts.

Op naar 2wielersnoord ! :p

Als fervent Mp3 rijder kan ik het commentaar in je vid alleen maar bevestigen. Zijn hele fijne machines en voor woon/werk ritten en toerritten zeer geschikt. Toch ben ik in juni vorig jaar begonnen met motorrijlessen. Inmiddels bezit ik naast de Mp3 een Kawasaki Versys. Op mijn channel binnenkort meer. Nu ga ik snel je andere vids bekijken. Mooie review! Heb me meteen geabonneerd :-)

Vern nice little Vid...! Informative "test drive" and basically convinced me that this is an "OK" mode of transportation... Thanks for posting..! Gordon in Maryland ... (BTW, what part of Europe are you in, where this was filmed...?)

looks nice big

Lekker rijden man goed bezig

I have the 300 of this serie. But very heavy machine. Too heavy at low speed you can loss control.

493cc twin? I don't think so!

wat is een goede prijs/ km gereden verhouding op marktplaats?

ja hoor, ik ben nu echt om. schitterend☺

vorige jaar ben ik m'n mp3 gekocht en volgens mij het is fantastiche. .. en als je slechts 'n B rijbewijs (zoals ik ) Dan kunnen je opstappen zonder motor rebewijs cursus. .

Mooie video en ben het roerend met je eens, het rijdt prima, heb pas een opstap dag bij een dealer meegemaakt en voelde me heerlijk en vrij, en ben wel verkocht, op internet staat genoeg te koop en wil ook mijn scooter inruilen bij aankoop en financiering van een MP3, misschien iemand met tips of een mp3 huren? hartelijke groeten iedereen... :)

Anothe one: the mirrors have a litle stick and are litles...