Since we’re expecting a slow news week… you know, no big announcements or anything ;), we’ll be keeping an eye on EICMA #66. This will be the show where the remaining 2009 models are expected to shake out. What’s new? What’s exciting? What’s expected? Stay tuned as we run through them this week.
First let’s start with a brand that’s not going to make much of a difference to us because you can’t get them in the USA, Malaguti. Malaguti has trumped Piaggio’s MP3 for bad-choice-of-names with their new 125cc / 160cc Malaguti BLOG. I’ll be on the lookout for the Aprilia Ninja Cat and Italjet Hadron Collider 250 announcements this week too.
The Malaguti Blog is described as such:
“an agile scooter, easy to ride in the city traffic thanks to its low seat, with large wrap-around leg shield and windshield, compact and short wheelbase, flat platform, under-seat storage compartment big enough to hold 2 jet helmets, double disc brake, high-powered frontlight. The maximum comfort combined with the modern and aggressive, elegant and dynamic design of a “Made in Italy” scooter. BLOG are equipped with the innovative and reliable 160 and 125 cc, liquid cooled, electronic injected engine, the ones assembled also on the CENTRO range. They grant excellent results in terms of performance and driveability under any condition.”
The Centro, Malaguti’s big-wheeled scooter, is well received in the rest of the world so the engine should do good for the BLOG.
Malaguti has an update to the hot little liquid cooled Phantom F12 R 50cc Fantasy 2-stroker as well. Look for a trippy new graphics set that will look something like this: 
Additionally for 2009 Malaguti will offer a new 4-stroke version of the Phantom and a new flagship scooter called the SpiderMax RS500 that goes a little something like this:
Looking more like a robo-mantis than a Spider, the SpiderMax RS500 is based on the GT 500 execpt she’s “more dynamic and sportier”. You can read all the deets right here if you’d like. I’m gonna save my hands for news on scooters scheduled for the American market.
4. November 2008 at 6:13 pm
the SpiderMax RS500 is great to drool over.. it looks sexy and beasty.
5. November 2008 at 12:35 pm
The Spidermax has been around for a long time in Europe. Great looking scoot but nothing really new.
5. November 2008 at 2:43 pm
The US sucks when it comes to scooter choices.
Glad I have my F-12 Foggy !!!
11. November 2008 at 5:12 am
Glad to see someone in America still watches whats going on in Italy…
Yes, I saw Antonino Malaguti at the Intermot show and I met the new importer for Germany the new bikes look great, but outside of Europe nobody can afford them. The importer can’t make a profit, the dealer can’t make a profit, and unless they find an Asian partner Malaguti can’t make a profit. I love all things Italian its a real shame honestly our world keeps going into the $300 mainland China scooter dept.
It’s a real shame because they cotinue to assemble them in Italy amd technically its the right thing to do, but not the smart thing to do as a business to grow. I’ve told them several times to partner up with an Asian brand unless they do the Piaggio thing and assemble in Asia they will never be profitable for outside EU importers. Real shame.
As we all know from the new Aprilias/Piaggios from China and even the new Vespa LTs being made in Vietnam it can either work out great or backfire like the Italjet 150cc made in China. So it comes down to finding good partners.
Now I dont know why Northern Italians like names like MP3 and the BLOG or putting the stupid GT in front of everything but its getting out of hand.
Also, they should quit recycling the same names. Only the Chinese are worse by putting a made up word sort of Latin sounding name to everything.