Sold for £3,910
(including buyers premium)
Registration No: 144 XVR
Frame No: 150LD155665
Engine No: 150LD149193
CC: 150
MOT: Exempt
During World War II Ferdinando Innocenti ran a steel tubing factory in the Lambrate district of Milan in northern Italy, producing components for the Italian Air Force and construction. After the war Innocenti needed to find a new product in order for his business to survive. Production of Lambretta scooters began in 1947.
The Lambretta LD Mk1 was first introduced in 1951 as a 125cc model as a successor to the LC. It had covered panels over a tubular frame and had the addition of a torsion bar. This feature remained on all Lambrettas until 1958. The LD also had springs enclosed in the front forks. The Mk2 had a number of improvements. The rear brake was now cable controlled and the gears used a single teleflex cable. There was also a small luggage box which housed the optional speedometer. The whole ride experience was much improved and the LD Mk2 was subsequently a very popular model.
Lambretta Concessionaires the British importer of Italian Lambretta scooters had already began enhancing the product with a line of practical and decorative accessories in order to grow the market within clubs and the public. One further step was to emulate the successful Italian trend of scooters being used as the business vehicle and alongside the Steib passenger sidecar the Steib Tradesman box was also offered. Steib sidecars from Nuremberg in Germany had been making high quality sidecars since 1928 and with the scooter versions were the official sidecar supplier to Lambretta Concessionaires from 1954. Steib Metallbau closed in 1957 making their scooter sidecars very rare indeed and the tradesman box even rarer.
This extraordinary 1955 combination registered new by Warburton Bros motorcycle dealers of Cheshire was purchased new by the vendor’s grandfather in January 1956, for his company Thomas Coppock & Co. The company supplied quality paint, paint brushes and lacquers in the Manchester area from their Stockport base. The vehicle has never left Cheshire. The buff logbook shows one change of owner to a James Shackleton but we know this to be an employee of Coppock and Co, as was usual to have the regular user on the logbook. It was subsequently transferred back to the vendor’s father. The original registration number ‘KDB 87’ was transferred to another vehicle and the scooter has been issued with an age related number. The substantial history file that accompanies this combination includes: The original buff logbook (with an admin error on the stated serial numbers which are not Lambretta numbers), a copy of the official entry in the Cheshire archives for ‘KDB 87’, and all of the subsequent transfer of the number off the vehicle. Also, a substantial amount of original Thomas Coppock & Co promotional memorabilia, a Cheshire fuel ration book and original Serviceman’s handbook. There are also a large number of photographs of the vehicle before and during the recent restoration. There is also the original scooter guarantee from Lambretta Concessonaires signed by Peter Agg himself in January 1956
This example has been subject to a well-considered and complete restoration in 2019 in the original colour of the time by Jed Lahan local a well-known Cheshire motorcycle scooter restorer. Or consultant was able to see the scooter running and was able to ride the combination over a long distance with no issues. She comes with two full sets of working keys including keys for the trade box, and is ready to use with V5 on UK roads.
For more information, please contact:
Paul Diamond
info@vintagescooters.co.uk
07768 313001
Auction: National Motorcycle Museum, 7th Dec, 2022
An auction of classic motorcycles & vintage scooters
VIEWING TIMES
Wednesday 7th December 2022, from 9am
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