How Lambrettas are made

A rare insight into how Innocenti produced the Lambretta. Not now of course, but back in 1964…

A rare insight into how Innocenti produced the Lambretta. Not now of course, but back in 1964.

Recently Scootering magazine was contacted by Colin Reeves regarding an article he wrote way back in 1964. It was for a publication known as ‘Power and Pedal’ and centred on a visit to the Innocenti factory in Milan to see how Lambrettas were made. The magazine had paid for Colin to be flown over and spend several days at the factory to see how operations at the mighty Innocenti factory worked on a daily basis. This historical article gives a rare insight and candid view of Lambretta production.

Mighty scale

Reading the article now, and looking at the pictures he took, one thing that stands out is the vastness of the entire operation. Many readers will have visited, if not seen images of the now abandoned Innocenti factory. Its huge buildings lay idle year by year, decaying ever more, slowly being consumed by nature. It seems almost impossible to believe what a great empire it all once was. The huge pressing machines churning out bodywork on an almost unbelievable scale. The rows of milling machines cutting out engine casings, dozens at a time. Finally, the production line itself with literally hundreds of Lambrettas as far as the eye could see, moving along as they await completion.

Colin’s description of the testing room for the engines sounds almost surreal for the time. Each one on its own test bed, fed with fuel and run for a 30-minute period. They were individually monitored for specific performance and power output levels. Commenting on the fact that any engine which was not up to the required level of performance was removed and re-done until it was correct. Perhaps

this now explains why the Lambretta was so reliable and thus popular with the public, with the attention to detail and quality of workmanship guaranteeing the perfection of each machine they produced.

Quality

Innocenti used the slogan ‘The world’s finest scooter’ and from Colin's report, it's clear to see why that quote is so appropriate. It's not just the factory floor where this great empire was built, though. He remarked on the vast administration offices and observed the marble floors that led to each room. Staff lined up, pleasantly greeting him and proud to show him around the vast site. Ferdinando Innocenti had built up a huge infrastructure based around the automotive industry after WW2, and Colin’s visit was definitely made at its peak. No doubt he had seen the workers happy to be part of this process, each one loyal to the cause. The company employed thousands of staff and it must not be forgotten that Innocenti played a very important part in the Italian economy at the time.

Reading through this article, it seems almost inconceivable that only seven years later it was all over, certainly the production of the Lambretta anyway.

I can’t imagine for one minute that Colin would have envisaged what would happen by the end on the decade. Who can blame him? If any one of us had been in his place, we surely would have thought exactly the same? He lists that a Lambretta was rolling off the production line every 55 seconds. At that rate of production, it would be easy to think that it would last forever; all the different procedures to produce each component and store them before finally placing them on the end product. Hundreds of people constantly on the move, how could anyone predict what was to come?

They think it’s all over...

It’s been well documented where it actually did go wrong, and when we look back it’s easy to discuss with hindsight. Even Innocenti themselves knew towards the end, but by then it was too late to turn things round. Perhaps, in a way, it's not such a bad thing after all, because if Innocenti had continued production then the Lambretta might not have the iconic status it has today. Instead, people would be buying something totally different by the same

company. A little like Piaggio/Vespa, I suppose?

Colin’s article also highlights just how many processes were involved in getting a single machine out of the factory. We take it for granted when we are restoring, tuning or customising a Lambretta that they are just there to be had. Thanks to what he has written it’s possible to see that there was far more to producing one than we could ever imagine, and just how many people were actually part of making it all happen. But no matter how much we wish it could still be like that, the Lambretta could never be produced like that ever again. Colin’s article, like the Lambretta, is relegated to the annals of history, but luckily he was there to record it all for us to see now. Colin was quite apologetic regarding the condition of the magazine, as the mice in his attic had clearly been at the edges of it! Regardless, it gives me great pleasure to thank him for sharing it with us and reminding everyone where this once great machine, the Lambretta, came from.