VESPA OF TOLEDO . . . A VICTIM OF THE MELTDOWN

There was still some of the warm weather left yesterday when the area reached a record temperature of 65°. That left over heat caused temperatures to hover in the mid-30's today (12/28/08) and most of the ice had disappeared off the roads.  Conditions were rideable, therefore. As I had some errands to run at two stores I decided to take the LX 150 out for ride.
But I needed to answer a question for myself that had been bugging me ever since my last ride - on 11/29/08: was Vespa of Toledo still going strong?  I had stopped by there about 1 PM on that day - thinking I could arrange for an oil change. I figured it couldn't hurt to ask - even though Mike Kookoothe, the owner and operator of VoT, closed at 3 PM on Saturdays.  However, I found the dealership closed and not a soul around.  I checked inside and saw plenty of yet to be sold Vespa's on the floor.  I figured (actually I hoped) that he'd decided to take the weekend off due to the Thanksgiving holiday which was only two days earlier.
Well, when I arrived at the dealership it was 2:30ish.  I shut-off the LX; got off and set it on its stand. It was Sunday so I didn't expect anyone to be there - and there wasn't.  I peered into the dealership's window. My heart dropped:  there was nothing there but the remnants of what was, just few months ago, a thriving business: scooter helmets and accessories still neatly placed on shelves, signs half-hazardly laying about, chairs here and there, a broom leaning up against a counter and an old used scooter, BUT not one brand new one on the floor. There was no "Closed" or "Out of Business" sign - and I did look for that.
But the indications I saw were unmistakeable and they caused me to shake my head and conclude, despite the lack of any notices, that Vespa of Toledo probably had gone bust.  I guessed that two factors in the economic meltdown caused this: tightened credit and the rapid deflation (via "Demand Destruction") of the price of oil since October causing the price of gasoline to drop from a high of $4.199 to what a what it is selling for now - from $1.499 to $1.599. 
The former would have made it hard, if not impossible, for many potential buyers to get a loan to buy a scooter; the latter - well  - for most folks around the Toledo area it was the high cost of gasoline that primaryily motivated them to even consider buying a scooter at all. It seemed likely that,  VoT  might have been able to weather one, but not both of those hits.
Later, I confirmed my surmisal, when, after I completed my errands and arrived safely home from my twelve mile ride, I called VoT and got a canned message from Mike stating that the economics of the country had caused him to permanently close Vespa of Toledo.  The message further stated that the last day of business was this past Tuesday, December 23, 2008 - only five days ago.  He further advised that within ten to twenty business days he would be in contact with his former customers, especially those under warranty, with information on how to obtain service, locally, on the machines he sold starting in May of 2007 until late this year.

It is sad to see this happen.  Mike really tried to hard to give people decently priced machines and human and humane service.   He was succeeding, and, but for what had  happened with the economy and the price of gasoline, I am sure he would have continued to sell scooters very well (see Vespa Brings New Mode of Transport to Toledo  - an article at Channel 24's website dated 04/09/2008 - only a short eight months ago).
So what options do I have?  Vespa's nearest dealers are 50 to 70 miles away from here. I've learned to do some minor servicing on my own  - removal of a tire for to take it to a place replace it, oil changes, battery changes - but major maintenance would require a dealer's/mechanic's touch.  
I have about 6,000 miles on the LX right now.  And that could make it ripe for  a major issue. I'd hate to have to find myself the owner of a useless machine because there'd be no one nearby to fix it if something failed or the scoot was damaged (like it was last summer).

I'll have to wait and see what information Mike is going to provide me with regard to local servicing of my scooter.  He did have a local mechanic who worked with him - perhaps he's the one Mike has in mind. 

Nevertheless, I still may have to consider moving away from Vespa - a good and reliable machine - if there's no one to fix major things.  Perhaps the old Yamaha Vino 125 may be in my future (my first scooter was the 2005 Vino 125 - it was replaced by the LX150 in July, 2007) - also a good and realiable machine and in some ways a little better than the Vespa  - though I'm not happy about going back to  do business with Honda East in Maumee where a scooterist, seeking service for his scoot, is treated like a step-child.
Well . . . I'll have to wait and see. . . However, I still remain convinced of the efficacy of riding a scooter in lieu of the automobile - and that should be obvious to anyone who even pays a tiny bit of attention to this blog.

To Mike Kookoothe: thanks for bringing Vespa scootering back to Toledo - at least for a while. You'll be missed.  Good luck in 2009 and may God bless you.
P.S: For any fellow Vespa owners who got their scoot from Mike - here's his phone number - if you want to hear the message yourself: 419-882-1717.   Cheers and keeping on riding!!!
My LX150 (pic taken on Thanksgiving Day, 11/27/08):