Modern Buddy

Hi,

A few months ago I got a 2013 Stella manual 4t and I absolutely love the bike.

I've messages around here that parts will probably dry up and that 4ts with have a hard time finding them. I'm at a fork in the road here. I want to keep this bike going for as long as possible.

I know the 4t shares some parts, but not the engine, with other scooters. So for some things I'm fine, that's great. I believe it's mainly the engine that will give me trouble.

Does anyone know what parts will most likely be hard to find or run out of stock first with LML not producing parts for this scooter in the future?

As an aside, I've heard that LML has been on a bit of a rollercoaster and they've gone up and down. I hope that they figure out how to get back on track and get additional funding to start things back up again.

There's still plenty of interest in Europe. Try Tasso or SIP for parts. I have 16,000+ on my 4T and don't plan on giving it up soon.

I would also like to know since I just bought one a few weeks ago but I live in Canada where scooters are not popular. It's more about motorcycles here but even that is kind of a small crowd compared to the States and Europe.

If you are looking overseas, try searching under the "Star" brand. LML sold their bikes as "Star Cycles" in Europe.

Bajaj scooters have been orphans under similar circumstances for years. People still own and ride them. I suspect you can continue to own and ride a 4T Stella for years. Sure, if you had a major engine failure you might be done. But, in fairness, the main way to cost effectively restore an older scooter with a blown engine is to find a replacement used motor. Those are no less likely to be around with LML out of the scooter business.

I share eatingsnacks's anxiety/curiosity—it's not that I currently need parts I can't find, but that I anticipate just a few parts unique to the Stella becoming difficult to find, and I would like to stock up to be safe.

One part to mention might be the 4T fuel filter. The petcock has a 3/8" connector (coming from the fuel tank) and the carburetor has a 1/4" connector, so the stock fuel filter on the 4T has a 3/8" input and a 1/4" output. I haven't found any aftermarket fuel filters with this size difference—pretty much all fuel filters seem to have the same size inputs and outputs. Of course, it wouldn't be impossible to add an adapter somewhere in the fuel line.

But, if it makes you feel any better, I once asked a Genuine employee this same question and he couldn't think of any parts that wouldn't in principle be replaceable from some other bike.

Not to be a negative Nancy, but BigDaddy blew up his 4t this summer at Amerivespa, and just gave up on Stellas. He got a Vespa GT.

Your scooter, running well, should be fine. BigDaddy did all sorts of things to his scooter, mods, etc...

Leave it stock, and you should be able to enjoy it for some time.