Ducati’s second attempt at a scooter – 100 Brio
With Phil Aynsley
The second of Ducati’s scooters appeared in 1963, ten years after the Cruiser, and was very different in concept. Instead of being a four-stroke aimed at the luxury market (if such a thing existed in 1952), the Brio was a much more basic two-stroke. Interestingly it was designed by Gio Ponti who was also responsible for the company’s Dufono intercoms – not to mention the Pirelli Tower in Milan.
The Brio was initially released with a 48 cc fan-cooled motor but was joined by a 100 cc model (seen here) the following year. Apart from the increased displacement the 100 had a longer seat with corresponding larger engine cover and bodywork. It also used eight-inch wheels compared to the 48’s nine-inch.
The 100 cc motor made seven horsepower at 5200 rpm which propelled the 80 kg machine to a top speed of 76 km/h. The 48’s figures were far more modest – boasting just 1.5 hp, weighing in at 63.5 kg, and good for 50 km/h.
While primarily aimed at the domestic market some were exported to the US. This scooter was sold by Ghost Motorcycles in New York.
The initial scooter boom had largely passed by the time the Brio entered the market and as they didn’t offer anything that the established Vespa and Lambretta models had, thus they proved to be another poor selling Ducati scooter and were discontinued in 1968.
