Piaggio X8 125

With production of the millionth Vespa scooter, Italy had its first mass-produced motorised vehicle. Taking advantage of increased cash flow thanks to the success of the Vespa, Piaggio developed other products, including the 1957 Vespa 400, a compact passenger car.

Piaggio came under the control of the Agnelli family, the owners of car maker Fiat SpA. By 1960 Vespa had produced and sold 4 million units worldwide.

The aeronautical and motorcycle divisions of Piaggio split to become two independent companies as a result of the wide ownership by Fiat in Italian industry. The aeronautical division was named IAM Rinaldo Piaggio.

Piaggio purchased the motorcycle company Gilera, one of the oldest European motorcycle manufacturers (founded

A steering wheel was added to the Piaggio Ape, a model first produced

The company made the first prototype of an electric Ape.

The Vespa reached 10 million units produced.

On the fiftieth anniversary of the first model, Vespa passed 15 million units produced and the new 4-stroke Vespa ET, the first completely new Vespa for 18 years, was launched. Piaggio was still in poor financial health but its brand recognition remained strong, boosted by the appearance of the ET4…

Morgan Grenfell Private Equity acquired Piaggio, but hopes for a quick sale were dashed by a failed joint venture in China. In Italy, Piaggio invested 15 million euros in a new motorcycle but dropped it after building a prototype. In Baramati, production began on a three-wheeler Ape for the Indian market.

Piaggio and Vespa returned to the United States with the opening of the first Vespa Boutique in Los Angeles. In that same year the Piaggio Historical Museum was inaugurated in Pontedera.

The Piaggio Group acquired Derbi-Nacional Motor SA, an historical Spanish brand founded

Piaggio's debt was reduced by a 100 million Euro investment made by IMMSI, a holding company of the Colaninno family. 150 million shares were also converted by creditor banks.

: a gas-electric hybrid scooter and a sophisticated tilting scooter with two wheels in front and one in back to grip the road better. One of Piaggio's problems Colaninno couldn't fix from the inside was its scale. At the end of December, the final contract for the acquisition of the Aprilia-Moto Guzzi Group was signed. The most important European two-wheeler group is born. The figure stood at 58,000. In ten years of continuous progression over 1.3 million new Vespas have been produced.

Piaggio was floated on the Milan Stock Exchange, becoming a public company.

Piaggio Group arrived in Vietnam. The Vinh Phuc plant includes R&D, welding and painting activities, as well as final assembly of the scooters, with warehouse, testing, quality control and office areas.

The Piaggio Mp3 Hybrid made its debut on the market which was first hybrid scooter in the world, integrating the conventional low-environmental-impact internal combustion engine with a zero-emission electric motor and combining the advantages of the two power trains. In Baramati (State of Maharashtr…

The Piaggio Group's new plant for the production of Vespa's for the local market was opened.

The PADC, Piaggio Advanced Design Center opened in Pasadena (California, United States). The Vespa 946 was also launched this year, along with the new Vespa Primavera, the latest evolution of the "small body" family. Vespa's worldwide sales numbered almost 190,000 units;

Piaggio celebrated 140 years with limited edition of 'Vespa 140th of Piaggio,' with only 140 units available from 18 to 21 April 2024. Vespa thrived until 1992 when Giovanni Alberto Agnelli, son of Antonella Bechi Piaggio and Umberto Agnelli, became CEO.