Italy has a way of consistently producing some of the beautiful objects out of the seemly everyday things. Automobiles, fashion, food, and here, the lowly moped, elevated to a work of art through design and detail. Today, what’s special about these tiny machines is less about the ride and more about their beauty. Their wonderful Italian design has made them increasingly collectible, and a desirable bit of motorized flair to be displayed in a garage or home for relatively little money.
While there are lots of other manufacturers, Malagutis have become especially sought after. A bicycle producer since 1932, Antonio Malaguti began building small, economical mopeds during the time of Mussolini. A poor country between the wars, Europe was turning out these small scooters as a means of transportation and these little motorized bikes formed the backbone of how the general population moved from cafe to work to home.
Scooters are similar to mopeds in many ways but typically have larger engines that range in size from 50cc to 250cc. That means higher top speeds, as high as 60 or 70 miles per hour.
Coveted in the past, the tiny Malaguti 50cc scooter was capable of 60 miles per hour and over a 100 mile range, thanks to a collaboration in 1937 with Franco Morini using his engines for power. Franco and his shop later went on to produce the fabulous 350cc Moto Morini Cafe bikes. The Malaguti was the moped to have in the 60’s and 70’s. When lesser machines were $200-300 hundred, A Malaguti like the one I’m on was nearly $700, out of reach for most making it a dream for many.
Coveted today for their collectible beauty, the Malaguti Cavalcone and Olympique models of the late 1960s are the ones to have. After all, everyone has a Vespa.
I have some names of collectors or those who regularly travel to Europe in search of such treasures. Drop me a line if you are interested and I’m happy to put you together with those in the know.
