Vespa DOUGLAS
Real ownership data from 458 UK DOUGLAS motorcycles — mileage, MOT pass rates and the faults that actually come up, taken from DVSA test records rather than opinion.
Most common DOUGLAS problems
Ranked by how often each fault appears in this model's MOT history.
| Fault | Severity | Share of faults |
|---|---|---|
| Lights and indicators | major | 19.4% |
| Brakes | major | 11.3% |
| Other | fail | 5.4% |
| Suspension | major | 3.8% |
| Steering and head bearings | major | 3.2% |
| Electrical | major | 3% |
| Tyres | fail | 2.8% |
| Controls and cables | fail | 0.9% |
Advisories (wear noted but not failed) are excluded above; the most common is suspension.
DOUGLAS mileage and reliability by year
Use this to judge whether a specific bike is high or low mileage for its age.
| Year | Examples | Median mileage | Miles/year | First-time pass |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 5 | 4,764 mi | 26 | 75% |
| 2007 | 6 | 784 mi | 292 | 88% |
| 2003 | 5 | 1,839 mi | 3 | 85% |
| 2002 | 12 | 11,884 mi | 337 | 77.11% |
| 2001 | 6 | 11,867 mi | 217 | 88.89% |
| 2000 | 6 | 852 mi | 1,654 | 86.84% |
| 1999 | 5 | 20,019 mi | 1,493 | 88% |
| 1998 | 7 | 19,907 mi | 1,326 | 76.92% |
| 1992 | 14 | 18,693 mi | 401 | 82.2% |
| 1991 | 10 | 10,684 mi | 1,060 | 81.43% |
| 1990 | 17 | 13,072 mi | 182 | 81.58% |
| 1989 | 17 | 11,920 mi | 272 | 75.79% |
| 1988 | 23 | 13,988 mi | 153 | 82.84% |
| 1987 | 18 | 14,576 mi | 241 | 82.95% |
| 1986 | 19 | 15,863 mi | 243 | 71.15% |
| 1985 | 16 | 13,438 mi | 560 | 77.5% |
| 1984 | 26 | 13,673 mi | 166 | 81.41% |
| 1983 | 25 | 15,103 mi | 108 | 82.01% |
| 1982 | 18 | 13,418 mi | 296 | 82.14% |
| 1981 | 14 | 16,474 mi | 174 | 87.04% |
DOUGLAS questions, answered with data
What are the most common problems with the Vespa DOUGLAS?
Across 458 UK examples, the most frequently recorded MOT faults are lights and indicators (19.4% of all recorded faults), brakes (11.3% of all recorded faults), other (5.4% of all recorded faults).
What is average mileage for a Vespa DOUGLAS?
The median Vespa DOUGLAS in the UK has covered 12,226 miles, and typically rides about 171 miles a year. Half of all examples fall between 2,868 and 21,271 miles.
Is the Vespa DOUGLAS reliable?
82.8% of Vespa DOUGLAS MOT tests are passed first time, with an average of 0.68 faults recorded per test. This is measured from DVSA MOT records, not owner opinion.
Based on DVSA MOT test records for 458 Vespa DOUGLAS motorcycles registered in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.