[vigsom]

Introduction

This is the story of a 1990 Lamby Polo 150, and the difference this scooter made to my life as a rider. Graduating from a Luna Double Plus, this was the first geared scooter that I rode, giving me the experience and confidence that helped me ride all other geared scooters and bikes effortlessly. These posts are my small way of

1. saluting those enthusiasts who've restored Lambys to old glory
2. paying a befitting tribute to this machine that was the darling of many in its earlier avatar, the Lamby, and the one that I experienced – the Lamby Polo

Hopefully, readers who never got a chance to experience this scooter would get to experience it virtually here.

[vigsom]

How did the Lamby Polo become a choice?

Circa 1990 - My Dad, a retired Indian Army officer had this chance meeting with a very senior serving officer of CSD. While they got talking, the officer for some unrelated reason mentioned that they needed to give away two Lamby Polos that were lying in their Ahmedabad depot. The offer price was so low that it tempted Dad to give it a shot – we had a Luna Double Plus for local duty and a Bajaj 150 for his exclusive use that he was holding for almost 14 years. Prior to the Bajaj 150, he had a Lambretta scooter when he was posted in Chennai, so the Lamby Polo wasn’t new to him mechanically.

The two Lamby Polos on offer were – one light blue and one chocolate brown. Dad was fine with the chocolate, and he agreed to take it. Dad was known to throw surprises – he’d never given us at home an inkling he was bringing an Apso home, same story with our 1971 Ambassador. The Lamby Polo was no different. He handed over a Demand Draft to Chennai CSD to book the vehicle in his name, and the vehicle was eventually packed and despatched from Ahmedabad in the Navajivan Express . He got the scooter for a mere ₹7,000, which must have been at least ₹3,500 lower than the then ex-showroom price of this scooter via a local dealer; this was a lot of money those days!

Delivery at Chennai

Dad, along with another local officer from Chennai CSD got the vehicle at Chennai Central, from where the CSD folks took it to their depot for their formalities.

Surprise#1

The keys that were supplied with the vehicle were, by mistake, the one of the other light blue Polo. While this set of keys was sent back to Ahmedabad, Dad got a locksmith to make a new set of keys. There were two of them – one for the utility box and steering lock, and another for the ignition switch.

Registration in Chennai and arrival home

Dad got in touch directly with the Regional Transport Officer at Chennai Central RTO (TN01), got the temporary registration done, and the permanent number too; no middlemen, straight with the RTO. It was all done in less than an hour, and the RC book was delivered home by post in 15 days. If I remember right, by then the annual tax system had given way to the lumpsum tax. When I saw the scooter first, I never imagined that a Lamby could look so good and the paint finish would be so great. Despite transportation by train, the scooter showed no scratches or damage.

Our Lamby Polo 150


Lamby Polo hidden behind the Ambassador

[vigsom]

Lambretta to Lamby to Lamby Polo

From what I've read, Automobile Products of India (API) started assembling kits imported from Innocenti Italy, and selling the final products as Lambretta scooters in the 1950s. Once API obtained the license to manufacture the scooter in India in the 1960s, Lambretta was manufactured via the main plant in Bhandup, Mumbai. Lambretta became Lamby in the late 70s. The Lamby was restyled by Miyazu Japan to become the Lamby Polo 150 in 1986.

The ads




The brochure



What was advertised about the Lamby Polo 150?

Here are some points that were highlighted in the brochure and in the ad

• Comfort – Ample legroom, great suspension, individual front and pillion seats(spring mounted cushions), ergonomically designed, powerful 150cc engine
• Safety – centrally aligned engine for perfect balance, braking system designed to prevent skids, large 12V headlamp, turn indicators
• Economy – 40-45kmpl in city and 55kmpl under standard test conditions

[vigsom]

Key changes - Lambretta to Lamby to Lamby Polo

Showcased here are the product changes in the journey from Lambretta to Lamby to Lamby Polo

1. Front

A more rounded front on the Lambretta/ Lamby vs the chic front of the Lamby Polo

Lambretta - front view


Lamby Polo - front view



2. Handlebar View

Round console on the Lamby vs square console on the Lamby Polo

Lamby handlebar - top view


Lamby Polo handlebar - top view


3. Front Mudguard

Fixed in the Lambretta and Lamby vs fork mounted in the Lamby Polo

Fixed mudguard - Lamby


Fork mounted mudguard - Lamby Polo



4. Side

Older Lambrettas had a lever outside the side covers to twist and open them. Later Lambys and the Lamby Polo came with a concealed lever as shown

Old Lambretta with side cover open lever outside


Lamby with lever hidden inside the side cover


Side cover opening lever - Lamby


Side cover opening lever - Lamby Polo

[vigsom]

Key changes - Lambretta to Lamby to Lamby Polo (Contd.)

5. Seats

Independent spring supported similar shaped wide seats for the rider and pillion on the Lambretta and Lamby


Wide rider seat and rectangularish pillion seat (both spring supported) on the Lamby Polo


6. Spare Wheel

Horizontally mounted on the Lambretta


Vertically positioned spare wheel on the Lamby Polo


7. Switches

Lambretta and Lamby

- the ignition switch would be on-off and
- the headlamp control switch would have the headlight on-off switch on the top, the lo-hi beam on the left side and the horn button on the right

Key holes - Lamby


Ignition switch - Lamby



Headlamp and horn control switch - Lamby


Lamby Polo 150
- the ignition switch would have three positions -Position1 for ignition, Position2 for tail and pilot light and Position3 for main beam
- the control switch next to the accelerator lever would have the turn signal switch on the top and the Lo and hi beam and horn buttons as in the Lambretta

Key holes - Lamby Polo


Turn signal, headlamp Hi-Lo and Horn switch - Lamby Polo


8. Speedometer Console

Lamby


Lamby Polo

[vigsom]

Similarities – Lambretta to Lamby to Lamby Polo

As far as I know, the 148cc engine, the chain drive, the air intake, fuel tank, fuel tank cap, fuel and choke levers, front and rear suspension and wheels were all unchanged from the Lambretta to the Lamby Polo 150. There was some change in the carburetor which I am not sure of, because the Polo would fire much smoother than the Lambys. Also the fuel efficiency was indeed better than older Lambys.

1. Gear Box with the clutch and gear shifters

Gear shifter and clutch actuator with cables


Chain drive; also note the wet clutch


2. Air Path

Air duct


Air filter - dry type


Air intake hose



3. Fuel Path

Fuel filler lid


Fuel tank cap


Fuel tank


Carb


Choke lever on the right of the scooter and fuel cock to the left


4. Wheels and Suspension

Front wheel


Rear wheel


5. Utility Box

[vigsom]

My experience with the Lamby Polo 150

I was almost a novice with machines back then, but had to take the onus of running and maintaining the scooter, given my passion. As I got to first learn to ride this geared scooter, coordinate use of right hand for the accelerator, left for the clutch and gears, and the right foot for the brake, I also began appreciating what the scooter offered

Likes

• Commanding riding position – the rider would sit much higher on this scooter than on a Bajaj
• Powerful headlamp
• Turn indicators – a novelty those days
• Metal cover with the LAMBY POLO 150 monogram on the spare wheel
• Excellent brakes
• Great sounding engine much better than the older Lamby
• Excellent engine note at idle
• Good suspension
• Centrally aligned engine => good balance
• Great cushioning on the pillion seat thanks to the spring mounting
• Great fuel efficiency of 38-42 kmpl in city
• Easy availability of genuine spares common with the Lamby eg. Air filter, spark plug, clutch springs

What could have been better

• Turn indicator switch was inconvenient to use – one would have to take hands off the accelerator to turn them on and off
• Wide gap between spare wheel and the pillion seat – one could easily fall in the gap
• Availability of Polo specific spares – the headlamp assembly, turn indicators and the tail lamp assembly were next to non-available should the need arise

[vigsom]

Maintenance

I'd take care to get sealed packs of 2T oil, and use 30ml of oil with every liter of petrol that I'd fill. In the one year that I used the scooter before moving up west on work, I performed zero maintenance as the scooter had barely clocked 3,000km. Post that, every six months when I’d come home on leave, I’d have some work or the other to be done on the scooter.

Major jugaads

1. I had to get the tail lamp assembly replaced twice as the top lens broke when the scooter tilted and fell. The jugaad was to get the tail lamp cover of the LML Vespa NV, and mount two indicator assemblies on the side of the tail lamp cover. These indicator assemblies came dead cheap, and were used on autorickshaws and buses then (as shown). This arrangement worked perfect

TailLamp - LML Vespa NV


Turn signal lamps - used the same type with yellow lenses


2. The speedometer assembly suffered catastrophic damage when the top lens got brittle and then the speedo needle broke. Here, I wasn’t too happy seeing the speedo assembly in that shabby state and therefore retrofitted a TVS Scooty speedo assembly which, fortunately, matched the shape of the Lamby Polo speedo assembly. The only modification was that the Scooty’s speedo needed to be installed at a slight acute angle plus the speedometer cable sleeve of the Scooty needed to be cut and mated to the Polo’s speedo cable sleeve. The speedo inner cable of the Polo/ Lamby would work absolutely fine with this arrangement. End result – the speedo worked, illumination worked, but the speed indicated was approx. 10kmph higher. Anyways, a neat speedo was better than no speedo.

Speedometer assembly - Lamby Polo


Speedometer assembly - TVS Scooty old


Major goof up – and I admit it!

Sometimes, one gets crazy ideas, implements one of them, and shoots oneself in the foot. On one of my trips, I decided to clean the fuel tank as I saw a lot of gunk inside, courtesy the 2T oil that was constantly being used on this scooter. The goof up here was instead of using clean petrol or diesel to clean the tank, I ended up using soap solution and thought I was a wise man; not quite. A few days later, the vehicle stalled, and I realised that the fuel cock had gotten clogged with all the corrosive stuff from the tank. Result – had to clean the tank out again with fuel, dry the tank out, fill a fresh fuel-oil mix, replace the fuel cock, and clean the carburettor out. Fortunately, the carb saw no damage.

[vigsom]

Maintenance expenses

I do not have records of expenses but do remember the following:

1. the tail lamp cover of the LML NV was a mere ₹27 and the two indicator assemblies combined was ₹40
2. Clutch springs replaced once for ₹90
3. Carb cleaned thrice for ₹30 each time
4. Gear oil replaced twice for ₹80
5. TVS Scooty speedometer assembly ₹180 approx.

Fuel used to be priced at approx. ₹11 in 1990, but even that would seem high.

Summing Up

This scooter did good service for close to 10 years with us. When Dad couldn't drive or ride, and it was a given that the scooter would be used only when I'd come down south on leave, the hard decision of letting the Lamby Polo go was taken. The Lamby Polo along with our 1971 Ambassador were taken for a meagre ₹11,000. That meant that the Lamby Polo fetched just ₹1,000. Letting the scooter and the car go wasn't easy for Dad but then, hard decisions had to be taken!

Some nice looking Lamby Polos around India

Here are some beautifully restored Lamby Polos that only bring a smile to my face.

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[Rahul Bhalgat]

Thanks for sharing the details of this wonderful scooter of your respected father. I appreciate your efforts in preserving it.

What I find interesting:

1. The final reduction gearbox as well as the speedo cable and the front brake lever are on the RH side. In modern scooters, we find it on the LH side.
2. The good looking round housing of the final reduction gearbox, looking from LH side. it almost looks like the motor of an electric scooter. Good-looking casting with nice symmetric pattern of ribs. In all probability, it might be made of cast iron instead of aluminium alloy of today's scooters.
3. Chain drive. Wow.
4. Grill for the horn. Even Bajaj had it.
5. Carburator took me by real surprise. If not told, today's generation may think of this as some filter!
6. And the trailing arm suspension in the front; we are not used to seeing this. The scooters of the last decade including Activa (upto 5G) had leading arm suspension. Now almost every scooter has telescopic suspension.

In the chain drive pic, what is that looking like a bevel gear on the rear axle?

The Lamby pics too are very interesting. I still remember the Lamby for it's sheer size (as a child, I thought those who ride Lamby are "Brave"!), fixed front mudguard and that unique firing.

Thanks once again and wish you happy and nostalgic time with this machine.

[amol4184]

I think I have been living under the rocks. This is the first time I am hearing about "Lamby Polo 150" though I recall seeing regular Lambrettas.
Thanks for the thread, it brought back memories of my father's Vijay Super which looked suspiciously similar to Lamby Polo here. I distinctly remember the rectangular headlamp and that unique front suspension.

[Suresh Stephen]

In the chain drive pic, what is that looking like a bevel gear on the rear axle?

It is the starter drive gear cut on the first gear wheel