Il Court of Pisa has decided that Piaggio will have to recall all examples of the scooter "Gilera Runner” produced between 1998 and 2005 still in circulation. This is the first series, i.e. the FX, FXR, SP, DD, VX models and the reason is that the vehicle has some design flaws pertaining to the location of the tank of fuel and the matter used for construction.
In 2010, the consumer association “Altroconsumo” he had found that, following a frontal impact even at moderate speed, the scooter's tank could tear, dispersing fuel. The thesis of the association, as well as from the tests performed by the Center for Certification and Behavioral Analysis, was well supported by two real cases that occurred years earlier. In both accidents, the front wheel fork had pressed on the plastic tank, rupturing it and the leaking petrol had started a fire, which caused serious burns to the driver and passenger who ended up on the ground.
Yet, in the years preceding the marketing of the scooter, Piaggio had obtained the approval of the vehicle from the German body TUV following a procedure and according to far more restrictive standards than those in force in those years in the European Union. Furthermore, after the first reports from Altroconsumo, Piaggio had subjected the Gilera Runner scooter to a crash test, conducted under the supervision of the Ministry of Transporti and the results of this test had demonstrated that the scooter did not present any form of danger and, in particular, that the vehicle tank remained intact in the event of a frontal impact.
This is why the first instance verdict of 2011 had excluded the danger of the vehicle, but now in the twenty-seven pages filed by the judges of the Court of Appeal of Pisa the Pontedera house is ordered "to inform all the owners of the model in question and to arrange for the recall by registered letter". Altroconsumo's appeal had the last word.
But how many of the first series Runners are still in circulation? According to Altroconsumo among the 40 and 60 thousand out of a total of 300 produced in fourteen years. For all models released after 2005, the problem does not exist because Gilera has adopted a new type of frame.
