This 1960 Heinkel Tourist 103A-1 Is An Elegant Blast From The Past

When people first started using scooters as an efficient form of personal transportation, designs varied wildly. There is, of course, the classic Vespa shape and proportions that we’re all familiar with. Remember, the Italian company licensed its designs out to other manufacturers to ramp up production outside of Italy. There’s no doubt that choice has influenced scooter design development to this day—not to mention Vespa’s true international icon status in 2021. 

Still, we’re not here to talk about any of that. Instead, we’re here to talk about a radically different take on scooter design. Remember Heinkel? We’ve talked about this ridiculously cool CBR1000RR-engined Heinkel Kabine 153 in the past. Today, though, we’re here to talk about a 1960 Heinkel Tourist 103A-1 scooter. It’s recently been restored, it’s a runner, and it sounds pretty fantastic if the videos are anything to go by. Let’s take a look. 

It’s powered by an air-cooled, 175cc, four-stroke single-cylinder engine mated to a four-speed manual transmission. The seller acquired this scoot as a sad and dilapidated project bike back in 2019, and steadily worked on refurbishing it over the next months. Work was completed in April, 2021—and it’s really cool to see this thing running and moving in the videos. 

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The current colorway is Oslo Blue. The cast aluminum floorboard looks particularly tidy, with a neat visual texture that probably has a neat tactile feel through your shoes, as well. The two-up seat has been reupholstered, the frame’s been refinished, and the seller also installed some subtle but much-needed modern upgrades for a roadworthy scooter in 2021. LED reproduction front turn signals and a battery tender pigtail will no doubt make the next owner’s life much easier. 

Other features include a rear luggage rack, new Mitas B14 tires (including the spare tire) and tubes, as well as replacement front shocks, headlight ring, rearview mirror, and front bumper. The seller also installed an aftermarket taillight that fits nicely with the styling of this scoot. Drum brakes stop you at both ends. The odometer currently reads under 8,000 miles, of which around 200 were put on by the seller. Total mileage is, of course, unknown. 

The seller also says that they replaced the control cables with Teflon ones, and also replaced the grips at the same time. The engine received a top-end rebuild, at which time the electrical system, ignition, and engine mounts were also replaced. For those of you who love old documentation, this Tourist 103A-1 also comes with the owners’ manual.  

Find it for sale with no reserve over at Bring a Trailer. As of July 22, 2021, bidding is up to $3,000. The auction ends on Tuesday, July 27, 2021, and this scoot is currently located in Beverly, Massachussetts. 

This 1960 Heinkel Tourist 103A-1 Is An Elegant Blast From The Past
Source: Philippines Election