The 1964 Vespa Allstate Cruisaire motorcycle was the Sears licensed version of the popular  Italian scooter that is among those few transportations devices that have attained iconic status

One of the most recognizied name in scooters, "Vespa" is actually a model, the parent make is Piaggio of Italy.  Piaggio was established in the late 1800s as an engineering compnay and eventually expanded to include manufacturing.  By the late 1930s it was a large concern in numerous endeavors, including aeronautics, and shipbuilding.  But the company was ravaged during World War II, and afterword looked for a simple products to build that could get it back on its feet.  The need for transportation in post war Italy prompted Piaggio to "think small" and the Vespa scooter was born.  Simple and inexpensive it incorporated several interesting features.

A light but strong stamped steel "frameless" chassis enclosed the 90-cc two-stroke engine.  The Handlebar twist-grip gear change was a welcome convenience, gear final drive was effecient, and single sided fork and swingarm allowed easy tire changes.

Piaggio's Vespa was an instant hit, and within ten years, more than a million were produced.

So sucuessful was the little scooter that numerous companies outside of Italy sound licenses to produce it.  One was Sears, the huge America retailer, which it sold under the Allstate brand.

The 1964 Vespa pictured differs little from the Italian original, though the engine displaces 125cc. 

Its three-speed transmission is shifted by rotating the left handgrip, and the single-sided trailing-link for and swingarm rear suspension still allow for simple tire changes.