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Scorpio first appears in the episode "Rescue." It is damaged severely in "Blake."
Scorpio is a Wanderer Class spaceship, Mark II, colloquially called a "planet hopper." Originally intended for intra-system travel. It used an infra-luminal power system. Slave operates the "precision guidance subsystem." Only the flight deck is pressurized during flight.
Upgraded with a Plaxton Mark II Photonic Drive, which utilizes light to develop thrust, in "Star Drive"; top speed with the addition of this device was Time Distort 15. Plasma radiation is released when the main drive is switched on. The "particle driver control" is an integral part of the photonic drive. Andrew Williams: If Scorpio was such a junky old heap, surely the sudden ability to travel at time distort 15 would cause the ship to come apart? The crew would need to take it somewhere and have the superstructure worked on. Perhaps they could do this themselves, since the landing silo on Xenon base is extremely large and presumably has all the necessary equipment .
Dorian had attempted to fit Scorpio and Xenon Base with a teleport, but was unsuccessful. Avon modified the equipment to make it workable; Avon's system was first used in "Power."
The anti-grav gyro system included "inertial guidance glycolene ballast channels," much to Vila's dismay. ("Animals")
The "medi-capsule" was fitted with a cryogenic capsule, used in "Headhunter."
Scorpio also has a short-burn booster ("Traitor") to get into orbit, which is probably the orbital booster mentioned in "Rescue." In the same episode, a thrust computer is mentioned.
Scorpio has "crash systems" ("Blake") for those situations when a little yellow life jacket and a whistle are not enough.