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Messages - Al Grande

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1
Grandvista 250 / Re: Electrical problems with my GV 250
« on: October 30, 2010, 09:16:27 PM »
I FINALLY GOT RID OF THE GRAND VISTA!!!!!!!!!!

2 weeks ago, the dealership replaced my starter (this is the one that caused me 6 months of constant frustration). They told me my warranty covered all costs. They also said that they hoped this will solve the problem. They still don't know why the starter kept staying "on" after turning over the engine.

Well, 3 days later - with the new starter - it happened again >:( After starting the engine, the starter stayed on! I rode it home, disconnected the battery. Next, I placed it on sale on Craigslist for $500. Piece-of-crap scooter!! It sold in 2 days. After this, no more f***ing KYMCO!

I'm saving up for a Suzuki Burgman 650. f*** the Grand Vista 250!!!!

If anyone on this forum owns a Grand Vista 250, GET RID OF IT QUICKLY!

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Grandvista 250 / Re: Electrical problems with my GV 250
« on: August 26, 2010, 02:34:33 AM »
Update on my electrical (starter) problems with my worthless GV 250. I still have the problem with the starter staying on after I start up the GV. It's usually once every few weeks this happens, but after I get my scoot home, I disconnect the battery, and it shuts off the engine. The next day, I reconnect the battery, and all is well. The GV starts up without a problem and shuts off normally.

Last week (8/17/10) I rode the GV to the mechanic just to have them check it out. I told them that once the starter stays on, I disconnect the battery, leave it alone for the night, and the next morning everything is cool.

They check it out and they can't figure out why it's doing this. They placed an order for a brand new starter (the whole starter, not just the solenoid). They believe the starter assembly is the culprit, though they're not sure. It's still under warranty, so, I'm letting them do it.

Anyway, today, in the 108 degree heat, I left work, started up my GV, and BAM, the starter stays ON. Screw it I thought, and rode my scoot home. Weird thing, the extra whurrling sound of the starter staying ON, stops and the scooter is running normally.

I get home shut off the GV, and restart it without a hitch. It's OK, for now.

I don't get it. The starter stays ON, then after riding it a couple of blocks, the starter shuts off normal - without sticking.

I'm still saving up money to buy a new scooter. Hopefully, by November, I'll be riding a new scooter. No more Kymco!
   

3
Grandvista 250 / Re: Electrical problems with my GV 250
« on: July 05, 2010, 04:14:28 PM »
Update, today, 7/5/2010, my GV is starting normally. This is weird!

Yesterday, the starter stayed stuck on the "ON" position. Rode home, disconnected the battery before it drained of all power and before the starter burned itself out.

This morning, I was planning to ride my GV back to the dealer. I reconnected the battery. Usually, if the starter is stuck, once the battery is reconnected, it begins turning the engine over. Well, this morning, that didn't happen. The normal Met-in light came on, but no engine turning over. So, I turned the key to the start position and pressed the start button. The engine started normally. Confused, I hit the Kill switch and the engine stopped normally. So, I re-started the engine, and it started normally! Again, weird. So, I gave it a ride around my neighborhood returned home, pressed the Kill switch, the engine shut-off normally. Restarted, my GV started normally.  ???

Don't know if it really was the starter solenoid like the dealer said or was it a stuck starter button?

Anyway, I still have no confidence in my GV. I'll ride it when I have to, but I'll rely on the bus to get to work. I'll keep socking away money to buy a new scooter. Mostly likely, a SYM HD 200. I heard a lot of good things about this scooter, and right now SYM has slashed their prices by 10%.

I would like to thank all of you for your comments.  

4
Grandvista 250 / Re: Electrical problems with my GV 250
« on: July 05, 2010, 02:11:34 AM »
Also, all this began after 13 months I've be been riding my GV 250 without any serious problems. Up to 9,000 miles, then this problem with the starter and stator.

The 2 things I didn't like about my GV is that it really didn't get real good mpgs in the city. 37-49 mpg was my city driving range. When I rode my GV from Sacramento to Stockton, on a county road, I only got it up to 69 mph and 54 mpg. I couldn't go any faster than that. All those GV owners who brag about getting 75 mph on their scoots, are you sure you're really travelling 75 mph? Kymco's speedometers are notoriously optimistic, about 20 % or more.

I don't want to sound like a cry baby, but for me Kymco isn't a fantastic brand. Good engines, yes they are. But due to this re-occurring electrical problem I'm having, I'm never going to buy another Kymco. Once, they fix my scoot, I'm selling it or trading it in for another brand. I'm leaning towards SYM. Many scooterists here in Sacramento, ride either SYM, Honda, Vespa or any Piaggio, Genuine Buddy, yamaha or Suzuki. They also, use to ride Kymco until problems occurred.  They then switched brands.

If anyone else feels the same about their Kymcos, let me know. I don't think I'm the only one going through this.

5
Grandvista 250 / Re: Electrical problems with my GV 250
« on: July 05, 2010, 01:43:14 AM »
Thanks Wordslinger,

I never thought of my dealer as "sucking up" warranty money. But, you know, you may be correct. The 2nd time I brought my GV in, they did tell me that they performed over $1,000 of service trying to locate the problem, which they will charge to Kymco USA as a warranty claim. I don't want to think of my local Kymco dealer as crooked as that, but times are tough. They have no sales of any scooters due to the recession. Maybe, they are "sucking up" the warranty money.

They are such nice people there too.
 :o

6
Grandvista 250 / Electrical problems with my GV 250
« on: July 04, 2010, 10:38:28 PM »
 >:( It all started on the last week of April. I was ready to leave my Doctor's office. I started up my GV and I heard a whirling sound I never heard before. I pressed the kill switch and the starter stayed on trying to turn the engine on. I rode it to my Kymco dealer. They took a full day to diagnose the problem. They said that the starter stayed on due to a low battery. That didn't make sense to me. He explained that when the battery gets low, it will short out causing the starter to stay on. They changed the battery and replaced the starter solenoid.

5 weeks later, it happened again. After starting the engine, the starter solenoid stayed on. I rode it to my dealer. They checked it out and 2 days later told me that they believed that the stator isn't providing enough voltage to charge the system. So, the battery got low, causing it to short out (their words not mine), which caused my starter to stay on. So, they kept my scooter for 2 weeks as they waited for a new stator, starter solenoid, voltage regulator.

Well, last Friday, 7/2/2010, my scooter was ready. They said the new stator is producing 13.7 volts and is charging the system. And, all this was covered by the warranty. So, my costs was $0.00 for $1,000 of work. Great! I got my scooter back after 2 weeks of walking and riding the damn bus to work and my medical appointments. Everything is great, the scooter is riding smooth.

Today, Sunday 7/4/2010, 2 days after I got my scoot back, the same problem!!! The starter is staying on. I don't know what's going on. Monday, I'm taking back to the dealer for more repair.
Has this problem happened to any of you guys?

7
Grandvista 250 / GV 250 update
« on: February 03, 2010, 04:51:55 AM »
Hello fellow Kymco owners! It's been a very long time since I posted on this forum: March '09, 11 months. Way too long! The reason I haven't posted is that I just forgot my password and user name. I know, pretty lame. I resetted my password tonight and now is the big update from me about my GV 250. Well, it's still running! Actually, running well, very well. The only major repairs I had was replacing my tires (both) around 5700 miles, and also, both front and rear brake pads. I just had the drive belt and variator weights replaced in Dec '09 and my GV's acceleration is back. Today, I accumulated 6,964 miles - close to 7,000 miles! I just love this scoot. It's fantastic in the city, traffic jams are not a problem because I just lane split or find a short cut. Once, I thought I was in Taipei and just rode on the sidewalk to get around an accident. The police and paramedics were way too busy taking care of the accident victims than to pay attention to a fatman like me on a scoot. This past summer, I rode my GV to nearby Stockton, California using the county road that runs parallel with I-5. I cruised between 55 and 60 mph without a hitch. Nice smooth handling at that speed. I opened her up a little more and the speed climbed to 65. I decided to go wide open, and I noticed my speedometer slowly, I mean slowly creeping to 69. Actually these speeds are estimates. My speedometer actually showed 82, but since Kymco speedometers are notiriously optimistic (20%) I just calculated it to be 69. And that was pretty much it with the speed. I would like to go faster, but I don't really know how. I've read other scooter forums, they write about changing their variators, weights, drive belts, clutch etc. Can anyone who has tuned their GVs let me know the mods you installed and how it increased your speed. I'm going to try and post some pics and vids. Later

8
Grandvista 250 / Re: Just bought a new GV 250
« on: March 19, 2009, 02:41:20 AM »
greetings all, regarding the oil problem I mentioned, I called the dealer and asked him about it, and he admitted he forgot  to check the oil level before handing the scooter to me. He checked everything else, tires, gas, etc. just fotgot the oil level. The oil I added, is still there, no leakage or burning I can detect. The dip stick always shows full.

The only other problem is the idle speed. The dealer did admit to me before I rode off on the GV 250 is that he did reduce the idle speed a little. No problem, just yet. Only twice in the morning when I'm warming up the engine, the engine sounds like it's about to gag and shut down, but I just slightly twist the throttle, then it's fine.

I have about 101 miles on it. The dealer wants to bring in the scooter after 500 miles for its first oil change and inspection. After that, I can't wait to open her up. I can feel the horsepower wanting to get out, but I'm still babying the engine until its fully broken in. The fastest I got her up to was 48 mph. For now, that's more than enough here in the crappy streets of Sacramento, California.

One thing people at my office noticed about me since I've bought my GV, is that I have more of a smile on my face. I'm not grumpy in the morning now. Man, now I know why scooter riders are always happy: scooters are a blast to ride! I leave my apartment early in the morning so I can ride around Sacramento having fun before heading into my cubicle cage for the next nine hours. I should have bought a scooter a long time ago instead of riding the f***ing bus!

9
Grandvista 250 / Just bought a new GV 250
« on: March 15, 2009, 01:07:04 AM »
Just bought my GV 250, yesterday, on Friday the 13th (3/13/09). I hope it's not a bad omen. It's a 2007 model, color blue and only had one mile. The dealer told me it was sitting on his lot for almost two years (like the other 6 Kymco models). No body even wanted it. He slashed the MSRP price by $400 to $3,999. Still it sat for seven months until I came by. This is my first scooter purchase so I was a little naive in the negotiations. The OTD price was $4,654. He waved the prep fees since I'm a nice guy (his words). I paid for it in cash  and was on the road.

Bike handles great and has quick acceleration. I want to really open her up, but the dealer told me to baby it until it's broken in. So, I give it gradual acceleration, then gradually decelerate, never leaving it in one constant speed for very long. Only one problem I noticed is sometimes after riding it for a while, then I stop somewhere, shut-off the engine. I try to start it up, it takes awhile to start it. I read the owner's manual, and it said to wait a few seconds, turn the throttle 1/8 to 1/4, then press the start button. It works -- for now. I guess the engine is hot, and takes time for it to cool down before starting.

Other than that, the bike handles great. Very nimble, and fast. Wide comfortable seat, and good leg room (i'm 5'11'', 345 lbs). I do love this bike! I did have to add another 1/2 of a quart of oil, though. Don't know if it's normal for new engines to burn a little oil during the break-in phase or maybe the dealer forgot to check the oil level -- since it's been sitting on his lot for a while. I'm hoping it's the latter.

Anyway, anyone else experience the same two problems I've experience? Would really appreciate your views on this. Thanks.
 

10
General Discussion / super 8 150
« on: December 14, 2008, 12:30:23 AM »
I'm thinking about buying that new hot looking super 8 150 scooter. The problem is that I'm 5 feet 11 1/2 inches tall and 340 pounds, and this will be my first bike (will take the Basic Rider Course this January '09). Will this bike be too small for me? I emailed the local KYMCO dealer in my city and they said it might be a little tight but can easily carry me as long as I don't plan on performing any crazy stunts. They tried hard to push the People 200 on me, but that's about a thousand dollars more than the super 8 150, and uglier.

Are there any heavy people out there who are riding any of these Kymco 150 bikes? If there are, please, I would like your input both good and bad.

 

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