Modified Stock Exhaust?

[ScooterBJ]

I am wondering if anyone had opened up and modified the internals on the Xciting 500 exhaust. I had done this on a couple of motorcycles, and there are posts elsewhere for other brand scooters getting this treatment, but had hoped someone had some insight. Before I decide to try this.

[Oldscoot]

I'm thinking that you could consider an aftermarket exhaust. When you go to sell the bike a new buyer might want a stock exhuast. Replacing your Kymco exhaust might cost more than lets' say, a Leo Vince 4Road.   

[sissy mary]

ebay motors, go to motorcycles. Type in xciting 500 in top left box, and click on parts & accessories in drop down box on top right. Click search. Some good deals going on right now on after market exhaust. I have a Leo Vince. Sound not real bad. Performance gain?

[ScooterBJ]

Thanks for the input gang. I have had a couple of Leo Vince, one on a Grand Vista, other on a People 250. They are excellent exhausts for sure. i had an all stainless aftermarket (forget the name) on my TGB Delivery 150 and a super light GPR slip-on on my beloved Silver Wing (RIP, pic below). The GPR was a bit too free flowing.
I also performed a rework on the stock exhaust of my '08 KLR650. The Leo and KLR rework gave the best results overall. A Leo would be very nice but honestly, I don't want to spend $300+. i can get a new exhaust on my car for that. Hey, we all gotta make a living, but i feel these aftermarket scooter exhausts are over-priced. The technology and manufacturing is not that difficult. OK, yes, i can be a tight-wad so rant over............

Anyway, i am also considering adapting an exhaust can off a motorcycle that would have a similar exhaust pulse. As an example, one side of a dual exhaust off a big twin like a BMW R100, Ducati 996, Triumph Bonneville, etc. As it would be one side of the exhaust, it would be from a similar piston size and configuration.  As i weld, i can adapter pretty well. i was hoping someone had already been inside the Xciting 500 exhaust can and could give some insight of the interior. But who knows. Maybe i will flip for a Leo or a MIVV if I loose interest, or time, for taking a can opener to the stock exhaust.

[sissy mary]

I had a Ducati 450 single road bike years ago, and put a $19.95 Thrush car muffler on it., (more or less a cherry bomb muffler). Great sound and performance. Also have put J C Whitney mufflers on other bikes. Once again, great sound & performance for a fraction of a price.

[ScooterBJ]

Sure, most exhausts are the same basic principal. others have used can mufflers. There are threads on BurgmanUSA about cutting the end off the muffler, gutting it and inserting a stainless car muffler (of a certain model) and it looks pretty good. The car muffler have such a large inner core that it does not restrict much on 500cc single though. Maybe i will be taking a trip over to the local mot salvage yard to see what might work. i did like the muffler off a Ducati 669 but as it is dual, one can would be about 375cc and might be just as restrictive as stock.,,,,Damn, i think toooooooo much!

Man, i would have loved to taken a ride on that Ducati 450!

[desliderman]

Are one of the reasons that these exhausts cost so much have to do with a built-in catalyst?  I've heard that the muffler and catalyst are integrated..

Just thinking out loud..

Don in KC.

[ScooterBJ]

Are one of the reasons that these exhausts cost so much have to do with a built-in catalyst?  I've heard that the muffler and catalyst are integrated..

Most aftermarket do not have a catalyst, many stock do. As for the Xciting 500, I do not know if the stock muffler has a catalyst or not, but am sure IT WEIGHS A TON. At this point, I am moving on to reworking a muffler from another machine of similar cylinder displacement size, so I am trolling ebay and craigslist. The X500 muffler is clamped, rather then welded, to the exhaust pipe so this would allow re-installation of the stock exhaust if needed.

The GPR for my Silver Wing was a slip-on but was designed to sit at almost a 45 degree upswept angle. I hated that and so cut off the inlet, changed the angle and welded it back on. I then made new mounts (above pic is after the modifications). Though I felt the GPR was too free flowing and a bit fragile, it was a fraction of the weight and improved the handling due to the weight loss.

The Silver Wing has a rigid mounted engine (more motorcycle like) so the suspension must move the weight of the tire, wheel, swingarm / transmission. The X500 engine is part of the suspension -- a pivoting engine system (more traditional scooter design). Thus when hitting a bump the rear suspension must move the weight of the engine, transmission, exhaust as well as wheel, tire, etc. the X500 engine and transmission are big, heavy-duty units (and used on Kymco, as well as other brands of ATVs) and consequently, very heavy. Swapping to a lighter exhaust can significantly improve the suspension reaction time, and thus the overall handling.

A long winded explanation that my motives are for power performance, as well as suspension performance.

[MotoRandy123]

I have been poking around on my Yager and have found Kymco has done a pretty good job
engineering that scoot. The exhaust could be better but the head pipe needs to be longer and
the muffler too. When you do that it looks a bit funny.



 Remember a scooter has a limited rev range as opposed to a motorcycle. The muffler on any
given bike usually is tuned to even out the dips in the torque curve. Of course aftermarket ones
are usually tuned for high end which is perfect for our scoots!

 Have you looked at the Supertrapp mufflers? They have different inlet sizes and can be tuned
(somewhat) for sound and power. It looks like the easy way to mod the Yager's muffler...

[ScooterBJ]

Overall Kymco does a great job of designing and building scooters. Hell, I wish they made cars! Overall, the exhaust on most vehicles is a combination of quiet, EPA reg, reliability and then performance. for example, my '08 Smart (car) comes stock with 72hp fro the 999cc engine. By swapping to a hi flow air intake and hi flow exhaust, I have gained about 12-15% in power and get better mileage. The exhaust and intake can now be heard, but I prefer hearing the engine and definitely prefer the power and mpg increase.

The '08 KLR650 i had got a similar treatment except i reworked the stock exhaust and did a rejet, needle work on the carb. Mpg and power both increased.

This morning I ordered the muffler I am going to rework for the X500. if it works well I'll do the same on the Burgman 400. Muffler weight should be reduced by about 50% on both. i plan to mount it as far forward as possible. The farther the weight is toward the engine/suspension pivot, the less mass it has to move. I'm going to keep the muffler model to my self until i can post pics and results. Wish me luck!

Also..... if that is your eager, it is one hell of a good lookin' scoot!