NOT ENUFF COLOR CHOICES or OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES !!!....

[Hipster66]

Hyall ! - im new to this forum and live in Long Beach CA (where ive seen a few scoots scootin around). After having done a lot of (mostly visual) research online of all the lower-end priced, freeway-legal scoots available in the US, i am very much liking the (sadly and MISTAKENLY discontinued) DOWNTOWN 350i, and heres WHY....and also what i DONT like about it (KYMCO officials & reps, please TAKE NOTES), and a few SUGGESTIONS for KYMCO :

1. Its UNDER $6K (tho, Kymco should, and can, EASILY price it under $5K).... 2. Its Sweet-n-Sexy Lookin as .... 3. The SAFETY-important TAIL LIGHT is LARGE and BOLD.... 4. It has a definite Righteous Bad- Look to it.... 5. It looks Aggressive and Fast as !....

6. The fit & Finish Quality is (mostly) equal to HONDA and all other Asian bikes....

And heres what i DONT like about it :

Dear KYMCO officials (seriously)....your bland (colorless) COLOR selections are as attractive as industrial SLUDGE and SLIME.  WHERE IN HELL ARE THE ATTRACTIVE COLORS?!!! The misguided MISTAKE of following the color-schemes of popular CARS needs to END A.S.A.P.....Why?....The MOST IMPORTANT factor for Motorscooters and Motorcycles is SAFETY, not STYLE, not COMFORT, not performance, etc....ROAD SAFETY is NUMBER ONE. So, logically the NUMBER ONE SAFETY FACTOR is the VISIBILITY of the motorscooter, and BRIGHT COLORS are BEST, and much more attractive than just plain WHITE (tho, WHITE too is a ROAD-SAFE color that should also ALWAYS be available by special-order, for those who prefer it)....

1. BODY COLORS - Of course, the BASE-color of the frame, etc should ALWAYS remain BLACK, to highlight the colors. KYMCO officials, TAKE NOTES NOW- Here are a few examples of some needed BODY-PANEL colors that should be made available for ALL Kymco motorscooters (at the LEAST by special-order): ELECTRIC BLUE (w/ ORANGE accents) !!!....NEON GREEN (w/ BLUE accents) !!!....SUNSET YELLOW (w/ ORANGE accents) !!!....

KYMCO Officials - Respectfully and sincerely, you absolutely NEED to post on the official KYMCO website a PERMANENT SURVEY FORM for interested customers (and potential customers) to indicate /express the features they like /dislike and offer SUGGESTIONS for the design and /or features of the vehicles.  THEY are the ones who the KMCO officials should be ASKING and LISTENING to, NOT to a single manager in a paint (or other) department !!!....

NOTE: About the BEAUTIFUL new 2018/2019 X-CITING 400i....I absolutely commend Kymco for the great color scheme (Black, Matte blue and Bronze) designated for this model. The MATTE finish is very attractive and the MATTE finish should ABSOLUTELY be made available in several colors (and for ANY Kymco model, by special-order) !!!  Personally, i have had to abstain from purchasing a KYMCO for the single reason that the ONLY color the scoot is available in is matte SILVER !!! (YIKES!-Is silver the most X-CITING, road-safety color the "color-boss" at Kymco could come up with?!!!....Really?!!!)

2. INSTRUMENT PANEL - This is the NEXT very important visual component of the vehicle, and so it should be (especially at night) a VERY BRIGHT and ATTRACTIVE, MULTI-COLOR ALL-L.E.D. DISPLAY for the operator to easily see....NOT like the (mostly colorless) dull WHITE & BLACK gauges and dials routinely put on Kymco vehicles.  And ive SEEN these bright, multi-colored ALL-L.E.D. Displays on some scoots and cycles featured at the annual motor shows in Japan, Italy and Germany, etc.  Sadly and MISTAKENLY, the new Kymco "noodoe" app-display of one model is mostly a large round central mass of WHITE....NOT a shape-attractive design, and again, mostly colorless!  NOTE: DECADES of successful industrial product design indicates that most people favor clean, MODULAR, GEOMETRIC and COLOR-enhanced design for objects, components and PANEL DISPLAYS. 

3. PRACTICAL FEATURES - The NUMBER ONE feature (MISTAKENLY) MISSING on ALL motorscooters are SIDE CASE Anchor Ports (on the far rear sides, covered by removable chrome or black plastic caps); these ports would accommodate optional KYMCO Locking Side Cases, for those who regularly need to transport more items than a TOP BOX can hold.  NOTE: THOUSANDS of cycle users do NOT have a car, by choice (or by economic necessity), and attachable/removable Side Cases would provide a VERY convenient means to transport home supplies or groceries, etc. 

4. An OFFICIAL KYMCO TOP CASE - Kymco should also have an (affordably priced) optional LIGHTED* Kymco Locking TOP CASE (available in LARGE or SMALL, in THREE color-schemes: MATTE BLACK & Silver accents / MATTE BLUE & Black accents / MATTE SILVER & Black accents). *ALL red relectors on TOP BOXES and SIDE CASES should be L.E.D.-LIGHTED (accommodating wiring for Stop-Lights and Blinking Turn-Lights) for SAFER increased on-road visibility.

Thats all for now....All are welcome to respond (but i may not read or reply to questions for a long while). Thx!  - Paul (the Hipster....forever stuck in hippin trippin 1966!)   

[john grinsel]

Study the subject more---I have new 2019 XTown 300i abs----Color bright (see me) blue, easy to see.

accessories---I find Kymco site hard to access.

But after market does have accessories that work---Puig Touring Windscreen---works, easy to mount.   Although Givi rack and boxes are available, non were in stock when I went to order---so I bolted a $40 Bestem box and their rack directly to rear spoiler....works and dog likes it.   Givi hump bag works, mine held on with velcro.

Accessories do not make they bike go....in many cases they are just junk that does not function well or fit well.


First get a bike, ride and then complain if necessary.

[boo]

I agree with just about everything you posted but, I think Kymco and some other manufacturers have a bigger problem. Because of this, I think most peoples desires will NOT be addressed.
#1 problem - Not enough quality dealers and techs around the country. Not a good selection of scoots on the showroom floor for people to look at and inspect.
Seems to me, a lot of dealers are dropping motor scooters. Very few dealership dedicated to motor scooters with good support after the sale.
Kymco is making some bad mistakes. Dropping the 300 GTI is a good example. Hope they plan to import the 300 People S into the USA.
Color selection - how about cherry red, bright yellow, maybe fire engine red or lime green.
Ease of maintenance - Expose the brake reservoirs for ease of maintenance.
Personally, I don`t think any of these suggestions will happen. Manufacturers are not listening to consumers.
Finally, motor scooter are catching on in the US but manufacturers are not making the right moves to expand their sales.

[CROSSBOLT]

Well, Hip, glad to have you on board! I must plead with you to just come right out and say what is on your mind and STOP beating around the bush! Har, har! I agree with everything you said except maybe instruments. That may be negotiable as long as they keep a tight reign on their designers. Communication upward is always a problem with people who think they know everything. Kymco has some gifted engineers and designers judging by some of their models. But they are big on some things like ABS on rear wheels only(what's with THAT?) and finding a way to get new models IN dealer showrooms besides making them buy every unit.

[john grinsel]

One reason in US, dealers having nothing in stock/accessories is: scooter market in US dead or near death.

[LidoCA]

 If you pick up a scooter soon, join the Long Beach Area scooter Group. It has not been too active lately, but it's a great group of people that ride a variety of large and small scooters. (Not much smaller than 150cc)

[AMAC1680]

One reason in US, dealers having nothing in stock/accessories is: scooter market in US dead or near death.

There is some truth to this. All 2 wheel sales are at the weakest.

That said there are places where sales are solid, mostly good climates where people use their scooters for transportation. The local multi brand shop here will tell you even gas prices have little to do with their volume.

Too many choices drive costs up so they keep them to a minimum.
Not to mention they give very little thought about the North America market wants in general.

AMAC