I've always liked the look of classic Vespas - esp. with those chrome crash bars. Not all the other shiny stuff an Italian can hang on his scooter - bless his heart - just those chrome crash bars. Will they help if I ever lay this thing down - who knows? I will try real hard to keep my knees out of the way ( at 6'2" I too have the ergonomic issue w/the seat being too close - and if you like hatching golf balls you can scoot back a bit to find the Titlests Kymco hid under there) so I won't find out. For me, it is enough that they make my scooter look pretty and 1950's.
I was happy to see that Kymco sold such an accessory - then came the search to find a source! Thanks to John at moxiescooters.com I now have this genuine Kymco accessory on my Like. I love it!
It took me about an hour to install it, using a 10MM socket & wrench and a phillips screwdriver.
You have to muscle things around just a bit to get all the holes to line up - but not too much.
The nice surprise was that I did not have to make any new holes in my pretty scooter! The installation uses 10 attachment points (2 under the rear carrier, 4 on the floor and 4 on the leg sheild.) The kit comes with 4 long screws and rubber washers for the attachment to the leg sheild. You take out 4 screws on the sheild, and use the 4 longer ones to attach the crash bar here. The other 6 attachment points use the fastener found there.
I think the bleedin thing looks great - and hope to see a lot more Likes on the road with these gleaming vintage-looking bars. Price including UPS from Texas to Ohio was about $160. Will think for a bit about adding the matching front fender trim from Kymco.
I'm about as Italian as a taco - but I love the things those folks ride and drive!