New Super 8 50R on order

[Tseg]

I'm getting my 15 year old high school freshman a Super 8 50R for Christmas.  Just finalizing the deal with a dealership... unfortunately the closest [responsive] Kymco dealership is almost 40 miles away.  But for a very nominal price they will deliver.  Many of my son's friends have scooters and use them to get themselves around town and to various sports practices.  My son is very active with such school activities and it seems we're carting him around to 2-3 different activities every night.  I prefer him to have his own scooter rather than riding on the back of someone else's.  This is a a fairly large town but very flat and not a speed limit over 35 mph, so I figure this should work well.  My hidden agenda is my wife has been suggesting I give my son my Jeep when he turns 16 so she doesn't have to cart him around... but I really don't want to give up my Jeep, so this is a <$2K compromise that I think works for all and hopefully can address his basic transport needs into college.  After several weeks of research I finally landed on Kymco vs. spending a grand more for a Yamaha or Honda of similar styling (vs. Retro, which is not my son's style).  i imagine I'll be taking it out on occasion as well.

I have a bit of experience with vehicle maintenance so intend to be diligent with various fluid & filter changes.  I'm really hoping we don't get a dog so it won't need to go to a shop but once every few years.  Even the closest motorcycle repair place is quite a few miles away and driving there on the scooter would not be feasible.  It sounds like the new Super 8 design is just based on the Agility platform, which has stellar reviews, and now that Kymco has compressed prices of the Super 8 within $100 of the Agility I figure the premium for a bit more style is worth it.

[Tseg]

An update... at the last moment I considered switching to the Super 8 50X.  Reasons:

• Wife thought the 50X matte black color was cooler looking
• The dealership website implied the 50X price was now the same as the 50R
• It turns out the 50R was a 2015... I was a bit concerned about buying new-old stock
• I just noticed the official 2017 Kymco site has discontinued the 50R... might parts be difficult to acquire long term?

Ultimately I took the 50 mile trip to the dealership today to get a first hand look and conclude whatever transaction I was going to make.  What I learned was if I went for the 2017 50X there would be an additional $200+ in destination/shipping charges.  The dealership had the 2015 50R for only around 30 days... they got a deal directly from Kymco who was cleaning out old stock (waved the delivery charges?)... so not a transfer from another dealership, straight from the factory recently.  In person, the 50R does look spectacular, the red and black not looking as cheesy as I thought it would.  I pulled the trigger on the 50R and it will be delivered to my house (50 miles from the dealership) in the next few weeks.  In 2015 the 50R was like a $300-$400 premium over the Agility.  Now it is discontinued.  I was able to get an "out the door" price (which includes tax and state sticker, prep, etc...) with delivery 50 miles away well below the 2015 MSRP, which I think is quite a deal.  Since this scooter will only be ridden on roads it is probably a better decision to have the 50R vs. the 50X, which I understand has a lot of road noise due to the knobby tires.

Some cool features discovered after further scanning the web for review videos... the headlights on this model are supposed to cast tremendous light, which is good.  I also learned the LCD gauge can toggle between kPH and MPH with a touch of a button, which is nicer than the dial gauges where kPH is the predominant speed indicator.  Also, with the lights on, the gauge has an orange backlight, so nice visibility at night. The dealership swears we should get 35-38 MPH fully restricted, depending on conditions.  If so, no plans to true to tune this thing for the foreseeable future.

I want to remove the KYMCO decals from the side skirts... I know heat is to be applied, so am a little concerned about it making a mess of the plastic.  Any suggestions how to remove those KYMCO decals on the sides?

I look forward to helping my son put this through its paces when Christmas comes around.  Here she is:

[Stig / Major Tom]

Handsome little scooter.
What city do you live in where so many youngsters ride scooters?
And please report back with your top speed for this scoot in normal riding conditions.
Too often it seems as though salesmen just will not accurately represent the capabilities of small to med. engined scooters.
Stig

[Tseg]

Grosse Pointe, MI.  The lake-side towns and roads along the lakes on the east side of Michigan (Lake Huron, Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie) all typically have speed limits that top out at 35 mph making it conducive for these small scooters.

[Roytheroach]

It looks great, dont be discouraged about how pathetically it accelerates when you first get it. Grab a phillips head screw driver, pop the seat open, youll see a small cover at the bottom for carb maint. Pop that open, loosen the two hose clamps holding the carb in place, move the carb out of the way, and from the back, over the rear tire, look into the intake manifold. If you see a silver washer jammed into the intake manifold, yank it out with a strong hook shaped tool, reassemble, enjoy the ride

And try using a blow dryer on high heat low speed first, takes longer but theres waaaay less risk of ruining the plastic, these decals dont need much convincing to be removed

[Tseg]

Today my 2015 Super 8 50R arrived.  I had to quickly scuttle it to the garage and cover it in a tarp before my son returned from school.  The dealership transport guy (from an hour away, driving in 25F temperatures) took 5+ minutes trying to get the thing to start... but it did finally start.  4 hours later I tried starting it again and it started up with the first button push and idled smooth and quietly.  Apologies for no photos at this point as my garage is pretty dark.

First impressions:

• It is good looking
• It seems fairly full sized
• The fit and finish seems quite good
• The red paint in the sun seems very deep, with rust overtones... a very nice rich look... pictures make it look bright cherry red, but it is not
• It really purrs like a kitten

I actually received a different VIN than the one ordered... my guy said they found a big scratch under the driveline box of the original one, but they had another new one in mint condition to replace it.  Interesting this one was 001XX, the other was 003XX... assuming it was from one of the first 200 produced in 2015?  I'm looking forward to my son getting it on Christmas.  It has been below freezing the past month but may get near 50 for a day or two immediately after Christmas, so may get a quick test ride before winterizing it for a few more months.

I think I'll let my son get some experience on the slower performance before considering performance enhancements.  My decision was between this and the Honda Ruckus, but the lack of a Ruckus storage well, the 10" wheels and the $1K+ cost all combined for me to think the Kymco made better sense.  Hopefully with regular maintenance/fluid service the Kymco is as durable as the reputation that proceeds it and can go with my son to college in 4 more years. 

[Tseg]

BAD NEWS!!!

My son drove the scooter around the block today, all went well, so I filled up the tank with 93 octane gas I had just purchased a couple of days ago.  He then took it out 2 miles down the road and it stalled while driving. Now there is no power to the engine when the starter button is pushed even though power to everything else... checked kill switch, held brake, etc...  The scooter won't kick start either.  Also, have a battery trickle charge and made sure the battery was charged... still nothing.

I called the dealership... "Just bring it in...".  Of course the dealership is 40-50 miles away.  The service department is now checking whether they will send someone to my house in the next couple of days to check it out since they only just delivered the thing and the odometer has 2 miles on it now.

Unfortunately there is no scooter dealership within "50cc scooter" distance of us, so I don't regret the distance of where I bought it... I just don't have anything to transport the thing.  My son is pretty devastated... of course he came into the house all in a tizzy after pushing the scooter for 2 miles home and proceeded to scratch the visor on his new helmet as he stormed through the door.

[Tseg]

Further update... scooter sat in garage for a few hours... I tried turning it on with handle bar to left... nothing (headlight and dash lit).  Turned to the right and it started right up.  Took it about 1/2 mile down the road and it stalled while driving... again could not get any juice to start engine.  A couple hours later it started again.  Did not make it around the block and it stalled again while running.  I think it is electrical related getting electricity to the engine but all other accessories have power.  The dealership "is discussing options".  I've not heard back from them.  The scooter now has 3 miles on it.

I was thinking maybe it is related to a vapor lock because I filled the tank near the top, but that does not explain the intermittent power to the starter.  Of course my friends that know a bit about scooters only give the advice: "Should have bought a Honda".

So far not a good start into the world of scooters.

[tortoise]

maybe it is related to a vapor lock because I filled the tank near the top

Per page 22 of Agility 50/125 owners manual . . .
"Do not overfill the tank. There should be no fuel in the fuel filler neck. Excess fuel can contaminate the evaporative emission canister, resulting in poor driveability."

So if the fuel tank emission canister is fuel soaked, not allowing vent air in, one solution MAY be as simple as running with a loose gas tank cap.

The electric starter not energizing is probably a separate continuity issue.  If there is a run-stop switch on the right handlebar control . . might try enabling that a few times, as well as retracting the SIDE stand (if it has a switch).

[Tseg]

I suspect a combination of many things... cold, wet and humid and a very full gas tank (just below the inlet neck) led to the experience today.  This evening the scooter started with no problem in the garage and idled smooth for 15 minutes.  I think we did not let it warm up enough and the road mist and drizzle to not help matters.  Anyway... pictures or it did not happen...

 

We'll give it a try again tomorrow where it will be drier, albeit colder.  Definitely will have a 10-15 minute idle warm up to see if things change.

[Tseg]

Good News!!!

Today things dried out, but got a bit colder... high of 31F.  We let the Super 8 idle/warm up for 15+ minutes before taking it out, and no issues starting it... 1st press of the starter.  My son took it out and drove for a 1/2 hour all over with no issues (other than being real cold by the time he was done).  In searching forums it sounds like damp weather can mess with scooters.  A recommended solution is to spray all the electrical connections with a silicone dry spray.  The specific issue we faced may suggest some type of short in the cutoff switch when wet.  Also, I think we will be more careful to not 'top off' the gas tank as well.  We'll put this behind us and enjoy the scooter. 

Separately, I found several different highly ranked scooter carriers online in the $150-$200 range, if I ever did need to transport it.  My wife's Grand Cherokee has a hitch, so should be pretty easy to install if I ever have to go there.

Update: My son drove it again the next day for another 1/2 hour... no issues whatsoever.  Hopefully this Kymco will now live long and prosper.