Last week I exchanged my 2008 Burgman 400 for a new, white Kymco Downtown 300i. Following are some impressions and comments about the scooter. So far it only has 400km on the clock, and has not yet had its first service.
Underseat storage is not as spacious as on the Burgman. The Burgman has room for large items. The Downtown space is more irregular. You can just squeeze in two helmets and not much else. There are depressions under the seat for the helmets, but getting the seat closed with a large full-face helmet in place requires some pressure. The Burgman had room for 2 helmets with space to spare.
The seat can be opened with engine running, engine stopped, or with the key in the locked position. The Burgman can only be opened from the stopped position.
I miss the large front lockable 'glovebox' on Burgman. There is a small, deep compartment on the front, left side, with a power socket inside. The socket can only be used for charging a cellphone (according to the sticker).
I've had a Givi topbox installed for extra luggage capacity.
There's a light at bottom of underseat storage which comes on when seat is lifted. Also a warning light in rev counter for the seat unlocked or not completely closed. The warning light is not mentioned in the instruction book.
The centre tunnel seems wider than on the Burgman, meaning rider's legs are more splayed while riding. It's not uncomfortable. There's plenty of footpad room for moving feet forward or backwards. But the angled footpads for foot forward position are too close to seat, meaning the legs get too bent and knees too close to body. I find it uncomfortable to ride with the feet in that position.
The driver's seat has a distinctive hump at front end to make room for a helmet underneath. This leaves no room for moving around on the seat. It's comfortable for 2 to 3 hours riding, but may not fit all sizes and shapes of gluteus maximus. I haven't tried the passenger seat for size, shape, or comfort.
The seat is higher than on the Burgman, and my short legs can only just reach the ground.
The centre stand is easier to operate than on the Burgman, for raising and especially for lowering off the stand.
Suspension is stiffer than the Burgman. I will try adjusting rear preload for softer setting, and hope that it will loosen up with use.
The windscreen is smaller, but with better airflow. This may possibly be due to openings at the base of the windscreen. The windflow and back pressure does not lift the back of my riding jacket like the Burgman did. Windflow passes around the handgrips, but I have ordered a set of heated grips to be installed during the first service.
The Downtown feels faster up to about 80km/h, about the same to 100, and slower from 100km/h and up, with a lower top speed. Not much more than 140km/h is available, but the engine may loosen up with usage. Engine speed seems fairly constant at about 6000rpm when accelerating up to about 100km/h, rising from there.
Some specifications mention that the Kymco has ABS. I was led to believe it was standard in Aus and NZ. But mine doesn't have it, or at least it doesn't work on the rear wheel. It's possible to lock the rear wheel. The front wheel does have what looks like an ABS sensor ring, with wires leading to it. Maybe it's used only for the speedometer? I haven't been brave enough to try locking the front wheel yet.
The Downtown has a single front disk instead of 2 as on the Burgman. However it seems to stop just as well, and a single disk does give lower unsprung weight.
The first tank gave about 300km. The capacity is 12.5l. I don't know how much was left in the tank or how much was required to fill it again. But a range of 300km or so is sufficient for my needs.
It will maintain 100km/h on uphill stretches. Today I tried it on a winding 6km stretch of road which rises about 500m (1 in 12 average gradient), maintaining 80 to 100km/h. Mainly restricted by all the corners with 55km/h speed advisories. Nothing touched down in the corners, but then I have a natural instinct to avoid leaning too far over on public roads with other traffic.
The buttons on the instrument panel are difficult to access, with not enough room between the instrument panel and the plastic cover on the handlebars. And the operation of the buttons seems illogical. The buttons are MODE, TPM and ADJ. The TPM button has no function at all.
To change between ODO, Trip A, Trip B and service you have to hold the ADJ button down for 2 seconds. To reset the trip counters you have to hold the MODE button and the ADJ buttons down together for 2 seconds.
The MODE button if held for 2 seconds changes between kilometres and miles in the odometer and trip counters.
I would have preferred that a short press of the MODE button would have cycled between the 4 counters, and the ADJ button held for 2 seconds to zero.
The service counter is not marked, but counts up like a trip counter. Presumably it's a trip counter to show the distance since the last service.
There is no display of fuel economy/usage, as on the Burgman. Nor a temperature display.
The brake levers are a slightly too far reach from the handgrips for my hands. The reach can be adjusted, but not sufficiently.
The battery is difficult to access. It's at the rear, and requires removal of the luggage compartment for access.
There is a shutter for the ignition key, as on the Burgman. However, it is activated by a small button in the ring around the keyhole. It can easily be actived inadvertently with the key in place. It can't close, but tries to do so, making the key difficult to remove. The shutter is opened bu a special 'key' on the side of the ignition key.
Reflections in the instrument panel can make the speedo and especially the indicator warning lights difficult to see.
The service interval is 5000km, with a first service at 500km.
There is no parking brake, as on the Burgman, so parking on a slope requires more thought and planning.
The clutch/takeup of drive is smoother than on the Burgman, but the Burgman had done 13000km, with an unknown history, so may not have been representative of Burgmen. Idling speed is set a bit too fast, with the clutch slipping. It should be set at the first service.
The Downtown is lighter than the Burgman, but not by as much as some versions of the specifications would indicate. The manual says 187kg net weight (411 lbs). I measure it at 193kg with an empty topcase.
The engine power has also been published in various versions. The manual says 29ps/8500rpm, torque 2.7kg.m/6500rpm.
The Owner's Manual is not very comprehensive. It leaves out some items, and gets it wrong with a few other items.
