Opinion?

[OldCoot]

I've been looking at some used Kymco scooters and after hearing what some said about the xCiting 500 I'm leaning toward getting a Grand Vista 250 instead. If you own or have owned one, would you give me your honest opinion about them? Please feel free to answer as many or as few questions as you want...

1) How long have you had your Grand Vista/Dink?

2) How many miles do you have on your Grand Vista/Dink?

3) Do you like your Grand Vista/Dink a lot and would you recommend it (would you buy a Grand Vista/Dink all over again) or should I wait and find another one?

4) What's your typical gas mileage?

5) How many miles do you get out of your tires?

6) Any problems to look out for, and if so what's it typically cost?

7) How does it ride on the highway/Interstate?

Thanks for your help .. again.

-OldCoot

[xsel777]

I had one for 6 months. It had high mileage 139 000km,had the rings done, but still used a lot of oil. I drove it full throttle everywhere (130km/h),so I helped kill it sooner. It was always reliable, always started, I liked it. I only moved on to the 500 because I wanted to go faster.  Watch out for those mirrors. I invented new swearwords the day I dropped the scoot, and broke the rhs mirror, and repaired it again, THREE TIMES, all on the same day. I can laugh now, after much trauma counselling.... 😀.

Sent from my Mi Max using Tapatalk

[OldCoot]

I had one for 6 months. It had high mileage 139 000km,had the rings done, but still used a lot of oil. I drove it full throttle everywhere (130km/h),so I helped kill it sooner. It was always reliable, always started, I liked it. I only moved on to the 500 because I wanted to go faster.  Watch out for those mirrors. I invented new swearwords the day I dropped the scoot, and broke the rhs mirror, and repaired it again, THREE TIMES, all on the same day. I can laugh now, after much trauma counselling.... 😀.

Sent from my Mi Max using Tapatalk

Thanks for your comments. Very helpful.
I've wondered how those folding mirrors hold up. Did you have to buy new ones or parts to fix them? Was it costly?
Thanks again,
OldCoot

[xsel777]

It was the black swivel arm, which I repaired with a super glue and powder  product, since the damage was under the mirror, it looked fine.

Sent from my Mi Max using Tapatalk

[stuo]

I have two GV 250's, both 2009's, both red: Sharkey I and Sharkey II. One has 10K miles, the other 16K miles. I love them! Easy to maneuver, gets in tight spots, especially with the mirrors folded, plenty of power for quick starts, does an honest 70 on freeways. In fact, i like them better than my Downtown 300i. The only glitch is the lumbar support, but I removed them and can move back on the saddle to a comfortable position. I bought a large rear box on ebay for $50 and can grocery shop no problem. I did install louder horns but all scooters suffer from wimpy horns.

The nicest part is...they are cheap on the second hand market: I paid $1100 and $875 for mine with no mechanical problems.

I use leeson's for parts: https://www.leesonsarcticcat.com/contactus

[OldCoot]

I have two GV 250's, both 2009's, both red: Sharkey I and Sharkey II. One has 10K miles, the other 16K miles. I love them! Easy to maneuver, gets in tight spots, especially with the mirrors folded, plenty of power for quick starts, does an honest 70 on freeways. In fact, i like them better than my Downtown 300i. The only glitch is the lumbar support, but I removed them and can move back on the saddle to a comfortable position. I bought a large rear box on ebay for $50 and can grocery shop no problem. I did install louder horns but all scooters suffer from wimpy horns.

The nicest part is...they are cheap on the second hand market: I paid $1100 and $875 for mine with no mechanical problems.

I use leeson's for parts: https://www.leesonsarcticcat.com/contactus

Thanks for your helpful comments.
Having owned two of them, you seem pretty familiar with the GV 250 ... do you know if it can run an electric jacket liner without a problem?
Also, I'd love to see the horn upgrade you installed along with advice on how you did it.
Thanks again,
OldCoot

[stuo]

The charger outlet in the met box is not wired to handle more current than a phone charger so I ran a fused  #14 wire directly from the battery to the socket allowing any number of uses, such as a tire pump and possibly  an electric jacket if it doesn't draw more than 10 amps, say. I plugged in a 15 amp fuse. I'd say don't turn the jacket on until your bike is running and charging the battery.

I bought dual loud snail horns on ebay and mounted them to the bottom of the radiator, using the mounting bolts for the radiator. It's a tight fit. I also ran a fused #14 wire directly from the battery to a relay (ebay) to power the horns. The two push-on contacts to the original horn went to the relay primary. The original horn wiring doesn't provide enough current to power loud horns, hence the need for the relay and a separate thick wire from the battery. You can also buy an airhorn on ebay called WOLO (I think) that some members have installed that is very loud.   

[Viper254]

I have two GV 250's, both 2009's, both red: Sharkey I and Sharkey II. One has 10K miles, the other 16K miles. I love them! Easy to maneuver, gets in tight spots, especially with the mirrors folded, plenty of power for quick starts, does an honest 70 on freeways. In fact, i like them better than my Downtown 300i. The only glitch is the lumbar support, but I removed them and can move back on the saddle to a comfortable position. I bought a large rear box on ebay for $50 and can grocery shop no problem. I did install louder horns but all scooters suffer from wimpy horns.

The nicest part is...they are cheap on the second hand market: I paid $1100 and $875 for mine with no mechanical problems.

I use leeson's for parts: https://www.leesonsarcticcat.com/contactus

I'm fascinated - why do you have two of the same bike?

[stuo]

Why two identical GV 250's? Good question. The second one was cosmetically excellent, available locally, and very cheap at $875, plus I had room for another scoot, plus I really like the GV 250. Also, once I figure out how to work on a particular bike I tend to stick with that model as I get familiar with it.

Interestingly, both GV's needed the rear caliper replaced because both rear brakes were dragging. My hunch is that the brake fluid was never changed on either scoot and corrosion in the caliper was the result. Leeson's sold me new calipers with pads for $106 each, postage paid.   

[OldCoot]

Ok, I got a new-to-me 2009 Kymco Grand Vista 250. Wahoo!
It had less than 1200 miles on it and the oil looks brand new. (Seller said he just changed the oil and put a new battery in it.)
There's a dash light that indicates when the voltage drops below 11 amps so I ordered a long cord for my electric jacket. I hope I can trust the light to tell me if the jacket is drawing too much.
What do you think?

[hypophthalmus]

11 volts is too low to be a useful warning in this case.

With the jacket plugged in, measure the voltage at the battery while you rev it a bit.

[mrbios]

I've been looking at some used Kymco scooters and after hearing what some said about the xCiting 500 I'm leaning toward getting a Grand Vista 250 instead. If you own or have owned one, would you give me your honest opinion about them? Please feel free to answer as many or as few questions as you want...

1) How long have you had your Grand Vista/Dink?
2011-2019+ 8 years

2) How many miles do you have on your Grand Vista/Dink?
Purchased with 2,600 mi and now have 28K

3) Do you like your Grand Vista/Dink a lot and would you recommend it (would you buy a Grand Vista/Dink all over again) or should I wait and find another one?
Yes, good torque and balance.  I *would* recommend it but I don't because it is too hard now to get oem kymco parts.

4) What's your typical gas mileage?
50-52mpg because I run full throttle on the highway to keep up with traffic & I have the big givi windshield.  Stock windshield & limit speeds to ~60mph you can get 60+ mpg.

5) How many miles do you get out of your tires?
Not many.  Rear tire is bald @ 5K mi.  Front ok up to 7K.  Got 7K on original rear tire but have never found that exact model tire.  Avon Viper Stryke last the longest of the various brands I have used.

6) Any problems to look out for, and if so what's it typically cost?
YES: but most seemed to start at 10K+ total miles: #1 Exhaust cracks - and I know of two other GV's same issue.  Also, Exhaust is murder to remove and esp reinstall.  Ended up welding my own custom exhaust - not easy.  #2 Another know problem / defect - At around 11K? the AC inverter back light starts to go on off randomly - 5 hr job to solder a generic inverter which resolved the problem for good.  #3 Electric mirrors - work great but $$ expensive to replace ($180 at my local dealer years ago just for the part.) and must always be folded in every time you park.  Still, I have spend and excessive amount of time repairing them and they get loose often requiring re-tightening.  Radiator fluid is a pain to remove the front assembly to access the radiator cap - you must do this and not just fill the coolant bottle or you will get a giant air pocket and over heat.

Finally, the carburetor - not the scooters fault but when it clogs it is very hard to get it right and is no longer available as a complete unit and was not cheap at around $280 online  -- aftermarket carbs can be fitted if the air box / snorkel if completely modified - a lot of work and very little to gain.

Suspension - Sux! Small wheels mean harsh ride, low ground clearance, limited travel. 

In summary, if you dive 3K / year like I do it eventually gets to be death by 1000 cuts.  Overall, a great design with a few shortcomings.

7) How does it ride on the highway/Interstate?
Pretty good - coming from bigger heavier motorcycles I found it sketchy at first but got used to it and drive most of my miles on the highway but switch over corners and aggressive driving and the handling falls apart and becomes dangerous.   Drafting a car down a big hill on the highway I have hit indicated 94mph - 8mph (speedo error) = 86 mph - not safe but I have done it many times over the years.

Thanks for your help .. again.

-OldCoot

[mrbios]

Thanks for your comments. Very helpful.
I've wondered how those folding mirrors hold up. Did you have to buy new ones or parts to fix them? Was it costly?
Thanks again,
OldCoot

IF you don't drop the scooter AND always fold them in to prevent damage and loctite the screws they will probably never wear out.  I fold the every time I park + lane splitting / filtering and never had a problem with the electric motors BUT the scooter can fall over so easily that physical damage is sure to occur and the problems that result are not worth the benefits of the good view that the mirrors offer over normal mc / scooter mirrors.

[Forefronts]

1] 14 years
2] 2400+ mi
3]Love it, but only ride it to and from the office, about 20 mi round trip.
4] ~40 mpg Run between 50 and 55 mph for most of the commute
5] Original tires
6] Keep trickle charger on when not in use
7] Can do 75 [top speed] on interstate, BUT unsafe because of the wheel size.
    It is VERY sensitive to wind and passing trucks. True of any scooter because of tire size.

Older Coot [77]