Downtown 300 - Good long distance?

[TANWare]

Other than comfort bad weather is riding without wipers etc. Also not only is you visability and traction down so is it also true for the vehicles around you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BikerDude]

I was trying to figure out what people did in that situation (other than slow down). Is there some kind of rain repellent you can get that helps the rain run off in the airflow? I guess because of the way the air flows over the front screen, the rain is coming straight at you as opposed to from slightly above.

An interesting problem.

[racewalker]

Givi recommends a light coat of new finish on there wind screens to get rain off better. Works well on mine.

[BikerDude]

"...new finish..." -  is that a brand or... 

[racewalker]

"...new finish..." -  is that a brand or... 

Sorry, car polish comes in an orange can. Not sure if you have it there. It is a brand.

[BikerDude]

Hmmm.... I keep reading about heights of riders, and I'm a bit bothered by something... I'm 6ft 4" tall, but I have a 36" inseam. I knew my legs were long but I never really thought about it before. Will this be an issue with this bike? I read that some people have issues with clearance between their legs and the bars, with some suggesting raising the bars to get additional clearance. I'll get specifics on my leg lengths later (upper/lower leg). It seems upper leg length is the critical one for clearance???

I contacted my local dealer today to see if they had one to look at but they don't have any in stock, and don't plan to before March 2012.

 

[Cortez]

Hmmm.... I keep reading about heights of riders, and I'm a bit bothered by something... I'm 6ft 4" tall, but I have a 36" inseam. I knew my legs were long but I never really thought about it before. Will this be an issue with this bike? I read that some people have issues with clearance between their legs and the bars, with some suggesting raising the bars to get additional clearance. I'll get specifics on my leg lengths later (upper/lower leg). It seems upper leg length is the critical one for clearance???

I contacted my local dealer today to see if they had one to look at but they don't have any in stock, and don't plan to before March 2012.

 

The knee/bars clearance is the least of your problems, you might not fit on the bike at all.
I'm 5'11" and wish I had more room to move around on the bike, but I don't know what my
inseam is.

As for knees/bars issue.. it's not an issue even when it is, you just learn to move your leg
out of the way on those very infrequent occasions when you'll be going slow enough to
warrant the bars to be moved all the way to the side.

While riding, you move them just a few degrees, so there's really no problems with that even
if the bars hit your knees when you try it at the dealership.

I have no problems riding my little Agility, and the bars wouldn't clear my knee even with a
1" lift.

[juanpauk]

Hi BiekerDude,

Kymco UK have not sold the Xciting 500 model here in the UK for the last 3.5 years. I bought and Agility City 125 4 years ago, since then I have kept an eye on their scooter models. The Downtown 300 non ABS was added to the UK market last year and I think that is as big as they are willing to go at least for now.

I bought my DT from a dealer in London but I had to travel to Bristol be able to see the scooter face to face as my dealer was not willing to get one for his showroom (London is not the market for this type of scooter, according to him).
Check on eBay, there is one in the West Midlands and another in Cheshire.

I will definitely recommend you to go and see one for yourself; sit on it for a few minutes to get a better idea in terms of comfort.
In my case my first impression was that the scooter was too big, coming from an agility city 125 but once I got on it that feeling went away. I have done a trip from London to Paris and back with my wife at the back, top case full, tunnel bag full and under storage full. The scooter felt very stable all the way and didn't have a single issue.

I am 5.6 ft and sitting position is not a problem, the only complaint that I have from my wife is the position of the foot pegs, apart from it she loves it.

I have changed the variator rollers and can notice an slight improvement, added a set of handgards that I am starting to like more now that it is getting cold.

Things that I want to change:
1. The screen for the 10cm taller version (Ermax), the wind hits me just on the upper half of my helmet and the noise can get annoying after a while.
2. The passenger foot pegs.
3. The clutch for a better quality one but it can wait.
4. The tyres for a Pirelli Diablo, stock tyres (Kenda) are ok but take a little too long to get up to temperature.

As you can see, we all agree that for a 300cc scooter you will definitely get a very good value for money.

[BikerDude]

As you can see, we all agree that for a 300cc scooter you will definitely get a very good value for money.

I'm very impressed with what I've read so far! I don't know why I didn't consider motorbikes/scooters sooner! Seems I have been missing out on a lot of fun!   

The knee/bars clearance is the least of your problems, you might not fit on the bike at all.

    A case for a custom seat I think.

While riding, you move them just a few degrees, so there's really no problems with that even
if the bars hit your knees when you try it at the dealership.

I have no problems riding my little Agility, and the bars wouldn't clear my knee even with a
1" lift.

Awesome!

I'm 5'11" and wish I had more room to move around on the bike, but I don't know what my
inseam is.

Dumb question - can you define "move around"? I tend to find my ankles/feet feel agitated by sitting around more than my legs. I always have to periodically move my feet around. It is quite strange - I can't describe it! Some days it is OK.

3. The clutch for a better quality one but it can wait.

Interesting - which parts, and why?

4. The tyres for a Pirelli Diablo, stock tyres (Kenda) are ok but take a little too long to get up to temperature.

Hmm.

I read that the 300i can come with things like tyre pressure monitoring. Is it accurate? Is it an option you specify or is it standard? Just wondering. I check my tyres regularly anyway (once a week or so, sooner if something doesn't seem right).

I will definitely recommend you to go and see one for yourself; sit on it for a few minutes to get a better idea in terms of comfort.
In my case my first impression was that the scooter was too big, coming from an agility city 125 but once I got on it that feeling went away.

This raises an interesting point - what is the effect of wheelbase on handling? It seems the larger scooters are longer. Is this detremental or a benefit to handling? Seems to be that a longer wheelbase means it is more stable in corners?

[roboscoot]

unfortunately...we can't get the 300 dt in black state side....which really ticked me off....however the white is growing on me...

[Cortez]

Dumb question - can you define "move around"? I tend to find my ankles/feet feel agitated by sitting around more than my legs. I always have to periodically move my feet around. It is quite strange - I can't describe it! Some days it is OK.

When you sit on it, you're pretty much forced into ONE position.. and while you can move your feet
back a bit, you'd probably want to move them more to the front, which you cant.. so you try to
'compensate' by moving your ass back, which again, you can't because of the butt stop..

The seat is rather lightly padded because of the massive underseat storage, so it can get a bit
uncomfy, but it's still better then a lot of other scooters I've recently tried (for example the
2011 Beverly 300), but looking at the Downtown you expect a plush, comfortable cruieser, while
it's actually a very nimble, light and stiff, sporty ride, and that's a good thing.

Try lanesplitting on the DT, and then on the Majesty 400 and you'll know what I mean.

[juanpauk]

I read that the 300i can come with things like tyre pressure monitoring. Is it accurate? Is it an option you specify or is it standard? Just wondering. I check my tyres regularly anyway (once a week or so, sooner if something doesn't seem right).

The TPM option is disable on the Dowtown 300i. the button is there on the front panel but it does nothing.

[Cortez]

The TPM option is disable on the Dowtown 300i. the button is there on the front panel but it does nothing.

I've seen one on youtube from Taiwan that has that option, but I don't think it's available even
here (EU).

[frankiej1949]

Hi Bikerdude
Where are you in the UK? I live in Manchester if you are anywhere close you can have a sit on mine to see how it feels. A lot of the dealers are reluctant to get them in stock. My local dealer had to get one from another dealer in the south west.
Frank

[BikerDude]

Hi Frank,

Thanks for the offer but I'm ~200 miles away. My local dealer says they will not get one in now it is winter, but it appears they will for next summer. I won't be buying anything until March at the earliest anyway.

Interesting TPM is not available in Europe.

Best regards,
BikerDude.