2 weeks of Good Clean Fun

[Scootaloot]

Have been riding "Gold Member" for 2 weeks now. (Austin Powers) 1318 miles and for the most part it is a great scooter. Many people in traffic ,at stations and clients have voiced positive comments. I am working around the storage for the most part like my old BV. The windscreen is the one item that needs attention. The fuel mileage has been in the low 70's eventhough I haven't tried in the least to stretch fuel. Sat. going home from work Gold Member humbled a 600cc Kawasaki sport bike and he gave me a thumbs up at the next light. The seat is just OK and if I posessed unlimited funds would consider modifications. The ride even in the wet is rock solid. The little bar in the tank or having to use the key to open evrything is a bit annoying but with all thing considered it is a great machine. The dealer did my 600 mile service the day after I called and did the service while I waited. I doubt this could have happened at the Piaggio  dealership. Anyone considering a new scoot really needs to give this bike serious consideration

[sentinex]

Great post but here is my main question, how to justify buying the 300GTi when for the same amount of money (literally)one can buy the newest piaggio BV 350?
Kymco scoters are great machines, but can't compare to the Piaggio engines, How do I know? I have a super 8 150 and my wife has a Vespa LXV 150, sadly to say the Kymco is not even close to the level of the Vespa engine.

[Vivo]

Maybe it's a matter of "personal choice"....

[sentinex]

Maybe it's a matter of "personal choice"....

Hi vivo great to see you before I get misunderstood the question I posed wasn't a bad critic to the Original poster, it was more of a philosophical question, I know the kymco 300Gti is a great machine I stated that, I was just framing it from my point of view, since I might look for a bigger scooter next year.

You are a very knowledge guy when it comes to scooters, so let me ask you this, do you think the Kymco 300GTi price is justified compared to a Piaggio BV 350? I like the 300Gti, but  I just think is seriously overprice. Best wishes.

[Vivo]

There are lots of considerations in purchasing a ride, be it a scoot or a car, and price is simply just one of many.  If the 300GTI is a lot cheaper, people won't even think twice in getting the Kymco. The 300GTi is a very very popular choice in this category and Kymco, I think, is taking this advantage to jack up the price (this is only my opinion). A lot of potential buyers of the BV350 just can't close their eyes at the 300Gti, you will really fall in love with the styling and other features, after market service (in their area), etc. . Expensive? They don't care. If you think the price won't justify your love, I repeat, love for the scoot, then by all means buy your choice. This is also the reason why some prefer Lexus over BMW, or Infinity over M-Benz.

[boo]

Great post but here is my main question, how to justify buying the 300GTi when for the same amount of money (literally)one can buy the newest piaggio BV 350?
Kymco scoters are great machines, but can't compare to the Piaggio engines, How do I know? I have a super 8 150 and my wife has a Vespa LXV 150, sadly to say the Kymco is not even close to the level of the Vespa engine.

I too like the idea of the Piaggio BV 350, especially the wet clutch final drive.
From the prices i`ve seen, the Piaggio is more expensive than the Kymco GT or Downtown.
In my area, Piaggio support is worse than horrendous, actually non existant.
All Piaggio dealers in my area have stopped selling Piaggio because of problems with their motorscooters and battles with the factory over reimbursment. Just to name one, "gas tank problems".
The Piaggio line, which includes Vespa, Piaggio, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi, etc., is faaar from being problem free.

Don`t get me wrong. I love Vespa s and most other motorscooters but, most will have to admit, good dealer support, true 300-350cc engines, and large wheels, make a scoot desirable.

Scootalot, enjoy your new ride and don`t look back.
When it comes to scoots, local dealer support means a lot.

[Oldscoot]

Great post but here is my main question, how to justify buying the 300GTi when for the same amount of money (literally)one can buy the newest piaggio BV 350?
Kymco scoters are great machines, but can't compare to the Piaggio engines, How do I know? I have a super 8 150 and my wife has a Vespa LXV 150, sadly to say the Kymco is not even close to the level of the Vespa engine.

I own a Vespa 300 GTS and a Kymco 300 GTI.  If I had to ditch one of them it would likely be the Vespa.  The GTI is a better all around bike. It's rock steady at speed and on bad roads - not so much for my Vespa.  I have better dealer support for the Kymco. However, I love the Vespa for many reasons and I happily can keep both.  I've seen pictures of the BV350. It's a good looking bike - but the red seat isn't for me. I like the styling and the bigger wheels on the Kymco better.
The motto of my scooter club is "De gustibus non est disputandum" - which means you can't argue about taste and all this only boils down to my preferences.

     

[sentinex]

I own a Vespa 300 GTS and a Kymco 300 GTI.  If I had to ditch one of them it would likely be the Vespa.  The GTI is a better all around bike. It's rock steady at speed and on bad roads - not so much for my Vespa.  I have better dealer support for the Kymco. However, I love the Vespa for many reasons and I happily can keep both.  I've seen pictures of the BV350. It's a good looking bike - but the red seat isn't for me. I like the styling and the bigger wheels on the Kymco better.
The motto of my scooter club is "De gustibus non est disputandum" - which means you can't argue about taste and all this only boils down to my preferences.

     

Well said, and like I said, The 300GTi is a great scooter, no doubt about about it, in hindsight I shoulda get this scooter in the first place instead of the super 8(which is another great machine) Now the battle royale starts for the next scooter. 

I have to point out that this thread is an example why I like this forums so much, people can have an intelligent conversation without resorting to the usual detrimental name calling.

[Oldscoot]

Well said, and like I said, The 300GTi is a great scooter, no doubt about about it, in hindsight I shoulda get this scooter in the first place instead of the super 8(which is another great machine) Now the battle royale starts for the next scooter. 

I have to point out that this thread is an example why I like this forums so much, people can have an intelligent conversation without resorting to the usual detrimental name calling.

We've got a good bunch of people in this forum.  All seem blessed with a sense of humor, possess good information and have desire to be helpful.  I hope it remains this way.     

[Boatpark]

Perhaps the debate should be what scooter best fulfills your riding style. I too have a People 300GTI and as a younger man I was an amateur superbike racers for a few year and find that the GTI is a rock solid scooter. The lean angle and tracking thru the corners are outstanding. The braking power is a very strong fit for this scooter, the larger tire have a very secure felling to them, and the accelerating, well it’s just lots of fun.

[renko]

How do scheduled maintenance costs for Kymcos and Piaggios compare? The Like 200 I ride has scheduled maintenance every 1200 miles. It looks like the BV 350 would need scheduled maintenance only every 6200 miles. But does that mean that Piaggios are less expensive to operate? Less frequent maintenance would be convenient but don't know whether it would also save money.

[Scootaloot]

Excellent banter everyone! I think they are both great scoots. I rode out with the Kymco for $5246.00. Tax,tags,everything and the portion financed at 1.9% plus for 2 years no worries of an unexpected repair. The list on the BV350 is $5499.00 plus tax,tags,freight etc. I'm guessing out the door about $1000.00 more than the Kymco. That will cover a couple sets of tires,belts and filters. They both get roughly the same mpg and have similar power,brakes. Styling is purely subjective. The storage,seat and engine smoothness go to the BV. Having parts and a dealer who cares-Priceless

[Vivo]

There's another thing. I would love to have the 300 but my wife won't approve anything over the price of a Super 8! Lol!

[Scootaloot]

Vivo, I borrowed $3200 and the cost of the financing for 36 months is about $150.00 thru Kymco/dealer. Very cheap money

[Cortez]

Great post but here is my main question, how to justify buying the 300GTi when for the same amount of money (literally)one can buy the newest piaggio BV 350?
Kymco scoters are great machines, but can't compare to the Piaggio engines, How do I know? I have a super 8 150 and my wife has a Vespa LXV 150, sadly to say the Kymco is not even close to the level of the Vespa engine.

The Super8 150 is a Chinese based GY6 engine, very old fashioned, but reliable.
Not a good comparison, but yeah, it's nothing special, but it works.

I've been working on and off with scoots and motorcycles since 2004, and Piaggio is anything but
reliable, it's average at best, and you have to take great care in choosing the engine. The 200cc
had issues, same with the 460cc engine. The 250/300/400 have been better.

I've ridden most of Piaggio scoots, and probably every single Kymco, and while some of the Piaggio
scoots can be a bit smoother when new, things start to change rapidly from there, and your average
Kymco will stay the same throughout it's lifetime.

I own a 125cc (virtually same engine as the 150 in super with 20.000km and no issues,
it runs like new (not just the engine), and my halfsister owned a Gilera Runner ST125 (15hp
high revving engine) which had all sorts of electrical issues. It's a Piaggio engine.

She now has a Piaggio Beverly 500 Cruiser with around 30.000km, it's a rattling mess, the forks
are leaking oil, it's shaking it's plastics to pieces (literaly) with vibrations and it's consuming a
fair amount of oil. We're talking about a top of the like Piaggio scooter here.

I've got a Downtown now, it's virtually flawless, needs a few mods.
I've ridden both the new redesigned Beverly 300 (22hp) and the new 350 with ABS and traction
control. Great bikes, a bit on the tight/harsh side, and very limited comfort. I'm 5'11" (180cm)
and they're too small for me. No wind protection, no storage space. Both better on the
People 300. Yeah, I've ridden that one too. The People is also more comfortable, and
they're about the same as far as perfomance goes, the BV is probably a bit faster, but
I didn't have a chance to test that. The only thumb up for the BV is the wet clutch which
works great.

Not sure about the prices where you're at, but Beverly 300 costs more then the People GTI
here, and the 350 is almost $2k more.

For the price of BV350 with ABS, you can buy the Xciting 500Ri ABS.