First ride. Kymco AK550

[muddyfox]

As above.
https://www.o2w.co.uk/first-ride-kymco-ak550/

[smeghead]

Almost £9k then. Not a lot cheaper than a T-Max. Shame, Kymco probably won't shift many of these.

[Funkycowie]

These did interest me when the pictures first came out but £9k is a lot, it is more palatable than a TMax... but its still rather rich for my tastes.

[StephenC]

Is the new importer fully functioning then? I thought they weren't quite there (or did I miss something?)

[abitmad]

That dash looks really impressive and I was interested to see that they may be adding a smart phone nav readout, thereby obviating the need for attaching a separate nav or your phone to the bike. That would be one smart feature for me. Ugly nav or phone mounts would be a thing of the past and about time too.

For a scooter there's only one make I would consider, Hosuyapi, (maybe BMW if pushed) but perhaps this latest development by Symco or whatever it's called will prompt the above to improve their electronics similarly.

[MrGrumpy]

First UK ride, to be pedantic!
It obviously has a few gizmos compared to the Tmax, but there again, I avoid the Tmax Menu system cos its too complex for me!! 3 year warranty, compared to 2 years for most other things. Other Euro mags mentioned the nice exhaust sound....
So its around £800 cheaper than the Tmax base model, with more or less identical performance.. £800 is nearly 10% of course, but I'm not sure that there is any Unique Selling Proposition that says to buy it rather than the Tmax.
Bring on that CV2 prototype...

[MrGrumpy]

Still no mention of it on the Kymco UK website, unless you go via their twitter feed.

[tmaxrobbo]

Looks like a direct copy of a t max, not that’s bad . But a bit like a Kia copy of a Mercedes

[SkuTorr]

Not so much of a copy as an emulation. Went with the same frame design, better front end dampening design, much larger and better brakes front and rear, much more advanced dash design that will allow upgrades, better rear shock location, better drive belt than that carbon fiber thing the Tmax went to to save OUNCES, a BRILLIANT exhaust that went through over 100 design iterations to get it just right, so you don't need to buy an Akra, has an even BETTER adjustable backrest while Tmax ditched theirs, much easier and cheaper maintenance with adjustable rocker arms on the cams, 50% longer warranty, fully-loaded is still £920 LESS than the standard stripper Tmax and £2,200 LESS than the Tmax DX.

And in a recent comparison of the two, TIED the Tmax in points...

Ratings.jpg

[all-four-inches]

Its looks like a tidy machine and people really shouldnt be so quick to dismiss, remember; the more options the better! the consumer wins in the end!