New and looking for a big scoot

[Bingo]

Hi Folks

Just joined. I have been looking for a bigger bike since last summer. Lockdown and other stuff has made it difficult. I currently have a little Honda Vision 110 which we have had for years. Its main use normally is to go on the back of our motorhome (weight being an issue) and its been all over Europe. Last year we went all over on it locally but as I live in the North Yorkshire dales I decided I wanted something much more powerful. I have Arthritis in both knees and tried a few motorbikes but they were either very difficult to get on and even harder to get off or were uncomfortable on the old knees. So I tried a Honda SH300 which I thought was pretty gutless and then a Honda Silverwing which I personally thought was powerful enough if a little heavy but my wife did not like the Pillion seat as she said it was uncomfortable on the sides of her legs and too high.

Budget is ideally around £3-4k so it will be used. I really like the look and reviews of the Kymco Xciting 400. Will it have enough power though and what are they like for servicing being so rare. Yamaha Majesty 400 was another possibility as it has a lower pillion. The T Max and BMW 600 appeal but probably too expensive.

Cant proceed at the moment of course but would love to get something sorted for the spring.

Any thoughts?

[SH125Paul]

Suzi Burger 400...?

[Fulhamfc]

Hi
welcome, I have a sym 300 , also taiwan company as is kymco , they do larger bikes and are v good mine is 5 year old with 5 year warranty and only has had a recent annoying wiring problem now sorted by the supplier have a look at them too

atb

fulhamfc

[Bingo]

Thanks. I discounted the Burgman 400 as it seems to have a higher pillion seat than most which was one of the things my wife didnt like about the Silverwing but even the Kymco Xciting has a fair raise on the back. The Suzuki though i guess is much more common. I think ill have to try a few. I think Sym do a 600cc as well but its only 40hp which is only four more than the Xciting. The Xciting apparently handles pretty well (for a scoot).

I really dont think I want anything smaller than 400cc. Would prefer a 600 really. I really like the look of the Aprilia SRV 850 but I think I would have reliability and servicing cost woes.

[roadster]

You could do worse than look at my post under "for sale". The AK550 will be available as soon as travel restrictions allow if your budget will stretch to around £4500.

[Bingo]

You could do worse than look at my post under "for sale". The AK550 will be available as soon as travel restrictions allow if your budget will stretch to around £4500.

Hi Roadster.

thanks for that. I had a look. I guess I need to post a bit more then as it says in your ad £4300 to anyone with over 10 posts!

I had discounted the AK as firstly they are even rarer than the Xciting and secondly I assumed they would be out of my budget. Nice bike by all accounts though. Hmm. Interesting though. Trouble is you are on the South Coast and Im way up at the top of the North Yorkshire Dales. I had hoped to buy from a dealer preferably one not too far away but for the right bike at the right price maybe private could be an option.

Its early days at the moment. Nobody is going anywhere for a bit!

You say its had three oil changes. That seems a lot for a bike with so few miles. What are the service intervals? Does anyone know the service intervals for the Xciting also?

[Rocketman122]

if youre looking for 400+, be aware maintenance jumps up in price. bmw/tmax/honda, very expensive maintenance costs, unless you do it yourself. but the plus side is the frequency of the maintenance is longer. meaning the 110cc needs oil changes every 3000km. with a burgman, youll extend that to 6000km

all the maxi scooters have stepped pillion seats. all of them. some less some more. even tmax/ak550. all of them are very wide in the back and the pillion rider will have to spread their legs. kind of like riding a horse.

as far as burgman 400, there are tons and tons of parts available for quite cheap because its a sdcooter that seels quite well, like disc rotors, pads/cvt parts etc. I would not recommend the newer 2018+ model, but the years from 2010-2017. they seemed to cheap out with the newer 2018+ models. they improved on some things, but not enough as a worthy new gen. imho

the b400 (its called the 2007+ body) has a huge amount of underseat storage. I think possibly the largest of any scooter on the market today. the honda silverwing 400/600 is more powerful as it is dual piston vs single on the b400. its smoother too vs the b400. it has large platforms for the pillion riders feet, vs pegs that flip out. leg room is very generous with the b400. you can extend them for long rides. you can fit two full size helmets under plus extra things like your ladies purse and a pouch and even a rain suit all together. its really huge.

being as the kymco 400 is new in the market and hard to find parts, Id let it mature a bit before considering it.

you may also look at the kymco downtown 350. its a 320cc single piston. quite a nice scoot. a bit less of a step with the pillion seat. not as poweful as b400. theres also the xmax 400cc. it has less leg room though, the seat step isnt too bad. you will sit 90º like on your 110

you may also consider the sym maxsym 400/600. I have the 600. would I recommend it? so so. its cheap to buy used, but maintenance is expensive like the japanese scooters. and it rides rough. very rough. very strong for a single piston, but the quality is not of japanese. not the exhaust, not the plastics. very noticeable difference. and btw, I have 3 sym scooters so I have a lot of experience with this brand. I think the ak is a genuine competitor to the tmax. its very powerful. if you have no experience with a heavy bike, and youre coming from a 110cc, its scary powerful. be careful. a little twist of the throttle will have the rear wheel divorce the pavement from takeoff.

all maxi scooters are significantly heavier than your 110. at least double. also, if you have knee issues, then take into consideration the center (fuel/chassis) hump when you check out the various scooters. if you cant lift your leg over, then youll need to slip in through the hump. like you probably do with the 110. the 110 doesnt have a hump so its easy to slip onto the seat. most of the maxi scooters have a low-ish seat, comparedf to your 110. but you will have to either lift the leg over or slip it through the hump. some scooters have a tall hump and small area to slip your foot through so it will be more tricky. the b400 is good for shorter men as well.

[Bingo]

if youre looking for 400+, be aware maintenance jumps up in price. bmw/tmax/honda, very expensive maintenance costs, unless you do it yourself. but the plus side is the frequency of the maintenance is longer. meaning the 110cc needs oil changes every 3000km. with a burgman, youll extend that to 6000km

all the maxi scooters have stepped pillion seats. all of them. some less some more. even tmax/ak550. all of them are very wide in the back and the pillion rider will have to spread their legs. kind of like riding a horse.

as far as burgman 400, there are tons and tons of parts available for quite cheap because its a sdcooter that seels quite well, like disc rotors, pads/cvt parts etc. I would not recommend the newer 2018+ model, but the years from 2010-2017. they seemed to cheap out with the newer 2018+ models. they improved on some things, but not enough as a worthy new gen. imho

the b400 (its called the 2007+ body) has a huge amount of underseat storage. I think possibly the largest of any scooter on the market today. the honda silverwing 400/600 is more powerful as it is dual piston vs single on the b400. its smoother too vs the b400. it has large platforms for the pillion riders feet, vs pegs that flip out. leg room is very generous with the b400. you can extend them for long rides. you can fit two full size helmets under plus extra things like your ladies purse and a pouch and even a rain suit all together. its really huge.

being as the kymco 400 is new in the market and hard to find parts, Id let it mature a bit before considering it.

you may also look at the kymco downtown 350. its a 320cc single piston. quite a nice scoot. a bit less of a step with the pillion seat. not as poweful as b400. theres also the xmax 400cc. it has less leg room though, the seat step isnt too bad. you will sit 90º like on your 110

you may also consider the sym maxsym 400/600. I have the 600. would I recommend it? so so. its cheap to buy used, but maintenance is expensive like the japanese scooters. and it rides rough. very rough. very strong for a single piston, but the quality is not of japanese. not the exhaust, not the plastics. very noticeable difference. and btw, I have 3 sym scooters so I have a lot of experience with this brand. I think the ak is a genuine competitor to the tmax. its very powerful. if you have no experience with a heavy bike, and youre coming from a 110cc, its scary powerful. be careful. a little twist of the throttle will have the rear wheel divorce the pavement from takeoff.

all maxi scooters are significantly heavier than your 110. at least double. also, if you have knee issues, then take into consideration the center (fuel/chassis) hump when you check out the various scooters. if you cant lift your leg over, then youll need to slip in through the hump. like you probably do with the 110. the 110 doesnt have a hump so its easy to slip onto the seat. most of the maxi scooters have a low-ish seat, comparedf to your 110. but you will have to either lift the leg over or slip it through the hump. some scooters have a tall hump and small area to slip your foot through so it will be more tricky. the b400 is good for shorter men as well.

Thanks very much of that lengthy and useful reply.

I maybe will try a Burgman. I managed to get on the Silverwing ok and even though its heavy it was ok to push about. I had no bother with the power. I used to ride all sorts back in the day so I just gave it the beans on the motorway on the test ride we had. Good point on the servicing. I can just about change the oil on the Vision but thats about it. I heard some horror stories about the prices of servicing the BMWs but I think they are out of my price range anyway. What about the Majesty 400? Anyone got one of them? I must admit I really like the look of the Kymco Xciting and the AK. They just look great and reviews are good.

[Rocketman122]

" What about the Majesty 400? "

its still a very nice scooter. an older one though. comparable to the burgman400. the inside storage is weird. it has a significatn step in space .the seat also opens in the middle. its a good bike but I think the burgman is just a bit better. the burgman sold more and has a lot of parts available for quite cheap. I think the majesty is a great bike but not too successful.

youre going to pay for that bmw badge. hard to find parts if you want to service yourself and I know some of their products cant even be serviced by the owner and only in a certified garage.

the ak is a specialized scooter. its brute force and performance. it lacks under seat space. so if you want to put some items under, you may have to get a top box. maintenance is not cheap. if you specifically want performance its a great scooter. it has a nice display.

if youre looking for a good all arounder. has enough power (compared to the 110) comfort and features, a different scooter may be better. the silverwing is very strong. as it is parallel twin. it sounds nice as well. vs the thumper b400/majesty 400. its very much like the b400/m400 in design but stronger. and youll pay for that as well.

changing the oil is simple enough to do on any maxiscooter, but there is an additional step your 110 probably doesnt have and thats an oil filter. but if you do the oil and buy/replace your oil filter, you can save a nice chunk of money. if you dont have the technical skill to wrench on your own, thats fine. some people dont feel comfortable doing their own work. I specifically dont trust any service place anymore. I know I will do a better job. ill take 3 times longer but I know simple things like coating the spark plug with anti seize or using a torque wrench on the plug wont be done at service stations.

the xciting is not a new model. the 400cc is. theyve had 250/300/500 in the past. wasnt too successful though. be aware the 400 has a stepped seat and has foot pegs. I also think the seat doesnt open with a strut but it opens in the middle and everything goes in from one directions. meaning, if you put something inside towards the back and want to get it out, everything thats in front has to come out first to get to the back. the others are open seats and you can see the whole space and take just what you need.

[roadster]

Hi Roadster.

thanks for that. I had a look. I guess I need to post a bit more then as it says in your ad £4300 to anyone with over 10 posts!

I had discounted the AK as firstly they are even rarer than the Xciting and secondly I assumed they would be out of my budget. Nice bike by all accounts though. Hmm. Interesting though. Trouble is you are on the South Coast and Im way up at the top of the North Yorkshire Dales. I had hoped to buy from a dealer preferably one not too far away but for the right bike at the right price maybe private could be an option.

Its early days at the moment. Nobody is going anywhere for a bit!

You say its had three oil changes. That seems a lot for a bike with so few miles. What are the service intervals? Does anyone know the service intervals for the Xciting also?

I tend to change the oil and filter on a calendar basis. The first was on mileage as recommended by Kymco then one in 2019 and one in 2020. It has also been in to the dealer for Kymco updates as of last August. These weren't that critical but addressed battery drain issues and ( as far as I know ) a different spacer on the back axle to improve rear belt alignment. I haven't done any recent pictures yet but there is a video showing the Mivvi Storm silencer. https://youtu.be/u_jXMf5iE1w

If you didn't want that then I will discount the price accordingly, all standard parts as new of course.