Howdy from Irving, Texas  By  rbjones328 (Read 744 times)

Rbjones328,

Welcome to the site! Have a bone on the old chopper guy! I'm not too far from you, here in Grapevine... Right at the end of an east/west runway at D/FW... I'm 68 so I have a few years on you.

I'm an old-school biker from the sixties; most of the last half-century a die-hard Harley guy, but (except for ONE truly DISMAL old BSA 650) I've never met a bike I didn't like... Sort of a 2-wheel-Will Rogers... LOL! From fat-tire Schwinns, to go-kart powered mini-bikes, to Brit 650's, Italian spaghetti-burners to all the great Japanese bikes of all sizes... I love 'em all.  If I could climb on, and AFFORD one, the new Indian DOES look sweet!

These days, bad arthritis keeps me from climbing onto motorcycles without a lot of discomfort... So... I re-discovered step-through scooters 8 years ago. Even in my old big-bike days I loved Vespas, lambrettas and especially the vintage Cushman scooters. Now, with the advent of highly-affordable scooters from China and other places, I'm in love with them all over again.

My first scooter was a Chinese Xingyue 150 similar to yours. That was a while ago, and it gave considerable trouble as the early Chinese scoots tended to do, but once I got the bugs worked out (not all that hard to do) it gave me 5 years of great transportation, and like you say... a LOT of fun to ride.  Whomever bought it from Moxie Scooters where I got the Kymco probably got the best-running Chinese 150 in the whole state of Texas!

I think you'll be very happy with your scooter!

Last year, I traded my Chinese 150 on a used Taiwanese Kymco 250 simply because with new roads, local traffic has gotten faster and faster and the 150 simply was no longer safe in traffic, not being able to run with 70 mph traffic...  And I'm talking about in 35-45 mph speed zones!

My personal favorite class of scooters is still the generic 150 type.  More nimble and fun for the money than most any vehicle!  You can customize them, make them into handy haulers with big trunks and/or saddlebags, strip them into "nekkid" skelly rides, etc.  VERY versatile!

Ride safe, and enjoy "Ling Ling"... With her rodent-face and mouse-ear mirrors, I call my old Grandvista "Minnie Mouse"

Welcome to the wonderful world of scooters!

Leo in Texas

May 5, 2015 22:40:28 GMT -5 rbjones328 said:

Thanks, Leo! I really like Kymcos; I wanted one, but they weren't in my range. my kids think getting a scooter was cool, I sing, Born to be MILD...just keeping it lite!
peace out, Bob

Bob,

You're most welcome! I did a LOT of research and test-riding of most everything in the affordable, used 250 cc range (Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Vespa and Aprillia) before settling on a well-used Kymco.  You get a REAL impression of how a brand holds up when inspecting used ones many years old...  I found Kymcos really are "built like a tank"... Old "Minnie Mouse" was a one-owner, traded on a new fuel-injected 300. She had 14,000 miles on the clock, and according to the owner has been from New York to Los Angeles, and from Canada to Mexico, loaded down and ridden HARD, with a passenger aboard...  These Kymcos are every bit as good (or better) than scooters made in ANY country.  Of course, new ones are creeping up in price like the Japanese rides, too.

Only repairs were a battery, belt, tires, muffler and brake-pads (all done by the dealer before putting her on the lot).  She still rides tight and smooth, and doesn't use a drop of oil or water. Like you, a NEW one was NOT in my range either... LOL! So, I happily ride an 8-year old 2-valve, carbureted dinosaur with gray hair, not unlike myself...

Your "Ling Ling" looks fabulous in that color combination.  And I suspect its quality and reliability are WAY ahead of Chinese scoots from a decade ago.  If it does give you any trouble, there are plenty of us here on the site to guide you to an easy fix.

Ride safe, ENJOY and remember...  It IS the Ride!

Leo in Texas