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Post by jwalz1 on May 15, 2013 9:53:15 GMT -5
Honda pricing?? You mean Honda quality. $3000 for a machine that will likely go for the rest of your life with limited maintenance. Sounds like a bargain Oh I have no problem with Honda's. Own a Honda car and think Honda products are worth every plum nickel, but the truth is they could still make a profit on this bike and sell it for $500 less. And I would not even think of a Chinese knockoff of this in a few years. The stories of the quality of the Chinese motorcycles has been horrible compared to the much better quality of the scooters and parts availability for the cycles has been pretty nonexistent. Mostly because the scooter sell in big numbers and used ninja 250's and other older motorcycles sell for less than a grand. The chinese cycles just don't sell here so support is nill and you can end up with an $800 lawn ornament fast.
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Post by jwalz1 on May 15, 2013 8:35:09 GMT -5
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Post by jwalz1 on May 15, 2013 8:33:25 GMT -5
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Post by jwalz1 on May 10, 2013 14:39:41 GMT -5
Yee haw!! My Jonway Hornet 2T with BBK hit 75mph today...didn't even have to put 40psi in the tires or mix 10w-30 and 10w-40 for the speed increase. Which is well known for making your stock Tao Tao 50cc..hit 60mph. Going to have to change your signature.
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Post by jwalz1 on May 7, 2013 11:51:26 GMT -5
Had a local pastor once who kept his lawnmower in the basement for winter storage for some reason. Running the mower up and down the stairs does not sound like fun to me, but that's what he did. The mower leaked a bunch of gas and he went to the basement to check on the fumes, flipped the light switch, and went to meet his maker.
Be extremely careful when there is a strong smell of gas. Open the garage door manually (by disconnecting the door with the hand pull if you have a power door opener) let the garage air out and then find out what is wrong. Always have a fire extinguisher handy.
This video is attached just for your own amusement, try to count the boneheaded mistakes this kid makes.
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Post by jwalz1 on May 5, 2013 12:04:23 GMT -5
I only ride in the rain when caught off guard and need to get back home in it. I took my MSC in the rain which helped any rain jitters but since I only use the bike for fun and occasional commutes, if rain is in the forecast the cage is driven. I am less concerned if I am on roads of 40mph or less, even though someone coming the other way with bad wipers or a downpour obstructing visability can cause a problem.
Renting a Burgman to ride around Oahu with a couple friends in January and expect scattered bits of rain depending where I am on the island, but they use crushed lava rock in their pavement and it is really grippy. I will probably get nervous at times but I will make it through. Speeds rarely get above 50mph there do to low limits and heavy traffic.
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 24, 2013 11:02:07 GMT -5
You might want to check this out first (then order some mod parts) I am not calling this dude in the video a liar on his speed claims with the mods, but my understanding from the PCX threads on another board, the bike will do 65 for most owners stock. The motor has a little more in it but the bike is limited by I think the computer. I am not sure what it measures, (output of speedo? speed sensor or engine rpm?) but I don't understand how a new variator and belt would counteract the computer controlled limiter and do in the 70's. From some of the threads I read, people could improve the acceleration but could not get past the computer limit of 65mph except for some shops in Aisa that were reflashing it to remove the limiter. But maybe that has changed.....
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 24, 2013 10:56:43 GMT -5
If you want to freeway ride, your only choice is the Sport City. I love the PCX though and if I was not planning on regular over 55mph running I would go with the PCX. It is just too neat. Even at the same price but far more power for the Sport City, if it is just running around town I take the Honda, but that is just personal preference, mostly having to do with the my love for Hondas and how cool it looks.
Then down the road when you want a long hauler, you add the used Burgman 400 to the stable and you're done!
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 24, 2013 9:18:41 GMT -5
Sorry to hear about a bad experience. The sport city 250 is a better bike than the Super 8 but I have a couple concerns about your dealer.
The Super 8's are considered to be, out of the very reliable Kymco line, one of the weaker ones because they are China built and not Taiwan. That said they are still considered pretty reliable. The dealer's answer to your brake problem sounds a little dismissive.
If the bike was tapping and you got a valve adjust and that did not work, well then it sounds like the mechanic did not know how to do it correctly and that could be part of your stalling issues. For $1500 I take it the bike was used? Hard to say how the previous owner treated it. And if it was used, with some miles, losing a battery or cdi would not be unheard of.
Would I take the Sport City? Sure, but I would not rely on that particular dealer to fix any problems with it. With either bike, learn a little about the mechanicals and get a couple decent tools and you will probably find yourself much better off.
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 23, 2013 9:44:16 GMT -5
I like, but not sure if it will ever be sold in the US, only makes a couple horsepower more than I have now and I wonder how they will price it?
The TMAX is a huge seller in Europe but was a total dud here at $9k.
The BV350 is about the same power but different style, it would have to be in about the same ~$5500 range to compete here, but I bet the build quality and reliability are going to be top notch.
The 300-400cc range seems to be the big new segment for manufacturers especially since they make really good power and many get 250cc gas mileage out of them.
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 22, 2013 14:15:50 GMT -5
I saw a couple on CL last year and one was super cheap with only a couple thousand on the clock.
Nice scooter, but when I read more about them most of the advice was toward the new BV350 as being close in power due to less weight, a little more modern tech, and a pretty good price new. Either way, they both look like nice machines.
Not sure if they stopped making the 500, but you can only get new old stock in the US now.
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 22, 2013 9:15:36 GMT -5
If you're considering the Downtown 300i, make sure you check out the People GT 300i as well. They are nearly identical; just different bodies. I'm actually going to be giving the People GT 300i a test drive later today if it stops raining. I'm torn between the Kymco People/Downtown GT 300i and the Piaggio BV 350. Just from reviews I've read I'm leaning towards the Piaggio. I really like the long maintenance intervals. Oil change every 6k miles (10k kilometers), belt and sparkplug every 12k, and don't have to adjust the valves until 24k miles. I believe Kymco recommends oil changes every 3000km, so I'd be doing maintenance three times as often on the Kymco. I really like mine. Excellent power and mileage.
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 18, 2013 15:55:51 GMT -5
I have road rash to the bone on knee and elbow. Glad to hear you are still in good shape, sorry to hear about the accident. I know you are in a warm climate, but gear, gear and more gear. Heal quickly.
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 18, 2013 12:56:54 GMT -5
The spring flood of used scooter ads is hitting my local Craigslist. I almost wish I was in the market but my ride has only 1000 miles and I want a new car.
But today included a Honda SH150 with 200 miles for about $2800, a Silverwing with 20k on it for $3,000, and a really nice looking 2008 Burgman 400 for $3,800.
A year ago I would have looked at all of em. I'd like to wait a couple years and add a used 2011 Burgman as a cheap craigslist find because I think that was the year ABS became standard. Are your local ads picking up?
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Post by jwalz1 on Apr 18, 2013 11:58:13 GMT -5
If you list the Honda Forza then you are probably not in the US. I would suggest looking at the new Peugeot 350, the BV350, and the Kymco People GT 300.
The others you list are all nice too, but the PCX is a little slow for any extended freeway use.
My 300 is plenty freeway capable but at 6'4" you'd never be comfortable on it.
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