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Purposely stopped at Competition Accessories in Springfield, Ohio during my 300 mile trip home today.  I knew they handled Kymco (I've had 3).  I bought a Kaw. Z-125 before the Spade came out.  They had one today.  I didn't get to ride it,  but here's some things I liked.  The seat height is lower and really easy to get on and off.   Simple,  No plastic body panels to break or scratch.  Fenders Are plastic,  but that's Ok.  Gas Tank appeared to be steel.  The lights are mounted on open Metal Brackets.  They claim top speed around 66 mph with 150cc's.  I get 63 mph on the Z-125 with the wind at my back.  Wheelbase seemed to be longer and riding position seemed to be better as handle bars seemed further away.  Had I known about the Spade I sure would have waited.  I'm almost 69 y/o so I need something smaller and lighter since I've had a few spills.   I'm not sure I liked the Ignition Key under the tank, but that's Ok too.

I am selling my GV.  Also too big and heavy for an old man to push around.  Bought it in 2009 with 2k Miles.  Now has 10k.  Has Retro reflective Tape like a UK Police Vehicle.  LED's Front & Rear,  Air Horn, Hopkins Deer Alert,  Operators Manuals and Service Manual on a Flash Drive.  Over 50% of my riding was after dark before I retired.  Depending on your size,  you can get around 60 Mpg and 70 Mph.  They will see you coming.

$850.00.  Located Bloomington, Indiana.  Private Message if interested.

By the Way...See under Grandvista 250 / Ready for 2015

 Also See: Xciting 250 / Ready for 2015... Why do I have two Bikes you may ask?  Well...When one is down waiting on parts from Taiwan.  One is still available to ride.

Traveled 50 miles yesterday to Terre Haute, IN.  Ten miles into returning home around 60 mph,  I had a stall-out.  Thought I, blew the engine.  Coasted to the side of the road and restarted with no movement so I knew the belt was broken.  Initial stall was caused by the belt cords getting caught in the clutch faces, then breaking.  Called AAA and waited 2 hours as usual for the flatbed.  I pay for the AAA RV level that covers up to 100 miles of towing.  We flatbed towed it the remaining 40 miles to home.  I pulled the cover off and cleaned everything out using a brush, alcohol and an air gun.  Fortunately I invested in a new belt, rollers and sliders about 6 months ago,  so I saved three weeks downtime.   This is not on-road maintenance because an impact wrench is necessary.  I believe this photo illustrates the worst mechanical destruction I've seen in a long time.

Had enough of the dead battery syndrome and replaced it.  Searched this Forum under this subject and also copied and instituted Section 17 of the manual "Battery/Charging System".  Here's a tip.  For around $12 -15 you can buy a portable digital "Innova Battery Monitor".  Of course,  you'll need a 12 VDC Plug-in on your dash which I've had and recommended for a long time.

What I've found is that I'm running about 12.4 - 12.8 VDC and just 13 VDC around 5,500 RPM.  When checking the same thing on my Grand Vista (Grand Dink) "Same Engine",  it easily climbs to 13+ VDC.  I pulled the inner tub out and checked all my connections and they are corrosion free and tight.

Unless you are an electrical genius,  the manual, of course, is not easily interpreted.  At any rate,  can anyone comment on this issue and I highly recommend looking into the Voltmeter.  Value is immeasurable.

You can make a nice cheap seat cover.  This cover is a Bathroom Mat 17" x 24" with a Memory Foam Core.  The bottom is molded with a thin non-skid foam membrane.  Mat Cost $10-15.  Fold the 24" length in half and cut about 3" in from each side at the fold.  Install (1) 3/8" dia. Brass Grommet (Kit is $5.00) at each front corner about 1" in.   At the 2 cuts, I angled them out so the slot was about 1" wide.  along the mat  edge.  You can buy some .016" thk  x 2" wide x 12" lg. brass sheet at the hardware  or hobby shop,  but there are a variety of materials you could use to cover this raw cut edge.  I bent the brass into an angle and then hammered it down on the cut edge.  I also added 2 split rivets in each piece.

On the rear,  I used the remaining brass flat stock (8 1/2" lg.) and held it to the bottom of the mat using 2 more brass grommets.  You'll have to drill (2)  3/8" holes about 1/2" in from the rear corners of the brass strip and maybe file the dia. a bit for the grommet to slide thru.  Use the brass sheet to pattern the holes along the rear edge of the mat.

The flat brass strip slides under the rear of the adjustable seat back.  Thread (2) small Bungie cords thru the front grommets
and hook them under the edge of the seat.  Haven't got too many miles on it yet,  but it's definitely not slippery and quite comfortable.   Sure...You can spend any amount of money for one of these.  But...as an old retired mechanical engineer on reduced income,  this just fits the bill.

OK Everyone...Rode about 50 miles yesterday and found a small hose hanging
down from  under the front cowl back under the bike on the ground.  Has a small
connecting hose (2" long)  on the loose end (clamps on both ends).  This small section
is pushed onto a black plastic (Barbed) connector.  The long part of the hose is covered
with a thinner black rubber sleeve.

Carefully checked the Xciting Manual and the hand drawn illustrations are not clear
enough to tell where it goes and the bigger they are made,  the less clear they are.

Right now,  I'm going to have to pull the tub out under the seat to see what's going on there.

Anybody have and idea.  Does not seem to alter performance.