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As we know, the vast majority of scooter CVTs/transmission have a cooling system. The front drive pulley has a centrifugal fan (the fins) that sucks in air through an intake - basically a hole in the transmission cover. Hot air is pushed out through to a vent in the back or bottom of the CVT cover, cooling the pulleys, clutch and belt to prevent damage from overheating.

In some scooters, the cooling intake is covered with a filter. Not all models have CVT filters, such as the Downtown 300 which either has no filter or a rudimentary mesh filter, compared to the Downtown 350 which has a foam filter. This filter protects the CVT from rocks and debris but also needs to provide good airflow for cooling.

Here are the steps to clean your CVT filter.

1) Remove the filter from the transmission.

Downtown 350 with 30,000km.

Riding on the street in heavy traffic. Moved off from stationary and the bike started shaking/stumbling on acceleration to 40km/h. Idle speed dropped to 1400 rpm. Above 40km/h, no issues with acceleration or vibration as if it was normal.

The other issue that suddenly appeared was the bike would move forward on idle. Pulled over and noticed that the rear wheel would spin fast and could only be stopped by holding the brake.

I strongly suspect that one of the clutch pad springs broke and the pad is now engaging with the clutch bell, causing the transmission to be engaged with the rear wheel all the time.

The Kymco DT X360 has been released in Australia. https://kymco.com.au/dt-x360/

It's based on the Downtown 350i TCS with different fairings and styling. Looks nice, but otherwise not much of an advantage for off-roading - needs all waterproof connections, body protectors, more ground clearance and some luggage racks.

When doing the gear oil change for the first time, I noticed that the 8mm fill plug was on very tight and  I was never unable to torque it back on properly. Being overtightened and stripped, this caused the plug to weep oil over the course of hundreds of kilometres. My dealer wanted to take the whole transmission apart, which would have been an expensive exercise. As a DIY person I decided to find the simplest and cheapest way to repair the leak. I didn't like the idea of using a matching 8mm helicoil or timesert or tapping a larger 10mm hole as the drilling process of a blind hole would put metal shards all inside the transmission.

Looking into the stripped hole, I noticed that the stripped hole was deeper than the bolt and there was still some good thread remaining. Using this idea, I decided to replace the original bolt with a longer one.

The original bolt was M8 x 1.25mm and 12mm long with a flange. The new bolt to be used is a longer 16mm bolt (with a hex insert dome head because I like the shape). I also decided to use a 8mm Dowty washer, which is a special washer that comes with a bonded rubber seal, like an O-ring. If it's good enough for high pressure oil and hydraulic lines, it should be enough for a transmission.

The new 16mm bolt and Dowty washer was screwed into the stripped hole and torqued to spec (10 Nm) with no issues. I made sure that there was no metal bits or loose threads in the hole and that the tip of the bolt didn't make contact with any of the gears in the transmission. Just to be safe, I drained and replaced the gear oil to flush out any debris in the transmission.

Overall the fix cost less than $15 and all parts came from eBay. After a long ride there were no leaks, so the job is done. This may also work for engine oil drain plugs too.

I have a DT350i 2017 with 15,000km. I recently washed it with a pressure washer and for some reason I decided to aim the nozzle horizontally instead of top-down. Now, the bike cannot start and instead makes a crackling sound around the relay area and dashboard flashes when the ignition is turned on. A quick battery check shows that the voltage drops quickly from 12V to less than 6V, even before trying starting the engine (which it cannot). I suspect a short somewhere.

I am allowing it to dry for a full day and purchased a new battery. I have also sprayed contact cleaner around all the electrical connections I can see. Any ideas?

Any know the paint codes for Kymco's Matt Silver Crystal or equivalents? Need some for a panel repair.

As mentioned in this forum a few times, the Downtown is well known for having a weak charging system. The regulator-rectifier is especially problematic as it can't seem to handle the power requirements of the scooter and is located above the exhaust pipe so it overheats easily. I have replaced the regulator twice and stator once during my 300i's lifetime.

In the Downtown 350i Kymco has noticed this issue affecting 300i models and replaced the faulty design with a different regulator. One thing to mention is that it looks much more robust with a bigger aluminium heatsink and thicker wiring. It has been relocated to the left side of the bike above the airbox to allow better airflow and cooling. This adds to the LED front indicators and LED brake light and a 55W headlight (35W+35W on the 300i) which helps further reduce current draw.