KymcoForum.com
Scooters - 125 to 300 => People 250 => Topic started by: kawzak on June 25, 2008, 02:40:47 AM
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Hello all members, I would like to ask some questions about the People 250. I have narrowed the scooters down to the people 250 or an aprilla Sportcity 250. I have ridden motorcycles for about 40 yrs. I have some back problems now and my dual-sport is too harsh. I ride 6000-8000 miles/year. mostly farm/market roads (paved) to/from work 30 miles round trip, and 80 miles round trip (2) times a month to a larger city. My questions are (1). Is the People 250 more comfortable that the Aprilla sportcity 250. (2) Are highway speeds of 60-65 OK for 30/40 miles at a time OK and still be able to live a long life ( I will use Amzoil synthetic). (3) how long in miles does the variator belt and rollers last.(4)The Kymco I am told, is easier to get parts for.v/s the Aprilla. Any experience on this issue. and lastly does any one have a high milage machine, and would you please elaborate on the maintenance costs, any break-downs or problems. I do appreciate any feed back. Thank-you
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Ive owned a scarabeo 150 which was Pre Piaggio ownership and it reflected the fine quality of Aprilia..I did have many weeks of down (waiting for parts) time over an 18 month period of ownership..So I then bought a Piaggio BV500...Assuming that now the parts problem was corrected... BOY was I wrong..It was worse and the build quality was of a much lower grade...I sold the bike 4 months later after I was down for 6 weeks waiting for a fuel pump that failed after only 1800 miles and turns out to be a know problem and the factory showed almost no interest or care about my problem..Iam and have been a new car dealer for more than 35 yeqars and NEVER have I seen the unprofessional handling of distribution and customer service like that from the Piaggio .. line up vespa/aprilia/guzzi/benelli... 4 places to stay away from..
I cant tell you if you will get 100k from a bike .. but I now own a 2007 P250 with 12000km and its been flawless..I damaged a panel doing service and ordered a new one....was here in 5 days..The quality and performance meets all of my expectations ..
If your looking to buy a P250 you better hurry there arent many if any left!!!..And you cant buy mine ITS NOT 4SALE!!! ;)
Good Luck
OlBull
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Thank you Olbull, I have heard only good things about the People 250. I think I will buy a red one this saturday.
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Thank you Olbull, I have heard only good things about the People 250. I think I will buy a red one this saturday.
Happy birthday Kawzak! You're lucky to have a choice. The showroom floor (normally crowded with scooters) at my Kymco dealer is empty!
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Thanks for the Birthday greeting, OldGuy, I am an Old guy too! The Kymco dealer in San Antonio Tx has (1) silver People 250 Demo 2008, (2) blue People 250 2008 a red one (I am going to buy tomorrow ,Mid-life crisis ?) This dealer told me he sold a total of 70 scooters last month. Wow.And The dealer in Austin Tx. is suposed to be sold out so I better hurry!I have had 25+ motorcycles and scooters are just so much more fun (I ride my wifes Piaggio Fly 150 to work once in a while, a little small for the distance/roads/speed, but still fun). I have pulled wrenches for over 40 years, and I have never had to take any of my machines to a shop for repairs, I do all my own maintenance work,you know... a gear-head! If it has two wheels I like it! I am looking foward to owning a People 250.
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I have a P250 which is nearing 20,000 km. I'm going to replace the CVT belt and rear tire this week just to be on the safe side. The only real problem I've had is with the exhaust system. The bottom rear bolt holding the muffler on has a tendency to vibrate loose and fall out, causing the upper front bracket to break and the header pipe and muffler to crack. Do yourself a favor and put some heat resistant lock tite on the bolt now so you don't have to worry about it later.
Just returned from a 3,360 mile trip, most of which was on interstates at wide open throttle. I checked the oil after the trip and it was less than 1/16" below the full mark on the dipstick. Not bad for a little thumper. The down side is that the gas mileage falls through the floor at those speeds. The bigger scoots on the ride did better than I did on the interstates, but mine made up for it on the back roads.
My other major complaint with the bike is the hard seat. I had the foam shaved off the front part of the seat, had it recovered, and added an Air Hawk cushion. The longest day on the trip was 400 miles and I was able to ride it with a minimum of discomfort.
The small sport Air Hawk fits perfectly. The lowest price I found was at Derby Cycles - $115 plus about $10 shipping. If your legs are long enough, you can skip having the seat reworked and just add the cushion.
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Hey Geezerbob, thats a good long trip. Hope you had fun. Thanks for the tip about the exhaust bolt. My P-250 came with Kenda tires, I was skeptical how they would work in the wet, but I found out-they are great road holding tires. What are you going to put back on yours?. Also I believe 12k + miles is good on the belt. I assume you are going to put an OEM back on. Do you plan on replacing the rollers? Please let me know costs if possible. Thanks for any info.
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Mechanic examined my CVT in May (1,400 and 3,360 mile trips ago) and said everything, including the belt, looked fine. I'm replacing the belt to avoid getting stranded on the side of the road. Could probably get another thousand or two km out of the rear tire but the wear indicators are just starting to show and, from my auto experience, you get more flats when the rubber is thin. I replaced the front tire before my long trip because it had cupped pretty badly and sounded like an old WWII bomber when I turned. I didn't get an itemized bill on the tire but know that it's a Kenda and came from Kymco USA. They're only a hundred miles up the road from me and we get pretty quick delivery, so I'll stick with the Kendas. I'm satisfied with the performance and wear and blame myself for the front tire cupping because I didn't check the pressure often enough.
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I ride with two artificial hips and one artificial knee (I may be handicapped but I'm not dead, and besides, my doctor doesn't know). My only complaint (because I have back problems also) is the hard ride over potholes and such. You can adjust the rear shocks (which I did), but still rough when going over bumps and potholes. Someone once mentioned a gel cushion. I don't know if anyone on the 250 has one of these. I would be curious to know if it helps... One of the top selling points for the People 250 for me personally, is the large wheels for stability....
Diamante
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Some prefer gel cushions while others prefer an air cushion (AirHawk is one brand).
Some have taken the seat to an upholsterer and had them remove the padding there and replace it with a gel cushion covered with new foam and use the existing seat cover. This provided them with the enhanced cushion without changing the appearance of the seat.