 Review of the
Kymco People GTi 300
September, 2011
GIVI
WINDSHIELD FAILURE
Before I launch into this review, I'd like to be very upfront
and let you know that I'm a fan of the Kymco People line of scooters. As the
owner of a 2005 Kymco People 250 since new, I have
experienced first-hand the practicality, reliability and fun of this type of
powered two-wheeled conveyance. Specifically, I have seen the build quality of
the Kymco People first-hand. Several decades of riding just about everything has
taught me that a 250cc (or slightly larger), big wheel, shortish
wheelbase high quality scooter is nearly PERFECT for a commuter vehicle. Now
that the Kymco People GTi300 is available in the USA, I just had to jump
right in and check out what could be the perfect commuter scooter.
Haven't heard of Kymco? If this is the first time you're
visiting JustGottaScoot.com, I suppose we can excuse you. Kwang Yang Motor
Company was established in Taiwan in 1963. By 1983 they had built 1,000,000
motorcycles. By 1988 it was 2,000,000. Remember the old Honda Elite scooter?
Built under contract for Honda by Kymco. Kymco's reputation as a high quality
manufacturer has been long established in other countries. Kymco has been in the
US market (under their own name) for just over a decade now. They started
with just a few models and a tiny dealer network. Now they offer 18 on-road
models and have a several hundred dealers in their network. My experience as a
Kymco owner has demonstrated that their quality is equal to the big Japanese
brands.
As I already have a 250cc Kymco People, why was I so interested in this new
model? I have a friend from the
wristwatch business in Taiwan. He's a motorcycle guy and has always looked down
on scooters. A while back, he got a Kymco People GTi300 as a "loaner" from a
shop in Taiwan. He emailed me that this wonder-machine was nothing short of
incredible. This from a guy (living in the land of scooters) who thought
no scooter could be good enough for him. I just had to find out what the deal
was.
Scooterville in Minneapolis got their first
shipment of the new Kymco People and Bob (the owner) called me before
they were even off the truck. I quickly finished up whatever was on my desk and
headed right over. By the end of the afternoon, the new People GTi300 was
uncrated, prepped, gassed up and ready to roll. I got to perform most of the
pre-delivery process myself and the quality of Kymco's manufacturing was already
apparent. Things went together well and everything worked.
Speedometer Reading/Speed/Fuel Economy
 With
a GPS unit mounted, I began by checking speedometer accuracy. UNLIKE just about
every other scooter or motorcycle I've tested, the Kymco People GTi300 was
fairly accurate indicating just shy of 3% optimistic. That is to say that when
the speedometer indicated 60 MPH, the actual speed was about 58 MPH. The
odometer was even more accurate. Most scooters I test are 10% to 15% optimistic.
The top speed I saw on the GTi was 85 MPH. That's on a new not-yet-broken-in
scooter with 100 kilograms (my way of saying 220 pounds) of rider aboard.
I'm guessing that a broken in machine with a smaller rider would top out at
about 90 MPH. In 200 miles of mixed (city and some highway) riding I got
72 MPG. I consider that quite good. When I'm keeping the speed down (around
town) on my 2005 People I get about 70 MPG and it falls to 58 MPG when
cruising on the highway. Again, after break in and with some less-than-spirited
riding I wouldn't be surprised to see the People GTi300 return 80 MPG around
town.
Features
The Kymco People GTi300 is a big-wheeled scooter (16 inchers front and
rear) but it's not really a maxi-scooter (like Kymco's Xciting or the
Suzuki Burgman, Honda Silverwing or Yamaha Majesty). The People has true
step-through design with no hump or tunnel on the floorboards. The seating
position is upright, and there is not a lot
of bodywork or a windshield. The People is powered by a 299cc 4-stroke,
liquid-cooled, fuel-injected SOHC 4-valve powerplant. Twenty-nine horses get to
the rear wheel by means of an automatic CVT (Continually Variable
Transmission). Suspension is handled by a telescopic fork in the front and
adjustable dual shocks in the rear. Braking is by disc, front and rear, with the
front grabbing by means of a three-piston caliper. The seat is 31.9 inches from
the ground and the wheelbase is 57.1 inches. The People GTi300 weighs in at 364
pounds with 2.4 gallons of fuel. MSRP is $5,399 and includes a two-year factory
warranty. It's available in black, silver, and the orange pictured.
Wait. Did I just say "29 horses"? I thought these scooters put out something
like 19 or 20 horses at the most. Yes, the closest comparable scooters (Piaggio
BV300 & Aprilia SportCity 300) get about 22 horses from 278cc. The Kymco GTi
300 is VERY nearly a "real" 300 with 298.9cc to work with. At 364 pounds, that's
12.5 pounds per horsepower. The 363 pound Piaggio is at 16.5 pounds per
horsepower. Some "performance" motorcycles are in the 10 pounds per horsepower
range so these scooters are no sluggards in most commuting situations.
Let's take a look at this new Kymco compared with other scooters in the US
marketplace. I WISH we could compare it to the Honda SH300i, but
that's not available in the USA (currently). We do have a couple of
options from our Italian friends at Piaggio and Aprilia. Both offer up the 278cc
4-stroke single, liquid-cooled and fuel-injected. This is what powers the Vespa
300s as well as the BV and SportCity. One note to Piaggio - how come we (the
US market) don't get the NEW BV scooter? How come we get the new motor
stuffed into the old scooter when a perfectly good new design is available in
other markets? I can guess. Piaggio doesn't "get" the US scooter market. Of
course neither do Honda, or Kymco, or (especially) SYM, or just about any
major manufacturer/distributor of scooters. The ONE that does seem to have a
handle on the scooter market in this country is Genuine.
 For
me, the first stand-out is that the Kymco People GTi300 is the most expensive of
the bunch at $400 more than a BV300 and $500 more than a SportCity300. In my
opinion this is a mistake on Kymco's part. They are certainly the equal and
probably the better of either the Piaggio or the Aprilia in build quality, but
Kymco just doesn't have the perceived value in the US marketplace to command the
highest price in the category. The Honda SH300i sells for 4,450 Euros which
would be about $6,000 (as of today's exchange) which is even higher. BUT
that's for a Honda. I think that Kymco needs to trim their MSRP to effectively
compete with the BV300 and SportCity. The next thing that I notice looking at
the specs is that the SportCity is 34 pounds lighter, has a more than three inch
shorter wheelbase. I have not ridden the new SportCity300 but I have ridden the
SportCity250 and it's a quick, good handling machine. I wouldn't be at all
surprised if the SportCity300 could give the People GTi300 a real run for its
money. Frankly, the only reason I personally rate the Kymco higher is based
solely on my own concerns about the Aprilia dealer network and potential support
issues.
Right. I'll just reeeeeeeach over here and turn the "RANT"
switch to off.....
 The
Kymco People GTi300 comes equipped with very good lighting including a halogen
headlight and LED tail-lights. There is a 12V accessory plug in case you feel
the need to charge your mobile phone or plug in heated riding gear in the
winter. The multi-function switch (ignition, seat release, front end lock) also
has a small security door that is opened with the side of the key.
The front legshield includes a locking glove box. There is SOME storage under
the seat, but don't plan on putting your helmet there. The underseat area is
more of a tray. The fuel filler is under the seat and the battery and coolant
reservoir are accessed from the floorboard. Probably because there is so little
underseat storage, the People GTi 300 comes equipped from the factory with a
color-matched trunk. The trunk is adequate for a helmet and some small stuff but
does not hold a standard-sized messenger bag.
 The
dash features a large round speedometer indicating miles per hour. To the left
and right are indicator lights. Below those are two buttons for operation of the
digital module right below the speedometer. The digital display includes engine
temperature, fuel supply, clock and tripmeter/odometer. Everything was easy to
see at a glance. The fuel gauge is pretty accurate, unlike a lot of other
scooters I have tested. When the ignition is turned to the "ON" position, the
dash lights come on, the speedometer needle sweeps the gauge, and the engine
light stays on while the fuel pump is charging.
Aside from some storage issues that can likely be easily addressed, the Kymco
People GTi300 comes from the factory with excellent features to accomplish its
mission of being a do-everything scooter.
Riding Impressions
Good fuel injection rocks. The People GTi300 starts easily hot or cold. The
idle couldn't be called smooth in the strictest sense of the word, but compared
to most other carbureted single-cylinder scooters seems like
glass. I found the Kymco People GTi300 to be very comfortable. At 5' 9" (just) I
can't touch flat-footed, but parts of both feet are on the ground at stops. I
would say that most people from 5' 7" to 6' 2" are likely to find the ergonomics
of this scooter will work for them. The riding position is upright and the reach
to the controls is average. Not so far as to cause a lean and not so close as to
feel cramped. From a dead stop the GTi300 accelerates adequately. At about 15
MPH the "oomph" kicks in. Mid-range on this scooter is nothing short of evil
fun. Acceleration continues to be strong up to about 70 MPH. Getting the
remaining speed out of the People takes a little longer. Roll-on is just great.
No, evil, really. I found myself looking for excuses to snap the throttle open
at 30 MPH just to shoot right up to 45 MPH like nothing. Just for the fun (evil)
of it.
There is a tiny little windscreen-like object on the front which does nothing
to limit buffeting at highway speeds. The body of the People GTi does a good job
of protecting the rider from wind, rain and road dirt from the lower torso on
down. There's not really anyplace to tuck when searching for top speeds and I am
guessing that the aerodynamic "wall" is a limiting factor in how fast this
scooter will go.
Handling is responsive and neutral. Not as quick as a 10-inch wheeled
scooter, but predictable and low-effort. The combination of 16-inch wheels and a
low center of gravity make maneuvers at city speeds easy and still allow the
 highway
ride to be stable and jitter-free. Braking was on the strong side of sufficient.
If I were trying to haul the GTi300 down from highway speeds very quickly with a
passenger and some luggage I might wish for a second disc up front. In every
condition I encountered riding solo, the brakes were just fine and easy to
modulate.
There are fold-up passenger floorboards and a fairly comfortable seat for a
passenger. My wife Beverly rode with me a couple of times and felt just fine on
the back of the People.
Because I am reviewing this scooter from the "do-everything"
perspective, that's how I rode it. I spent some time cruising the city streets
and gorgeous parkways of the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. I did
battle in downtown traffic. I rode the Interstates at 70 MPH with truck traffic
all around me. I ran some of the twisities just outside of the metropolitan
area. The Kymco People GTi300 handled every riding situation with ease.
Fit and Finish
My expectations are
high when I approach a new Kymco. I've had several years of ownership experience
with Kymco scooters and have mentioned several times that I consider them to be
the equal in fit and finish of anything from Japan. The new People GTi300
doesn't disappoint in this area. Body panel tolerances are close and uniform.
The finish on the gold-colored panels is top notch. The controls and switches
feel solid and I expect they will hold up over time as well as my 2005 Kymco
People 250 has. I have had a good bit of experience with one of the models we
listed for comparison (the Piaggio BV) and the People is, in my opinion,
a notch up the scale in fit and finish.
Conclusion
After a couple of hundred miles, the Kymco People GTi 300 is proving itself
to be a wonderful scooter. It's got more than enough power and very good
handling and ergonomics. Like it's predecessors, this People is capable of
anything from city commuting to highway touring - a true do-everything scooter.
I like this scooter a lot. So much, in fact, that I traded in my venerable 2005
People 250 and bought this one. The high price, lack of wind protection and
storage are the only things preventing me from naming the Kymco People GTi300
the "perfect" scooter.
I consider factory/distributor support and the dealer network to be critical
to a highly satisfying scooter ownership experience. In my opinion, Kymco
outperforms Piaggio and Aprilia in these areas. If I was looking strictly at the
scooters themselves, I'd have to at least consider the
SportCity300 over the People GTi300 due to the $500 price difference. HOWEVER, I
have had enough experience with both brands to be swayed by Kymco's better
support and network. As Kymco & Piaggio dealer Bob
Hedstrom mentions, the Kymco does have higher value when all features are
compared.
The one area that Kymco is weak is in accessories. I have spent that past
several weeks searching for a decent windshield for the GTi300 and it looks like
I will have to shop in Europe to get one. I fully intend to remove the factory
topcase and install one from SHAD that has decent capacity. I don't understand
why I can't address my needs with accessories from Kymco. At the very least,
Kymco should be partnering with aftermarket suppliers to help Kymco owners
customize their scooters. This is one of the things that Genuine Scooters does
so well to the benefit of both their dealers and scooter owners. (Oooops, the
"RANT" switch slipped back on)
All things considered, if you're looking for way to get around just about
anyplace while getting terrific fuel economy and having a great time, take a
good hard look at the Kymco People GTi300.
THANKS to Scooterville in
Minneapolis Minnesota for providing the scooter used in this review.
David
Harrington
Special Note
I just took a short spin on a new
Kymco People GTi200 courtesy of Scooterville. It's pretty much the same chassis
as the People GTi300 with a smaller engine. In this case it's a 204cc
liquid-cooled fuel-injected unit. Yes, that's right, 204cc. While just
about every other "200" scooter out there (including other Kymco models)
is less than 200cc, this one is a touch MORE. It was a short ride, but I did get
out on a highway and up to 70 MPH without any trouble. The incredible ooomph of
the 300 isn't there, but the 200 was still a fun machine. According to
motorcycle.com, the GTi200 puts out 21 horses which is comparable to the Piaggio
BV300 and Aprilia SportCity 300. I'd expect the fuel
economy to be better than the 300 and the around town handling to be even
sharper. At $4,899, the MSRP may be seen as high for the current US scooter market,
but it falls in line when compared with competing machines.
A
Kymco Dealer Responds
 Bob
Hedstrom is the owner of Scooterville in Minneapolis Minnesota. He is one of the
most trusted and influential dealers in the scooter industry. Over the years, I
have learned to put a lot of weight on what Bob has to say. Remember, Bob is a
Kymco dealer AND a Piaggio dealer, he offers both the GTi300 and the BV300. The
following is excerpted from an email Bob sent me:
While I have to agree with almost
everything you have to say about the GTi300, your comparison with the
competition actually supports the pricing differential. The MSRP difference
between the Kymco People GTi300 and the Piaggio BV300 is $400. Just looking at
the additional year of warranty coverage and the provided topcase more than
covers this difference. Purchasing additional coverage on the Piaggio to bring
it level with the Kymco would cost $300 - $500. Let's be generous and say it's
$300. The topcase that is included with the Kymco also has value. The
Piaggio topcase for the BV300 is $375. Yes, the BV300 comes with a
windshield and the GTi300 doesn't - a $150 advantage to Piaggio. So we have$300
+ $375 - $150 for a total of $525. That's $525 to ADD to the BV300
price making the GTi300 LESS expensive.
We should also consider the extra
performance of the Kymco People GTi300. With seven extra ponies, that's a 32%
advantage to the Kymco. I don't think you placed enough emphasis on this in
your review. What's the dollar value of that kind of significant performance
benefit? Frankly, I consider the extra power worth the price difference on its
own. Beyond MSRP, the in-bound freight charges of the Piaggio are generally much
higher than with the Kymco. Weighing all the factors and benefits shows the
Kymco to be the better value.
 Windshield
& Reflective Checkerboard
September 26th, 2011
GIVI
WINDSHIELD FAILURE
As mentioned in the conclusion of
the above review, I have been working on my Kymco People GTi300 to address it's
(in my opinion) minor shortcomings. I did a fair amount of research on
existing windshields for the GTi series of scooters from Kymco and was very
disappointed to find next-to-nothing available. Literally nothing in the USA,
and precious little elsewhere. I found a Fabbri windshield in Europe, but was
not able to get one to the USA at anything mildly resembling a reasonable price.
Givi in the USA does not list anything for the Kymco GTi, but Givi in Great
Britain does. After begging a few favours I was able to get a mounting kit and
windshield here. I'm going to list the Givi part numbers, but DO NOT
consider this accessory unless you are willing to do some modifications to your
scooter. The windshield (blade) is 443A and the mounting lit is A443A.
Retail cost for the two is about $150 - $180 depending on the source.
I opened everything up, spread it
out, brought the People GTi300 into my garage and started what I thought was
going to be a 20 minute project. The brackets are well made and custom to the
GTi series of scooter. The top support goes under the mirror, with a spacer, and
the bottom goes, goes.... what the??? Ahhhhh, good old USA regulations, the
beautifully integrated front turn signals that flow so nicely with the existing
bodywork are (apparently) not good enough for the USA. As is the case on
MANY scooters, front turn signals are mounted on the headset. UNFORTUNATELY,
those turn signals are mounted right at the windshield bracket point.
I thought about taking off the
add-on signals and activating the ones existing in the body. I started taking
screws out and was able to look inside enough to see that the wiring was there.
Now here's a good/bad thing about the Kymco People GTi300 (as well as other
Kymcos). They are put together very well. Tight tolerances, panels seams
that join TIGHTLY, an overabundance of fasteners. After a short period of time
it became obvious that disassembling the front end and headset was going to be a
major job. I decided to take the signals off and modify the mounting instead.
Lots of cutting and grinding was involved and in the end I was able to have BOTH
the USA front turn signals and the Givi windshield bracket installed, There was
a lot of trial and error and this is something that I would NOT RECOMMEND
for most scooterists. I am guessing that a good scooter shop would do this kind
of custom work, but it would likely cost a couple of hours of labor.
The windshield is installed on my
People GTi300 and it works very well. It's too tall for my tastes, but beggars
can't be choosers. I plan to take it to a specialty shop and have about four
inches cut down from the top of the shield. The windshield makes a big
difference in the ride of the People GTi300 at highway speeds and likely will
add a bit to the top end speed. However, at this time, I do not consider this to
be an acceptable solution for getting a windshield in the USA. Will Kymco come
up with a workable windshield? Unlikely. They foolishly don't seem to have any interest in
accessories. Will Givi (or someone else) come up with a mount that will
integrate with the USA-only turn signals? We can hope.
I also added some reflective
checkerboard to my Kymco People GTi300. Yes, it's my "thing" on all my scooters
and motorcycles, but this is not only to mark the machine as mine. It really
helps with low-light/dark visibility. When the headlights of cars in traffic hit
the checkerboard it really lights up. After a lot of consideration, I went with
small squares in reflective black. It's black (or very dark grey) in
daylight and white reflective. I cut out the individual squares and draw
guidelines with a wax pencil.
Givi Windshield Failure
July, 2012
I guess one of the advantages of doing
long-term reviews of scooters and accessories is the ability to see, first hand,
how they hold up over time. Some items (like SHAD topcases) have done
very well as the years and miles get packed on. Others (like this Givi
windshield) simply don't work long term.
I do put a fair number of miles on my Kymco
People GTi 300, including highway riding. At the end of June, I rode from the
Twin Cities down to Lake Geneva Wisconsin for the 2012 AmeriVespa event. That's
about 350 miles one way utilizing the shortest route. On the way down, the Givi
windshield on my People GTi 300 developed a crack at the starboard side mount,
from the mount hole heading inboard. A similar crack happened on the port side
within a few miles. Within a few days, the starboard side cracked from the mount
outboard to the edge of the shield and went all the way through completely
breaking the shield.
It is my opinion that the distance from the
upper mount to the top of the shield is simply too long to be left unsupported (as
Givi has done). If I had the sense of a common gnat I'd give up on the Givi
and get a Biondi from Scooterville which works
quite well. Of course I can't toss the towel in without trying to "fix" the
issue with the Givi. I have ordered another windshield - at my own expense
because, apparently, there is no warranty on the Givi - and plan to cut it down
about five inches to see if that eliminates this failure point. I will post the
results of that experiment.
At this time I have say
DO NOT PURCHASE the Givi windshield
for the Kymco People GTi.
We suggest that you consider the Biondi windscreen that is available in the USA
from ScootervilleParts.com. It's definately NOT a full coverage windshield, but
it's easy to install and DOES NOT require modification or removal of the
USA-mandated front turn signal lights.
 SHAD
48 liter Top Case
September 29th, 2011
OK, the Kymco People GTi300 is
getting close to being my perfect scooter. I still need to cut down the Givi
windshield I installed, but I'm sure I'll get that done over the winter. My last
"concern" with the People GTi300 was storage space. The underseat area is just a
small tray. The GTi300 does come with a color-matched topcase from Kymco. It's
not a bad case, better quality than some to be sure, but it's still too small
for me. It's obvious that it's there to make up for the lack of underseat space.
Now what is one supposed to do for MORE capacity? At this time, Kymco does not
offer any options for the case. It's what it is, has a proprietary mount, and
that's it. I've said it before (several times just in this review),
but it's to Kymco's detriment that they just don't care about accessories.
Selecting what top case to use was
easy for me, I'm a fan of
SHAD, and they
had a new 48 liter case that I was glad to try. I have
reviewed SHAD cases before, and I own several of them. The have proven to be
of high quality, easy to install (in most cases), durable and a very good
value.
In the garage goes the People and
the factory topcase is removed. This is very easy, just five bolts. Four pass
through the brace to the threaded receivers in the grab rail/rack on the
scooter. One mounts the back of the case to the brace. With the case off, I
tried the fasteners supplied with the SHAD case. They are the exact same
diameter and thread pattern as the Kymco bolts. Could it be? Will I be able to
bolt the SHAD mounting plate right to the existing rear rack with no
modification??? Nope, of course not. Even if any of the existing holes lined up
with available spots on the SHAD mounting plate, the case would have been so far
forward as to make it impossible to open the seat.
The SHAD 48 came with everything
one would need to install it on the vast majority of scooters (and
motorcycles) that have a rear luggage rack. I took the SHAD mounting plate,
lined it up to the position I wanted on the Kymco rear rack, and marked four
spots with a sharpie. Then I removed the rear rack from the scooter (four
bolts) and took it over to my drill to give it four 1/4 inch holes. As
you'll see in a second, you'll want to spend some time getting the measurements
and marking just right before you hit the rear rack with the drill.
 I
noticed that the front guide marks I made were very close to an existing
"channel" on the Kymco rear rack. As luck would have it, this channel was just
the correct width to hold the receiving nut in place for the mounting bolt. Just
a touch of re-positioning of my marks, a second (and third, and fourth)
check of positioning of the SHAD mounting plate, and I drilled the holes.
Before I put the rear rack back on
the scooter, I installed the SHAD mounting plate to be SURE that everything
would be solid and correctly positioned. It would have been sweet to be able to
just leave the mounting plate on the rack, but it blocked the access to the two
rear bolts that attached the rear rack to the scooter. If you look at the
upper/left part of the above image, you'll notice that I did not utilize the
bolt holders that SHAD supplies. The idea is to place on red holder in the
appropriate square hole to hold the bolt without distorting or "pulling through"
the grid of the mounting plate. None of the provided bolts would have been even
close to long enough to reach with this holder in place. I used double washers
by the head instead. The upper/right part of the
above image is the underside of the Kymco rear rack. The upper white arrow shows
the location of the hole, bolt and nut that are in the existing channel, the
lower white arrow is the rear hole with conventional lock-washer and nut.
The rear rack was bolted back on
the scooter and the mounting plate attached. It's tight and very solid -
important when you consider that the SHAD 48 is a pretty big case and it needs a
solid foundation on your scooter. After the mounting plate was checked and
tightened, the dress-up cover plate is installed with four small screws. The
finished SHAD mounting plate is clean and neat and won't detract from the look
of your scooter when the case is off.
On goes the SHAD case and we're
done. I'm VERY happy with the SHAD 48. It has room for my
messenger bag AND a bunch of other stuff. It easily swallowed up my helmet,
armored jacket and gloves. A couple of bags of groceries? Not a problem. SHAD
has been very receptive to feedback about their offerings and I shouldn't be at
all surprised to see them offer a mounting kit specifically for the Kymco People
GTi scooters. It would a simple matter to make an intermediate plate that
attached to the existing threaded receivers and had it's own threaded receivers
for the standard SHAD mounting plate.
 Optional Backrest
October 11th, 2011
I was just fine with the SHAD 48
liter top case as it was. It's been holding all my crap with room to spare and
really helps make the Kymco People GTi a better machine. HOWEVER, my wife
Beverly insisted on a backrest. We don't ride 2-up all that often, but when we
do she likes to have a backrest.
Michael at
SHAD USA very
kindly sent up a backrest right away. The part number is D0RI4800 and MSRP is
$55. The backrest comes in two main parts along with mounting hardware. One part
goes above the hinge and the other below it. When a passenger leans back, they
won't be bothered by the hinge. Installation was EASY - you'll need a drill and
a screwdriver. The inside of the SH28 has small dimples at the points that
you'll need to drill holes. Of course I did measure the case first - just to be
sure - but the factory dimples were really perfectly positioned.
Drill four holes, install receivers
for the screws in the two backrests, put washers on the screws, screw the
backrests in place. Done. That's it.
Now we're really really close to
that perfect scooter. Some wind protection/improved aerodynamics, plenty of
storage, and that wonderful People GTi300 motor. I'd take this machine anyplace
without hesitation - around town or across the country. The Kymco People GTi300
(with a little modification) is a true do-it-all machine.
 FINALLY - A Windscreen that
fits USA models of the Kymco People GTi
June, 2012
The Kymco People GTi 300 continues to be my
favourite "do everything" scooter. The lack of accessories from Kymco
continues to be the one weak point in this otherwise outstanding scooter. The
aftermarket for the Kymco People GTi is fairly strong in Europe and I was able
to source a windshield there. The problem was
that windshield was the mounting brackets. They utilized the same point on the
underside of the headset that the USA-mandatory front turn signals needed for
mounting. I hacked up the bracket and made it fit - NOT something that I would
highly recommend or that most people are even willing to do.
It wasn't just me, Kymco dealers were growing
increasingly frustrated with the lack of accessories. In stepped Bob Hedstrom of
Scooterville in Minneapols Minnesota.
Scooterville is a huge scooter dealership and they sell a LOT of Kymco scooters.
Bob found a European brand that he had what looked like a perfect smaller
windscreen for the People GTi. The first Biondi arrived (via air-freight)
and Bob invited me over to check it out. We picked a nice black Kymco Gti 300
and looked over the mounting brackets and instructions. Frankly, it looked too
easy to be true. I went over the brackets fairly closely and the build quality
was very good. Fasteners looked great, the blade (plastic screen itself)
looked flawless. Biondi even included a strip of foam with adhesive on one side
to cushion the blade against the tiny lip above the headlight. Here are my (abbreviated)
installation instructions:
1. - Remove the mirrors
2. - Install the brackets on to the windscreen
3. - Stick the foam strip on
4. - Install the assembly (brackets & windscreen) at the points made
available when you removed the mirrors with the provided hardware.
5. - Install the mirrors at their new points, on the windscreen bracket bases
6. - Adjust and tighten
Yeah, that's it. Everything fit beautifully.
The mounting looked very solid and it all took a grand total of about 15 minutes
and NOTHING had to be done to the front turn signals. I took several pictures
and then Bob pointed out that I PROBABLY should have installed the windscreen on
the silver Kymco People GTi 200 sitting right next to me that was a demo so we
could ride the scooter and see how the windscreen worked. Hmmmmmm, that's an
idea.... Maybe five minutes later I had switched the windscreen over to the
other scooter (and restored the black GTi 300 to its original configuration).
A quick jaunt on the highway revealed a solidly mounted windscreen that worked
quite well. It's small and relatively low, but deflects wind-blast away from the
torso of the rider. It's easy to see over and I did not experience any buffeting
around my head.
I think the Biondi windscreen looks great on
the scooter and am thrilled with the ease of installation. Bob at Scooterville
is planning to import a significant quantity of these. While nothing is set in
stone at this point, I expect the retail price for a complete kit (windscreen,
mounting brackets and hardware) will be about $150. If you want one, contact
Bob at: Bob@ScootervilleMN.com
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