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: [email protected]


Another Windshield for the Kymco People GTi
March, 2014

Waaaaay back in 2011, we were complaining about the lack of accessories for the excellent Kymco People GTi scooter. Here it is, a paltry three years later, and now another choice is available for owners of this fine machine who want wind protection but DO NOT want to remove or alter their USA-mandatory front turn signals. This windshiled comes to us from PUIG (I believe a Spanish company), the same people who made some great windshields for prior Kymco models.

This is a fairly tall shield. Not too long ago, I would have “hated” this shield because of the height, but after riding a couple of winters in cold weather with a tall Givi I can tell you there is a lot to be said for the “pocket of comfort” created by taller shields. Cold weather aside, I generally prefer a windshield that I can see over when seated on the scooter. The PUIG windshield for the Kymco People GTi is about 21 inches tall and 22 inches wide. The height is of the windshield itself and the area of additional functional coverage it provides is more like 16 inches.

Because the windshield is fairly tall, it needs a bit more support than just the mirror socket mounts. The PUIG also incorporates a couple of secondary stand-offs that rest against the plastic of the headset to give some extra support. While these DO look like they will be adequate for support, only time will tell what damage they do, or don’t, cause to the plastic of the headset.

Kymco People GTi Puig WInshield Mounting

The installation is straightforward and typical for this type of windshield – the mirrors are removed and relocated to the end of the PUIG bracket which is mounted in the original mirror sockets. The onlyKymco People GTi Puig Windshield Mount Over Thumb thing I’m not thrilled about on the PUIG version is the fact that the mirrors are relocated straight back and not out and away from the socket. This is a two-fold issue as the underside of the mirror mount is now directly above the position of one’s thumb when operating either the headlight switch or engine kill switch. The second part of the issue is one of missed opportunity. It’s sure sweet to gain a little width in mirror positioning. By having the mirrors relocated even an inch more to the “outside” the view of what’s behind one tends to improve. This MAY be a personal prejudice based on my own girth.

I have not had an opportunity to ride a Gti with the PUIG windshield installed. Other scooters I have ridden with PUIG windshields were impressive. It’s my favorite for a Kymco People 50 or 150 and the unfortunately named Kymco Bet & Win scooter. I expect the Kymco People GTi PUIG to work well on the road. The Kymco part number is PGFPCT and I’ve seen “street” prices of about $160. There is a shorter version available from PUIG, but I have not seen that one in the USA…. yet. That one is PUIG part number 6870W for the clear version and 6870H for the smoke version. It looks a touch too short. If it were for my scooter, I’d get the taller version and have it cut down about three – four inches.

As of March, 2014, this PUIG looks to be the only readily available choice. The, in my opinion, better Biondi windscreen (scroll up to the section immediately preceding this one) is suffering from supply chain problems and is currently out of stock in the USA.