2012 Kymco Downtown Review

p>Taiwanese-based Kwang Yang Motor Company (Kymco) is one of the greatest motorcycle manufacturers you may have never even heard of before. Established in 1963, Kymco spent roughly the first three decades of its existence making engines along with smaller bikes under the Honda banner until finally branching off on their own in 1992, now producing in excess of 500,000 motorcycles, scooters, and ATV’s annually. For almost a decade now, Kymco has been selling scooters in the United States, building up an excellent dealership network from coast to coast. After years of fine-tuning their designs Kymco at long last has delivered a scooter destined to rival the best in the business: the Downtown. The 2012 Kymco Downtown, styled by Italian designer Massimo Zaniboni, is a versatile scooter offered as a 200i or 300i. The original 300i is powered by a 299cc four-stroke, liquid-cooled, fuel-injected SOHC four-valve engine that delivers just under 30 horsepower. The Downtown 200i is new for 2012 and sports a smaller 205cc, single-cylinder, four-stroke engine.

With impressively engineered motors and a lightweight frame of just 350 pounds, the Downtown is a scooter that’s built for speed and agility on the road. Innovative, economical, and quick on the turn, Kymco’s Downtown is the company’s closet approach yet in terms of rivaling European scooter quality. It would seem that Kymco’s finest engineering skills have come together to create a machine at the top of its game.