KYMCO Xciting 500Ri ABS

It isn’t new but it sure isn’t the same old same, either. The Xciting 500Ri ABS is coming back with braided brake lines, a respectable amount of under-seat storage, adjustable seat and suspension, adjustable levers, 12V charger, ABS, fuel-injection, highway performance, and everything else you’ve come to expect from KYMCO’s flagship scooter… and a long-anticipated makeover.

The KYMCO Xciting 500Ri has been available with the “cat eyes” look for some time, but it never arrived on North American shores until now… and it’s about time. With the new look the Xciting reinforces itself in the maxi-scooter game, and what an interesting game it is. KYMCO’s Xciting 500Ri comes with roughly 38 horsepower at a $6,995 price point. I haven’t tested the 2013 model but the 2012 wasn’t lacking in highway punch and provided great protection from the elements. It will be interesting to see how the new model holds up with the redesigned front end. The Xciting is 30cc smaller and 8 hp short of Yamaha’s T-Max, priced at $10,495. While 8 horsepower is a significant step up, the $3,500 difference (roughly four thousand after tax), is enough to afford you a second scooter. Hmm…

The Good: The Xciting 500Ri gets its biggest upgrade since it introduced ABS four years ago. In reality the Xciting 500Ri still weighs less than Suzuki’s Burgman 400 ABS.

The Bad: The KYMCO Xciting 500Ri feels a little heavy relative to KYMCO’s Downtown 300i, which does a pretty good job on the highway itself at $1,000 less.

The Ugly: North American scooterists are still waiting for the KYMCO MyRoad 700i maxi-scooter to arrive.

Buy/Hold/Sell? If the MyRoad 700i were available in North America and KYMCO priced it out right, this might be a whole other story. As that’s not the case, the Xciting 500Ri gets a Buy for offering great bang-for-buck value, performance, and features.

Check out the rest of the new KYMCO scooters for 2013.

Adrian S.