Renaissance

New dealers, an enlarged sales team and two new models for premium Taiwanese brand

Taiwanese firm Kymco has been undergoing a double renaissance in recent years. At a global level, it’s been attempting to move its brand image into a more premium space, on par with Japanese or European marques, and putting clear water between it and more value-oriented mainland China brands. In the UK, at a slightly more prosaic level, it’s been moving to a direct distribution model after the importer went out of business in 2019.

The Covid-19 pandemic was a big interruption to the UK restructuring, but the national arm has ploughed on and is now in the process of building up its UK dealer network. The Kymco factory has launched two new high-end machines for 2023 – the AK550 Premium maxi-scooter and the 550ccpowered CV3 leaning three-wheeler.

We spoke to Neil Keeble, Kymco’s national sales manager, about the latest developments in Britain. He started with some staff news, with the appointment of two new regional sales managers.

“The biggest news for us at the moment is that we’ve got a new sales team in place just in the last four weeks. We’ve appointed

KYMCO NEW BIKES

Neil Gregory, who will look after the southeastern and central regions, and Mark Turner from Blacktop Media who will cover Scotland, Ireland and the North.

“Neil Gregory worked at MotoGB for seven years and is very popular with his dealers. We’ve had an influx of applications from MotoGB dealers who want to keep working with him. Before that, he had a true motorcycle industry career in multiple areas, including general manager at a large dealership, and as a clothing and aftermarket area manager.

“Mark Turner is so genuine; he knows the industry and the products, so I’m sure he’ll hit the ground running for us. And with his extensive territory, he’ll be clocking up quite a few air miles!”

Mark Turner is also excited about the prospect. “I grew up with a spanner in my hand,” he said, “Helping my dad work on trucks, cars, boats and bikes. I spent a few years working in the motor trade in sales, then as a business manager, and then moving into engineering sales, mainly in the automotive sector. I’ve worked with most of the manufacturers in the UK and have been involved with some interesting and varied projects.

BDN’s Alan Dowds went to Portugal to try the new AK550 Premium and CV3 three-wheeler

KYMCO AK550 PREMIUM

I’ve ridden the standard AK550 in the past, and it’s a great maxiscooter. The twin-cylinder engine is grunty, smooth and powerful, with 51hp peak power. An aluminium frame keeps weight down – it’s 223kg dry – and premium chassis kit like the Brembo brakes and Dunlop GPR100 tyres help give quality, motorcycle-type handling. The Premium model builds on that basic package with new bodywork and more high-tech features. A ride-by-wire injection system allows a cruise control function, and it comes with cornering ABS and traction control. There’s an electric windscreen, hot grips, LCD dash and Bluetooth smartphone link all as standard, and with plenty of under-seat storage, it’s a practical, high-end, ride.

On the road, the AK works well. The advanced rider aids give a solid sense of safety, especially on the damp roads around Porto where we were riding. There’s loads of ground

“My passion has always been motorcycles and anything with an engine or motor, and in my own time, I am an automotive journalist, so I have been lucky enough to ride and drive a varied range of vehicles.”

“Our current dealer count is 52, and our target dealer network is 75 engaged dealers. We’ve recently taken on four new dealers. However, now that the new sales team is fully in place, they are working on securing the right business partners in many open points, including key locations such as Leeds, Bristol, Northern and Southern Ireland, Manchester, Bournemouth and Swindon,” commented Keeble.

In terms of product, Keeble says the firm has plenty of stock coming into the country, including the new AK550 Premium and CV3. “Both the CV3 and AK550 Premium are now in stock, and the first batch of around 30 CV3s in both colours has already sold out with new stock arriving.”

KYMCO SALES CONTACTS

Mark Turner – North, Scotland, Ireland: mturner@kymcouk.co.uk; 07803 000017

Neil Gregory – South East/London, Central: ngregory@kymcouk.co.uk; 07816 200649 clearance on twisty roads and plenty of power from the Brembo stoppers. Once you get onto the motorway, the electric windscreen soon whizzes up to give extra protection, the hot grips are ready for UK conditions, and the engine easily gets you up past 110mph.

From a one-day test ride perspective, the AK550 Premium does what it’s meant to do: matches the best in the business in terms of kit, performance and premium feel. It’s priced at £10,399, a few grand cheaper than a Yamaha TMAX, and is well worth a look for anyone considering this type of machine.

KYMCO’S DRIVE FOR HIGHER QUALITY AND design comes from its European design centre, headed up in Bologna by Gianfelice Marasco. He’s worked at Honda and Ducati in the past, working on machines like the Ducati Multistrada 1200 and the later Honda CB600F Hornet. We spoke to Marasco about his background, how he ended up at Kymco, and what goes into his designs.

“In 1995, I was working for an Italian company called MSC, who were design consultants for Kymco, and we made some designs for them at the time. I sketched the People 50, so when the design manager came to Italy, they asked if I would like to come to Taiwan for a while, and I said why not? I was 23 years old, so for me, it was a really big occasion.”

Marasco didn’t stay in Taiwan long, though: Honda was setting up its own European design centre in Rome and asked him to join the team there.

“I worked in Taiwan for one year, and then I received a call from Honda, which was opening a design office in Rome. So when my contract expired, I returned to Italy to join Honda, and I stayed for more than 12 years, from 1999 to 2012. After that, I had an opportunity to go to Ducati.”

Four years on, Taiwan came calling again with another tempting offer. “In 2016, Kymco decided to open a European design office, and they remembered me. In the beginning, we were in Luxembourg, in the same building as the importer.”

But Luxembourg is no place for an Italian designer to work… “We started to think about moving the office from Luxembourg to Italy, and I suggested Bologna because, of course, there are so many factories and suppliers in the area. Then, Kymco started to work more on a proper identity, creating vehicles that are not just following trends. The CV3 is only the first one you will see over the next few years. We will have some models you wouldn’t expect to see, especially from Kymco.”

It’s unusual to find a senior manager who’s worked at Italian, Taiwanese and Japanese firms. How do the corporate cultures differ?

“I cannot find so many differences between Japanese and Taiwanese, especially because Kymco, as you know, started as a Honda branch in Taiwan, so there is not a big difference. The big difference I noticed was when I arrived at Ducati because 98% of people that work in Ducati are motorcyclists. There is always a fight between designers and engineers, this is normal, but if you fight with an engineer, who is also a motorcyclist, it is much more interesting! And as we know, this reflects on the vehicle’s design.”

What are the differences between designing a big bike like the Ducati Multistrada and a scooter?

“It depends on which kind of project and if you’re starting from a blank sheet or not. For example, when we started the CV3, it was fascinating because, okay, we had the engine, but that was it. So in that phase, from my side, it’s important to apply imagination and creativity.

For premium bike design, is the design most important, or are the finish and production materials more important?

“Small details on finishing materials are important, of course, to reach the premium level. For the AK550 Premium, I had an image of the Ferrari Roma. The AK550 is our Ferrari, they use a style that looks very elegant, so you can bring together an elegant silhouette that makes you recognisable because you are driving or riding something special.”

Finally, we asked Marasco about his favourite (nonKymco) bike design. “I have an MV Agusta F4 750 in my living room! Apart from that, I think maybe the Honda CBR600RR 2003 to 2004 or the MV Agusta F3. I also own a BMW R1200 GS Rallye, which may be ugly, but I like it for different reasons!”

The CV3 is one of the new breed of reverse-trike leaning threewheelers, like the Yamaha Niken and Tricity, and Piaggio’s MP3. They aim to give car drivers a commuting option for better traffic-beating ability while adding the extra safety of a third wheel. Unlike the Yamahas, the CV3 has a locking mechanism, so you can push it about at a standstill without it falling over, and a simple pushbutton locks or unlocks the mechanism, which also deactivates once you move off.

It has the same 51bhp power train as the AK550 but is heavier at 265kg dry, and slightly slower. There’s less under-seat storage space and no electric windscreen, but much of the spec is similar to the two-wheeled 550 scooter. The brakes are less powerful – they use standard non-Brembo callipers and have more mass to deal with.

Once you adapt to the leaning mechanism, it’s good fun in the bends. The stands deck out quite quickly, but the CV3 feels more than up to it.

It’s priced at £11,999 – which feels like it could be tempting for an out-of-town commuter looking for an alternative to four-wheels. I suspect hardcore two-wheel fans will be less keen, though.

£49.99RRP