nzray
Junior Dawg
Posts: 8 
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Post by nzray on Aug 9, 2012 18:10:50 GMT -5
Hi Shoupdawg, thanks for sharing your experience. Regarding the fuel consumption, I felt it has a lot to do with my riding style.
With stock air filter, the scoot doesn't feel as powerful as it is and I tend to be more conservative when riding. As the result I got better mpg than with my modified filter. This could be just me but it's something you may want to consider as well.
Looking forward to HID mod.
Ray
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Post by Kiwiscoot on Aug 12, 2012 19:02:53 GMT -5
Maybe replacing the mesh of the stock air filter with expanded mesh (like gutter-guard) would be another way to go if you are concerned about the paper being sucked into the engine.
IMO the foam is a cost saving as the stock filter gets dirty quite quickly.
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nzray
Junior Dawg
Posts: 8
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Post by nzray on Aug 13, 2012 17:44:56 GMT -5
I am not too worried about the paper filter being sucked into the engine, as the stock filter is well glued to the frame all around. But for those who are worried, trying a mesh with less blockage can be an good option.
I got my new stock filter put in last week (to spare the old one for the filter mod) and I will see how long it can last in Wellington.
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 13, 2012 23:54:37 GMT -5
Ray - I got expanded mesh, a gutter guard actually (like Kiwi mentions) for use with my foam filter. As to the HID install, I took my bike apart today and installed the DDM Tuning H4 HID kit with hi-lo option. They will stay on for 2 seconds and then will shut off. The hi-lo function works which is good because the wiring on the relay harness isn't labeled. I ran the engine for a few minutes thinking it would warm up the bulbs (even though they were off) and when I came back and flicked the hi-lo, it went on, but alas would also turn off after 2 seconds. I did some research online and found this: forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?3059743-FAQ-for-HID-Xenon-HID-bulb-out-HID-flickering-Relay-harnesses-General-HID-info-etc. Looks like low voltage at the input to the ballast during startup...in other words, the Citycom's wiring isn't made for the HID??? I do have a call into DDM Tuning Tech Support. Hopefully, they have seen this before and can give me some input. If they can't, I will try changing the battery with a spare unopened one I have. I'll keep y'all posted. I love the HID bulbs...had one on my old SYM and it was great. I rode home on the freeway a couple of weeks ago and I had to go really slow because I couldn't see that far ahead of me! I will be doing quite a few nighttime drives in the coming weeks so I'd like to get this situated right away. |
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Post by ootscoot on Aug 14, 2012 22:47:57 GMT -5
I wonder if that solenoid that flicks the lights off for a brief second when starting is interfering with the ballast voltage...
...this thread is so massive, there might be info on that issue in here somewhere!
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Post by symluver on Aug 16, 2012 9:03:56 GMT -5
Hey everyone. I am the proud new second owner of a 2009 Citycom. The bike sat in the dealer showroom until last June when it was purchased by the first owner. He bought a Harley and sold the Citycom to me with 3000km on it. It wasn't even dirty. This thread was the definite inspiration to buy this bike. I am in the same boat as symluver as the local dealer does not carry Sym anymore. Larger scoots are of no interest to most people here. They either want 50's so they don't need a motorcycle license, or if they get their license they want a motorcycle. So I got a VERY sweet deal on this Citycom. I have been riding a Tomos Nitro for 4 years so this is a big step up. Loving everything about this bike. Only had it a week so far but I foresee nothing but a lot of smiling on my part. Hey there! I believe I know exactly who's scooter u bought! I think we may live closer to each other than we think! Haha!  |
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Post by symluver on Aug 16, 2012 9:14:29 GMT -5
Hi Symlover, sorry to feel your despair with the brakes. Front & rear are the same on mine. The factory manual shows the back to be a square one, but my one has the same brakes front & rear. Look on page 8 of my thread scootdawg.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=200cc&action=display&thread=16772&page=8 for a list of brake pads & part numbers from a number of manufacturers. You should be able to lay the new pads onto the old ones and see why they don't fit. I am a bit surprised as those pads looked like the ones that would fit my scoot. Hope you get it sorted soon & be Smiling Your Miles. Kiwiscoot Brakepad life is like tire life. Depends on your riding style, your weight and remember the Citycom is a pretty heavy scoot. One Vespa owner told me proudly he gets 7000kms from a set of tires & brake pads. Honestly I would be disappointed if I got only that. Hey guys! I finally found the right brakes! Bought them off of these people! www.scooterworks.com The brake pads were $19 and the shipping just over $20. Very nice place to buy all ur scooter needs! So if anyone needs brakes, that's where I bought them from!  |
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Post by audioguy1 on Aug 16, 2012 11:27:17 GMT -5
Hey there! I believe I know exactly who's scooter u bought! I think we may live closer to each other than we think! Haha! [/quote] I think I've seen your bike around the city. I love this Citycom. I have been out on the highway a few times already and it's great. I'm sure we'll run into each other. |
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 16, 2012 19:54:40 GMT -5
I wonder if that solenoid that flicks the lights off for a brief second when starting is interfering with the ballast voltage... ...this thread is so massive, there might be info on that issue in here somewhere! Read through all of it and don't recall seeing it. I tried the flip switch thing to no avail. |
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nzray
Junior Dawg
Posts: 8
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Post by nzray on Aug 16, 2012 20:23:39 GMT -5
Regarding the voltage, I am getting my voltmeter from HK soon and am planning to do some grounding/earthing jobs around the bike. Will report back if this little project improves our bike in any way.
Places to be directly wired from the negative terminal of battery are: engine starter, regulator/rectifier, top of the cylinder where a nut is close to spark plug and main lights.
Keen to hear your experience if you had done anything like this before.
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Post by symluver on Aug 17, 2012 19:25:11 GMT -5
Hey there! I believe I know exactly who's scooter u bought! I think we may live closer to each other than we think! Haha! I think I've seen your bike around the city. I love this Citycom. I have been out on the highway a few times already and it's great. I'm sure we'll run into each other.[/quote] I do ALOT of riding! It would be nice to meet up! Did you get the guy lower than his asking price? Why dont you message me on here and i can give you my cell number! |
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Post by ootscoot on Aug 17, 2012 19:34:18 GMT -5
The New 2013 SYM Citycom 300i will be arriving here in the USA next month! Look forward to checking them out! MSRP is gonna be around $4600.
I have a 2010 (one of only a few in the USA) and find it to be a smoother more powerful ride than my other two 2009 Citycoms - I believe the 2013's will be more like the 2010 than the 2009.
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 18, 2012 0:14:53 GMT -5
Regarding the voltage, I am getting my voltmeter from HK soon and am planning to do some grounding/earthing jobs around the bike. Will report back if this little project improves our bike in any way. Places to be directly wired from the negative terminal of battery are: engine starter, regulator/rectifier, top of the cylinder where a nut is close to spark plug and main lights. Keen to hear your experience if you had done anything like this before. I haven't done that. However, I originally grounded the grounds to the apparatus that holds up the coolant resevoir. Then, I moved it to a nut and bolt assembly above that and nearing the steering column. Still only turned on for 2 seconds. I extended the short-wired grounds by splicing 16 gauge wire to directly to the negative battery terminal. That also only lasted 2 seconds. I look forward to your report NZ. I am still awaiting a call back from DDM Tuning. I'm free the first part of Tuesday and will attempt to call them again. |
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 18, 2012 0:32:02 GMT -5
The New 2013 SYM Citycom 300i will be arriving here in the USA next month! Look forward to checking them out! MSRP is gonna be around $4600. I have a 2010 (one of only a few in the USA) and find it to be a smoother more powerful ride than my other two 2009 Citycoms - I believe the 2013's will be more like the 2010 than the 2009. Oot - Please post when they're in. I regularly ride up to SB with my scooter buddies and definitely would like to pass by! |
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Post by ootscoot on Aug 18, 2012 9:02:52 GMT -5
Yep, glad to - supposed to be soon after Labor Day.
Also, noted - I had a Citycom customer come in yesterday who had the high beam of one of the headlights go out - the other high beam would go on for 2 seconds, then out...replaced the bad bulb and both would stay on...
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 18, 2012 9:21:15 GMT -5
Yep, glad to - supposed to be soon after Labor Day. Also, noted - I had a Citycom customer come in yesterday who had the high beam of one of the headlights go out - the other high beam would go on for 2 seconds, then out...replaced the bad bulb and both would stay on... Unfortunately, I don't think it's the bulb. I think it's too much power. My HID kit comes with one relay which plugs into either one of the female input that has the standard halogen bulbs plugged in. Even with just one relay connected, it lights up both HID lights, but again only for the 2 seconds. And when I flick or flip on high beams, it works...but again only for 2 seconds. Now I've found that if I plug in a halogen bulb into the second female input and hold down the high beam flick button, the 2 HID bulbs and that 3rd halogen bulb will all stay lit as long as I hold down. It will do the 2 seconds only thing if I flip it to high beam or just leave it on standard beam. |
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Post by phipsd on Aug 18, 2012 10:55:13 GMT -5
Shoupdawg: I have a paper copy of the article somewhere; you might find it online but I doubt it. Jennings passed away sometime ago and the testing was done about 30 years ago.
Still, air and the abrasive qualities of grit haven't changed much, nor have filters. IMHO changing to less effective filters to gain a slight bit of power or gas mileage is penny wise and pound foolish.
Any engineer worth his salt knows this.
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 18, 2012 22:52:03 GMT -5
Shoupdawg: I have a paper copy of the article somewhere; you might find it online but I doubt it. Jennings passed away sometime ago and the testing was done about 30 years ago. Still, air and the abrasive qualities of grit haven't changed much, nor have filters. IMHO changing to less effective filters to gain a slight bit of power or gas mileage is penny wise and pound foolish. Any engineer worth his salt knows this. Duly noted. I understand kiwi's an engineer and thus far, his scoot's been getting up there in miles and seems to be working. |
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Post by symluver on Aug 24, 2012 17:53:37 GMT -5
The New 2013 SYM Citycom 300i will be arriving here in the USA next month! Look forward to checking them out! MSRP is gonna be around $4600. I have a 2010 (one of only a few in the USA) and find it to be a smoother more powerful ride than my other two 2009 Citycoms - I believe the 2013's will be more like the 2010 than the 2009. Oot - Please post when they're in. I regularly ride up to SB with my scooter buddies and definitely would like to pass by! Why are the 2009's not as smooth and powerful? |
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Post by massscoot on Aug 25, 2012 9:04:32 GMT -5
Oot - Please post when they're in. I regularly ride up to SB with my scooter buddies and definitely would like to pass by! Why are the 2009's not as smooth and powerful? I think that when Carter Brothers (the former USA distributor) had a warehouse fire (maybe arson?) Anyway...They had some Citicom 300's left without damage. They kept them for some time with draining the fuel etc. & then finally sold them to dealers. As I recall many people had issues with the 2009 models. Please don't quote me on that, as I'm not exactly 100% sure. Just that I thought I read that somewhere. |
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Post by Kiwiscoot on Aug 26, 2012 17:28:26 GMT -5
Shoupdawg: I have a paper copy of the article somewhere; you might find it online but I doubt it. Jennings passed away sometime ago and the testing was done about 30 years ago. Still, air and the abrasive qualities of grit haven't changed much, nor have filters. IMHO changing to less effective filters to gain a slight bit of power or gas mileage is penny wise and pound foolish. Any engineer worth his salt knows this. Duly noted. I understand kiwi's an engineer and thus far, his scoot's been getting up there in miles and seems to be working. It is always good to have both views when changing things - keeps perspective & remind one to check both "for" & "against" aspects as with all things engineering there are always compromises. The Citycom we ride is a sum of compromises, cost vs reliability, performance vs fuel consumption, reliability vs weight, etc. Physics (air, grit, velocity etc.) has not changed in the last 30 years, but technology has. 30 years ago people use 30W engine oil in air filters, now we use sticky oil specially formulated for filtration. Testing done 30 years ago may or may not be relevant today with new foams, oil, etc. Looking at current testing all (I saw) are done with foam & paper filters of the same size at max flow rates. Paper is better at filtration at those testing conditions no doubt about it. Now changing the Citycom like I did is not the same as the above mentioned testing. The foam filter is double if not more in size to the paper filter. That equates to lower air velocity, bigger soil capacity,etc, the Citycom not driven at wide open throttle all the time, etc. so not the same as the above mentioned testing.The results from the testing can be learned from but cannot be applied too directly to the Citycom. That's why I love engineering - the application of science in a balance of compromises. I have found no traces of dust in the airbox between the filer & engine after 30 000+kms, which satisfies "the balance of compromises" IMHO as far as filtration vs maintenance cost vs fuel consumption, etc. goes. In the end it is what we as owners are happy with in doing to our scoots. happy Citycomming Kiwiscoot - where spring has started. |
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Post by Kiwiscoot on Aug 26, 2012 17:46:47 GMT -5
These Dr Pulley sliders are good. Changed my scoots belt for the 3rd time now and checked & cleaned the variator. No discernible wear on the sliders. Cleaned the clutch assembly too. Shoes still has 5mm, which is excellent for the mileage. Got my belt at half (postage included) the local cost from these guys in Greece makinaparts.com/lang-en/108-sym-enKiwiscoot - happily Citycomming |
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 26, 2012 18:08:57 GMT -5
Went on a long'ish (130-140 miles roundtrip) ride yesterday. There were 203 scooters at our annual "Swerve & Curve" here in Los Angeles. Got the best MPG I've ever gotten out of my scoot...84.86. Also, got lots of compliments from fellow scooterists and there were many there...lambrettas, vespa's, kymco's and some others i didn't recognize. You had some really suped up burgman's and some really old scoots and everything in between. Quick shot of the parking lot we were gathering in.  One view of one of our stops on the ride along the Pacific Ocean  Another view from the other side:  A few of us in on the road...203 scooters rumbling past is quite the sight. In this first one, the pacific ocean is in the background. Can't really see it due to the reflection of the light.  My citycom and I are the 3rd one back (white helmet) behind the red vespa out front.   I'm the one in the middle with the white helmet...my 300 is in front of me.  Some random pictures:    |
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Post by Kiwiscoot on Aug 26, 2012 18:24:50 GMT -5
looks like you had a great time & the Citycom just rounded the ralley off nicely IMHO
kiwiscoot
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Post by audioguy1 on Aug 26, 2012 20:04:23 GMT -5
That looks like it would have been a blast. One of my bucket list items is to drive the PCH. It was supposed to be in my Mustang, but I sold that after 25 years, so maybe on my CityCom now. |
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 27, 2012 13:50:27 GMT -5
Kiwi - I believe I was the only citycom there. As far as other sym's, I saw a souped up 50 cc Mio and one red rv250. Hopefully more next year! Last year supposedly had 120 riders; we had over 200 this year...  for 2013? Audio - PCH never gets old. My brother just moved down to Marina Del Rey so the shortest (but not the fastest) route to him will take me through the twisties of topanga then down to PCH each time! |
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Post by symluver on Aug 27, 2012 14:27:06 GMT -5
That looks like it would have been a blast. One of my bucket list items is to drive the PCH. It was supposed to be in my Mustang, but I sold that after 25 years, so maybe on my CityCom now. Hey if you wanna drive with some other scooters, and another Citycom, then let me know... I belong to a couple of scooter clubs here in Winnipeg that you may be interested in. One is a club that goes out on the highway (www.ridersclub.ca) and the other one is just a small club that meets at the Forks on Sundays at 2pm.. I have been looking forward to seeing your bike! Hopefully we can meet up sometime shortly! Just talked to the previous owner of your bike yesterday at Tim Hortons.. north main..... haha |
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Post by symluver on Aug 27, 2012 14:28:26 GMT -5
Went on a long'ish (130-140 miles roundtrip) ride yesterday. There were 203 scooters at our annual "Swerve & Curve" here in Los Angeles. Got the best MPG I've ever gotten out of my scoot...84.86. Also, got lots of compliments from fellow scooterists and there were many there...lambrettas, vespa's, kymco's and some others i didn't recognize. You had some really suped up burgman's and some really old scoots and everything in between. Quick shot of the parking lot we were gathering in. One view of one of our stops on the ride along the Pacific Ocean Another view from the other side: A few of us in on the road...203 scooters rumbling past is quite the sight. In this first one, the pacific ocean is in the background. Can't really see it due to the reflection of the light. My citycom and I are the 3rd one back (white helmet) behind the red vespa out front. I'm the one in the middle with the white helmet...my 300 is in front of me. Some random pictures: Wow, i have never driven with so many scoots before! Looks like fun! Maybe thats where my next road trip will take me next year! |
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Post by shoupdawg on Aug 27, 2012 21:12:23 GMT -5
symluver - the more the merrier. i'll try to remember to post swerve n' curve 14 on here next year! i'm also going to ameri-vespa in june of 2013. it's open to all scoots so i gotta represent with the sym bike! that's supposed to be 4 times as large...over 800 scooters.
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Post by symluver on Aug 27, 2012 23:46:47 GMT -5
symluver - the more the merrier. i'll try to remember to post swerve n' curve 14 on here next year! i'm also going to ameri-vespa in june of 2013. it's open to all scoots so i gotta represent with the sym bike! that's supposed to be 4 times as large...over 800 scooters. The biggest ride I have ever been on, was the "Ride for Dad" here in Winnipeg, in support of Prostate Cancer Research. Not sure if i can post YouTube links on here, but if it works, and you can see the video, I am the bike on the far left side of the frame, at 1:03 haha... Surrounded by Harleys haha... www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKs7DsOvdnU |
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for 2013?