Post by monty57 on Aug 4, 2007 14:21:46 GMT -5
I have my RR 250 TLX for sale since I purchased the Majesty and today I thought I had better start and run it for while just to make sure it is ready if someone comes to look.
It did start and I took it out for spin and you know, it still is not a bad scooter for the money. The first thing you do notice is that it is not as quiet as the Yamaha. Not engine or drive train wise but wheel, tire and body noises and rattles. I still believe a lot if this is due to "not so good" fit of body parts and no rubber isolation in the body mounts. I still found it spunky and actually pretty impressive in the power area. Ride is smooth and almost as comfortable as the Yamaha and believe it or not I think I like the drivers saddle better. The passenger area is where the Yamaha gets the nod from my wife and two up the Majesty does ride better.
In the control department I also prefer the Roadrunner handlebar grips over the Yamaha. They just fit my hand better. The signal light switch feels better in the Yamaha but I like the "passing high beam" option on the Roadrunner. As far as the mirror go they both need some improvement. The Majesty's are too narrow and Roadrunner reflect more vibration.
Ease of service on the engine is a toss up. The oil dipstick fill and drain are at about the same location on both and relatively easy to get to. Coolant tanks on the other hand are another area where they need to do some thinking. You need a screw driver to get to both. The Roadrunner is behind a side inspection plate and required the removal of one screw. On the Yamaha you have to remove the running board cover, remove the screw and plate and then look at the tank. The manual say to check the level before each ride. I don't think that will happen. The last thing I want to do is have to get out the tools before every ride. I think I will put my faith in the temp gage and check it periodically when I do my monthly once over. Also I am still not sure where the radiator cap is on the Yamaha but the Roadrunners is behind the front cowl and the cowl has to be removed to fill and burp the system. The Yamaha manual say to let the dealer do it so it must just as hard to get to. I will let you know as I explore it further.
All in all, sure I like the Yamaha better. It is a lot of scooter and from a great manufacturer but it did cost almost three times more than the Roadrunner sold for, delivered to my door. I had to go get the Yamaha. No big deal but still all thing considered if your budget is tight and you know your way around a tool box these Chinese beauties are still a heck of "bang for the buck", a little bit of a fun challenge and great fun to ride. I have to tell you if I had more time to tinker I think I would keep the RR and just see how far I could go with tweaking process but unfortunately I still at the age where I need to store up acorns for the retirement winter and they expect me to spend time doing my job. Go figure.
It does seem that each month a new and better model hits the shores and the race of scooter superiority is on. It might take a few years but I think it won't be too long when the Chinese will be giving the Japanese a run for their "scooter money". I also agree with Stan that with some proper promotion the the 2k price barrier will be broken and we will see a bunch more scooter for not much more money. I think that 3k to 4k bracket will bring some surprisingly good quality to scooter industry. If you look at other area where the Chinese have risen to the occasion such as electronics and subcontracting of parts for other industries the ability is there it just has to move into the scooter industry.
Obviously it is too hot in the Midwest to do anything else but type in AC with a cool drink but I have rambled on enough and will stop for now.
It did start and I took it out for spin and you know, it still is not a bad scooter for the money. The first thing you do notice is that it is not as quiet as the Yamaha. Not engine or drive train wise but wheel, tire and body noises and rattles. I still believe a lot if this is due to "not so good" fit of body parts and no rubber isolation in the body mounts. I still found it spunky and actually pretty impressive in the power area. Ride is smooth and almost as comfortable as the Yamaha and believe it or not I think I like the drivers saddle better. The passenger area is where the Yamaha gets the nod from my wife and two up the Majesty does ride better.
In the control department I also prefer the Roadrunner handlebar grips over the Yamaha. They just fit my hand better. The signal light switch feels better in the Yamaha but I like the "passing high beam" option on the Roadrunner. As far as the mirror go they both need some improvement. The Majesty's are too narrow and Roadrunner reflect more vibration.
Ease of service on the engine is a toss up. The oil dipstick fill and drain are at about the same location on both and relatively easy to get to. Coolant tanks on the other hand are another area where they need to do some thinking. You need a screw driver to get to both. The Roadrunner is behind a side inspection plate and required the removal of one screw. On the Yamaha you have to remove the running board cover, remove the screw and plate and then look at the tank. The manual say to check the level before each ride. I don't think that will happen. The last thing I want to do is have to get out the tools before every ride. I think I will put my faith in the temp gage and check it periodically when I do my monthly once over. Also I am still not sure where the radiator cap is on the Yamaha but the Roadrunners is behind the front cowl and the cowl has to be removed to fill and burp the system. The Yamaha manual say to let the dealer do it so it must just as hard to get to. I will let you know as I explore it further.
All in all, sure I like the Yamaha better. It is a lot of scooter and from a great manufacturer but it did cost almost three times more than the Roadrunner sold for, delivered to my door. I had to go get the Yamaha. No big deal but still all thing considered if your budget is tight and you know your way around a tool box these Chinese beauties are still a heck of "bang for the buck", a little bit of a fun challenge and great fun to ride. I have to tell you if I had more time to tinker I think I would keep the RR and just see how far I could go with tweaking process but unfortunately I still at the age where I need to store up acorns for the retirement winter and they expect me to spend time doing my job. Go figure.
It does seem that each month a new and better model hits the shores and the race of scooter superiority is on. It might take a few years but I think it won't be too long when the Chinese will be giving the Japanese a run for their "scooter money". I also agree with Stan that with some proper promotion the the 2k price barrier will be broken and we will see a bunch more scooter for not much more money. I think that 3k to 4k bracket will bring some surprisingly good quality to scooter industry. If you look at other area where the Chinese have risen to the occasion such as electronics and subcontracting of parts for other industries the ability is there it just has to move into the scooter industry.
Obviously it is too hot in the Midwest to do anything else but type in AC with a cool drink but I have rambled on enough and will stop for now.
