Kymco Downtown 350i TCS

The large dimensions and fairly-sized body panels of the Kymco Downtown 350i make it an attention-grabber. It looks huge for a scooter, which gives it a premium aura of a powerful and desirable two-wheeler.

At the front, the Kymco Downtown 350i has a huge fascia, which comprises a dual headlamp setup sitting proudly in the middle of the front apron. Within the wing-shaped headlamp housings, which extend towards the top, there are rounded halogen headlamps, which are surrounded by rounded daytime running LEDs. These headlamps are separated by a small vertical air vent in the middle, while there is a huge transparent windscreen positioned just above the headlamps.

The side portions of the front fairing extend towards the floorboard in a zig-zag manner, while incorporating boomerang-shaped LED turn indicators in the way. The floorboard is split into two with a spine running in the middle, which accommodates the fuel tank and is accentuated by silver touches on the sides. The rear side body panels of the Kymco Downtown 350i look sleek and do not have much visual drama with unnecessary cuts and creases. Instead, these panels look clean without feeling bland.

Other highlights which make the scooter look large are the long single-sided black-themed exhaust pipe, huge step-up-themed comfortable seat and body-coloured pillion grab handle. At the rear, just behind the pillion grab rail, the Kymco Downtown 350i has got a wide and transparent tail lamp cluster, which accommodates LED tail lamp inserts and clear lens turn indicators.

The rider’s cockpit of the Kymco Downtown 350i looks very wide and modern with clip-on handlebars and a wide instrument console. The unit includes analogue gauges for the speedometer and tachometer, with a small rectangular blue-backlit LCD screen in the middle which displays the fuel gauge, temperature gauge, odometer, trip meters, clock and MID which calculates real-time fuel efficiency, average fuel efficiency and range.

The scooter also has two small storage compartments, one on each side below the handlebars. The left storage compartment also gets a USB charging socket. There is an additional big storage compartment under the seat, which is good enough to accommodate a helmet. It also has adjustable brake levers, which make it a boon for newer riders.

The lowered seat height and upright seating posture of the Kymco Downtown 350i make it a comfortable scooter not only for basic city commutes but also for long journeys, which are enjoyable thanks to the torquey and powerful engine. The scooter is bestowed with a suspension combination of telescopic forks at the front and 5-step adjustable dual-sided coil springs at the rear. The Kymco Downtown 350i rides on a 14-inch front wheel with 120/80-14 tyre and a 13-inch rear wheel with 150/70-13 tyre. For braking, the scooter is armed with a 260mm disc brake at the front and a 240mm disc brake at the rear.

Powering the Kymco Downtown 350i is a four-stroke, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled, 320.6cc engine, which is mated to a conventional belt-driven CVT gearbox. The engine promises a maximum power output of 30 PS, while the peak torque output is rated at 29.4 Nm.

For a premium scooter, the Kymco Downtown 350i is decently equipped with a couple of essentials like a dual-channel ABS and traction control, apart from the must-have lockable ignition keyhole.

The Kymco Downtown 350i has a powerful engine, a decent amount of new-age features and a comfortable ride quality, all of which combine to give it a desirable appeal that is hard to ignore. However, when compared to Japanese scooters in the same space, it has a lower quality level and brand image, which can be a concern for maxi-scooter buyers.