The Honda Integra. A Malaysian Megascooter fan IMHO.
Honda's candidate in the Megascooter market. In the past 2 years this segment is growing by leaps and bounds. And it will grow even hotter for the stakeholders with BMW's entry.
BMW's entry into this segment lends a lot of credence as BMW is noted for cutting edge motoring products. It cements the known fact that this segment is not a fad but will have a long term presence and I foresee the gap between Megascooters and pure Touring bikes eventually overlapping.
I am only considering scooters with engines that are frame attached, and not those that are swinging. For this reason the Fuoco, Nexus, Leonardo, Scarabeo, X9, etc are not in this picture.
My Fuoco with fast company in the hills of Genting. Just not enough power and ground clearance.
The Honda Integra brings something seriously new to the game with the inclusion of the DCT gearbox.
Geared scooters went out of fashion when Vespa stopped production of its traditional line where the gear and clutch is set together on the left handlebar grip.Current ones are CVT, clutch less and gear less.
Suzuki introduced the 650Burgman early in this millineum, and with it, saw the introduction of a stepped CVT where the rider has the option of shifting manually. BUT it is not a gearbox in the true sense.
Aprilla with the Mana also did the same this.
BMW however, stayed with the traditional CVT despite having plenty of experience with DSG gearbox in its cars. This is probably because the engine/gearbox/drivetrain is from Kymco, so inserting a DSG requires too much work.
Parking lot test of the C600
Honda also sterred away from the traditional smaller wheels of scooters, preferring motorcycle sized rims. The front is a sportsbike 120/70-17 while the rear is 160/60-17. This allows the Integra owner to have a vast choice of tyres.
Currently the Megascooter main players are the Aprillia SRV 850 - VTwin 838cc 80hp 256kg, BMW C, the Touring based GT at almost the same weight as the SRV, the Sport 20kg lighter.
My GP800, now reincarnated as the Aprillia SRV850
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Suzuki's venerable Burgman650 is still 'popular'. Yamaha redid its wildly popular TMax with a 530 engine, smallest of the lot, but with a 40kg weight advantage. Kawasaki will probably bring a surprise soon.
Kymco will be introducing its 700cc scooter in the Malaysian market, probably undercutting other similar offerings by at least 20%.
The Megascooter market in Malaysia belong to BMW for now. The product is excellent, the looks second to one, and ergonomics and versatility class leading. its also the most feature laden with even heated grips option.
I suspect Kymco will do well due pricing, and also, using the same engine as the BMW, many will be drawn due to this reason. TMax will have a difficult time justifying its presence against the C600Sport. Both similar, but the C600 is better equipped, better looking, similar in performance and although heavier, not significantly so when on the move.
That leaves the Honda Integra.
More to come, but here's a video of the Integra in the hills of Genting at night. I was also testing the Sony AS15 helmet camera.
The Integra after One Year
Buying this bike is probably one of the biggest 'leap of faith' I made in recent times. Its as expensive as a BMW scooter, has a DCT gearbox ( radical, unproven ), little storage compartment, and a wheezy 51hp engine.
As a friend told me " 65k for a Honda scooter is crazy when the BMW is cheaper "
However, in the one year I've owned it, I found it to be the most entertaining bike in my garage. So much so that my GSA has been sitting covered most of the time. So much so that I sold my 'boat anchor' K16GT due lack of use.
This scooter is electric smooth, and what little power it has can be used to the max as its so accessible, and the DCT gearbox almost always finds the correct gearing in any situation, be it splitting lanes in town or hunting sportsbikes in the hills.
Its running costs is next to nothing, a full tank of 14 litres can almost touch 400km if driven sanely, but will still give 320km with a heavy throttle hand. Top speed is on the low side of 180km/h ( fast enough for me ) and its 5.5 second 0 - 100km/h means that it leaves the stoplights like a bat out of hell, merely by just twisting the throttle. Highway cruise is great between 140 - 160km/h, the rider sits serenely in great wind protection. Light rain does not get the rider wet, and in heavy rain, boots stay dry.
Its utterly reliable ( Honda you see ) has great build quality, and the servicing costs ( RM220 for oil, filter and labor) seems like a joke compared to my GSA.
After 12,000km ( most of the time spent at full revs ) a new set of Metzler Z8s went on and it handles like the first day I took it to Genting.
The aftermarket MIVV muffler makes great sound and the Givi hugger keeps the rear clean.
I find the Integra the best handling scooter I have ever owned, and i have owned the TMax, Fuoco and the GP800 ( SRV850 ). The Aprillia is faster in acceleration ( slightly ) and top speed, but I have ridden my Integra with a fast rider on a GP800 and even the SRV and have no problem leaving them behind especially on twisty roads. I have tested the C600 BMW/Kymco and prefer my lighter Integra.
The storage is tragic, but I have ordered the Givi panniers so that has now become a non-issue.
This is the best sports scooter available. The OEM Bridgestone sucks, and changing to the Z8 makes the scooter handle even better.
My Scooter;
And here's why I find the Integra Scooter entertaining. The KTM SMT990 is seriously modded.
Honda's candidate in the Megascooter market. In the past 2 years this segment is growing by leaps and bounds. And it will grow even hotter for the stakeholders with BMW's entry.
BMW's entry into this segment lends a lot of credence as BMW is noted for cutting edge motoring products. It cements the known fact that this segment is not a fad but will have a long term presence and I foresee the gap between Megascooters and pure Touring bikes eventually overlapping.
I am only considering scooters with engines that are frame attached, and not those that are swinging. For this reason the Fuoco, Nexus, Leonardo, Scarabeo, X9, etc are not in this picture.
My Fuoco with fast company in the hills of Genting. Just not enough power and ground clearance.
The Honda Integra brings something seriously new to the game with the inclusion of the DCT gearbox.
Geared scooters went out of fashion when Vespa stopped production of its traditional line where the gear and clutch is set together on the left handlebar grip.Current ones are CVT, clutch less and gear less.
Suzuki introduced the 650Burgman early in this millineum, and with it, saw the introduction of a stepped CVT where the rider has the option of shifting manually. BUT it is not a gearbox in the true sense.
Aprilla with the Mana also did the same this.
BMW however, stayed with the traditional CVT despite having plenty of experience with DSG gearbox in its cars. This is probably because the engine/gearbox/drivetrain is from Kymco, so inserting a DSG requires too much work.
Parking lot test of the C600
Honda also sterred away from the traditional smaller wheels of scooters, preferring motorcycle sized rims. The front is a sportsbike 120/70-17 while the rear is 160/60-17. This allows the Integra owner to have a vast choice of tyres.
Currently the Megascooter main players are the Aprillia SRV 850 - VTwin 838cc 80hp 256kg, BMW C, the Touring based GT at almost the same weight as the SRV, the Sport 20kg lighter.
My GP800, now reincarnated as the Aprillia SRV850
Suzuki's venerable Burgman650 is still 'popular'. Yamaha redid its wildly popular TMax with a 530 engine, smallest of the lot, but with a 40kg weight advantage. Kawasaki will probably bring a surprise soon.
Kymco will be introducing its 700cc scooter in the Malaysian market, probably undercutting other similar offerings by at least 20%.
The Megascooter market in Malaysia belong to BMW for now. The product is excellent, the looks second to one, and ergonomics and versatility class leading. its also the most feature laden with even heated grips option.
I suspect Kymco will do well due pricing, and also, using the same engine as the BMW, many will be drawn due to this reason. TMax will have a difficult time justifying its presence against the C600Sport. Both similar, but the C600 is better equipped, better looking, similar in performance and although heavier, not significantly so when on the move.
That leaves the Honda Integra.
More to come, but here's a video of the Integra in the hills of Genting at night. I was also testing the Sony AS15 helmet camera.
The Integra after One Year
Buying this bike is probably one of the biggest 'leap of faith' I made in recent times. Its as expensive as a BMW scooter, has a DCT gearbox ( radical, unproven ), little storage compartment, and a wheezy 51hp engine.
As a friend told me " 65k for a Honda scooter is crazy when the BMW is cheaper "
However, in the one year I've owned it, I found it to be the most entertaining bike in my garage. So much so that my GSA has been sitting covered most of the time. So much so that I sold my 'boat anchor' K16GT due lack of use.
This scooter is electric smooth, and what little power it has can be used to the max as its so accessible, and the DCT gearbox almost always finds the correct gearing in any situation, be it splitting lanes in town or hunting sportsbikes in the hills.
Its running costs is next to nothing, a full tank of 14 litres can almost touch 400km if driven sanely, but will still give 320km with a heavy throttle hand. Top speed is on the low side of 180km/h ( fast enough for me ) and its 5.5 second 0 - 100km/h means that it leaves the stoplights like a bat out of hell, merely by just twisting the throttle. Highway cruise is great between 140 - 160km/h, the rider sits serenely in great wind protection. Light rain does not get the rider wet, and in heavy rain, boots stay dry.
Its utterly reliable ( Honda you see ) has great build quality, and the servicing costs ( RM220 for oil, filter and labor) seems like a joke compared to my GSA.
After 12,000km ( most of the time spent at full revs ) a new set of Metzler Z8s went on and it handles like the first day I took it to Genting.
The aftermarket MIVV muffler makes great sound and the Givi hugger keeps the rear clean.
I find the Integra the best handling scooter I have ever owned, and i have owned the TMax, Fuoco and the GP800 ( SRV850 ). The Aprillia is faster in acceleration ( slightly ) and top speed, but I have ridden my Integra with a fast rider on a GP800 and even the SRV and have no problem leaving them behind especially on twisty roads. I have tested the C600 BMW/Kymco and prefer my lighter Integra.
The storage is tragic, but I have ordered the Givi panniers so that has now become a non-issue.
This is the best sports scooter available. The OEM Bridgestone sucks, and changing to the Z8 makes the scooter handle even better.
My Scooter;
And here's why I find the Integra Scooter entertaining. The KTM SMT990 is seriously modded.
