Non-Existent Support & Suspicious Workshop Practices
Buying a Kymco People S 125 ABS in July turned out to be the beginning of a genuine logistical and mechanical nightmare.
Although the vehicle is solid on paper, the management of the official service network and Kymco's customer support are completely unacceptable. Here are the main points:
Useless website and call center:
At around 800 km, I looked for a workshop for the first 1,000 km service ahead of the August holiday season. The official website and call center provided no actual help; they have a list of workshops, but they don't know whether they are open or closed. I had to call 6 workshops within a 50 km radius on my own just to find one that was open.
First service and first damages:
Once the service was done, I picked up the scooter, only to discover two days later that the windshield screws had been left loose on the dashboard. Shortly after, the vehicle developed an abnormal noise and was visibly dragging its brakes. The issue with the front brake started right here.
Kymco Care and logistical chaos:
I called Kymco Care, only to discover that it is merely a towing service with zero customer support. I then realized I had to search for an available workshop on my own once again. The mechanic assigned to me—whom I contacted after three days—verbally attacked me over the phone, claiming he hadn't received anything, asking if the scooter had been purchased from him, and shouting that he no longer wanted to provide Kymco service.
Missing scooter and police intervention:
I requested to redirect the transport to another workshop that, according to reviews, seemed reliable. A week went by, and the scooter never arrived at the workshop. I called Kymco Care almost daily, receiving vague answers and zero actual action. I was forced to go to the Carabinieri (local police) to file a stolen vehicle report. Only the day after an informal intervention by the desk officer did the vehicle magically reappear and get promptly delivered to the workshop.
Tampering and the warranty insult:
The mechanic took in the scooter and discovered the cause of the brake lockup I had been riding with: the front brake caliper had been secured with non-original screws, and the piston was bent. The result? The warranty was declared void, leaving me to cover over €300 in repairs for a defect/tampering.
Tampering carried out by whom...?
When the only one to work on it was one of their authorized service centers...
What am I supposed to think...?
In summary:
Zero quality control over the service network, non-existent customer support, and a customer left alone to pay for the incompetence or negligence of their own contracted mechanics. Terrible experience, strongly advise against it.
Only in Italy?