Thread: Modern Kinetic Flyte

Kinetic Sym's first Indian product the Flyte. To give you a little background, Kinetic took pains to explain that they left nothing to chance, so everything was market researched in fine detail. The Flyte is based on the X'Pro 125, which looks visually nearly identical to the Flyte. The X'Pro happens to be one of the most popular of Sym's range worldwide. What they changed was the seat shape and design, eliminating the step in the seat and raising the ride height to clear Indian roads. And that's more or less it.

Since we always end up looking at the bikes first it would seem natural to start there. A couple of journos there were already making noises about how Kristal the front looks and how Pep+ the rear looks. And I have to admit they do. But then again, the X'Pro preceded both in the inter¬national markets, so I don't really care either way. The Flyte looks like I would expect a 125cc scooter to look. I wish it looked sleeker, like Sym's Fighter, but I have no bones to pick on the looks front. I think the ladies will like it. What gets me is the build quality and finish, which is miles ahead of anything Kinetic has produced so far. Panels sit perfectly, the scooter is prop¬erly symmetric it's really quite good.

In fact Kinetic say that after they discussed the parts for the Flyte with the suppliers, they chose to import almost 18 per cent of the scooter (including the aluminium telescopic fork, crankcase and other stuff) rather than risk lower quality products made in India. The localisation of these parts, evidently, depends on whether Indian suppliers can match and exceed Sym's rather strict quality standards. This, for Kinetic as a whole, is a good thing in the short and long terms. Sym have also led to closer quality control in other processes and the result is that you should get noticeably higher quality products from Kinetic. whether it is Sym products or Italiano-line bikes.



As I've said, I rode only for a short while and since I've only just climbed off a P220, my performance judgements could be off. The engine is refined and almost lazy in feel. Not slow, but like it isn't making too much effort to get the work done. In the lpace I had, I gusted up close to top whack. raising only the engine note volume rather Ihan altering the tone. The vario-tranny 1icks up cleanly, does not judder and yes, 'd say refinement is up to scratch. I didn't Ihink the scooter was noticeably faster than he competition, but I haven't ridden an diva in a while. so the bum-dyno could be off. Handling felt secure and agile, and the de quality was quite nice too. The centre 'land on my machine was thumping off the .nderside over potholes, but again, I was lding a pre-production prototype. The Drakes felt really good. Again, while I think disc would be better, 130mm drums, with 'ppy tyres and most importantly teleopic forks, work really well. It's link-type spension that causes braking problems nder panic braking.

The flyte also has some neat features, a weird magnetic anti-theft device that's embedded in the key, a pop-up fuel lid on the front panel and an outside cell¬phone charger that ensures you only open the seat to access storage. not because your bum's been vibrating thanks to your cellphone that's charging underneath. No, I do not speak from personal experience. Kinetic says the storage is 'brightly lit' too. Kinetic are targeting both Pep+ customers who prefer the lighter, more compact feel of the TV5 bike. and Activa customers who should get a state-of-the-art. Feature-loaded scooter with similar or better performance for less money.