Scooter Review Piaggio X8 250 i.e. All aboard the Peak Hour Flier Maxi de luxe
Sweet handling $7690+orc
Words by DIETER STEINBUSCH, photography by LOU MARTIN Let’s start with the negatives and get them out of the way, so that, by the time you’ve finished reading this, you’ll have forgotten them because it’d be unfair to judge the bike on the basis of a few misgivings. I know it’s Italian and therefore allowed some ‘character’ to complement its heritage; however, when you’re using it as your main transport, you expect the factory to get it right in a Japanese manner.
As soon as you get on Piaggio’s X8 250 and pick it up slightly, you will notice what is known as a suicide stand. The side stand will flick back straight away into its holding position, and you just have to be careful not to bump the machine and have it fall over.
 Take off and come to the first corner, hit the brakes and that’s when you notice the lack of bite from the single-disc front end. The feeling from the 260mm disc with a twin piston floating caliper was more wooden than a log cabin. I continually realised that I was using the front brake turning into and through the corner while trailing the rear brake (which, incidentally, is absolutely fantastic). In fact, the 240mm stainless rear disc coupled to an opposed-piston caliper was so good I had to keep reminding myself to squeeze the lever lightly as it had a tendency to lock up under hard use.
Back to the front, I suspected the brake pads had glazed up, or the brake line needed to be bled with new fluid. At the end of the day I decided to put more pressure on the front brake, a change of habit coming from road bikes. This made a slight improvement, making me think that perhaps they had designed the X8 more for a novice so as to not make them fearful of locking up the front end. There are mounting points located on the other fork leg for a second disc which, according to Piaggio, is for use on the 400cc version of the X8. So you’ll have to wait ’til May if you like a bit more stopping power.
If you’re taller than 180cm make sure the dealer throws in a set of earplugs. The wind noise is pretty bad once you get above 60km/h, full-face or no full-face helmet. Again you would think the Italians would have grown taller over the past three decades. It’s worth looking into getting a screen to suit, because with all of these simple problems sorted, you would then have the ladies’ and gentlemen’s express.
Express service
 Now that I’ve got that off my chest, let us start talking about the scooter. The X8 originally came out in 125cc and 200cc versions and now, with this bike, Piaggio has released it with what is known as the Quasar 250cc engine. Basically it’s a single-cylinder, four-stroke, four-valve, liquid-cooled donk. Governed by electronic fuel injection, the engine will pump out a claimed 16.2kw. Transfer all that to the road and you have yourself a fairly quick scooter that can take off from the lights and get you into the 60-80km/h express zone before you’ve reached the other side of the intersection. Very comforting when you’re traveling in city traffic and need that extra torque to avoid getting into difficult situations.
The X8 was happy cruising at 100km/h on the freeway and even had a bit more in reserve for overtaking. Piaggio claims a top speed of 126km/h with a running weight of 178kg. The Quasar 250cc is a unit designed by Piaggio to meet Euro3 standards to create a more “environmentally friendly engine” complete with three-way catalytic converter. The fuel-injection works a treat, with no fl at spots through the power delivery. The great pick-up between throttle and engine is especially convincing when you twist the throttle coming out of a bend. It offers nice, smooth and fl uid drive with just enough torque to drive you out of the corner efficiently. Very impressive. Helping with all this is what Piaggio calls the “ twist and go” automatic clutch with continuously variable transmission (CVT).
Proof & pudding
Now that we know where the “express” comes from, can we stretch the definition to include corners? My word we can. At first I was a little hesitant taking it around corners, mostly from past experiences trying to push around a scooter with a 12-inch front wheel and a moving bag of wet tea towels. Slowly I began to get more aggressive with the front and the X8 took up the challenge, allowing for faster entry speeds and turning more tightly in the corner. The 14-inch front wheel together with a 12-inch rear makes the X8 a very neutral handling scooter, and hitting a bump mid-corner does nothing to upset the steering.
 The lack of a second disc up front – which disturbed me at first – is part of the reason the X8 steered so effortlessly. The less rotating mass spinning about the axle, the easier it is to steer and the light handling makes up for the braking (once you get used to it).
The whole geometry of the scooter allows you quite convincingly to ride as if you’re on a motorcycle. At one stage I had my feet resting on the passenger’s footrests and my knees out feeling very at ease, but looking unlike a gentleman should.
The part of the X8 scooter which makes it so appealing to a lady or gentleman is the Italian fl air incorporated in the design. Not very often have I seen a bike receive as many looks as this one from both males and females when parked. Whether they’re attracted to the front and rear styling of the lights, both wrapping around their respected body parts like a well fitting bra and a pair of jocks, or the way it makes you want to sit on it and feel comfortable. And it does feel comfortable. I can see city folk dressed up smartyl, riding around town during the day and then, at night, scooting around different haunts with their partner or friend as the mood takes them.
Underneath those comfortable but firm seats lies the boot. Press one of three remote buttons located on the scoot or key to access the space under the seat or to lift the rear boot lid. Very fancy. There is enough space for two full-face helmets plus a jacket. Even a couple of 50x75mm pieces of timber no longer than 800mm could fit in the space with all seat and boot lids closed. There’s also the standard hook to hang more shopping bags in between where your feet sit, as well as a small glove box for easy access to your phone, wallet and keys. If you need to charge the phone there’s a 12V outlet.
All the instruments are old-school analogue, and include temperature gauge, speedo, clock and fuel gauge – very tasteful – along with the usual selection of warning lights underneath, letting you know exactly what’s going on.
Playtime
As with all ladies and gentlemen, there is the other side of work time X8: playtime X8. Coming back late at night in minimal traffic, cruising from some long-forgotten and ill-conceived public launch of another Italian marque, I found myself sitting on the rear seat so the wind was in my face, legs forward, slowly changing lanes thinking of Peter Fonda in Easy Rider Italian style. Imagine if those two gentlemen, Captain America and Billy had these bikes to ride, with all that boot space...
At the end of the day, ladies and gentlemen, the 250cc Piaggio X8 represents practicality, great handling, decent power with good looks and something to have some enjoyment with. But be careful, that first date might lead to heavy petting....
published 1/07/2007 |