America’s Fastest Scooter Rips Like A Sportbike And Rides Like A Cadillac

Scooters are a deeply underrated way to enjoy the two-wheeled life. A scooter is easy to learn, forgiving to ride, and can be as comfortable as a couch. America usually misses out on the best and fastest scooters, but not this time. Kymco has just announced its next generation of big touring scooters, and America is getting it. The Kymco AK 550i Premium is basically the scooter equivalent of a Cadillac, and it’s the fastest scooter you can buy in America right now.

There aren’t a ton of maxi-scooters currently for sale on the market in the United States right now. BMW is willing to sell you its C 400 GT, which has 34 HP from a 350cc single-cylinder engine. There’s also the Suzuki Burgman 400, a favorite of scooter riders, which makes about 32 HP from its 400cc single-cylinder engine. Then there’s the Yamaha XMAX, which shoots 28 HP from its 292cc single. Finally, Piaggio sells its three-wheeled MP3 530 in America, and that one is pretty chunky and gets a 530cc single with 44.2 HP on tap.

No matter which maxi that you choose, you’re getting a scoot that weighs well over 400 pounds, but is luxurious and is also reasonably good at touring. Yet, there was a time when the maxi-scooters sold in America were even bigger and even faster, such as when Suzuki gave us the Burgman 650, which was like the equivalent of a Rolls-Royce on two wheels.

If you’re looking for the biggest, meanest, and fastest two-wheeled road-legal vehicle that still calls itself a scooter, you pretty much have one choice in America, the Kymco AK 550i. This scooter is entering its next generation in America with the new AK 550i Premium, and Kymco has made its already comfy scooter even more plush.

A Big Deal

Kymco is one of those names that might not have the brand power of Honda or Harley-Davidson, but it’s still recognized worldwide. If you want an affordable motorcycle or scooter that’s built with pretty decent quality, Kymco, which is based in Taiwan, is a brand that you might end up with. From the company:

Founded in 1964, KYMCO originally started out with technology transfer from Honda, Japan. With the technical know-how from Honda, KYMCO became one of Honda’s high-quality overseas manufacturing facilities. As the relationship developed over the next two decades, Honda increased its business interest in KYMCO and became a significant shareholder of KYMCO.

The first model manufactured by KYMCO was the C200 launched in 1964. The Hao Mai 125, manufactured from 1990 to 2008, was the first model to sell over 1 million units.

In 1992, KYMCO began selling products developed independently from Honda and marketed under KYMCO brand. In 2003, after 28 years of close collaboration with Honda, KYMCO acquired back Honda’s business interest in KYMCO and started focusing on developing and marketing KYMCO’s own brand globally.

The cool thing about Kymco is that it’s still doing all of those fun partnerships. For example, the range extender engine that’s housed inside the BMW i3 is based on the BMW C 650 (above) scooter engine. Kymco has also provided a 449cc engine to BMW for the G450 X Enduro.

Kymco is currently in bed with Harley-Davidson spinoff LiveWire to help engineer the firm’s next-generation bikes. In other words, Kymco is a pretty big deal and not a company to just dismiss for not having a more famous image!

The AK 550i Premium

The new scooter that Kymco has announced is only the next generation of a concept that it has been playing around with for a tad under a decade.

In 2016, Kymco rolled into the Tokyo Motor Show with the K50 prototype, Kymco’s first luxury maxi-scooter and one aimed squarely at the Yamaha T-Max. Kymco didn’t handle all of the engineering itself and got some help from Soluzioni Ingegneria. According to the Italian motorcycle press, Soluzioni Ingegneria worked alongside Kymco from the initial design to pre-production, aiding the bike maker hit its comfort, rideability, and stability targets. Later, Soluzioni Ingegneria helped Kymco create a phone app that helps owners inspect wear items on their AK 550is.

The AK 550i went into production in 2017, and the scooter packed a punch right from launch. Power came from a 550.4cc inline twin good for 51 HP and 38.4 lb-ft of torque, delivered to the rear wheel through a CVT. That wouldn’t be a ton of power for a motorcycle, but it’s more than healthy for a scooter. But, again, this isn’t any normal scooter, either. The AK 550i weighed 498 pounds and had a top speed of 100 mph. Try doing that on your old two-stroke Vespa!

In 2020, power was upgraded to 53.7 HP and 40.5 lb-ft of torque. Then, just a year later, the AK 550i arrived in America, and was immediately crowned as America’s fastest mass-production scooter. The AK 550i isn’t even far off from the previous king, the Suzuki Burgman 650, which made 54 HP from a larger 638cc parallel-twin engine.

Now, Kymco says, it’s time to crank up the luxury.

The new AK 550i Premium seems to be all about comfort features, which makes a ton of sense because the primary reason to buy a chunky scooter would be to take it touring. Kymco talks up features like an electronically adjustable windshield, cruise control, Bosch lean-sensitive ABS, traction control, and heated grips. Other noted goodies include improved instrumentation, ride modes, and full LED lighting.

Thankfully, according to the current spec sheet, the U.S. version of the AK 550i Premium does get the slightly hotter engine tune. That should be more than enough power to handily outrun someone on a Burgman 400 and it’s still faster than the Piaggio MP3 530.

Kymco lists the dry weight of the AK 550i Premium to be 492 pounds. Sometimes maxi-scooters weigh even more than this, and Kymco says its use of aluminum for the AK 550i’s frame helps keep at least some of the weight off. Suspension duties are handled by a 41mm inverted fork and a monoshock taking up the rear. Stopping power is doled out by Brembo four-piston calipers munching on a pair of 270mm discs. A twin piston caliper punching a 260mm plate brings up the rear. Seat height is an accessible 30.9 inches.

Maxi-scooters like this fall into a rather exciting niche. They have the engine performance and handling of a large motorcycle, but the ease of use of a scooter. In a weird way, these scooters are often the best of both worlds. At the same time, you can also argue that this isn’t so much a scooter as it is a motorcycle with a slightly step-through design and a CVT. That’s pretty fair.

Anyway, in my experience, these types of scooters are a total riot to ride, and with only basic accessories like cases, these things can be taken on real cross-country journeys.

Big Fun, Big Price

Of course, there is a catch, and it’s that the Kymco AK 550i Premium starts at $12,199. That gets you all of the kit I noted above. That makes the Kymco a few grand more expensive than a well-equipped BMW C 400 GT, which will be in the ballpark of around $9,930, and competitive with the weird $11,999 Piaggio. Meanwhile, a Suzuki Burgman is $8,799.

It’s a little hard to compare prices here because Kymco’s direct competitor, the Yamaha TMAX, is not sold in America. So, if you’re looking for the biggest and fastest brand-new scooter, you really have only one choice. The question will be whether paying the extra money will be worth the handful of extra ponies and their associated speed.

Either way, I’m stoked to see big scoots still landing in America. Maxi-scooters are more of a niche in America than they are in other countries, so it’s awesome to see that some companies aren’t forgetting about us. If you’re as weird as I am and the thought of a 100 mph motorcycle-sized scooter sounds like a ton of fun, it sounds like you have some test rides ahead of you. I know I’m going to try to find one.