100CC of Fun

We all have different ideas when it comes to having fun. For kids, it’s going to the playground or playing their favorite video game on the arcade or on the computer. For some adults, it may be a hobby, a sport or a recreational activity. If your idea of having fun is swinging a leg over a motorcycle and communing with nature in a three-dimensional moving display, you are not alone. As the attendance at the first Bike Week held at the Fort confirms, the number of bikers in the country has grown tremendously.

However, if you fancy yourself as a motorcyclist, but lack the confidence and the budget to ride with the big boys, don’t fret. For every big bike rider out there, there exist about four to five scooter riders happily zipping about town. Ranging from 50cc to about 500cc, these scooters are simple to operate and offer sporty performance without the complexity of shifting gears or the bulk of those super-hyper-sports bikes.

Case in point is the subject of this road test: the Kymco Top Boy 100. It is a mid-sized scooter that is compact enough to squeeze in and out of city traffic, has outstanding acceleration yet sips gas with attendant frugality and has a functional and aesthetically pleasing design that belies its affordable price.

The first thing you’ll notice about the Top Boy is its clean yet funky styling. The scooter is available in a sportier range of two-tone colors (red/silver, yellow/silver), or in a more pragmatic monotone like our silver test bike. The twin round headlamps stand out like bug eyes, while the plastic grill headlamp cover supplied with our test bike adds a sporty flavor. Plastic hand protectors on our bike add continuity to the steering head housing while shielding your fingers from the wind or errant rocks. Controls are placed within easy reach, while the instrument panel houses a 10,000rpm tachometer, a 120kph speedometer and a fuel gauge.

A small lockable glove box/compartment resides in the front bulk head while the all-important folding hook is moved under the seat between the rider’s legs. (Gotta carry some grocery bags, you know.) Smooth, wide side panels with vent holes for engine cooling taper into the rear where the tail lamp shape echoes the tapered theme. Faux carbon fiber panels are available to spruce up the vent holes on the side panels as well as the front, and continue the faux carbon motif of the front fender and front mini-spoiler.

A large lockable under-seat compartment can hold a full-face helmet and some stuff, and the lock is well-placed at the center of the rear panel near the rear grip/mini-rack. Unlocking the seat is now a one-hand operation instead of two when the lock is placed at the side panel. However, the interior of the compartment is subject to oil and fuel contamination since the fuel filler and the oil filler is likewise under the seat. Some 2T oil splashed into the plastic underside of the seat and, combined with fuel fumes during refilling, has made the plastic a bit tacky. Care is therefore recommended when topping fuel and oil.

The 1302mm wheelbase combined with the 91kg dry weight gives the Top Boy a compliant ride which some may find a bit choppy. A 120/70-12 front and 130/70-12 rear tire combination with an aggressive thread pattern leaves a nice, fat footprint and provides additional stability when attacking your favorite corner. A front telescopic fork suspension and a rear unit swing arm keep tabs on the ride control, while a single disc brake with dual-piston caliper in the front and drum brake in the rear provide more-than-adequate stopping power.

Go power is provided by a capacitor discharge ignition (CDI)-equipped 101cc two-stroke, forced air-cooled single cylinder connected to a constantly variable transmission (CVT). The engine feels too zippy to be producing only 9.0PS at 6000rpm, yet this pep is the inherent feature of two-stroke engines. Acceleration is brisk, leaving most of the traffic until 60kph, while indicated top speed is about 120kph. I did an even 100kph at my favorite strip of highway, with the engine turning about 7000rpm (still far from the 8000rpm redline) and I rode against a relatively strong headwind. The factory claims a fuel economy of 35.5 kilometers per liter, which is realistic considering my constant throttle whacking produced 29.6 km/l.

Environmentalists may cringe at the mere mention of "two-stroke", but they need not worry. The Top Boy’s exhaust emits only 5600ppm of hydrocarbons and 2.8 percent carbon monoxide, well below the national standards of 7800ppm HC and 4.5 percent CO. SC Kymco Philippines has obtained a Certificate of Compliance (COC) with the DENR for its two-stroke, as well as four-stroke motorcycle engines to further bolster their claim. And doomsayers who claim that two-stroke motorcycles are going the way of the dodo bird can harp about something else since the LTO still allows the registration of two-strokes as long as they comply with the Clean Air Act.

The Top Boy’s environmental conscience and its stingy fossil fuel consumption adds to its fun factor, as you can commute around town or country without feeling guilty about offending Mother Nature or offending your accountant. Nothing beats being on the open road, feeling the wind in your face and experiencing the landscape moving in its entirety. And for about 70 grand outright or through Kymco’s special financing scheme (wherein you need not plunk a down payment when your company acts as your guarantor), it’s hard to beat the value of this two-wheeled fun machine.