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High wheels, i.e. scooters with a 16″ front rim, are very popular: even if they force you to give up a little space under the saddle, they are able to tackle the battered asphalt of our cities with ease and in (fair) safety. After all, the sales ranking has for years seen the first three places occupied by Honda Sh (125, 150 and 350) which exchange positions with each other. In the 300 cc segment the competition is fierce: one of the last to enter the field, with a competitive price (5 thousand euros compared to 6 thousand for Sh350) was Sym’s Joyride 300 which is equipped with the convenient keyless start that allows you to forget the key in the jacket pocket and a USB socket in the compartment on the back of the shield where you can store the smartphone.
One of the winning features of the model is undoubtedly the flat footboard, made possible by the presence of the 16″ wheel at the front (14″ at the rear): during city transfers that space between the rider’s feet is often occupied by the gym bag or that of shopping, a real convenience. Powering the Joyride 300 is the 278.3 cc single-cylinder engine, with 4-valve distribution and liquid cooling, capable of 26 hp which Sym also uses on other models – the low wheels (14″ at the front) Cruisym and Joymax Z+ and the HD high wheels – to guarantee its good functioning.
And, in fact, the response of the mono is one of the qualities that we liked most during our test which took place on urban roads but also on the ring road and some motorways (130 km/h are well within the scooter’s reach and the protection from the air is good). When starting from a standing start it almost feels like being on an electric vehicle, the response of the small single-cylinder is so prompt and vigorous. And to say that the weight of the scooter is not too low: dry it is 186 kg, to which we must add (in addition to the rider’s quintal) the weight of the 12 liters of petrol that enter the tank, the inlet of which is placed in a central and raised position , just under the keyless system switch: convenient, you can refuel while on the saddle.
The saddle is 77cm from the ground, so everyone can touch it with both feet. The habitability is good for drivers under approximately 180 cm: those who are taller touch the rear shield with their knees and risk painful shocks in the event of braking (moreover the area is also sharp). Speaking of brakes: the Joyride has two discs, a 260 mm wave at the front with radial caliper and a 240 mm at the rear; braking is good but you have to squeeze the levers very hard, a useful prevention against panic stops but you have to take this into account when you keep a slightly cheerful pace supported by the sincere and neutral behavior of the scooter (in fast bends you travel quickly without jolts) . The suspensions, in fact, work well and suffer a bit (especially the rear) only in the deepest potholes and the most pronounced bumps. The load capacity is decent: under the saddle fits a jet helmet with a long visor, a rain jacket and still has a little space; the roof rack for the top box is standard: we have no doubt that it won’t remain vacant for long. Also because the Joyride 300 aspires to longer journeys, worthy of a weekend, leaving traffic and parking problems behind.