Bolwell Firenze 250 Scooter

The fairing is broad enough to offer decent weather protection however the machine would benefit from a larger windscreen to help protect the rider in windy conditions. The mirrors are vibration free and provide good rear vision. A nice touch is that the stalks fold out of the way if you have to squeeze into a tight parking spot or through a narrow gate to your back yard. The mirrors in fact seem to be nicer designed than those found on some motorcycles costing four times as much.

The Firenze can be ridden with feet flat on the floorboards or out in front at an angle on raised boards, although I found the latter a little too close for my 179cm frame but they should come in very handy for those of shorter stature. The seat is wide, thick and soft with a large backrest. The seat could perhaps prove even too soft if on a really long ride however the backrest is well designed and doesn't dig into your lower back like some backrests are prone to do. Pillion accommodation is also quite expansive and a large grabrail is provided. Sturdy pillion pegs fold out from the machine and are rubber topped to dampen out any vibes.

But does its size make it too unwieldy in the cut and thrust of city traffic and roundabouts?

Absolutely not! The Firenze handles brilliantly. In fact it handles so well that I quite often found myself going around corners faster than would have been advisable, and grinding the muffler brackets at lean angles that were probably a little too adventurous for the 130/70-13 tubeless Maxxis rear rubber. Steering is effortless and quick changes of direction are ridiculously easy. To be honest, the Firenze turned me in to a damn hoon and always managed to bring a smile to my dial.

Likewise the effortless twist and go nature of the Firenze had me in danger of breaking suburban speed limits more so than when riding my Fireblade! The lack of noise and no gears or clutch makes it ridiculously easy to speed and it is advisable to keep one eye glancing at the speedo to stay on the right side of the law. Luckily the speedo is large and easy to read along with the rest of the comprehensive instrumentation that includes tachometer, fuel and temperature gauges.

The combined braking system did nearly catch me out when being a bit too much of a hoon and trying to back the machine in to a parking space on the back brake only for the front stopper to also come into play! The system works fine however and the machine pulls up well in all conditions.

The forks handled everything I put them through and the rear shocks managed to prevent my kidneys getting punched over large bumps or when being silly over speed humps. The shocks are preload adjustable.

The lights work well and the LED outer surrounding the main headlight beam is an interesting touch. The switchgear is excellent.

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