America is about to get another brand of affordable motorcycles. Keeway Motor Company, a company that started in Hungary and nowadays distributes Benelli motorcycles in the United States, is ready to bring its own bikes across our borders. The 2024 lineup is looking attractive with a vintage-style scooter as cheap as $2,499 and a mini Harley-Davidson-style V-twin for just $4,999. Let’s take a look at America’s latest cheap motorcycle brand.
In recent years there has been a shift from expensive flagship motorcycles to smaller, more affordable steeds. I don’t need to tell you that not everyone can afford a $20,000 electric motorcycle and some people might struggle to justify spending $30,000 or beyond on a loaded Harley cruiser. Brands like CFMoto and Royal Enfield are finding success in catering to the lower end of the market by making bikes with low price tags that look stunning while providing riding experiences that harken back to the olden days. Even big brands are getting in on this with Honda making the shockingly cheap Navi mini motorcycle and even Triumph is pumping out smaller bikes with MSRPs a young rider can stomach.
China is also seeing a lot of representation in America right now from the aforementioned CFMoto to Benelli and Moto Morini. Sure, those latter two brands are storied Italian names with engineering and design still in Italy, but their bikes are built in China. The lines have been getting quite blurry in recent years with KTM, Harley-Davidson, Suzuki, Honda, Yamaha, BMW, and others building some bikes in China or sourcing parts from the region. It’s fascinating to see how global motorcycle manufacturing has become. Last weekend, I even put my money where my mouth is and bought a CFMoto, but you’ll read about that later.
Keeway is another global brand set to launch in America, and it’s bringing some cool bikes with it.
What Is A Keeway?
The Keeway Motor Company says it was founded in Hungary in 1999. Its mission back then was to offer European motorcycle and scooter buyers products that still excelled in design, but also undercut the competition on price. Keeway’s partner in this endeavor is the Zhejiang Qianjiang Motorcycle Group Co. from China, which provides its manufacturing expertise.
In 2005, Qianjiang and the separate Keeway Group acquired motorcycle brand Benelli. Qianjiang is the principal owner of Benelli, but Keeway distributes the motorcycles. The company also owns Moto Bologna Passione in Italy. Distributing three brands of motorcycles gives Keeway a reach of sales in 98 countries from Australia to the United States.
Until December 2023, Benelli motorcycles weren’t distributed in America by the Keeway Group, but by SSR Motorsports. Keeway will now distribute Benelli motorcycles, moving everything in-house. Meanwhile, SSR Motorsports now distributes Qianjiang motorcycles in America under the brand QJMotor.
Keeway says that while its motorcycles are built in China, they’re engineered in Europe and borrow design elements from Benelli. The brand has focused exclusively on the small displacement market, and now Americans can ride one, too. Let’s look at what you’ll be able to buy soon.
2024 Keeway Versilia 150
Keeway is launching five models in the United States. I’m going to order these models by price, which makes the $2,499 2024 Keeway Versilia 150 first in line.
The Versilia 150 is designed to look like a retro-futuristic take on a 1960s Italian scooter. You get a quilted seat plus LED lights and enough under-seat storage for a whole full-face helmet and more. Another highlighted bit of technology on the scooter is a hidden USB port.
Aside from that, the scoot is pretty bare-bones. Keeway doesn’t say what the body is made out of, but the scooter is a manageable 235 pounds dry. The brakes aren’t anything to write home about as you’re getting a 185mm disc up front and a drum in back.
Under the fancy bodywork sits a 149.6cc fuel-injected single making 9.7 HP and 7.7 lb-ft of torque and punching power through a CVT. Keeway says this is good enough for a top speed of 57 mph. That’s a little slower than Hondas I’ve owned in the past, but not by much. The Versilia 150 sounds like a nice way to get around for $2,499.
2024 Keeway Vieste 200
Next, we arrive at the Vieste 200. This scooter features a modern design, that, to my eyes, looks like it’s borrowing design touches from adventure bikes. There is an ADV version of the Vieste sold in other markets, but it looks like we’re getting the regular street scooter.
Keeway calls this scooter a maxi-scooter, but I’m not convinced. Maxi-scooters typically combine the traits of motorcycles with the traits of scooters. So, they’ll be larger and feature larger engines to match. The Keeway Vieste 200 is only slightly larger than the small Versilia 150, a bit heavier at 282 pounds, and only slightly more powerful. Once again, you’re getting all-LED lighting and what looks like a comfortable seat, but there are a couple of upgrades this time around. For example, those headlights are nifty projector units. The Vieste 200 gets a small windscreen and a hybrid digital and analog instrument cluster.
You also get disc brakes on both corners with a 240mm rotor up front and a 215mm rotor in the rear. These brakes also bring ABS to the table. Like the Versilia 150, you’re getting a basic suspension consisting of a telescopic front fork paired with dual rear shocks.
What’s decidedly not maxi-scooter is the 171.7cc single, which makes 11.4 HP and 8.9 lb-ft of torque, also sent through a CVT. It’s only slightly more powerful than the Versilia 150 and results in an equally slightly better top speed of 59 mph. Perhaps confusingly, Keeway’s website says the engine is both carbureted and fuel-injected. I suppose one benefit of going with the Vieste 200 is that the scooter is legal to ride on a highway, just stay in the right lane.
You’ll have to decide whether the butch looks, the addition of ABS, and better lighting will be worth $3,399, which is still pretty cheap. It undercuts the Honda PCX by almost $1,000.
Keeway also advertises a Vieste 300, which nets you a 278.2cc single offering 18.8 HP and a top speed of 74.6 mph. The scooter is otherwise the same as the Vieste 200. Keeway has not announced pricing for that model.
2024 Keeway V302C
Next, we arrive at the only traditional motorcycle in the lineup, and I love this little guy. The Keeway V302C looks like a Harley-Davidson Sportster, but scaled down.
The basic design of the V302C looks similar to the QJMotor SRV300 that you can already buy here in America, but the SRV300 took more of a traditional route while the V302C looks a bit more “custom.” Here’s the SRV300 for reference:
The Keeway has lower bars with bar end mirrors, a two-in-one exhaust with a massive can, and different lighting. I also like the Keeway’s seat, which looks a bit more sculpted than the QJMotor. It looks like the designers in China and Europe took the greatest hits of American cruisers and put them into a beginner-friendly package.
Despite similar appearances and even some shared bones, these bikes aren’t exactly the same. Keeway says the V302C has a 298cc V-twin making 29.5 HP and 19.5 lb-ft of torque. .
This power is sent through a six-speed manual transmission and drives the rear wheel through a belt. The specs for the QJMotor bike are similar with 30.3 HP and 19.2 lb-ft of torque, but the QJMotor’s engine is 296cc and the final drive is a chain. The wheelbases are also slightly different with the QJMotor coming in at 55 inches to the Keeway’s 56 inches. It’s unclear if these tiny differences are just in the margin of error or if these bikes are ever so slightly different. Either way, I doubt anyone will notice.
That aside, Keeway has packed the V302C with some decent features.
Instrumentation is through a circular digital gauge and you get inverted front forks and preload adjustable shocks in the rear. Braking is handled through a 300mm disc up front and a 240mm plate in the rear, both with ABS. Other good notes are a 27.1-inch seat height, a 367-pound weight, and a top speed of 80 mph or higher. This bike won’t win any contests, but it sounds like a solid beginner bike or commuter.
The price for this one is an attractive $4,999, which puts the Keeway V302C into direct competition with the Honda Rebel 300, and on paper, they’re pretty close. The Keeway makes 5 more HP than the Honda, but the Honda is slightly lighter. You also get to choose either Honda’s reliable thumper or the new V-twin. Sadly, Honda’s dealers are known for high markups, so at the end of the day, the Keeway will also probably be cheaper.
2024 Keeway Sixties 300I
Finally, we arrive at Keeway’s flagship model, the $5,299 Sixties 300I. This scooter is the big sister of the Versilia 150 and this one definitely lives up to the promise of a maxi-scooter.
Like the Versilia 150, this scooter is made to look like the Italian scooters of the 1960s, but with futuristic touches. I see some Lambretta in there, which is pretty awesome. Keeway pulled out all of the stops for this one, giving the two-seat scooter separate quilted cushions for both riders. Also included is enough storage for one helmet and LED lighting. The rear LED lights are integrated into fins and there’s ornamentation all over from the piece on the fender to the intricate grille. The company says there’s a “multi-color digital display,” but that’s not really true. It’s a hybrid analog and digital cluster that has more than one color. See below:
Keeway also dumped the most technology into this one. There’s a KYB telescopic front fork, adjustable KYB shocks in the rear, Bosch ABS front and rear, and Nissin calipers clamping down on a 230mm disc up front and a 220mm disc in the rear.
Power comes from a 278cc single firing 25 HP and 17.7 lb-ft torque through a CVT. Keeway says this 322-pound scooter is good for a top speed of 75 mph. Once again, this scooter deeply undercuts anything that could be considered as competition. It’s a couple of grand cheaper than a 300cc Vespa, not much more than a slower Honda. There’s also something like the Yamaha XMAX, which fits into the same class as the Sixties 300I, but doesn’t have the vintage look and costs $6,199.
It seems like Keeway has some good ideas here. These are attractive scoots that don’t require a lot of coin.
Time will tell if these will be reliable, but I’d love to give one a try. As of right now, Keeway has not set up a dealership network. I suspect these motorcycles will be sold through the same dealers that already sell Benellis and QJMotor bikes. Keeway also says it’s not done announcing new models to be sold in America, and there will be more to come soon. So, if you want one, you’ll have to wait until later this year.
(Images: Keeway and Benelli)
I find those scooters very disappointing. The 150 is just another in a long line of Chinese Vespa knock-offs with a GY-6 engine. That’s a TERRIBLE way to spend $2500.
The power figures of the Vieste 200 and 300 and pretty lame relative to their engine size.
The only scooter that delivers at lease in the power/weight ratio is the Sixties 300I, but I’d rather spend a few hundred more and get the Genuine Royal Alloy 300. At least I know they have a real company and dealer/parts network behind them.
Interesting, but for the same $5k a Triumph Speed 400 is objectively (and probably subjectively for most people) better in every way.
I genuinely would trust the current crop of Royal Enfield more than I could throw one of these Hungarian bikes. At least I would know that RE would be around in 20 years, get parts, and know that it’ll be sold in some shape/form somewhere in the world.
“Manufacturing expertise” is, of course, code for “dirt cheap components produced by political prisoner slave labor”.
I am so stoked to hear more about the CF Moto. I am really torn between their ~450 offering and the Kove Rally.
“As of right now, Keeway has not set up a dealership network.” Seriously, who would invest the money in a dealership (parts, service center, inventory, etc.) for more throwaway Chinese junk? Maybe just sell them through Walmart.
It was a serious challenge with Hyosung, previously.
If they can get a dealership network set up, it will be through existing dealerships offering their stuff as an additional product line. One of my local Yamaha dealers also sells Genuine scooters as well Benelli and SSR bikes.
Interesting to see Keeway coming to the US. I’m curious how much the quality improved.
I’ve had one of their 50cc 2-strokes nearly 20 years ago in Hungary. The plastics were poor quality and started rattling after a few hundred miles but otherwise it was okay for the price. It cost about half of an Italian or Japanese equivalent 50cc scooter.
They were moderately successful, but the quality reputation always dragged the brand down.
Great, another Chinese motorcycle. Personally, I’m worried about China and its influence on the rest of the world. When it comes to the motorcycle market, I am torn. On the one hand, the availability of inexpensive, stylish and practicable bikes is a good thing. It helps keeping the world of motorcycles alive and relevant. It attracts younger buyers. On the other hand, it feels like China is flooding the market and potentially driving other manufacturers out of business. All the joint-ventures between long-established brands is giving me heartburn, too. I was contemplating a Husqvarna Norden. But since KTM recently announced to relocate around 300 jobs from Austria to China, I abandoned that idea. And I’m a former employee! I bought a Moto Guzzi instead.
I agree with all that you said. When it comes to Chinese cars and other vehicles, I just can’t. Not logical as I own other Chinese made stuff but for some reason just can’t when it comes to motor vehicles of any kind. No Geely for me even. Likely futile of course.
As you should be – and that’s exactly what is going on. We’re at a tipping point here where we just keep going the way we are or get multiple countries together to start to steer the ship in a different direction.
I’m not quite sure how, and I’m speaking as the world…we’re OK with just everyone sending all of their vital manufacturing know how to China this day and age. Well I do kinda know….it’s because “I want cheap” rules.
You buy it cheap but then deal with junk parts, questionable supply chain and likely no long term plan here. I think you see where this is going
With a Benelli, you’re always riding shotgun (TM)
I like that the Vieste 200 gauge panel has a small line drawing of a proper motorcycle filling the open area at the top.
Or maybe that’s representing the adventure version of the scooter. Hmm.
Keeway comes up on the cleveland moto podcast. Along with the other brands mentioned. If you want to hear the inner workings of a dealership who deals with Chinese brands check out the Cleveland Moto Podcast.
I just hope Keeway does not do the same press tour that Moto Morini did. It was influencer heavy. Many of the influencers got facts wrong and lied to make the press bikes look amazing.
Over $5K for a Chinese scooter is a big ask.
But pure Chinesium is the strongest material known to man!
Your life is on the line when you ride a motorcycle. Dependability and build quality are of highest importance – and it would be nice to be able to fine replacement parts when needed.
It would be foolish to cheap out on a Harbor Freight quality scooter.
Okay, I know absolutely nothing about the typical weights of scooters and motorcycles, but: “the scooter is a manageable 235 pounds dry.”
235lb for a 150cc scooter seems kinda heavy to me. I’m used to my three wheelers and dirt bikes weighing under 200lb. Electric start is probably some of this? And then the other scooter is 322lb.
Also, what makes some motorcycles/scooters freeway legal and others not? I haven’t heard of any specific categories like a NEV that’s not legal on certain roads.
Very good questions! While I would love to see a superleggera 150cc scooter, that weight is about on par. For example, a new-ish Honda PCX150 weighs about 288 pounds with fuel and oil. The old 1980s Honda Elite 150D I used to ride was 225 pounds before fuel and oil.
Many states regulate highway access based on displacement or power. A common minimum I’ve seen across America is 150cc. Any motorcycle under that in those states wouldn’t be legally allowed to use a signed highway. Some places just rely on minimum speed limits.
The CFMoto I bought was assigned a special lower displacement license plate, presumably to help state troopers figure out if you belong on a highway or not.
Interesting. Thanks for the answers!
I’ve seen people talk about Honda Navis being freeway legal, so the cutoff here in Idaho must not be higher than 110cc. And we don’t have minimum speed limits, so that’s not stopping you.