Get cheeky with me!

It's getting toward summer, meaning longer rides are in the cards. The Honda PCX is mechanically up to the task of traveling long distances, but the seat, as with many stock seats, is less than perfect for providing rider comfort over such a distance. Other seats are available, but not here in the U.S.. To be fair, the seat on my Kymco People 150 was dubious after half an hour or more, but that never kept me from racking up the miles, though I often pined after a better seat.

Now, for those who live in Thailand or Japan there are over a dozen choices for Honda PCX replacement seats, and even a few retailers to choose from. Of course, one could still purchase from those places on the web, but there's the time imvolved and the cost of shipping. To order a seat from one Thai distributor in particular would run over $120 for airmail delivery to the U.S.. Regular shipping would be closer to $80, but waiting up to three months means continued discomfort.

Enter: Cheeky Seats. A U.S. company based right here in Pennsylvania, Cheeky Seats advertises quality, custom made, hand stitched seat covers for scooters of many makes and models. Knowing how advertising can be, I was skeptical, but I needed something since riding the PCX with that hump on the seat was becoming unbearable. I'd hesitated long enough, so it was time to take the plunge on something.

While browsing scooter forums on Sunday night, I saw an add for Cheeky Seats. While I had heard of them before and had even done a presentation about them for class, I'd never seriously considered just getting a seat cover, but considering my options, it seemed like the only real choice left. Looking at their site, they had several patterns to choose from and even offered custom tailoring, thread colors and so on. I chose the padded seat for the Honda PCX with white stitching to match my eventual color scheme.

I was surprised the next morning to find in my inbox a legible and well crafted e-mail confirming my order and while I am sure they used a template, the message was so perfectly tailored to me that I could tell someone had taken the time to actually read my order and respond to it. The email promised the seat cover would arrive by Thursday (today) and it actually arrived yesterday.

The first thing I was impressed with was the fabrication quality. Having lived so many years using products made in sweatshops around the developing world that are manufactured to such poor standards and quality, seeing an American made product that has been obviously constructed with quality and craftsmanship is beyond refreshing. The stitching is flawless, the material is obviously good quality, and it fits the dimensions of my seat perfectly. This is what a good product looks like.

I put it on the Purple Haze this morning during a break at school. After removing the "rump hump" from the seat, installation was very simple using a drawstring and cord lock. After slipping it on the seat and pulling the cord to where I thought it was pretty good, I took it for a spin around the building. It seemed nice and cushy, but I found that the cord lock on the pull string was getting caught in the seat's hinge. I made a brief mention of this on the Modern Vespa forums and by my next break had an email from Suzy (co-founder of the company), with some advice on how to make it work. After tightening the drawstring a bit more and knotting the cord, it  seems much better, though i might suggest it go about a half inch further out from the hinge.

So, how does it feel? Wonderful. I normally get a bit of butt-burn riding motorcycles and scooters, but this was very much like the feel of the seat on the Beverly. The cushion was enough to take the edge off and make the ride so much more enjoyable. So far I've only got about thirty miles on it, but from that brief experience, it was obvious that just that little cushion made a huge difference. Strangely, I found myself feeling much more secure in corners because I wasn't dealing with an uncomfortable seat.

Then there's the customer service. Suzy and Rafa obviously care about their customers. Not only was their correspondence respectful and obviously tailored specifically to me, receiving an email about something I'd posted on a forum was above and beyond what I would expect, and it wasn't even a big deal. Such customer care is rare in these days of exported customer call centers where call volume is more important than customer satisfaction.

If I were to give star ratings, Cheeky Seats would get five. Five big shining gold stars...with smiley faces. This is one time when the expectations built up by advertising really do meet up to reality. The value for money is undeniable.