Kiwi bikers! Some general advice please

[Realnamechris]

Hi there,

I'm from the UK and will be landing in Christchurch on the 11th March. I've seen loads of pictures of the stunning scenery and roads there so I'll be looking to get a bike when I get over.
I've looked into bike rentals and they all seem a bit pricey so I've been looking at the used bikes on trademe with the idea to buy one,use it for a few weeks then sell it,hopefully without losing too much money. Oh,I also have no bike gear.
I'm basically flying in with very little other than the will to do it.
Absolutely any advice,help or information here would be greatly appreciated on:

Buying and selling
Smaller rental companies with reasonable prices
Buying/hiring bike gear
General road use
Good routes to take
Anything else you think I should be aware of?

Thanks loads!
Chris

[jim.cox]

Ok - I'll start...

Some legal stuff

Bring your drivers licence - preferably an international one.

Bikes here have to have a Warrant of Fitness (safety check - usually every 6 months) and Registration (MoT). WoF usually costs around $40 to get, Rego is much more expensive, especially if the bike is 650cc or over. Bike has to have a current WoF before it can be regsitered. Suggest you try to buy a bike that has both already on it.

Insurance is NOT compulsary, but third party is cheap and a good idea.

A dual purpose machine will open up a whole pile more options than a straight raod bike - Suzuki DR650 or a V-Strom are good choices. You will want something that can do 100 - 120 kmh to keep up with the open road traffic

Righto enough from me, who's next?

[shafty]

You could buy something like http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=564974831 then put it up for a $1 reserve aucion when leaving - with the offer to deliver it, cheaper than hiring....

Make sure you allow sufficient time to see everything -some people make the mistake of allowing a month to see the whole country and leave dissappointed they cut it short....

Shafty

[MSTRS]

I'll bite...
OP - try reading some of the other threads on this subject. You should find them in this sub-forum

[iYRe]

Buying and selling
trademe.co.nz - cant buy anything until you're here though...

Smaller rental companies with reasonable prices Sorry, never heard of one.

Buying/hiring bike gear
You can buy decent gear new off trademe, or from places like 1tonne.co.nz

General road use
What jim.cox said, and the speed limit is 100kmh on the open road. Just be careful.

Good routes to take
If you come to Auckland, look me up - we can hook you up with some nice routes around AK.. and even take you on a few rides if you want.

Anything else you think I should be aware of?
Just becareful :)

If you want to buy a bike you can get something like a Bandit 1200/1250 for 4-5k, or something similar, which will go pretty much anywhere in NZ. Whilst it is a nice "dream" to be able to ride sorta on trails and stuff on a vstrom, 99% of the places you'll ever go are accessible on a road bike, and with a bit of sucking it up, some places that most people wouldnt take one, you can still go :P (like Kariotahe, Muriwai, or 90mile beaches for example - I'd take a road bike on Kariotahe beach any day - as long as it wasnt mine :P)

If I have the time, I'd go with you to look at some bikes when you get here if you want. I cant afford to buy a new one, so I can do it by surrogate lol.

[tigertim20]

there is another option.

A private sale can be difficult on short notice, and if people know you are desperate to get rid of it, as you are leaving the country, it will be hard to get good coin for it, Unless you know someone here who you could trust to take possession of it and sell it on your behalf after you leave?

I have herd of others who have gone overseas and made a deal with the devil, ahem, dealer.
Get in touch with a dealer, and discuss your price bracket and your requirements, you migth reach an arrangement whereby they sell you a bike, at an agreed price, and they agree to buy it back off you, at an agreed price, at an agreed time, provided there have been no damages etc while in your ownership.

I know of others who have done this and had a good experience.

[dogsnbikes]

Hi there,

I'm from the UK and will be landing in Christchurch on the 11th March. I've seen loads of pictures of the stunning scenery and roads there so I'll be looking to get a bike when I get over.
I've looked into bike rentals and they all seem a bit pricey so I've been looking at the used bikes on trademe with the idea to buy one,use it for a few weeks then sell it,hopefully without losing too much money. Oh,I also have no bike gear.
I'm basically flying in with very little other than the will to do it.
Absolutely any advice,help or information here would be greatly appreciated on:

Buying and selling
Smaller rental companies with reasonable prices
Buying/hiring bike gear
General road use
Good routes to take
Anything else you think I should be aware of?

Thanks loads!
Chris

Another option for cheaper gear Cheak sellers listings too

http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/motorbikes/helmets-clothing-footwear/jackets/auction-565373106.htm

Also cheak out link New Zealand section if your into adventure riding too

http://www.krad-vagabunden.de

[Realnamechris]

Well, it's great to see the NZ biker community is as friendly as the UK. Some really good stuff here, thanks! :niceone:
I was was beginning to wonder how possible it was for me to do this trip and you've all given me hope.
The Yamaha XJ900 would be exactly the sort of thing I'd be looking for (I used to have a TDM 900 and loved it), if I paid $3000 for it I'd hopefully not lose too much do you think?

If anyone else has anything to add here please do, As for the offer to come bike shopping with me, sounds great as I don't know anyone over there.
I'll keep you posted.
Thanks again
Chris

[MIXONE]

Hope it comes together for you and you wouldn't lose too much on a bike like that.As for routes to take just ride in any direction out of Christchurch and you will find amazing roads,scenery,etc in no time at all.
Oh and in most places the locals don't eat you.

[EJK]

If need be, some of us can pinch off some time to ride together, maybe show you some bit of road with good scenery.

[Winston001]

Ahhh...yer a POM right?

Yeah soz mate, the country's closed. Try Ozstrlia.

[Tagger]

for insurance, where are the go to places to find a good insurance for people visiting for a couple of months? are there companies that specialise in that kind of stuff more then others (who have a good deal for none-returning customers)