Advice on first bike [Archive]

dino3310

22nd October 2007, 21:25

check these out http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?t=59386&highlight=250 http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?t=56481&highlight=250 http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?t=51070&highlight=250 search around you'll find plenty of advice on most bikes around at the moment

FJRider

22nd October 2007, 21:46

If you like the look of it, can afford it. Take it for a test ride. If you STILL like it, find someone you trust and get them to test ride it. If you still like it, can STILL afford it, BUY it. DOING IT IS BETTER THAN TALKING ABOUT IT. Just make sure it will do the job you want it to. (get to work/play etc) Pack frame and bag might be included in price (if you ask...maybe...GOTTA ASK. don't ask don't get) Everybodys first bike brings back memorys...sometimes even GOOD ones. GO FOR IT !!!!!!!!!
.................................................. .................................................. ...............
Good judgment comes from bad experience, a lot of that comes frombad judgment

MidnightMike

22nd October 2007, 21:50

Hyosungs seem like great first bikes.

Wouldnt touch a 'lifan' myself.

HungusMaximist

23rd October 2007, 09:19

Hyosungs are alright but if you wanna have a bit more fun go with a VTR.

Of course there's always your usual line of sports 250's , ZXR's, GSX, FZR's, Hondaas....

Hornets are great too! Just make sure you try out heaps and heaps of bikes, or get a mate with more riding experience try it out for ya. As you wanna drop somebody elses bike aye.

SimJen

23rd October 2007, 09:40

hyosungs are okay but a little cheaply made.
I'd go for a decent brand, I started on a CBR250 back in the day.
Taught me a lot, although I did ride a fair bit of dirt back then too.
Like someone said, test ride heaps and pick the one that suits.

aucklandmartin

23rd October 2007, 23:16

Thanks for the advice guys - will keep you posted as to my progress.

daytona 2

3rd December 2007, 21:39

I looked and rode lots of 250's before I settled on the honda VTC250, beautifully made, quick, and a real looker.

EJK

3rd December 2007, 22:28

NO LIFAN!!! hell no! lololl

ital916

4th December 2007, 12:17

If you want fun get a RG150 like me, i'm approaching the 1 month newbie mark and it scares the crap outta me and will do so for a long time but it is light and has enough power.

gijoe1313

4th December 2007, 13:12

clint640

4th December 2007, 14:40

Go Naked. You will drop it.

A twin like the GT250 or the VTR250 is good - a little more power for the highway is nice if you can afford it.

In the cheaper line I'd go for something like a Yamaha Scorpio 225 over that Lifan. A 125cc 4-stroke is fine around town but pretty lame on the open road. The 2 stroke KR/RG150s are also good if you're on a budget.

Cheers
Clint

Kane-

4th December 2007, 18:24

Fom a newbie perspective....

I tried a brand new GN250 a 1999 Honda VTR250 and the bike I brought 1991 Honda VT250 Spada. Sat on a CBR but felt way to big on it - even though it had the most grunt.

Main concerns for me were size, power and price. Im 6 ft and 100+ kg so I needed something with some size and reasonable grunt.

The GN250 was nice but sitting position was very upright and didn't have the same secure feel of the sport bikes. Power was ok but I would have been pushing to do 110. Very cheaply made and choke off the carb under seat <_<

The 1999 VTR 250 is a great bike. Had enough grunt but was pretty standard with no rev counter and again had a plastic feel about it. The new ones are better.

I found the Spada performed best out of all. Had more power than the vtr (not sure why seemed same engine) and better build quality - descent gauges and helmet lock. Just little touches that were missing on the others :niceone:

Don't make a quick decision - ride lots of bike. Brand new is not always best either. :headbang:

HornetBoy

4th December 2007, 18:31

Now, if you really want to have fun, ride a Hornet! :woohoo: You meet the nicest people on them! :innocent: But, yeah, like everyone has said - the right bike for you will be obvious as soon as you see it and sit on it.

Try them all out for size and see what tickles your fancy! (btw, did I mention Hornet? A little ol'hornet even? :lol:)

I second on buying a hornet :cool: carried me old man (110kg) to work and back for a while which is a 50km trip at highway speeds ,and he said it performed well and for me (75kg) performed extremely well ,lots of top end (for a 250) ,easily able to sit at 130kph and at license losing speeds,and its naked so if ya drop it its not as costly as a cbr etc

HTFU

4th December 2007, 18:47

There you go buy it !!!!. Cheap flight down, Upper South Island and Lower North Island trip back. Perfect.

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Sports/auction-130294825.htm

NOMIS

4th December 2007, 19:17

I GOT MY HORNET LOVE IT so dont worry gi joe i dont want yours any more my one is waaaayyyyy coooleeerrr lol probally just because its mine and i own it but im sure you will feel the same way about yours, tobad about the licence!! ( dont have one at all)

HornetBoy

4th December 2007, 19:20

gijoe1313

4th December 2007, 19:22

:woohoo: You rock! Welcome to the swarm bzzzt! :niceone: Now details, details, details! And piccies, piccies, piccies!
:clap::first:

I knew you were a fellow biker of distinction and taste! :yes:

HornetBoy

4th December 2007, 19:26

:woohoo: You rock! Welcome to the swarm bzzzt! :niceone: Now details, details, details! And piccies, piccies, piccies!
:clap::first:

I knew you were a fellow biker of distinction and taste! :yes:

o and gijoe i didnt sell my hornet,hornet blood runs in the family (along with good taste in bikes) so it got passed down to my brother who is a newly accomplished learner biker and is got all sorts of blingplans for it :Punk:

gijoe1313

4th December 2007, 19:29

o and gijoe i didnt sell my hornet,hornet blood runs in the family (along with good taste in bikes) so it got passed down to my brother who is a newly accomplished learner biker,who is now on the coolest learner bike :Punk:

Dewd, you rock ... good to hear, and you need to keep it around when he gets his full ... never know when you need to have a spare bike! :msn-wink: :lol:

I'm in hornet bliss heaven at the moment ... oh, be still my beating heart (it goes .. *pitter* *pat* :love:)

HornetBoy

4th December 2007, 19:32

Dewd, you rock ... good to hear, and you need to keep it around when he gets his full ... never know when you need to have a spare bike! :msn-wink: :lol:

I'm in hornet bliss heaven at the moment ... oh, be still my beating heart (it goes .. *pitter* *pat* :love:)

haha so actually the whole family has hornets (old man = 919 hornet ,lil brother -250 hornet) :innocent: heaven for us hornet lovers ..He does not want to get off the bike a always asking me to go for a ride to he can hear the buzz lol.I will have to travel to auckland and see your bling hornet gijoe

NOMIS

4th December 2007, 21:24

Yeh i wana change the bars and the mirrors have the gay chrome ones they look rude i have a twin carbon exhaust is there much dif with this and a standard????

gijoe1313

4th December 2007, 22:36

haha so actually the whole family has hornets (old man = 919 hornet ,lil brother -250 hornet) :innocent: heaven for us hornet lovers ..He does not want to get off the bike a always asking me to go for a ride to he can hear the buzz lol.I will have to travel to auckland and see your bling hornet gijoe

Very good! And before you know it, I'll probably be pootling down your way as an excuse to ride! :innocent: My little ol'hornet ain't so blinged ... only the twin 'zorsts, levers, LED lighting system, anodised foot pegs yada yada yada! (have Oxford heated grips to install next!)

Yeh i wana change the bars and the mirrors have the gay chrome ones they look rude i have a twin carbon exhaust is there much dif with this and a standard????

It is pretty much different, not many standard hornets out there since all their owners like to bling them out! :msn-wink: single 'zorst is the usual and the mirrors vary, ditch them and find what takes your fancy!

motorbyclist

4th December 2007, 23:48

I'm hoping to get my first bike this summer -- any suggestions would be appreciated. I like the look of the Hyosung GT-250R and the Lifan LF-125 Warrior. What do other Kiwi Bikers think of these two bikes?

of those two, do not buy the lifan

have a shop around, test ride some bikes, and always get someone who knows what they're looking at to check them over.

the hyosung 250 variants are all pretty good, but it never hurts to look at the other bikes on the market like the suzuki fxr150, gn250, gsx250, the honda cbr250rr, vtr250, cbf & hornet 250 and kawasaki zzr250, zxr250... i'm probably missing a few like the scorpio

some should be "avoided like the police on the coro loop", including lifan and the old suzuki gsxr250 and yamaha fzr250 - both old inline fours that are heaps of fun until their catastrophic failure

i personally believe 2 strokes are a bad choice for a 1st bike.... once you've learned how to ride a bike by all means look at one, but there isn't one quality of a 2 stroke that is suited to a complete novice. i'm sure Drider can vouch for that (and i'm sure all get all sorts of hate mail and death threats for the 2 stroke camp for saying it - *dons flame proof gear and retreats into bunker*)

also, what's you approx weight/height/build/age? what sort of bikes do you like (may change as you ride them, but naked, cruiser, chopper, sports, scooter, motard? what looks/sounds good?) and what will you use this one for (weekend burns, commute or both)? prior mechanical knowledge/petrol head or absolute newbie upgrading from his hatchback/skateboard?

motorbyclist

4th December 2007, 23:53

It is pretty much different, not many standard hornets out there since all their owners like to bling them out! :msn-wink: single 'zorst is the usual and the mirrors vary, ditch them and find what takes your fancy!

hehe, my brother rides a 250 hornet and hates his large, circular, chrome mirrors - when i had a test ride that was the best single feature that stood out the most, me having come from a series of fxr, gsxr, vfr and other sport bikes with horrible mirrors that give narrow views of elbows and little else:laugh:

oh, and the seat/suspension, and the ground clearance! nice bikes the old hornet, just i dont like being an upright parachute in the wind/rain and prefer the full fairing look (and all the advantages of fairings)

I second on buying a hornet.... .... ..... ..its naked so if ya drop it its not as costly as a cbr etc

i dunno about that; you don't have to fix fairing damage, but you do have to fix engine covers and worse

and i've always thought full fairing bikes without fairings look damn cool:bleh:

HornetBoy

5th December 2007, 08:19

hehe, my brother rides a 250 hornet and hates his large, circular, chrome mirrors - when i had a test ride that was the best single feature that stood out the most, me having come from a series of fxr, gsxr, vfr and other sport bikes with horrible mirrors that give narrow views of elbows and little else:laugh:

oh, and the seat/suspension, and the ground clearance! nice bikes the old hornet, just i dont like being an upright parachute in the wind/rain and prefer the full fairing look (and all the advantages of fairings)

i dunno about that; you don't have to fix fairing damage, but you do have to fix engine covers and worse

and i've always thought full fairing bikes without fairings look damn cool:bleh:

well crash a fully faired bike and add up the costs you not only damage the fairing but potentially the engine casing as well ... crash a naked bike and you only do the engine caseing, i can bet ya that it will cost more to repair a fully faired bike,but why would you base a bike buying decision on the off time you may crash it ? :cool: ,hmm faired bikes with removed fairings .... not so good in my opinion did that with my katana and it just looked plain weird lol.

On blinging the hornet i reckon you should get led indicators and a rear hugger as that rear spring gets a hammering otherwise,also your exhausts what brand are they?

motorbyclist

5th December 2007, 09:35

well crash a fully faired bike and add up the costs you not only damage the fairing but potentially the engine casing as well ... crash a naked bike and you only do the engine caseing, i can bet ya that it will cost more to repair a fully faired bike,but why would you base a bike buying decision on the off time you may crash it ? :cool: ,hmm faired bikes with removed fairings .... not so good in my opinion did that with my katana and it just looked plain weird lol.

in a serious bin? that's what insurance is for:bleh:

in a minor off you'r looking at an optional repair/respray vs. a mandatory cover/maybe flywheel (and the petrol tank too seeing as the newer sports bikes have covers on the tank)

i crashed my vfr just the other week. if it wasn't for the top radiator being so wide i would only be buying an indicator and wing mirror - and that radiator would've been squashed anyway. there's a mark on the clutch cover from the fairings, and the fairings definitely meant i was able to ride it home again

but you're right, you don't buy a bike with crashing in mind - fairings is largely a personal thing....

i've even heard arguments that it's harder to steal parts off a bike with fairings - but seriously, if some asshole wants to steal a specific bike part he's not going to be put off by the handful of screws to remove a fairing, and i think the whole hing being nicked is more likely

night rider

5th December 2007, 11:54

Very good! And before you know it, I'll probably be pootling down your way as an excuse to ride! :innocent: My little ol'hornet ain't so blinged ... only the twin 'zorsts, levers, LED lighting system, anodised foot pegs yada yada yada! (have Oxford heated grips to install next!)

It is pretty much different, not many standard hornets out there since all their owners like to bling them out! :msn-wink: single 'zorst is the usual and the mirrors vary, ditch them and find what takes your fancy!
Mine is pretty stock n i think i'd like to keep it that way with only honda parts, gives it more of a classic feel even though its only 11 years old

NOMIS

6th December 2007, 09:24

On blinging the hornet i reckon you should get led indicators and a rear hugger as that rear spring gets a hammering otherwise,also your exhausts what brand are they?[/QUOTE]

My bike has the led lights in a single cluster has a front headlight faisring wich ill be taking off, i want to find some speed triple style twin lamps for it, i rekon the would look cool, if any one can give me the power figures for my hornet with the twin rfr carbon exhaust please let me no via pm thanks

night rider

6th December 2007, 12:17

yeah i wouldn't mind the rear hugger. There is just a single exhaust and it's factory "Honda".
Even though i don't want to do much to it cos i really like it as it is i think those twin lamps would look pretty awesome, i saw them on a 900 the other day.

discotex

6th December 2007, 18:17

but you're right, you don't buy a bike with crashing in mind - fairings is largely a personal thing....

I dunno... I think it's good to think about the difference. Most damage to learner bikes is caused by silly low speed drops. Like slipping on wet ground etc.

Drop a naked like that and you might bend a lever or something. Drop a faired bike and you'll lose indicators, mirrors and possible minor fairing damage. Not enough for insurance but enough to waste money and lower the value of the bike.

That said I'm a bit of a hypocrite as I had a ZXR250. The fairings certainly helped ensure it was written off....

Rosie

7th December 2007, 07:51

Drop a naked like that and you might bend a lever or something. Drop a faired bike and you'll lose indicators, mirrors and possible minor fairing damage. Not enough for insurance but enough to waste money and lower the value of the bike.

Sometimes a slow speed drop of a faired bike is enough to claim insurance. And it's important to remember that insurance isn't the magic wand that one might imagine it to be. You get your bike fixed at minimal cost to you, but you still need to deal with the insurance company, wait for bits to arrive etc.
I wouldn't recommend full fairings for your first bike.

ital916

7th December 2007, 13:46

and deal with a F***ing $1500 excess!!! man sucks to be a learner aye lol

ital916

7th December 2007, 13:47

hmm thats all the different excesses added together on my plan...dunno if they all count in every situation sigh but still a lot of excess...talking bout this excess business is giving me an excessive headache *the excessively stupid pun i just used is also adding to me excessive headache*.

Rosie

7th December 2007, 13:51

and deal with a F***ing $1500 excess!!! man sucks to be a learner aye lol

:shit: who do you have insurance with? I had a $100 excess with AMI on a similar bike when I was a learner.

HornetBoy

7th December 2007, 13:53

On blinging the hornet i reckon you should get led indicators and a rear hugger as that rear spring gets a hammering otherwise,also your exhausts what brand are they?

My bike has the led lights in a single cluster has a front headlight faisring wich ill be taking off, i want to find some speed triple style twin lamps for it, i rekon the would look cool, if any one can give me the power figures for my hornet with the twin rfr carbon exhaust please let me no via pm thanks

Your wont get much power from a after market zorst on a 250 man,just a better sound and the annoyance of it running to lean in places :bleh: ,street triple lights u can get from a website called www.nzsf.co.nz along with lots of other hornet friendly bling...for a high price tho

NOMIS

7th December 2007, 13:57

Your wont get much power from a after market zorst on a 250 man,just a better sound and the annoyance of it running to lean in places :bleh: ,street triple lights u can get from a website called www.nzsf.co.nz

Thanks mate but the website you put there doesn't exisit i just want the twin headlights for my bike, im still getting round to putting some pics up for every one to c, aso where can i get some good bars from ? i want a little more hunched position. cheers

HornetBoy

7th December 2007, 14:00

Thanks mate but the website you put there doesn't exisit i just want the twin headlights for my bike, im still getting round to putting some pics up for every one to c, aso where can i get some good bars from ? i want a little more hunched position. cheers

o lol sorry here www.nzstreetfighters.com/ this is where u can gets the lights from ,good bars ... um ask at the bike shops about Renthal low bars/streetfighter bars ..