Complete newbie - First bike

[KiwiPhoenix]

I am a complete beginner to the biker world so really don't know what are good or bad bikes etc. so what would you recommend as a first bike?? and how easy would it be to maintain??

[kiwifruit]

a cheap dirt bike (used off road) is the best place to start riding in my opinion

[Badjelly]

All good questions, but it would help if you gave more info: intended use (city or open road), personal preferences (sporty or cruiser), whether you are especially large or small (some beginner bikes suit large people better than others). Is price a big issue? Make sure you budget $500-1000 for a good helmet and protective gear.

[Slyer]

Go have a look on trademe or wander around a dealer and first decide what kind of bike you want to end up riding.
You're limited to 250cc engines for a year or two depending on your age.

[varminter]

The world is your bivalve molusk. Depends on your confidence and how quickly you outgrow what you have, oh, and finances matter too. I started on a GN 250, rides like a heavy push bike, out grew that and now have an in line 4 cylinder 250 which would have scared the crap out of me at first, but then I'm a pussy. Try to ride some different bikes, preferably someone elses. You will have opened up another can of worms, these are common posts, but the question has to be asked by us all. Welcome and make sure you have the best gear you can afford.

[TOTO]

Hey KiwiPhoenix, welcome to the wonderful world of biking and KB (the madhouse).

Would strongly recommend you stay away from 2 stroke bikes like the Suzuki RG 150. You can learn to ride on anything but the 2 strokes are more temperamental and can sometimes get you in situations you dont want to be in.

The first step is to go to a bike shop and sit on some 250cc bikes and see what fits you and what doesnt. I recommend writing down the the make and model of the bike that fits you well so you can go looking for it on trade-me. After you have done that you can start looking on TradeMe.

Wether you go for a sports bike or a cruiser is entirely up to your personal preference, as both will give you the nesseserry skills for your later motorcycling life. There is a fair number of naked sports bikes - which means its a sports bike performance but without the plastics. Having no fairings (plastics) on your first bike is a good thing as the ammount of damage to the bike if it is dropped will be minimal, which realisticly sometimes happens.

Had a wee look for ya and found a few bikes you may wanna go to the bike shops and ask if they have them so you can have a sit on and see how they feel. here they are:

Sports bikes
Honda Hornet 250 (thats actually my bike for sale) - http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?t=96593
Suzuki GSX250 - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Sports/auction-209079608.htm
Suzuki GSF250 Bandit - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Sports/auction-211580306.htm
Yamaha Scorpio 225 - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Sports//auction-99438988.htm
Honda CBR 250 - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Sports/auction-209246614.htm
Kawasaki ZXR 250 - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Sports/auction-211271468.htm

You should know that the last two - the CBR and the ZXR are some of the fastest sports 250cc bikes you can find, but the downside is that they are more expensive even tho they are quite old, and you may be faced with some extra maintenance costs fue to their age. I wouldnt buy anything older than year 1995.

Cruisers
Suzuki GZ 250 - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Cruiser/auction-211853799.htm
Suzuki GN 250 - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Cruiser/auction-211170528.htm
Suzuki VL250 Intruder (Super comfy seat) - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Cruiser//auction-134826280.htm

Try to sit on at least those models and see how they fit ya.

Hope this is of some help to you. Also, armoured gear is essential from day 1 on a bike, make sure you have all the armoured gear - boots, pants, jacket gloves and ofcourse helmet


maintaining a bike - bikes usually have a service period of every 5000 - 6000km, and usually if you have a bike in a good condition and get it serviced regulary it should be running mint.

One thing you need to do by yourself is to lube the chain every 500km (just a lube) and clean it + lube it every 1000km. this you can learn to do when you get the bike or if you do a search about "chain cleaning" you will find alot of advice on the topic on this site.

let us know how you go and if you need anything else :niceone:

[KiwiPhoenix]

Thank you for all the advice, off to check out TM..... Will post agin when I have a looksie there!

[KiwiPhoenix]

All good questions, but it would help if you gave more info: intended use (city or open road), personal preferences (sporty or cruiser), whether you are especially large or small (some beginner bikes suit large people better than others). Is price a big issue? Make sure you budget $500-1000 for a good helmet and protective gear.

I had a quick look at TM and I would definitely say I prefer the cruisers (I have always liked them, just didn't know what they were! :laugh:)

As for what I want to use it for, I would say probably more city travelling but with the option of going on a road trip once and a while. I am 5ft 8in (1.73m) tall so I guess bike height isn't a huge issue, the thing that would concern me is the weight of the bike. I'm not a very strong person :no:

Like everyone these days money is def an issue. I want something reasonably cheap, reliable and won't be a pain to ride!

[sil3nt]

GN250 might suit you well then. You can pick them up for about $3000 from dealers (second hand) and a bit cheaper on trademe. You can even get a GN125 although you wont be going anywhere in a hurry on that.

[KiwiPhoenix]

Just googled that! Nice bike, exactly what I like!! :2thumbsup

So is it better to buy a 250 straight away, even though I haven't ridden anything? Are they easy to ride?

[disturbed]

haha you willl soon learn that the weight of the bike doesnt matter. eg, my mum is a tiny thing would only weigh about 55kgs and she only ever rode harleys, Heritage softail springer (she has a duc now tho lol) but we all knw that harleys arent small or light, if the bike has a low centre of gravity but heavy you will find it to be the most stable bike around

[sil3nt]

Just googled that! Nice bike, exactly what I like!! :2thumbsup

So is it better to buy a 250 straight away, even though I haven't ridden anything? Are they easy to ride?You will be fine on a 250. Are you doing your BHS first or getting a bike first?

[Badjelly]

...I would definitely say I prefer the cruisers (I have always liked them, just didn't know what they were! :laugh:)

Another one gone to the dark side!


As for what I want to use it for, I would say probably more city travelling but with the option of going on a road trip once and a while. I am 5ft 8in (1.73m) tall so I guess bike height isn't a huge issue, the thing that would concern me is the weight of the bike. I'm not a very strong person :no:

Like everyone these days money is def an issue. I want something reasonably cheap, reliable and won't be a pain to ride!

Single-cylinder 4-strokes like the Scorpio 225, GN250 and Honda CBF250 are cheap to buy and run, relatively light (130 kg), have a low seat height and are great for commuting. Around town they can keep up with the traffic comfortably (which is a good thing). they have top speeds in the vicinity of 130 km/h and are quite capable of holding 100 km/h. However at this speed the engines are revving fairly hard and the reserve of power is not huge, so the single-cylinder bikes are not what you'd call relaxed open-road machines. (PS: I have a Scorpio and I'm very pleased with it. I use it for commuting around south Wellington, with occasional blasts up the motorway.)

With a twin-cylinder bike you get more power (quite a lot in some cases, not so much in others). There are a few V-twin cruisers around that might be worth a look. There was quite a long thread a while back from someone who wanted to buy a V-twin cruiser. I can't remember whether she settled on a Yamaha or Suzuki. I'll search for this thread. (There have been a lot of threads about bike choice for beginners on this site, but finding any particular one can be a challenge.)

Unless you know what you're getting into, I would advise against 2-strokes and 4-cylinder 4-strokes. Marvellous machines for those who know what they want, but...

Be aware that on a learner's license you're not allowed to exceed 70 km/h. Be aware also that many people (including most traffic cops) ignore this.

Be aware also that it's common for learners to drop their bikes causing (usually) minor damage. For this and other reasons you might consider starting second-hand and cheap, with a view to getting a bit of experience and then reconsidering your needs/wants.

[Badjelly]

...There are a few V-twin cruisers around that might be worth a look. There was quite a long thread a while back from someone who wanted to buy a V-twin cruiser. I can't remember whether she settled on a Yamaha or Suzuki....

I think it was Blossom

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/member.php?u=16002

and she bought a Suzuki VL250

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?t=73478
http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?p=1496373&highlight=VL250#post1496373

This thread is worth a look, too:

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?t=82910

[KiwiPhoenix]

Thank you once again for all the advice!

I am in the thinking that I will do my BHS first then get a bike, I guess I really want to know if it something that I really want to do (although I have always wanted to get my bike licence) and by talking to people in the know, like you guys, it helps!

I will probably buy something reasonably cheap, as like some of you have said, it's going to get dropped! I'm not naive to think that it won't happen to me as I know it will! :lol:

[TOTO]

the gn250 is a very good bike, but a little underpowered and the latest models I think 2004 onwards are made in china rather than japan and they tend to rust and show some weaknesses - I have 2 good friends who owned them.

if you are after a cruiser , I can not recommend the suzuky VL 250 high enough. it has a very very comfourtable seat which is great for long trips, very comfourtable body position, low center of gravity so it is easily mauvarable at low speeds. Plenty of shiney bits that you can drool at when you polish them and a very reasonable underseat storage compartment. Oh and in terms of power it cuite hapily cruises at a not slow speed if you wanna give it a little extra. I had trouble keeping up with one of them one time which had a very good girl rider :yes:

Do go in the shops and sit on as many 250 cruisers to find what you like most but by all means try the VL, I think you will like it :yes:

[Slyer]

I don't think there's a better 250 cruiser you can get than the VL250 if you can afford the premium. :)

[Irontusk]

I don't think there's a better 250 cruiser you can get than the VL250 if you can afford the premium. :)

It's also by far the best value. I havn't ridden the others, but I settled on the VL pretty quick just looking at the prices.. The Magna VT250s are all 15 odd years old now with 10000km being average, and when I bought my Suzuki it was only a few hundred dollars extra to have a brand new bike with warranty and no hidden faults. I'm very happy with it (but can't wait to move up to a bigger bike!).

I did my BHS before finalising the purchase. It was the first time I had ever ridden anything other than a bicycle or quad, passed it with no problems other than my own personal back issues (so it's also worth mentioning that I have a munted spine and the VL250 never gives me any issues, I'd assume it'd be very comfortable for a shorter and 'uninjured' rider)

Even though the VL250 has gone up $1000 in rrp recently, it's still a few grand cheaper than the Yamaha equivalent.

[KiwiPhoenix]

Thanks for all your info and advice. It's awesome to have somewhere like this to ask all these questions and get honest answers!

I do have to say when driving I do have a look for bikes to see what everyone is riding and it seems there are alot of suzukis on the road. I really like the style of it!