Can anyone please clarify my mind about km?

**see** · 28th May 2009, 00:16

I am looking for a bike for the first time.
The most confusing thing in buying seems to me is km(kilometer)s.
like how much kms done is acceptable and safe to ride?
how much kms done is dangerous to buy/ride?
I need your help!

**EJK** · 28th May 2009, 00:42

Depends on bikes. Normally (from my experience) 20,000kms on a 250 is considered OK. What are you looking at? CBR?

Welcome to KB btw.

**YellowDog** · 28th May 2009, 06:14

Originally Posted by see

I am looking for a bike for the first time.
The most confusing thing in buying seems to me is km(kilometer)s.
like how much kms done is acceptable and safe to ride?
how much kms done is dangerous to buy/ride?
I need your help!

You raise a good point. It is not necessarily the kms but how it has got there. 10k per year on the open road is not a big deal.10k per year stopping and starting around town may be a problem as the bike would have suffered a great deal more wear.

So long as you have evidence that the bike has been service and had an oil chage everey 5k, then everything that goes wrong can be easily fixed. A good starting point would be to make sure the cooling system is doing its job properly and also confirming that it does not leak/burn any oil.

Good luck.

**Nasty** · 28th May 2009, 06:35

It also depends on how well the bike has been maintained ... you buy a badly maintained bike with low kms its a shit buy ... well maintained with higher its a good buy ... everything creates variables in the process.

**crazyhorse** · 28th May 2009, 07:22

250 CC bikes are purpose bikes. Riders only have them with one purpose in mind. Majority of them are fail safe bikes and I personally don't think it matters how many km's a bike has on it. I bought a GSX250 for my son. It had done over 35,000 km. Although I did know of the owner, he lived in Auckland and we in Hawkes Bay. The bike had made many trips during the riders learning experience. Hence, you will only have it until you obtain a full licence and then buy new if you want. Most people care about their bikes, and would maintain them.

Would you buy a car because of slightly higher km's if it was a purpose built car? I am looking at a car for my daugher now, and all smaller manual cars are well over 150,000 - she will get a low mileage car when she buys a larger car when she is ready.

Same goes for a bike. Happy riding

**NighthawkNZ:Me** · 28th May 2009, 07:44

Originally Posted by see

I am looking for a bike for the first time.
The most confusing thing in buying seems to me is km(kilometer)s.
like how much kms done is acceptable and safe to ride?
how much kms done is dangerous to buy/ride?
I need your help!

If the bike has been well maintained and serviced km's shouldn't matter. there are bikes on the road that have done 500,000 kms and are still perfectly safe to ride, and yet there some that are have only done 15,000 and I wouldn't ride till such and such is fixed...

Obviously you are in the 250 market, they do have the smaller motor and can mean they are usually pulling higher revs which means they require a little more maintenance (saying that does depend on the bike)

If an engine (any engine) is maintained well then it should last... the more you use and maintain in theory the more km's you will get out of it before a major overhaul is required.

Bikes that just siting not being used out in the open are more open to the elements, and longer a bike is off the road the more work usually is needed to get p to scratch again.

Things to look for when buying a bike;

Service records.
Does the engine smoke... (unless its a 2 stroke it shouldn't)
Does the engine have any knocking, rattles or pinking sounds...
Then look at bearings... steering head, swing arm, front and back wheel bearings.
Check the front and rear shocks, are they spungy and sluggush...is the seals around the front shocks ok, does the front shocks have and rust pits where the seals can catch and rip the seals...
Check over the cables see if they have been lubed. (simple sign of maintenance)
Check brakes are they spungy... is there metal on metal sound (indicating pads) sometimes hard to tell by just looking
Check chain and sprocket has it been lubed and or are they due for a change.

**The Stranger:Me** · 28th May 2009, 08:00

As Nighthawk says, Motors tend to be good, though people often defer maintenence on suspension, brakes etc - or are ignorant.
Either way you get to own the problem.

Best thing is to get someone who knows bikes to check it over carefully prior to purchase so there are fewer surprises later.

**p.dath** · 28th May 2009, 08:47

Originally Posted by see

I am looking for a bike for the first time.
The most confusing thing in buying seems to me is km(kilometer)s.
like how much kms done is acceptable and safe to ride?
how much kms done is dangerous to buy/ride?
I need your help!

I had a Honda CBR250RR earlier this year (have a CBR600F now), and it had got up to 67,000km on the clock, and was still working perfectly. I loved that bike, it was so much fun.

I went for a bike with more km's on the clock because I was wanting to save money, and because I was returning to riding after having taken a break, and wanted a bike I wouldn't be too worried about if I laid it down.

And if your new to riding, there is a pretty good chance your going to lay the bike down some time as well. So I wouldn't get anything too flash to begin with until you have got some skills up. Once you have some confidence, then go and buy a nicer bike.

**see** · 28th May 2009, 11:53

Wow... Thank you heaps guys!!
I was looking at buying hyosung comet 250 and now I finally got ideas about how kms are involved.
Thank you for giving tips on buying a bike as well!!
Have safe rides!!!

**Winston001** · 28th May 2009, 12:14

The standard advice to your question - as you see above, is that it doesn't matter how many km are on the clock. Its the servicing that counts.

All very well - but I don't exactly agree. The more km travelled, the more stress on all components. Suspension, bearings, forks, motor, everything. So higher km logically means lower price.

This will offend those who view service as the only factor to consider. It's relevant but not all owners have a service record or can be trusted.

So the safest thing is to ask for evidence of servicing, plus carry out the checks Nighthawk suggests. And thirdly have a mechanic or someone who knows about bikes check the machine over. It's your money.

Finally, ask yourself how much you could sell the bike for? That is often a good reality check.

The good news is that modern motorcycles and cars are very reliable.

**NighthawkNZ:Me** · 28th May 2009, 13:39

Originally Posted by Winston001

All very well - but I don't exactly agree. The more km travelled, the more stress on all components. Suspension, bearings, forks, motor, everything. So higher km logically means lower price..

But these are all part of the maintenance of a bike (or any vehicle) anyway... While I agree that if you don't know what you are looking for get someone that does.

The higher kms will lower the value of a bike, but it if maintaned it shouldn't be deciding factor if you are wanting the bike if it has been maintained. If it is maintained it is magically going to become dangerous to ride (other than being a bike that is dangerous enough) once it hits a certian number of Km's on the clock that being the case clock the bugger and all well be fine again

...

Resale well thats another debatable issue... if you buy something and all you are worried about is the resale value... don't buy a vehicle of any kind... if you do buy it don't ride or drive it, have no enjoyment out of it (and you still have to do maintenance on it) and then sell it with the same mount of kms on the clock... whats the point of buying it again... its a vehicle so ride it...

The VTR had a engine life of over 100,000 before they are recommended a major overall, (and its only a recommendation) by then It would have chewed through couple of sets of wheel bearings, chains and sprockets, possible set of fork seals a dozons of oil changes and filters, cam chain tensiors, and he list goes on... all part of the maintenance process... (just on the Duke the recommend changing the belts every 20,000 its recommendation. I know of one that has done 60,000 on one set of belts...

Had a XJ 130,000 on the clock... I actually got $500 more than I paid for it (but thats aother story)... it was very well maintained and I would have happily toured NZ again on it... it was safe to ride...

I just bought a Ducati ST4s $11,990... only had 19500ks, four or five years down the track I will be lucky to get half in resale if I sell it, whether I have ride it or not... So I might as well ride dam thing or get rid of it now... maintain it and it will do many k's

**Winston001** · 28th May 2009, 14:06

Resale - what I mean is if you had to sell the bike tomorrow. Do you think another buyer would pay what you are paying?

Maintenance/Service - one man's view of maintenance is another's neglect. This is a site for enthusiastic bikers. However there are thousands of riders who aren't here, ride their bikes, change the oil when they remember, and otherwise only do something when it stops or bits fall off.

A seller isn't going to tell you which category they are in.

The average buyer won't know a lot either. So the first thing they look at - just like cars - is how far the machine has travelled. High km = less value.

For the canny experienced buyer this is a source of bargains.

**NighthawkNZ:Me** · 28th May 2009, 14:39

Originally Posted by Winston001

Resale - what I mean is if you had to sell the bike tomorrow. Do you think another buyer would pay what you are paying?

Maintenance/Service - one man's view of maintenance is another's neglect. This is a site for enthusiastic bikers. However there are thousands of riders who aren't here, ride their bikes, change the oil when they remember, and otherwise only do something when it stops or bits fall off.

A seller isn't going to tell you which category they are in.

The average buyer won't know a lot either. So the first thing they look at - just like cars - is how far the machine has travelled. High km = less value.

For the canny experienced buyer this is a source of bargains.

Understandable... im just going back to the orginal post

like how much kms done is acceptable and safe to ride?
how much kms done is dangerous to buy/ride?

if maintained it not magically going to become dangerous once it hits 30,000

**The Stranger:Me** · 28th May 2009, 14:45

Originally Posted by Winston001

The standard advice to your question - as you see above, is that it doesn't matter how many km are on the clock. Its the servicing that counts.

All very well - but I don't exactly agree. The more km travelled, the more stress on all components. Suspension, bearings, forks, motor, everything. So higher km logically means lower price.

You are correct - particularly as it relates to components such as wheel, swingarm and steering head bearings, brakes, chain and sprockets and suspension etc - which was covered.

Though less KM is NOT always best.
An engine that sits for long periods can for example loose all oil to the top end. During each start (which is a large wear component) it takes longer before the oil can protect the metal. It may even be that corosion can start on unprotected surfaces.

Outboard engines are a classic - though obviously subject to greater extremes. The advice in many places throughout the workshop manual for my outboard is that the biggest killer of outboards is lack of use.

Best advice is as we have noted - have it checked by someone appropriately experienced.