New to bikes... (Trippen1 )

[Trippen1]

hey guys, i'm new to bikes and yeah, i would like to own a bike of my own and start riding one.

had never rode on a motorcycle before therefore i know nothing about them and so i want to get one to also know more about them too.

i was referred to a kawasaki ninja 250cc 2009, said they are 4 stroke and only 40hp, so it's a really good bike to learn in and also after it won't feel so slow either.

said to stay away from 2 stroke as they are quite powerful for a 250cc...

what do you guys recommend?

also what about licences? do i need to be on like, restricted to ride a 250cc bike? or is learners okay?

plus what's an average cost on services for these things?

thanks a bunch!

[Slyer]

Hey mate!
Lots of choices, have a really good browse on Trademe and get a feel for what kind of bike you would like. Cruisy, sporty, dual purpose etc.
The new Ninja 250 is closer to 30HP, I was going to get one but they are a bit too common for my liking now.
250 is the max you can ride on a learners or restricted license and is what I recommend if you want to do any serious riding.

Definitely stick with a 4 stroke for a first bike, the important thing is to figure out what you would like to be doing with your bike once you get it. Commuting, cruising, going fast, touring or a bit of each.

If you like you can have a go on my bike and see what you think (older ninja 250)... I've let a lot of newbies ride it. I'm not a horrible teacher either.

[Trippen1]

i'm liking the sporty looks for a bike, the kawasaki ninja looks very nice and it is the type i would like to stick to...in future i would prob just be upgrading the engine cc with the same type of bike, i wouldn't be riding it hardout.

for now all i really know is kawasaki ninja, i don't know how to tell between a 4 stroke and 2 stroke as i go through trademe and no one says what they are.

told to stay away from those hyoseng korean bikes as they aren't as good and also not to get an old bike, anything above 2006 would be good,

what about honda? suzuki? yamaha? they any good? or simply they are all good and it all comes to myself to decide what feels comfortable for me to ride in?

ta,

[disenfranchised]

told to stay away from those hyoseng korean bikes as they aren't as good and also not to get an old bike, anything above 2006 would be good,

The Hyosungs are fine...and if you're only looking 2006 onwards, then you're a bit limited for choice really.
Saying that, the older bikes can be fine too.

Set your budget, see what's available, try them on for size and pick one.

[Slyer]

Now now now, nothing wrong with older bikes. Anything 90's plus would be plenty modern enough.
My bike was an '88 Ninja 250 and I swapped the motor out with a new 2007 model motor because they are almost identical.
Only reason I did this was because the motor had done a lot of kilometres (over 80,000) and had not been taken care of very well over its lifetime.

It all depends on the number of kilometres the bike as done as well as the overall condition of the bike, it's not more likely to blow up JUST because it's old.

It might aslo pay for you to learn a little bit about motors.
http://www.carbibles.com/fuel_engine_bible.html
That link is a very good place to start, it's explained well with images etc and explains the difference between bikes/cars with different numbers of cylinders and the different layouts.

Basically 2 stroke bikes allow you to get a lot more power out of a small engine but require a lot more maintenance, they also require you to make lots of noise and smoke and keep the revs up to go anywhere. The most obvious differences between 2 and 4 stroke to tell them apart is the sound they make and the size of the exhaust.
2 strokes go ringa ding ding ding! 4 strokes go braaaaap braaaaap in the example of MX bikes.
Also, 2 strokes are getting increasingly rare as they cause a lot of polution apparently.
etc:
[youtube]tC0O40_VIwk[/youtube]

[ducatilover]

How about a spada with a recon engine?


I won't want to sell it though. and no the new 250r ninja has a claimed 31ps [30hp], As far as I am aware the older gpx from back in the day had 40 odd hp.

Take time picking a bike and enjoy it

[TomJ]

How about a spada with a recon engine?


I won't want to sell it though. and no the new 250r ninja has a claimed 31ps [30hp], As far as I am aware the older gpx from back in the day had 40 odd hp.

Take time picking a bike and enjoy it

Would highly recommend the older 250GPX. A great fun bike with easy handling and mild manners although it will get up and go once you gain experience.

this is my old bike as i have traded up recently

http://www.motorcycletrader.co.nz/Vi...|BTWN+125+250|

[MyGSXF:Me]

also what about licences?

Welcome to KB!

Check these out...

http://www.ltsa.govt.nz/licensing/motorcycle/

http://www.ltsa.govt.nz/factsheets/28.html

[ducatilover]

Would highly recommend the older 250GPX. A great fun bike with easy handling and mild manners although it will get up and go once you gain experience.

this is my old bike as i have traded up recently

http://www.motorcycletrader.co.nz/Vi...|BTWN+125+250|

That's a tidy wee toy! Nothing wrong about that as a first bike

[TomJ]

she is almost immaculate but then I'm biased!

[sil3nt]

I would stay away from a new ninja 250. Why spend so much money on a new bike that your never going to get the money back on when a 2nd hand bike can be picked up for less than 3 grand and easily last until your full license when you can sell it for close to what you got it for.

[vindy500]

my mate bought a new ninja in 07, paid 6k for it, just saw a 06 one go for 3500....

[motorbyclist]

It's good to start on a "neutral" position bike; not too sporty but not a cruiser either, so you can decide what you want after your 12 months learning, without having to relearn the new bike.

Good learners: suzuki FXR150, kawasaki GPX or ninja 250, suzuki GSX250, or honda VTR250. also the suzuki bandit (250) and honda hornet.

my personal recommendation for a newbie: the VTR250. all are reasonably new (decade old), cost around the $4500 mark, are totally 100% honda reliable and are very good bikes with very good motors for learning.

for sporty bikes, look at the CBR250, or the ZXR250 but be aware they eat cam chains and the forks are prone to pitting from stone chips. FZR and GSXR seem to be dodgy by design.

i'd like to meet whoever it is who keeps telling newbies to stay clear of old bikes:

provided it isn't being sold because it's fucked, it's usually fine. the only reason most bikes don't see 100km is cars, slippery corners, abuse and neglect.

my advice would be NOT to buy new unless you really have money to throw away. get someone who actually knows what they're looking at (plenty of us here on KB including myself) to come with you to check out bikes as there are plenty of people trying to sell you their problems, but it's pretty hard to go wrong with anything under 20 years young provided it's been taken care of.

anything that blows blue smoke is either two stroke or a very sick four stroke - stay clear for now. nuts two strokes include honda NSR, suzuki RGV, aprilia RS, yamaha TZR plus a few others; not good to learn on and need due care to maintain... I beleive the TZR is known by the nickname of "hand grenade"

EDIT: I see you're in auckland - maybe come visit us uni bike club guys and see what we've got

[YellowDog]

hey guys, i'm new to bikes and yeah, i would like to own a bike of my own and start riding one.

had never rode on a motorcycle before therefore i know nothing about them and so i want to get one to also know more about them too.

i was referred to a kawasaki ninja 250cc 2009, said they are 4 stroke and only 40hp, so it's a really good bike to learn in and also after it won't feel so slow either.

said to stay away from 2 stroke as they are quite powerful for a 250cc...

what do you guys recommend?

also what about licences? do i need to be on like, restricted to ride a 250cc bike? or is learners okay?

plus what's an average cost on services for these things?

thanks a bunch!

Hello and welcome. There are so many bikes to look at and consider. Perhaps the style and colour are not the best place to start.

It doesn't sound like you really know where you are and what you are at yet. You really so need to sit and ride on a few bikes to see how they feel for you. You have had a great offer of a test ride on here and I would suggest that this is the kind of thing you should be doing before taking the plunge. Even riding pillion on a few bikes will help you get a better idea of what it is all about.

Good luck and do yourself a favour by now rushing into a bike purchase until you have qualified your decision.

[Bend-it]

hey guys, i'm new to bikes and yeah, i would like to own a bike of my own and start riding one.

Congrats! and welcome to a new world!

i was referred to a kawasaki ninja 250cc 2009, said they are 4 stroke and only 40hp

On a 170kg-ish bike, 40hp is plenty enough to get in trouble with... In fact if yo've never been on a bike, you'll probably think it's the fastest machine you've ever piloted yourself!

said to stay away from 2 stroke as they are quite powerful for a 250cc...
what do you guys recommend?

Yup, peaky power (meaning you get no power at low revs, then it suddenly all comes at once when you hit the correct revs) and higher maintenance costs.

also what about licences? do i need to be on like, restricted to ride a 250cc bike? or is learners okay?

Advice I gave another newbie here: http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...50&postcount=3

plus what's an average cost on services for these things?

$150-ish every 5000kms or so. A bike will save you money on parking if you ride to work, but cost the same as a car in petrol (uses less, but you'll ride more), servicing, tyres (only 2, but twice the price) etc.

Hopefully that helps. Use the search function... you'll find just about all the info you need.

Have fun!