Get a 125 or wait for DAS?

[ClaireBear]

Hiya,

Bit of silly advice please Its something that has been annoying my for a while now

Right then, Im soon back off to uni, which is about 35 miles away. Will be driving it twice a day but Im not sure what to do.

- do I keep driving the car and save up for the DAS and a big bike? Will have to pay out for the park and ride, toll bridge and of course diesel.

- do I get a 125? As car park will be free and no toll bridge payment, just have to pay for fuel.

- do I do the DAS, take the car as usual and just save up over time for a big bike? (Wont be able to get a bike probably till next year though if I do the DAS) .

I've worked out its going to cost £400 a month in the car
If I had a bike I would only need to fuel it, rather than paying for car park charges etc. But I dont want to end up paying this sort of amount on fuel ??

So what does everyone think? And if option one is recommended, are there any economical 125cc for around the £800 mark.

Thanks for any advice

[Ste]

Do your DAS, get a 125, then get a bigger bike at some point in the future?

And run your car cheaply on veggy oil, 60p per litre rather than 106p per litre.

[angryjonny]

[Kwaks]

Which Uni?

Even in this day and age you should be able to find free parking close enough to you destination to save on the parking charges, or worse case rent a driveway off a local resident for daytime parking.

At £400 travel per month (not to mention the time taken) I think I would consider a bedsit.

As for the original question, I would go the DAS route.
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[map]

It sounds like you want a bike as a commuter so IMO...

Option 1.
Get a 125cc as you have CBT. Make sure it's a 4-stroke.
Use 125 as a commuter to gain experience.
You may get around 70mpg (so ballpark about double a car) but remember bike tanks are small so you'll fill up more often. You also need to factor in costs for insurance, tax, mot, service, consumables (brakes, tyres, etc.).
Also, depending on your route for those 35 miles you'll be on it for some time. Make sure it's comfortable.
If doing this through autumn/winter then add extra for clothing.
In fact I'd even consider a scooter for commute as it has better weather protection and more storage.
You will still have the car for those really bad days.
Then save up for the DAS.

Option 2.
Go direct for the DAS and get a cheap commuter (maybe 125cc, but consider up to say 500c, including scooter choices) as above while saving for your ideal (bigger) bike.
However, remember a bigger bike will have a decrease mpg, increased insurance, tax and consumables cost. So you may not save as much as you think.


You should be able to get a second-hand 125cc for £800 but you may have to shop around and also consider private, rather than dealer sales. Do not, and I repeat this for clarity, do not be tempted by any of the Chinese bikes at the moment. For regular commuting you will find them a poor investment.

An older model bike will not be as economical as newer stuff. Reliability is another issue as new stuff can break and maintained older stuff keep running.

Whatever you decide having a bike will improve the quality of your life
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[angryjonny]

[Ste]

But, it isn't a petrol car.

[ClaireBear]

yep its a 2L turbo diesel

[angryjonny]

[ClaireBear]

I've decided to stick to the car, going to be more practical I suppose will do my cbt on saturday and my das in february/march and get a nice bike then. only a few more months to wait lol
Thanks for everyones advice though

[map]

[ClaireBear]

[EUMP]

Do your A2/A1 (depending on your age) pick up a cheap 250-400cc? Free parking, better performance!
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[angryjonny]

Assuming the 88 in her name refers to her year of birth she's old enough to do the full category A - in which case there's no good reason to go restricted. The only problem is the finance hit associated with both doing the DAS course and buying a bike.

Well... that and the fact that commuting through the winter is (as I have hinted) pretty nasty if you don't have a car to fall back on when you need to. I did it for several years and I'm bloody glad that these days my bike is a plaything rather than a workhorse.

[metalangel]

I'd say do DAS - it's coming up on winter now, so just do your lessons throughout the next few months and pass your test in the new year, then you can buy a nice 500 or 600 in the spring ready for the 2010 silly season, and having enjoy the cold winter ensconced in the comfort of your car.
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[ClaireBear]

I am 21 and because my local instructor charges only a £20 difference between the das and restricted test, it does make more sense to go straight for the das
Im hoping to be able to do my das sooner than feb/march but the problem is finding the four/five days which are the training and test days. Annoyingly, uni generally is five days a week for half the year and the rest of the time Im on placement doing full time hours- all this to be paid £170 a month lol