What's more important - age or mileage?

busbar · Two Stroke Sniffer Joined: 11 Apr 2014 Karma :

With a CBT booked and my interest growing I have now started looking around online at what motorcyles are available and at what cost. The intention is to get a 125 for a little pootle/practise for a few weeks so I can (hopefully) get a little more confident and be satisfied that biking is indeed something I'm cut out for before I take it further.

Although I've not decided on one particular bike yet, it is the YBR that I am concentrating my search on at present and I've realised that prices vary enormously. As a newbie I know very little about bikes, but I have bought a few used cars over the years and, whilst always taking condition into account, I've tended to take notice of mileage, service history and age in that order of importance.

Is it the same with bikes and is there any particularly important thing to look out for?

Scotsman37 · World Chat Champion Joined: 17 Aug 2004 Karma :

Spot on it is the same with bikes, and just apply the same method, as you've done with cars to get your money's worth out of it!

A GENUINE history on the bike's regular maintenance is good because it shows it's been looked after over the years by it's previous owner(s), and internal parts have been serviced/replaced as necessary?

More so look for tell tale signs like scrapes/dinks which will be a sign it's been either been dropped at stand still (which can happen easily enough) which is not to worrying or it was crashed while in motion due to a rear wheel lock, etc, in the past meaning there could have been more damage done to it than can be easily notice i.e. bent handlebars, forks and/or the bike's frame.

wipe clean the shiny part of the forks to remove any residue, push hard down on the forks while holding the front brake, and re-inspect the forks again and if you find once again residue of fluid then you're looking at new fork oil seals, as those ones need replacing which will cost you money !!!

Teflon-Mike · tl;dr Joined: 01 Jun 2010 Karma :

Neither, CONDITION - CONDITION - CONDITION
In that order.
Bikes aren't cars.
They have a little in common with them, in so much as they have wheels, and an engine, and they can take you places, but cars, these days are domestic appliences; every-one has one; they get pretty much the same sort of use; and they wear out pretty predictably and reasonably proportionally to that use, which is proportional to age, and mileage.
Bikes are far more like bits of leisure equipment; think multi-gym or gold clubs. Not every-one has them; and the use they get can vary hugely. To one person, its a new hobby, gets used regularly for a few months, then as enthusiase wains, never again. OR as enthusiasm grows, gets used excessively. Wear and tear then is almost independent of age. You might expect it to be more proportional to miles then; but again; one bike might get ragged the shit out of over very few miles by over enthusiastic newby; another might get treated very gently by experienced commuter, cranking up high miles to and from work every day.
CONDITION IS ALL.
As for service history? Well, bikes, as cheap transport and or bits of sporting goods.. franchise dealers dont get a huge amount of repeat business after the warranty has run out... certainly not on little bikes; folk DIY, either to save money, or because its part of the fun of thier hobby.
And again, some do it well, and conscientiously, others dont.
CONDITION IS ALL
Learner bikes, live hard lives; they are built down to a price, as people expect price to be proprtional to performance, and they dont have much... so they aren't necesserily the most robust bikes on the market to start with; they then get bought by Learners, who by definition probably dont know much about either riding or looking after bikes; so they get ragged, because they don't have much performance, so most will try using all they can, and they probably aren't the most mechanically sympathetic to begin with; so clutches cet tortured, gears get crunched, brakes slammed on, etc, putting strain on the bike, wearing it out; then if they do any maintenence, like as not it will be left until it cant be avoid it, as they dont want to spend money on it; and when theyt do do it; thier mechanics skills are likely to be as un-developed as thier riding, and they can do as much harm as good with the spanners!
CONDITION IS ALL
You have to look at the bikes in the metal. Not go by how much is shiney and polished, but look for how many bolt or screw heads have been chewed; oil where it should be, not where it shouldn't; bits that are bent, bodged or missing, that sort of stuff.
CONDITION - CONDITION - CONDITION
Then hope for the best!
Second hand bike? ALWAYS factor in some lea-way for fixing and fettling stuff you just wont find on inspection or short test ride; but will become apparent as you start to put the bike to use.
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Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

trevor saxe-coburg-gotha · World Chat Champion Joined: 22 Nov 2012 Karma :

busbar · Two Stroke Sniffer Joined: 11 Apr 2014 Karma :

Thanks guys, that's given me something to chew over anyway.

I have noticed that a few bikes are sold with a sneaky 'cat c' or 'cat d' stuck on the end of the description. Now, in car terms, this can be serious and can make insuring the car difficult and expensive - does it have the same effect on bikes?

Teflon-Mike · tl;dr Joined: 01 Jun 2010 Karma :

Llama-Farmer · World Chat Champion Joined: 23 Jan 2012 Karma :

I was gonna say age and mileage are irrelevant and it's all about the condition of the bike.

But Tef beat me to it, and in much more detail than I was gonna offer.
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Next Bike: I want a CBR-RR. And I want an F800 GS-A. And a VFR 800. Can I have all 3?
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clancy · World Chat Champion Joined: 11 Apr 2009 Karma :

Boris the spider · Nearly there... Joined: 24 Jan 2013 Karma :

Thought this was a question for the Plenty of Fish thread...
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Yes I'm a pig....And yes... The working public do pay my wages. Tho I contribute to your benefits you lazy c##t. You do not pay my wages. So go fcuk yourself.

trevor saxe-coburg-gotha · World Chat Champion Joined: 22 Nov 2012 Karma :

Hmmph. I thought it was for angry muck spreaders - until I realised I'd misread it as rage or silage.

*doesn't so much get coat as commandeer entire BCF cloakroom facilities*
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Mobylette Type 50 ---> Raleigh Grifter ---> Neval Minsk 125

Teflon-Mike · tl;dr Joined: 01 Jun 2010 Karma :

P.addy · *Formerly known as* P. Joined: 14 Feb 2008 Karma :

In the UK, age is top of my worries. I'd be scared of being labelled a kiddie-fiddler.

Mileage is fine, as long as the consumables aren't slick. I like tread on the tyres.

busbar · Two Stroke Sniffer Joined: 11 Apr 2014 Karma :

Well after scouring the net daily for the past month or so for a seemingly genuine, decently-priced YBR I am finally going to have a look at one at the weekend. I originally set a budget of around £1000 but have now decided to increase it by a couple of hundred.

The bike I'm going to see is a 2012 2-owner YBR with 6K on the clock and a full main dealer history. Having spoke to the seller at length today, both he and the bike seem very genuine and I'm optimistic enough to have hired a van in anticipation of bringing the bike back with me.

Fingers crossed.