Planning to get a small 125 for long distance commute?

[Ebiso]

Hi,

Basically I work from home but have to commute once a week 35 miles to the office. Involves 2 taxi's and a train. atm I'm spending £150- £200 a month on travel but it's becoming a pain relying on public transport.

My plan was to just take my CBT and get a new Honda Pcx 125 on finance, keep this for a year and then decide if I want to take my full bike test or just get a car.

I'm trying to keep the monthly costs equal or below what I'm paying out atm. This seems to be the cheapest option I could find.

The route is mainly A roads, and I would be travelling another 25 miles or so each weekend through back villages visiting friends ect.

Basically I was just looking for any other ideas on bikes, considering I mainly care for storage space, running costs, insurance, and resale value.
I've read I should be able to keep up 55 mph on the PCX, which seemed fine to me, but I have no experience on the roads.....

Does this seem like a good choice or would you wait and go for a full licence ( this would probably take me around 6 months to save for with lessons which i figures I could use to get actual experience) ?

[Rogerborg]

It's not unreasonable, but you're going to struggle a bit on A roads, especially on hills or headwinds.

You can do it, but I'd plan on upgrading sooner rather than later. Even a 250 makes a significant difference.
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[Andy_Pagin]

For a once a week trip I wouldn't worry too much about the hills and headwinds. The sheer saving on travel costs overrides that. I used to do a similar trip occasionally on a Yamaha Vity through Buckinghamshire which is fairly hilly and exposed, just had to drop to 40mph now and then.

I would recommend you practice ride a bit more than one a week though.

Factor in the cost of gear, if you're riding because you have to then you'll need to keep warm and dry.
____________________
They're coming to take me away, ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-haaa, hey-hey,
the men in white coats are coming to take me away.
Yamaha Vity -> YBR125 -> FZS600 Fazer -> FZ1-S Fazer

[Baffler186]

Should be fine, I used to do 30 mile runs occasionally on the dual carriageway and, although blustery, it was doable. Main thing to consider is good textiles, boots and gloves (especially in Winter).

As for cost, this is what it cost me:

CBT £90 (valid for 2 years)
Bike £(whatever you pay a month on finance)
Insurance (will differ wildly, but mine was £135/year IIRC)
Petrol £7/month based on your stated milage and a bit more for fun.
Helmet £45 (cheap one, but best fit is more important)
Jacket and trousers £100 (cheap ones often leak)
Boots £70 (as above)
Gloves £20 - read reviews online but none will be entirely warm and dry in Winter.
MOT £20
Servicing £120, cheaper if DIY

knock off servicing/MOT if a new bike.

Depends on how well you like the bike, but if like me then you'll probably want to use your "savings" to do your training and tests.
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Current: 2009 SV650 S, 1990 Kawasaki GT550
Previous: 2009 CBF125, 1998 GSF600, 2004 FZ6 Fazer, 1978 CB400a Hondamatic

[map]

Are you married or living with partner?

I ask as when not on your once a week commute partner could also use it needed. The maxi scooter style like the PCX has better weather protection and storage than most bikes as standard. I'd certainly consider one for commute. IIRC though Rogerborg got rid of his Burgman as too boring (although maybe that might not be the whole picture or I might have misunderstood m'lud).

You can start with cheap(er) kit and get better and/or more expensive (you don't always get what you pay for) as you progress.

As I've said in other posts, life is a bit short for what ifs. I'd try it. You may like and keep. You may move onto other (bigger) bikes (and tests). You might just give it up. Whatever, you'll have learnt from the experience.

Post what you decide
____________________
...and the whirlwind is in the thorn trees, it's hard for thee to kick against the pricks...
Gibbs, what did Duckie look like when he was younger?

[daemonoid]

Why get a new scooter on finance?

Why not get a loan and buy an older scooter outright? You'll save on insurance, the depreciation, the total payments etc. Especially if you're not 100% sure about the idea! In a years time you'll be able to sell it on and probably get 90%+ of your money back.

A 125 is suitable for A roads if you're confident. Very few car drivers know how to take a corner so if you learn how to carry speed people will have trouble keeping up with you even if your top speed is lower.
____________________
current: ducati monster 750
past: hyosung gt250r, bajaj pulsar 180, hyosung gt 125 comet
@thomasgarrard | www.straitjkt.com | www.racingseven.com

[clancy]

Seems like a good idea but if your already thinking of not keeping the bike I definitely it would make more financial sense to buy a second hand one rather than new

If you don't have the cash up front up, bank loan or credit card then you can still pay for it slowly. Just saves huge depreciation and overall cost of the vehicle in the first place
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KLX 300r

[Bunny Lingus]

Get a 2nd hand Honda CG125. For me, the best commuter on the market. The advantage of a 'bike' rather than a scooter is that it will teach you the basics of riding using a conventional motorcycle gearbox. That way if you decide to do your test you'll be able to ride a big bike straight away.
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Bunny Lingus & The Flipside Faggots

[Andy9934]

I think you're going to get a pretty biased opinion here but I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. I used to train + pushbike to work and it was nice but gets a bit hot in the summer so I got a 125 to avoid the sweatiness.

A YBR 125 cost me £900, though it needed some work (£130 worth I can't do, the rest I am enjoying at home).
Fire & theft insurance as a twenty something in a nice area was £250.
The gear was as follows:
New 4* helmet: £50
Second hand:
Gore-tex trousers: £20
2 x jackets: £25 ea
1 x jacket: £8!
Richa gloves: £10
Boots: £20
Tank bag: £10

(takeaway message: second hand gear is very cheap online)

I anticipate I could resell the bike in a year with 18,000 miles on it for £700-800.
Fuel is about £10/week for a 30 mile round trip using premium unleaded.


My train ticket was £100/ month. At £1500+520 fuel the finances work out very well. If I do not write off the bike I will be well in the black.

Like you, I did not have sole use of a car before and value this freedom. I also love riding but have tried to ignore this as you might not!

[sharpenough23]

I got on the road for under £1000

Did my cbt £105, helmet £65 bike - 03 Yamaha sr125 for £600 off ebay which had done 16000.

Oil change £30, new chain £15

Insurance £25 a month, I commute 25 mile each way from Dudley to Redditch which is mainly A roads and have no issues, comfortable at 60 (unless your going up a hill)

Probably spend about £20 max a week on fuel.

And got a decent leather jacket & gloves off eBay for about £70

[P.addy]

[Pigeon]

If only keeping the bike for a year, buying new may seem expensive as depreciation will be anything from £350 - £800 depending on bike bought.

2007/8 CG125, or a 2011 CBF / YBR might be best bet.


EDIT:
Varadero is the dogs danglies of 125's. Typically more expensive, but normally hold value too.

[Ebiso]

I was looking at a lot of the bikes mentioned, but the under seat storage and better mpg on the scooter put it ahead for me - I often need to stay overnight and carry a lot of crap.

I hadn't heard of the Varadero before, I like the look a lot and the idea of a bigger bike for long distances. It seems they have been discontinued though...

I have no idea about bike maintenance ect which is why I wanted to go new, realistically I would probably keep my first bike for a good year and would be fine losing up to £1000 in depreciation if it meant I didn't have to worry so much during this time.

[sabian92]

[Ayrton]

[barrkel]

[Ebiso]

How about fuel economy between a new pcx and an older bike in the real world? would I really get double the value from the scooter like I think?

[slowlydoesit]

[sabian92]

[Ebiso]

I think I will go for a second hand bike then as I only want it for experience until I do my full licence.

I'll just look around for the best deal I can get on either of these then, they all seem pretty similar in specs...

CG
varadero XL
YBR
CBF
Pcx

[smarjoram]

I've had a YBR for 2 years almost and despite never being in love with the aesthetics it's served me very well. It's great road experience plus very easy to maintain and learn the basics of bike mechanics on.

A-roads aren't a problem if you're happy to cruise it out in the slow lane, I don't like holding my bike at max speed (65ish) for miles though cos it just doesn't seem healthy to me.

I get around 230 miles to a tank (£11), and I rag it too most of the time . TPF&T Insurance was about £160 last time, I'm 28.

You can get all the gear at reasonable prices, I have a mixture of low budget stuff and second hand bits/hand me downs. There's also security to think about, and tools/maintenance kit but once it's bought you won't be buying it again for a while, if at all.

I'd highly recommend getting a geared 125 over a scoot, it's way more fun, you look slightly less of a cabbage imo and car drivers give you a tad more respect. My 50cc scoot was a nightmare just keeping up with traffic, zero throttle response and not much fun waiting 5 mins to get up to 40mph!

Good luck anyway
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MBK Booster NG '98, YBR 125 '11

[daemonoid]

[Rogerborg]

[daemonoid]

[sabian92]

Actually, I'll add this as well.

My brother got a 125 on finance at 18 (I know, what a div ) and it got robbed 6 months later. Insurance company (MCE, and we all know what standing they have on here....) refused to pay out because it "wasn't at his home address", due to him essentially spending most of the week at his girlfriend's house, and not where he actually lives.

He's now stuck paying the finance on a bike he doesn't have and the police didn't find (and is no doubt broken up for parts by now anyway). And MCE raped him raw on insurance because it had to be fully comp as a stipulation of his finance agreement, so he was paying just under a grand on a bike worth 2.5k.

He was most unimpressed when they refused to pay out, as you can imagine especially after being dry-bummed by MCE.