Todays conundrum.

[leolion]

AND BEFORE ANYONE STARTS I AM RIDING THE BLOODY THING I ALREADY HAVE !! ( even managed a down change throttle blip yesterday after two yrs of trying anyway)

Today's question

on AVERAGE which is the cheaper way to own and run a decent sized (600-1200) motorcycle, and im aware of the variables wednesday or friday bikes, depreciation of different models but on AVERAGE

A, buy at three years old, maintain and run till it dies of old age
B. buy at 7 years old, maintain and run till it dies
C. buy at 5 years old but change it every two years

[The Shaggy D.A.]

Back away from the spreadsheets...
____________________
Chances are quite high you are not in my Monkeysphere, and I don't care about you. Don't take it personally.
Currently : Royal Enfield 350 Meteor
Previously : CB100N > CB250RS > XJ900F > GT550 > GPZ750R/1000RX > AJS M16 > R100RT > Bullet 500 > CB500 > LS650P > Bullet Electra X & YBR125 > Bullet 350 "Superstar" & YBR125 Custom > Royal Enfield Classic 500 Despatch Limited Edition (28 of 200) & CB Two-Fifty Nighthawk > ER5

[Islander]

What Shaggy said.

Find bike you like/want, make sure it actually works for you ergonomically, inspect bike for problems. If all ok, buy bike and ride it.

Keep as long as you want and maintain regularly. Ride it even more.

[Ste]

On average, you should do A + B + C because only then will you be happy.

[-]

The best thing to do would be to bin the silly idea that age means everything.
____________________
TZR250 2MA road, TZR250 1KT road, TZR250 2MA race, TDR250, YZF-750R Boost colours.
Jaguar S Type 3.0 V6 Sport R, VW Transporter T5 GP LWB Shuttle 140ps DSG.

[iooi]

[flearider]

42

[grr666]

Buy new. Mug it off @ 3yrs old.
____________________
Currently enjoying products from Ford, Mazda and Yamaha
Ste wrote: Avatars are fine, it's signatures that need turning off.

[stevo as b4]

OP is obviously a daily commuter, yet fails to mention this in post which erm is kinda relevant/important no?

OP are you riding in a city congestion charge area and thus need an ULEZ bike? If so it answers your questions.

If not, then you have a ton of options tbh. Do you have any realistic back up transport solutions to work like bus/train/car/cycle? If so you could pick anything really as long as it's not too hard to keep on the road from a spares availability angle.

I don't know your commute or what type of roads you have to use, or what cc you need and style or layout of bike is comfortable for you ergonomically etc.

Just guessing though I'd pick one of the following options personally if I had to go back to commuting.

1, A Chinese 125 brand new for under £2200. (wouldn't pay more for a new one as you can get a new KTM for under 3k).
I'd plan to make it last 3years and if you can more than that out of it then it's virtually free biking.

2, I'd pick up a used Japanese bike from around 99-09 that's in good condition and been looked after but possibly not had much use I.e a garage Queen or OAP's tourer. Ideally something that is ubiquitous and cheap like a Yamaha Diversion 600 or Bandit or CB500 etc. All pretty basic older solid bikes that'd Shrug off the miles and abuse if you look after them cosmetically and stop them getting scabby and rotten.

I certainly wouldn't pick a bike I'd actually love to own or ride, and not a silly bike like a monster naked beast with the power to annihilate all comers, or a tidy clean sports bike, or a classic two stroke or a silly fat adventure bike.

It'd be more ride to live than the other way round.

[stinkwheel]

Buy a bike. When you are bored with it, it's irrevokably broken or it seems to be becoming too much hassle to keep repairing/servicing. Get another one.

I never pay more than £2k for a bike. They are never worth more than a few hundred when I come to sell them because they are fucked.

If you want to be really cost effective. When it gets too worn/difficult to repair. Buy another one the same but with lower mileage and keep the old one for spares.
____________________
“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[ThatDippyTwat]

You're overthinking it, and only you know what's right for you at the time.

I've had almost new bikes, a couple of years old, custom built them myself, and at the moment I have 2 fairly old, but reliable, bikes. Never had a new one mind you, but I just can't bring myself to eat the depreciation.

I could have any of the above in the future, depends on what I want, what bikes and deals are around.

Just get what makes sense for you when you are looking to buy.
____________________
'98 VFR800 (touring) - '12 VFR800 Crosrunner (Commuting) - '01 KDX220 (Big Green Antisocial Machine)

[Robby]

The big expenses that we all try to forget or ignore are consumable and OEM parts. So it is cheaper to own a bike which is popular (a lot more pattern parts available) and easy on its consumables, or has fewer of them (single front disc instead of twin).

Age is only a factor at around 15 years+, when bits start to wear out that may not be available as a pattern part, or require a lot of work to get to the bit that needs fixing (various chassis bushes and bearings).

There is no hard and fast rule though. You could very easily buy a one owner, low mileage, 3 year old CBF500 and end up with a lemon.

Mile for mile, I know it costs less to run my middling 1 year old family hatchback than it does to run my middling middleweight bike. If I really cared what my bike cost me to run, I wouldn't have a bike.

[MCN]

Admit that you aren't really intae biking.
Forget bike engine bikes.
Buy a 125 and be happy.

And all what The Shaggy D.A. sez too.
____________________
Disclaimer: The comments above may be predicted text and not necessarily the opinion of MCN.

[MarJay]

Buy on condition with cash. That way if you crash it you don't have to keep making payments.

Biking is not an investment. If you start treating it as such you can't really ride the bikes.
____________________
British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[inline4]

[pompousporcup...]

[leolion]

[MarJay]

[leolion]

[chickenstrip]

[leolion]

[Kentol750]

Why not look for a reputable school that's local to you and pay for an hours instruction?
____________________
Some bikes.

[Shaft]