which bike for new rider ?

[biker420]

Hi All,

I am basically in the process of doing my full license and will be buying a bike around March/April time hopefully.

I just wanted to get some advice on which bike to go for as I am not very clued up on whats good out there apart from finding Harleys sexy lol.

Any insights would be much appreciated.

My requirements:

1) Should be reliable.

2) Cheap-ish to run and insure.

3) Will mostly be used for city/London commuting so should be easy to manoeuvre through traffic but I might also visit friends say in Glasgow etc occasionally so if its comfortable for long distances that would be awesome. I was also thinking about riding around Europe in the summer possibly.

4) Should have capability for fitted storage boxes so I can use it to transfer stuff from A to B if needed.

5) I am not overly concerned about power as long as its not a complete slug. But do want some thing more powerful than 125cc which is the reason why I am doing my license in the first place.

Also any advice on whether I should go for brand new or second hand would be much appreciated.

My budget is between 4 and 8k depending on my bonus which will come around March hopefully.

Thanks in advance
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Time to take London on, on two wheels.

[Andy_Pagin]

NOT a Harley or any other cruiser.
Remember that there are plans afoot to tax pre 2007 bikes out of existence in London by 2020.
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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

[faffergotgunz]

Triumph Rocket 3 if you have a cruiser in you Thats what I'd buy on that budget!

Nothing wrong with a bit of cruising, cleans out the all the cobwebs...
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[Andy_Pagin]

[155mph]

[Snowdonia Rider]

MT07 Tracer. Narrow and agile enough for London and a bit of wind protection for Glasgow and Europe. Practical and cheap to run too.
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I want your clothes, your boots and your motorcycle.
Suzuki GP125 Suzuki GSX600F Suzuki SV650S KTM EXC250F SkyTeam Bongo 125
My YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/SnowdoniaRider

[stinkwheel]

Kawasaki Versys 650 for practicality.

W800 for appearance.
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“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.

[notabikeranym...]

New R6 & a Rucksack.

[Azoth]

Get the style of bike you really want. There's no point getting a bike as your first big bike just because it's good for you. Get the style of bike you really, really want and you see yourself settling on in the long-term future.. You're buying it for you, not for the approval of anyone else, so if you find cruisers 'sexy', as you say, then get one. Perhaps a slightly smaller and slightly more Japanese one (e.g. Intruder, Shadow). Japanese because, after all, whichever bike you get, you want it to work. You don't want it to be out of use or to constantly need attention. Smaller, because if you have to pick it up, better to do it after almost dropping it than after actually dropping it.
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Safety in numbers

[Rogerborg]

[Alpineandy]

When you say 'used for city/London commuting so should be easy to manoeuvre through traffic', that kind of cuts out a cruiser.
But if you really like cruisers then that's your choice and some of us (not many admittedly) won't immediately think you're a gay poser for riding one... but you should know they're ridiculously slow and heavy...

A real 'heavy traffic' commuter bike would be a small'ish bike and won't really be suitable for long distances so you're looking for a compromise bike really.

Your budget is very large for a 1st big bike.
IMO you shouldn't spend more than 2.5k for your 1st as you cannot really know what qualities are really important to you until you've had one a while.
Your 1st big bike is still a learning tool. You'll stand a fair chance of dropping it (foot slips on gravel at traffic lights/ gravel car park / just moving the bike around the garage) so you'll be more annoyed damaging a £5k bike than a 2.5k bike.
Plus you will start to check out other bikes enviously for the qualities you hadn't appreciate before you'd been riding for 6 months+ etc.
Buy cheap and review in 6-12 months what you really want from a big bike.

As has been mentioned, Congestion Charge rules will change in the future, but it's only relevant if you plan to keep your bike a long time or if you can't lose money when you sell (because everyone else is looking for a compliant bike).

As for which bike, are you comfortable with a sports bike (I'm not and I find the visibility limited)?
Are you tall? A Super-Moto is a good commuter bike but they don't make them for small people, plus they're crap for long distances.
Dual-Sport/Enduro are usually great for commuting but they can be a bit heavy and their weight is quite high, so usually not so easy to manhandle in heavy traffic.
Naked bikes also tend to be great for traffic but no weather protection...

No matter what anyone recommends, you've loads of time and you need to use that by visiting Bike showrooms and sitting on different style bikes for a while to see which style is most comfortable for you. Then when you've defined the style a bit more, peoples recommendations can carry a bit more weight..
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The above comment isn't necessarily the truth and anyone that says it is, is only correct if it's the truth or they're bigger than me.

[Bozzy]

ER6n? For example....

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201610138737046

1 owner, full history. Economical, relatively cheap to insure and naked so less damage when you drop it.

*edit* just noticed the bit about finding Harleys sexy. Not sure an ER6n will appeal then!
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2004 SV650S >>> 2009 Street Triple R

[Rogerborg]

Kawasaki Vulcan S.

It's an ER6 that's been crashed into the Blue Oyster Bar. But they can't have ruined it that much.
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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

[155mph]

[ADSrox0r]

Better off building up your NCB on a cheap(ish) bike that's cheap to insure rather than paying through the nose for something that would break your heart (and widen your sphincter) if it goes down in the first couple of years.
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Current bikes: '08 VFR 800 VTEC(yo) , '07 ZZR1400 Winter hack: '95 Aprilia 650 Pegaso Currently lusting after: RC30

[Pjay]

With a budget like that I don't think anyone can really tell you what is right for you, you can pretty much buy what you want so it all comes down to taste and not the budget.

I would say you go down to your local bike outlet and look around, see what grabs your fancy, sit on it, make revvy noises and then get off and look at the practical stuff that you are going to wish you had bought once you are a few weeks into that commute.

I personally wouldn't spend much over the 4k mark on first bike/gear/insurance as you're almost certainly going to want to change your first bike after a shorter time than you'd imagine. This is because we usually buy what we want and not what we need. It will soon enough become apparent what you will need to make your biking life complete and that may even been a 2nd bike, so with another 4k spare, you can buy that commuter and that weekend blaster or the single bad boy that does it all.

TL:DR
Nobody can tell you what's best for you, it's personal.


Edit: Alpineandy said it all a bit better than me.

[biker420]

Thanks very much for all the great advice all.

So I am looking at this/similar commuter -> https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201612210745032

And I am wondering if you guys think its the right choice-ish given my original criteria?

Cheers
____________________
Time to take London on, on two wheels.

[Alpineandy]

[biker420]

This is all part of my research. As I mentioned before I dont know much about bikes at all. So by starting this thread I was hoping to get some useful info out of experienced riders.

For e.g. I had not heard the term naked bike before some one mentioned it on here etc.

Thanks,
____________________
Time to take London on, on two wheels.

[Alpineandy]

[biker420]

I have sat on a couple of Hondas(local showroom) but havent ridden one yet. I am hoping to do my DAS in Jan or Feb.

My budget is realistically about 4/5k because I generally dont like changing things so go for good quality initially.

For e.g. I am in same job for last 4 years and have had the same car for about 8 years now

Cheers,
____________________
Time to take London on, on two wheels.

[Alpineandy]

[biker420]

lols, Its my 2nd job but still my first car

I see what you are saying here about getting used to bikes but basically I am after a safe choice. Obviously if it doesnt work out then I get some thing else but I am hoping I can get some thing for a few years atleast.

Thanks,
____________________
Time to take London on, on two wheels.

[Rogerborg]

[Alpineandy]