Small Bike

[chris_recaro]

Hey, my girlfriend wants to learn to ride a motorbike, but she is only small (about 5 ft 1in).
Has anyone got any recommendations for her as a first bike? as most motorbikes would be to big for her to reach the floor .

Thanks
Chris

[bristol_sports_bikes]

any 125sports bike will do, rs/mito, or even a 400c sports bike,
there tiny, im £6ft4 on one, and struggle to do gearing in my full leathers lol, there made for tiny people so go for one
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honda vfr nc30 1991

[Misc]

Cg-125, there cheap & propably won't make a mark if you dropped one.

[ISLAND GIRL]

Get her a CG125, very easy to ride and practical too, insurance should be good also. Its what I learnt to ride on before going to the hornet. Sell on quite easily too if looked after, mine did
BTW I am five foot 4 or 5 if this helps.
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Live on the Isle of Wight and ride a CBR600F

[Minky_monkey]

Or maybe something in a cruiser style, they're generally a lot lower.

[chris_recaro]

Thanks people, i'm not so sure that she would go for a 125, she's always been into bigger sports bikes, even though she knows shes too small.
I might have a sniff around and see what small 400's i can find, if anyone has got any recommendations they would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks again,
Chris

[Minky_monkey]

Having a quick look around, the RVF has a seat height that depending on the year, comes in at around 31 inches.

[jay_666]

CBR400 have a low seat hight, i think
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[bristol_sports_bikes]

cbr 400 / vfr400/ rvf400, there small,
thats my vfr400>>>look at the seat height to the pegs,,,very small
https://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d51/bristol_sports_bikes/Nccleanandshiny.jpg
vry fast to
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honda vfr nc30 1991

[stinkwheel]

GPZ500 is fairly small.

Honda Bros and Yam SRX600 are tiny, SRX400 is like a toy.
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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.”
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[chris_recaro]

Thanks a load people.
I'll have to show her all these bikes now and see which one she likes, will keep her quiet for a while.

Thanks again people, a great help!

Chris

[yambabe]

The VFR400 NC30 is the lowest sports bike I have come across, but the riding position is a bit of a bastard, perticularly if you are somewhat large in the chest area!

Some bikes that will be too tall standard will be suitable for a lowering kit. The CB400 (CB-1) springs to mind, I have a friend who is even shorter than me (hard I know) who has lowered one of these and it now rides very nicely.

750 Zephyrs are also quite small, much to my surprise.

The problem with the sporty bikes for those of us of a vertically-challenged disposition is more than just the seat height though. You will often find that if you need to be over the tank to get to fairly dropped bars then your arms will be too short.

As has been said, cruisers are more practical for us shorties but it really depends how confident she is. Having met a few cambered roads and had a couple of "shit no road, bollocks, crash, ouch" moments I prefer to know that I can get at least one foot flat down when I'm out and about!

It's just a question of going round to lots of bike shops and sitting on lots of bikes til she finds something she is happy with.

A little tip for you though. If she is set on a sports bike, try to find a Jap import rather than a UK spec bike as they tend to be an inch or so lower as standard.
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Sod falling in love, I wanna fall in chocolate.

[NC30UK]

NC30 would be a good choice as lots of short poeple ride them.

a thinner seat cuts an inch off the hieght, and the rear suspension linkage can be modded to drop it about another inch

[chris_recaro]

Sounds like the VFR 400 is a good choice, wouldn't mind trying one out myself.

Thanks
Chris

[Annabella]

As a 5 footer, the CBR400 is by far the best short person's bike.

The weight distribution is far better for someone struggling to reach the floor and the slightly more upright seating position also helps.
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[EuropeanNC30R...]

CBR's (250 and 400) are the lowest. You can lower the nc30's suspension but you wouldn't want to, it's borderline as it is.

Remove padding from the seat? Are you crazy

[Kickstart]

Hi

ZZR600 is also quite low. CBR400 is tiny. VFR400 is not that low, nor are the RS125 and Mito (both far higher than a CBR400). The SV650 is often recommended but they are not that low and are quite wide.

All the best

Keith
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[meanbiker84]

my wife is also 5'2 but she found the honda shadow very easy to ride as its a low riding bike with a sit up riding prosition so she coule reach the bars lol hope this helps

[palmer]

IMO alot of the newer 600's are fairly small.

[Annabella]

[chris_recaro]

Thanks for all the replies, not been on in a few days because i got hit by a car while on my bike few days ago, and come off on the ice today but didn't damage me or the bike luckily!
I think the CBR400 is looking by far the best choice at the moment, she loves it too!

Thanks again people!

Chris