What to look out for when getting a bike?

[alexanderegrt]

Hi guys,

 

I'm new to the community and new to everything about motorcycles as well. I'm learning class 2B now and am thinking of getting a bike after I got my license. But I have no idea what to look out for in a bike other than its appearance, well and none of my friends ride any bikes, so I'm hopelessly lost until I chanced upon this forum

 

I hope you guys can really help me out here. In any case, the appearance of the bike is still high on my priority, but so is the economics. I thought the Honda NSR150SP looks decent, until I read from some online forums that its fuel consumption rate is very high, so I'm having second thoughts now.

 

So can you guys guide me on the things to look out for when getting a bike, and in particular, how to save on money at the same time in addition to looking at its fuel economy?

 

Cheers.

Edited December 10, 2010 by alexanderegrt

[alexanderegrt]

General feedback on Yamaha R125:

Plus side: good looking, high Fuel Consumption, cheap and easy maintenance.

Downside: Expensive, and slow.

[Fredd]

reali depends on wad u wan e bike for..whether u wan 1st/2nd hand..will it be a temporary bike till u upgrade e followin yr to a bigger cc bike or juz 2b all e way or till cl 2 dat kinda thing. generally,most 2b sportsbikes r relatively quite high FC and require extra effort wif 2T if its 2 stroke. bt of coz tis bikes cn perform better than 4stroke bikes. if u wan a sporty lookin bike but wan good consumption i recommend e yamaha r15. if u wan tremendous mileage per full tank, i wud recommend bajaj pulsar. if u goin to upgrade to a bigger bike..den juz buy a wave or rxz cheap2 den trade in or sell it off when the time comes.

 

if u do need help regardin a particular bike u fancy, u cn talk to the ppl in the SBF Community and who noes, they even may chip in by helpin u view e bike.

[deckard]

dont worry

 

I know just the place for you. just go to jalan bukit merah

go to any shop and tell the salesman you just passed 2B and know nothing about bike

notice the HUGE on his face

 

listen to his friendly advice and buy your bike from him

[Fredd]

u r givin him e wrong advice bro..hahaha. but reali up to an individual which shop he/she likes best. sumtimes u wan a particular bike bt dat particular shop dun have it

 

dont worry

 

I know just the place for you. just go to jalan bukit merah

go to any shop and tell the salesman you just passed 2B and nothing about bike

notice the HUGE on his face

 

listen to his advice and buy your bike from him

[deckard]

u r givin him e wrong advice bro..hahaha. but reali up to an individual which shop he/she likes best. sumtimes u wan a particular bike bt dat particular shop dun have it

 

yo.

 

jalan bukit merah very nice okay, go there jalan jalan then can makan at the alexandra food centre now open.

 

 

soo many bike shop there. you think what ah? one shop lagi got bird. like jurong bird park some more.

[Fredd]

not forgettin e ikea n e nurses from AH

 

yo.

 

jalan bukit merah very nice okay, go there jalan jalan then can makan at the alexandra food centre now open.

 

 

soo many bike shop there. you think what ah? one shop lagi got bird. like jurong bird park some more.

[Blahhh]

Three things to me that are very important to note when buying used bike are:

 

1. engine condition

2. alignment

3. leakage

 

Engine condition meaning no funny sound like buzzing or knocking sound, starts and doesn't stall easily and so on lah.

 

Alignment means when the bike is moving, its traveling straight and not slanted to one side (to test, ride above 20km/h and release both ur hands off the handlebar). If a bike got misalignment 101% confirm it had an accident already. Alignment are very troublesome to fix and most times, cannot fix back to 100% correct. Another part of alignment you must consider are the handlebars and discbrakes. Are they wrap or dented? Basically alignment deals with the handling of the bike, very important.

 

Leakage is self-explanatory. Spot out for leakage in the forks, tank, bottom of engine, clutch/brake lever, suspensions; pretty much anywhere. If there's a leakage, it tells you two things about the bike - not properly maintained and owner is irresponsible.

 

The rest are consumable wear and tear items, like tyres, brake pads, clutch plates and miscs like rust and bike outlooks. While its nice to get a bike with everything in order, worry about the more important stuff first

[alexanderegrt]

I'm just back from the Yamaha showroom at Paya Lebar, and they said they don't import R125 at all. Currently R15 ran out of stock, next batch coming in next month, cost $7.6k if i recall correctly.

 

But I won't be getting a brand new bike until after 3-4 years since I won't trust myself so soon after getting license. A 2nd hand bike will have to make do during this transition period. I don't see myself going all the way to class 2A and 2 anytime in the near future, so I guess it'll have to be 2B until... who knows

 

Thanks blahhh for the brief explanation, alfa and deckard too. But I won't be able to tell any buzzing sound or knocking sound at all since I'm terribly new at this. Same for the leakage too. I guess if a salesman wanna con me into buying a lousy bike, then I might just fall for it.

 

Right now I'm looking at 2nd hand Yamaha R15 and Honda 150SP. Do you guys have any 2nd hand dealer shops to recommend me?

 

Oh and are there any discussions on Honda 150SP? Can't seem to find much in the forum.

[Pandoras Kitten 3]

I have helped a new rider repair and tune up an SP just last month. I liked the bike (after I fixed all the loose bits and retuned the carb with the help of Planet Motors crew).

 

But watch out for crash damage (old sportsbike, guaranteed to have been through lots of abuse), non functional brakes and forget about buying those with "racing" modifications. After a few test rounds we decided the "performance" parts were very ill suited to daily riding and retrofitted it to stock, which in terms of handling, comfort, ease of use, reliability, etc, are very much more desired for a new license holder than extra 20kph of top speed.

 

Dealers - were are you located? I know a good shop at West Coast which does engine tuning and rebuild VERY well (his bikes are more efficient than average) so if you don't mind to call that guy up, give me a PM. The price is reasonable. The machine price for a used Phantom fully rebuilt, customised, chromed, was under 2k (and that was a lot of work to get it going to my liking). Cheap "good" old bike. There were a number of low priced 2 strokers there last time I visited, but availability is seasonal - depends on who lets go their bike there.

 

Bukit Merah is another good choice for a used bike (due to the huge selection of shops) but only if you know how to bargain and inspect mechanical condition. I was offered to trade up my beat up Y125Z in exchange for a new looking Bajaj Pulsar for only $500. I wonder what was wrong with the bike, to warrant such a low price tag! My advise is bring a friend, gain experience at Bk Merah then inquire at other shops. Don't rush in to buy a bike, unless you really like it.

 

An alternative to risking your neck being carroted is to look for SBF members' bike sales. If you can deal face to face you can sometimes get good deals on used motorcycles, but again, some SPs I saw (and the one I repaired) were VERY dangerous. Nice outlook but poke here and there, you start to see evidence of crash damage, poor tuning, etc etc. And the most fun are of course the non functional brakes!

[Fredd]

my 1st bike was an nsr. not to scare u bt 2 wks after that i hit a car from behind due to bad judgement n lousy brakes. i 2nd wad pandora said. i spent alot on my nsr becoz of lousy tuning(e engine wud die off when idle at a junction..so always had to rev it), e pipe was splurtin out oil god knows y(the back of my shirts would be stained and if u notice sum nsr their license plates look stained n dirty - dats ur reason), diff nsr vary bt my 2t intake was reali bad..1 wk once had to topup. did overhaul changed tis changed dat still nt much difference. in e end i gave up n traded in for a scooter..easy life.

 

FC wise my nsr was 19km/l (same as my fazer1000!!!). r15 i heard could clock 40-50km/l. duno hw true is dat. so if u reali lookin into buyin an nsr, be prepared for any glitches

[alexanderegrt]

alfa, that IS a real screwed up bike you got there. Did you send it for servicing after you got it? I'm guessing that's a second hand bike. Perhaps you could have gotten Pandora to help you tune it

 

Pandora, you really seem to know your stuffs. Are you working in a dealer shop? You said you just helped someone tuned up an SP last month, how much did you charge for it?

 

PS: Do 2nd hand dealer shops tune up the bikes before putting them up for resale, or do they just resell them straightaway?

Edited December 10, 2010 by alexanderegrt

[Pandoras Kitten 3]

You said you just helped someone tuned up an SP last month, how much did you charge for it?

 

I used to be quite regular at Planet Motors as I change my oil and do little customisations there very frequently so the mechs there let me tinker with friends/forumers' bikes I bring in. I usually arrive at an off peak period so we don't eat up the boss's time. Sometimes if I see another Phantom and the owner is waiting a very long time for service I can chip in and repair the thing for him, if its a minor issue. I usually optimise the mixture/idling if I hear the guy's engine is running way off spec, of if he complains about the performance or consumption. Identification of specific problems based on rider feedback, I can do, get my hands dirty in the crankcase, well, that's why we're holding the tech seminar at a garage :3

 

Sometimes the solution is not a $200 repair, but turning one screw or fixing one component.

 

For the SP we recently brought in, what I do is identify the issues with the bike then get the Planet crew to work on the specific issues - that's how I learn to DIY other bikes other than my own They charged the rider (a fellow forumer) very cheaply, considering the extensive work list we created - we more or less did half the work ourselves and the mechs stopped by to help when free or when we needed specialist talent for more complex parts.

 

I also do vehicle inspections before 2nd hand purchase and as far as I'm concerned, advise and time is free. You listen at your own risk lol, I'm just a diehard small cc bike fan.

 

I just chose and inspected a Phantom for a new rider and we're doing a homemade 'road traffic familiarisation' course tomorrow. Maybe a tech seminar at Motoworld (safety gears) and for mechanical tuning at Planet if we pass by.