RE: "Help me choose bike pls!"

[spaiduhz]

Okay ladies and gentlemen, I notice that there are quite a number of excited people who cant decide on which bike to purchase, and so they come down to our forums just for the specific reason who ask for recommendations. Well.

 

Allow me to try to consolidate the answers frequently asked by the recently passed... and those who have yet to.

 

Q. Help me decide between Bike X, Bike Y and Bike Z?

 

A. Alright. Normally when I read the posts i get a jarring pain in my head, because often the bikes being compared are of different classes. The pain intensifies when the person asking the question obviously has no idea what class of bike he wants.

 

Once and for all I would like to say again...

 

CHOSE WHAT CLASS OF BIKE YOU WOULD LIKE TO RIDE

 

It took me 4 months to choose, and i changed my mind several times in the process. Originally I wanted to scooter to commute with. I ended up with a Pulsar, which is in my honest opinion one of the best street/dispatch bikes you can own. Four months after i passed my 2b. Four months from the time i passed my 2b, to the time i picked up my bike that i paid for with my own money, with a huge grin on my face.

 

There are many, many different classes of bikes in the market right now.

-Street Bikes (More commonly known as Naked Bikes)

-Scooters

-Scramblers

-Mopeds (More commonly known as "Kupchai", or "Cubs")

-Sport Bikes

-Cruisers

 

Heck. SBF was kind enough to list down the bike classed as well. Go read up in the sub sections.

 

Take your time... and CHOSE. If you got money to burn, donate it to charity. If charity is not your thing, then go ahead and chose more than one class of bike to chase.

 

Most importantly, like seepromt kindly highlighted, an important factor to think about before even deciding on class of bike would be your budget. No money, no talk. There is no point asking about import bikes when you are relying on your mommy and daddy to pay for your every expense. unless you hang on to their coat tails like some little kid. You got your license, and of a legal age. Get a job. For the love of God.

 

OTHER COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS!

 

Q: Two Stroke and Four Stroke, whats the difference?

A: In a nutshell, two stroke bikes are faster than four stroke bikes. Four stroke bikes are slower, but has superior fuel economy, has cleaner emissions, and much much easier to maintain.

http://searchwarp.com/swa23126.htm

 

Q: Cool?

A: Engines are cooled down by different methods, Air/Liquid/Oil. Air cooled means that heat is transfered to the fins on the engine cover, and the heat is then transferred to surrounding air. Liquid cooled means that instead of fins, the heat is transfered by liquid, into a radiator. The radiator then transfer the heat into the surrounding air. Oil cooled is the same as liquid cooled, except lubricant from the engine is sent to the radiator.

 

Q: How do I maintain my bike?

A: Go to a bike shop and pay then what they ask for. No? Click here.

 

Links!

Phantom Knights Newbie Guide

Internet Search Engine

The elusive SEARCH function

 

 

 

I humbly request for more people to give input.

 

I will add more question that newbies are likely to ask about this matter in later posts below. stay tuned!

[spaiduhz]

Q. What STREET BIKE would you recommend?

 

A. Ah, so street riding is your thing. Easy maneuverability in the streets is always nice.

For class 2b there arent that many. Listed are the common street bikes.

Yamaha RX-Z 135

Yahama YBR 125

Bajaj Pulsar 180

Honda CBF 150

 

If speed if your thing, the RX-Z is the bike for you.

The Yamaha RX-Z 135 is an air cooled two stroke bike with a displacement of 135cc. You will not be able to lay claim to an exclusive bike as this fighter is very common on the road, but its popularity is with good reason. Tuned and modified properly, the RX-Z is potentially the fastest 2b street bike in the market right now. You will have to remember that its a two stroke bike, that requires 2t to be pumped, and you will have to take care of the emissions that it will give.

 

If comfort is your thing, then the most comfortable street bike would be the YBR.

The Yamaha YBR 125 is an air cooled four stroke bike with a displacement of 125cc. Its used as a training bike at Comfort Driving Center for good reason: Its tough, and its so easy to ride. The posture you will adopt if you ride it would be similar to when you sit down for dinner. It has very good millage too, this is probably the reason that KFC commonly uses the YBR as their dispatch bike.

 

If value is your thing, then i would reccomend the Pulsar.

The Bajaj Pulsar 180 is an air cooled four stroke bike with a displacement of 180cc. Its gigantic tank and impressive fuel consumption makes it worthwhile. Oddly enough, you will not be breaking speed records with the Pulsar; even though it has a displacement of 180cc, its top speed is only 130kph on stock. What it lacks in top speed it makes up for with its pickup. It does have some odd things going on in terms of design though. The UG3 variant of the Pulsar is easily one of the best looking 2b street bikes in singapore, but the fancy looking tank has it rather odd for tall people to grip. There are other minor issues that you can have a look at in the Bajaj Pulsar thread. If you wish to purchase this bike, do consider waiting untill christmas as the Universal Motors will be bringing in the 200cc variant of the Pulsar, and prices are going to drop even more.

[spaiduhz]

Q. What SCOOTER would you recommend?

 

A. Hehe. Scooters are fun to ride, as well as to decorate.

There are quite a number for you to chose.

Gilera Runner 180SP

Gilera Runner 200VXR

Vespa PX150

Vespa LX150

Vespa GT200

Vespa GTR125

Piaggio X8 125/200

 

Speed - Runner 180SP. Seriously, it has more power than the VXR. You should consider the VXR though. Its easier to get, and easier to maintain.

Comfort - the GTR and the X8 comes close. Both are a joy to ride, but both are a real pain in the ass to park, the X8 more so. Personally between the two I would close the GTR. Its comfortable, and it also looks alot nicer.

Value - The LX150, hands down. best fuel consumption of all, and relatively easy to mantain.

[spaiduhz]

Q. What SCRAMBLER would you recommend?

 

A. Cant answer that since the only class 2b scrambler i can think off right now is a KTM, and a Varadero. Yamaha TW200 is a value scrambler that you can use comfortable on country trails. Scramblers arent really my thing actually.

 

If you are wondering, a Honda Varadero 125 is leans more towards cruising. its meant to be an Enduro Tourer, a bike you can use on messy country trails just as well as on the highway. It has high clearance and long wheel base... so i hope i am not wrong to classify it under scrambler. :S

 

hope to edit this post when i get more input. stay tuned.

[eedwinn]

Good info! Thanks and hope to see more of your posts!

 

Just to add, you missed out "cruisers" for the different types of bikes.

[spaiduhz]

Q. What MOPED would you reccomend?

 

A. Commuting is best done on a small, light weight bike. ZIP!

There are a huge number of mopeds in the market right now.

Honda Wave 125

Yamaha Spark 135LC

Yamaha X1

Yamaha 125Z

Yamaha X1R

Suzuki Smash 110

 

and all this is all that i remember from my memory alone. there are alot more out there mind you!

 

Speed - Yamaha 125Z hands down. Pain in the ass to maintain though, since its a two stroker.

Comfort - Comfort on a moped? A moped is for you to get from Point A to the nearby Point B quickly, and run off quickly to do your stuff.

Value - Honda Wave 125. Easiest and cheapest to mantain.

[spaiduhz]

Good info! Thanks and hope to see more of your posts!

 

Just to add, you missed out "cruisers" for the different types of bikes.

 

Whoops. Knew i was forgetting something.

[Guest NPNT]

Wah u join Jan 2007 and u oredi got jarring pain reading those posts.

 

I wonder those who join earlier will get wad kinda pain. Maybe similar to an impalement by a blunt pole from Hulk Hogan to the head.

[spaiduhz]

Q. What SPORT BIKE would you recommend?

 

A. Ah. Live fast and die young it appears. When you do get your bike, try not to get yourself killed too early, ok?

Yamaha TZM 150

Honda NSR 150 SP

Honda NSR 150 RR

Honda CBR 150

Kawasaki KRR 150

Aprilla RS 125

 

Speed - RS 125 wins in the speed department hands down. If you cant afford it, then it would be a tie between the 150 SP or the TZM 150. There will be a large argument on which of the two is better, so i will leave it up to you.

Comfort - CBR 125. Its a four stroker, so its not going to annoy your ears when you happily zip down the highway at 120kmh ++. Its also very light and small, another plus point.

Value - CBR 125. Four Stroke goodness. The KRR 150 can be viewed as a another value type bike as there is a ridiculously large market of stuff for the KRR than you can get for cheap, so maintainability for the KRR is very very cheap.

[spaiduhz]

Q. Which CRUISER would you recommend?

 

A. Defines "Relak". Comfortable for cruising on the highway because of its very relaxed posture. I guess thats why they are called Cruisers? Duhh?

 

Honda Phantom TA150

Honda Phantom TA200

Honda Rebel 125

Daelim Daystar 125

Daelim VS 125

Modena Jaguh 175

Bajaj Avenger 180

 

Speed - TA150. Its a two stroker. Fast. Nuff said.

Comfort - I cannot say for sure which is nicest to cruise with, though I am inclined to believe that the TA200 would be most comfortable, being a 4 stroke bike. a little knowledge is a dangerous thing though, so dont take my word for it.

Value - I am looking at the Jaguh 175 quite intently. A malaysian bike. At one end i would reason that it would be very easy to do mantainance in malaysia since its malaysian made... but on the other end i dont see that many Jaguh 175s on the road, even in johor. To be on the safe side I would recommend the TA 200. The Bajaj Avenger looks interesting too... but i dont have the opportunity to test it.

[cxz6666]

Where to get Modena Jaguh 175?

[spaiduhz]

Where to get Modenas Jaguh 175?

 

That is a good question. I've walked down bike shops for a while and i have yet to see one for sale, new or otherwise. I have seen a small number of Singapore License plate Jaguh though. I would believe that you can go down to the Modenas distributor in Johor and have one ready to import to Singapore. Its a very tedious process, mind you.

 

There is another cruiser that i forgot to mention.

 

The Bajaj Avenger 180. same engine as the Bajaj Pulsar 180, so fuel consumption would be comparable.

[manterro]

Q. What SPORT BIKE would you recommend?

 

A. Ah. Live fast and die young it appears. When you do get your bike, try not to get yourself killed too early, ok?

Yamaha TZM 150

Honda NSR 150 SP

Honda NSR 150 RR

Honda CBR 150

Kawasaki KRR 150

Aprilla RS 125

 

Speed - RS 125 wins in the speed department hands down. If you cant afford it, then it would be a tie between the 150 SP or the TZM 150. There will be a large argument on which of the two is better, so i will leave it up to you.

Comfort - CBR 125. Its a four stroker, so its not going to annoy your ears when you happily zip down the highway at 120kmh ++. Its also very light and small, another plus point.

Value - CBR 125. Four Stroke goodness. The KRR 150 can be viewed as a another value type bike as there is a ridiculously large market of stuff for the KRR than you can get for cheap, so maintainability for the KRR is very very cheap.

 

what about cagiva mito?

[spaiduhz]

what about cagiva mito?

 

You will want to be rather careful when considering import bikes.

 

i've cautiously rode a mito that my friend done up. he was lucky enough to pick one up for 800 bucks, but in un-ridable condition. after spending over 2.5 k on PARTIAL repairs, he allowed me to try out the bike.

 

its a very obvious track bike, moving off from stationary and at low speeds the bike handles badly, so i wouldn't recommend it for the newly passed. nor would i recommend it for those who dont have a fat wallet. I didnt whack it like a track bike, didnt want to rick taking a spill on an unfamiliar bike that didnt belong to me. from his imput, its good but not the best. a good eye-catcher though.

 

i have to admit though, the blur blur eyes are an eye catcher.

[BadgerBadgerBadger]

Great Thread!!

 

how abt doing the same for larger bikes too? :angel:

[spaiduhz]

Great Thread!!

 

how abt doing the same for larger bikes too? :angel:

 

i dont have the qualifications to open up a 2a suggestions thread.

 

why not you? i think you have enough experience to open a class 2 thread.

[BlackDawn]

This thread in the PhantomKnights sub-forum would be helpful for undecided would-be bikers as well

 

http://www.singaporebikes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=91678&highlight=Trip

[seeprompt]

My personal experiences when a new licence holder asks me about my opinion of a series of bikes usually ends up on which bike is most affordable and/or which bike really most likely to boost his ego. Thus I have some advices to the prospective first time bike owners here.

 

No Money No Talk.

Make sure you settle your finances first. We can talk until mouth dry about pros and cons of every kind of make and models but if you still cannot afford the bike, talk so much for what? Don’t you find it funny to constantly hear people buy bike but cannot afford petrol? Prepare for maintenance. Good tyres, proper braking system, regular engine oil change, reliable spark plugs and other basic consumables cannot also escape one so don’t try to cut corners (pun definitely not intended here).

 

Know Who You Are.

After you can settle your money, I also want to say something similar to what spai_duhz have highlighted. Sit down and really think hard what kind of rider you want to be. Not joking here because, admittedly, the kind of bike you get is something like making a “fashion statement”. Most bikers generally fall into these basic categories. Namely touring, track, trail or commuting. Choose your poison and ride around the problem(s) you encounter. After all, most die-hard bikers always swear by their ride no matter what kind.

 

Actually in today’s Internet age, information on every make and model is so easily available. So why got so many people still asking the exact same question over and over again? I think they are just too lazy to do their own research. So if you are truly passionate about biking, make effort to read up! Decide for yourself and just ignore those who make negative comments about your choice.

[spaiduhz]

Q: How do I mantain my bike?

A: Send to a workshop and pay them whatever they ask for. If you would rather not, then continue reading.

 

A bike has many expandable parts. Tires, Brake pads, Engine Oil, Chain and Sprockets. Just to list a few.

 

Tires: Replace before your threads are worn all the way through. To be precise, replace before the internal depth of the thread reaches the marking.

 

Brake Pads: for disc brakes, when your brake fluid falls below minimum level. Its a good indicator of how worn out your brake pads are. If it turns out your pads are still in good shape, then its an indicator that your brake fluid needs topping up. For Drum brakes, when you cannot tighten it any further, and your lever needs to move more when you want the brakes to grip. However, when the brakes start to make a screeching sound, then its an indication that your brake pads are in dire need for replacement! It means that the pads are worn to the metal... and metal rubbing against metal is not good.

 

Engine Oil: Ask your mechanic, or consult your bike's user manual. Do not be fooled into thinking that you can use a premium grade engine oil and change it less often than if you would use a cheaper grade of engine oil. By what i mean, if you normally use 10 dollar semi synthetic and change it every month, it doesnt mean that you can use 30 dollar fully synthetic and change it every two months.

 

Chain and Sprockets: Lube your chain regularly and they will last for a damn long time. When they do wear out though, you will want to change in a set. Your Front Sprocket, Your Rear Sprocket, and your Chain. Just change your chain, and your worn out sprocket will wear out your chain in double quick time. Alternatively, just change your sprockets and your chain will wear out in double quick time. Your rear sprocket will be a good, easy indicator of when to change them. When the teeth of your rear sprocket turns sharp

(new ones will be blunt), its time to change.

[hanhan]

Excellent write up for those who intend to start riding and have no idea what bike to get for yourself. It shows you a broad choice of what bike for your needs and riding style. thumbs up!

[Ashen]

this is good read.

 

[jB]

Scooter- you missed out skipper.

 

scrambler- varadero is more of a dakar bike to me..the 125 is kinda underpowered..have yet to try one myself but paced with one before on a phantom..it really is kinda true to be rumoured.

 

sportbikes- you missed out the rare suzuki gsr150(if i'm not wrong) and a few rare ones.Cagiva mito, known as the worse BHP in the 2b sportbike category.Why you may ask? find out yourself

btw doesn't Kips have RR just like NSR(SP) ??

and erm, your CBR150 kinda wrote it as cbr 125 in your paragraph.

 

good try dude, keep it up

[Dinzmetal]

Good stuff bro...keep it up. maybe u can start on the class 2A bikes too!!!

would be interesting...

[khaitronic]

Scooter- you missed out skipper.

 

scrambler- varadero is more of a dakar bike to me..the 125 is kinda underpowered..have yet to try one myself but paced with one before on a phantom..it really is kinda true to be rumoured.

 

sportbikes- you missed out the rare suzuki gsr150(if i'm not wrong) and a few rare ones.Cagiva mito, known as the worse BHP in the 2b sportbike category.Why you may ask? find out yourself

btw doesn't Kips have RR just like NSR(SP) ??

and erm, your CBR150 kinda wrote it as cbr 125 in your paragraph.

 

good try dude, keep it up

 

I believe its the RG150 aight...or some say GSX 150.... but there also other Suzuki sport bike here...such as RGV150 and TXR150(panther)

 

 

jb confirm lioa...Malaysia no such bike(RG)...if have also not many...and probably import...

[sikonesis]

However, when the brakes start to make a screeching sound, then its an indication that your brake pads are in dire need for replacement! It means that the pads are worn to the metal...

 

not really.

screeching sounds can also come from:

- glazed pads

- improperly/insufficiently bedded pads

- brake dust

 

solution:

- sand the surface

- reinstall the pads

- wash with lots of water

 

 

just have a look see, or ask a more (really, not yayapapaya) experienced

friend to inspect the pads for you.

pads are worn out when the groove disappears.

 

 

 

anyway, kudos & keep it up dude.

you might be a mod one day!