Good motorcycle brands? (ride, bike, Japanese, engine)

[rgomez912]

Just managed to acquire my class c license and now am seeking on getting a class m license so I can ride a motorcycle. I am wondering what motorcycle brands or types are good for a first time rider about the age of 18?

[burdell]

Originally Posted by rgomez912

Just managed to acquire my class c license and now am seeking on getting a class m license so I can ride a motorcycle. I am wondering what motorcycle brands or types are good for a first time rider about the age of 18?

Before getting a bike I'd recommend an MSF rider's course followed by the acquistion of good riding gear.

I'd be looking for a used, medium displacement bike, perhaps an SV650.

[M3 Mitch]

Definitely do the MSF course before you even buy a bike. You would have to work at it to find a bad Japanese bike. Some are plain, some are specialized, but they are all quality machines. You can find a lot of older bikes, back into the 1970's even, that have been garage kept and are in good shape.

You might want to think about what kind of bike appeals to you, sporty, dual sport, touring, whatever.

Your physical size and strength will come into it too - probably more about inseam length than anything else - don't buy a bike that's too tall for you.

Beyond the SV 650, the Kawasaki 500 Ninja is a sporty but accessible bike. The 883 Sportster is easy to live with, if you get a good one you won't lose much if any money when you want to sell on.

[Mac_Muz]

WOW, real advice... MSF for sure and i would choose either bike M3 Mitch suggested, but the 883 last because it weighs around 650 pounds.

You will need to get insurance too and for your age group I fear that will cost hard dollars. The MSF course will do 3 things. 1 Give you the basics. 2 assist a lot in getting the mc endorsement, 3 lower the rate of your insurance atleast untill you mess it up LOL

The next advice is dress for the crash, after that, is buy a used bike. There are 2 kinds of riders. Those that have dropped a bike and those who will.

[M3 Mitch]

You know, if you find a good old Honda 750-4, or even a 500-4, if you get a good one, while it's not as fast or quite as good a handler as more recent bikes, particularly the 750 is still a perfectly valid bike, back in the day it was considered quite fast and very reliable.

If you get a minty 750 with 4 good stock pipes on it and drop it, damage those mufflers, you will be out some serious coin and some looking around time replacing them.

The old 750 Suzuki "Water Buffalo" 2-stroke, or even the Kawasaki Mach IV 750 2-stroke triple are still good rides. Compared to 600 sportbikes of the last decade, they are slow, but they will still squirt away from car traffic most places. Keep in mind the Mach IV's engine can write a check that the chassis will have trouble covering, and you will be OK with it. It's actually a decent handling bike.

The old BMW R90S is a bit big for a first bike, but if you are a big tall fellow and willing to use some discretion with the "loud handle" as you gain experince, it's a bike you won't regret buying. A guy on an R1 can certainly beat you to the evening's destination on a trip, but he'll need a couple of hours in the hot tub to get unbent, while you will arrive with un-knotted muscles.

[Mac_Muz]

M3, IMO those are too old and too big with too much power. 20 and 30 year old bikes are hard to get parts for. I know since I have a 1981 xs850sh yammi triple. It is better than mint, but hard to get parts for.

[whiteboyslo]

standard disclaimers to first-time riders aside (take the MSF, get good gear, don't go buying anything too fast, etc), the best advice i can give is to choose a bike that fits you. how tall are you? how much do you weigh? do you have a long or short inseam? these are the things that will really determine what works well for you. hit up all the dealerships you can and throw a leg over all the bikes they'll let you. sit on it for a bit. does anything feel tight? loose? is anything a far reach? etc. check your ego at the door, too. you won't care if the bike looks cool if you cramp up after 20 minutes on it.


i can understand the concern for getting a good bike reliability-wise; nothing sucks worse than wrenching on a bike when you could be riding. but really, any of the larger brands that you see a lot of are perfectly fine motorcycles.

definitely buy used. the chances are good you WILL crash; it won't feel as bad when you didn't pay as much. it's also a buyer's market right now, so deals are to be had on used bikes.

there's no shortage of 'good' beginner's bikes. most of the larger brands have bikes specifically targeted for you. Suzuki has the SV650 (well, Gladius now), the GSX650F, etc. Yamaha has the FZ6R. Kawasaki has the Ninja 250, 500, 650, Versys, etc. And several of the bikes offered would be fine for beginner even through they're not technically a 'beginner' bike. Adventure bikes like the Versys and the V-Strom 650 have a nice ergonomic seating position without an overwhelming amount of power. Dual-sports are pretty good, though not ideal. You do sit up higher, but the knobby tires and the top-heavy design aren't the best IMO.

Mike

[Sayantsi]

Good brands? The Japanese and BMW pretty much have that locked down in terms of reliability and power. Italians are good but less reliable. American bikes are good if you want an old bike built new.

The real question is what kind of bike do you want? Cruiser? Naked? Sport? Touring? What is your budget for a bike? For ~$1000 you can get a good ~25 year old bike and sell it for what you bought it for, for ~$3000 you can get some good used bikes that are only 10 years old or so.

[rgomez912]

Thanks for all the advice. I will take the training class since my parents are scared now that I wish to be on a bike. Had a family friend die in a crash on a motorcycle do to ice on the road and a fast turn. I am short around 5'5'' and weight in around 182lb. As to strength i'll say I'm below average since at work I can not even hold a 64lb box for more than 3 minutes before giving in.

For brand I would like something not fast since I wan't it for the freedom and wind in my hair and am not the kind to worry about how long it takes to get from point a to point b. Something that can get me around town and even to other city's since I have family that live a few city's away. Looking for bikes under $5,000 if there are any.

[Robhu]

Don't overlook the Honda Rebel. Only 250 cc but a real good beginner bike or even for experienced riders for commuting around town. You can pick up a nice late model for around $2500.00 if you look around from a private seller or on ebay. The speedo goes to 85 mph but they usualy top out at between 75 and 80. Not saying you would need that much speed but giving an idea of what they can do. At 5'5" it would be a good fit for you size wise.
I bought one new in 07 thinking I would upgrade later. But this bike is so much fun to ride I may just keep the Rebel. It's great for the type of riding I do which is mostly around town or rwo lane roads. It has been on the freeway a few times and I can keep up with traffic. I have had zero problems with it.
I'm an older guy that has had bigger bikes in the past but bought the Rebel new because of the price and I like the way it looks and it's reputation for dependability. I wanted a new bike instead of another larger used one and am very satisfied with it.