What Are A Lot Of Km For A Bike?  

hey when it comes to ks it really depends on the type of riding and maintenance the bike has had... my old 250 had 140k kms on it and it never skipped a beat....always had it serviced regularly and used it for only commuting .... but ye thats my view...

4th July 2008 - 05:50 PM  Reply  Quote

I personally wouldn't buy a bike that had over 15,000km. The problem I have with buying second hand bikes is that they cost alot to service and there is a bit of general maintenance that I think alot of people would skimp on.

I bought my bike second hand from Pro Honda a year ago. It's a 2005 CBR600RR and it had 3,500km on it-it now has 6500km on the clock. $12,000 and it has a 3 year Honda factory warranty.

You should be able to pick up the bikes you are looking at from a dealer for around if not under $10,000. Its worth it if it comes with a warranty, in my opinion.

4th July 2008 - 06:16 PM  Reply  Quote

Engine size also plays a part. 250s are geared down more to make use of the power, and as such will use more rpm to travel a distance. An engine's life is based more upon the number of revolutions, rather than distance. So a 250 with 100k will be fairly trashed, whilst a 1.5L cruiser with 100k could still be in good condition.

For the bikes you're looking at, 30k is probably pushing the upper limits for a good example. As above, bikes require more expensive services more often, so could be ignored. If you have receipts for the life of the bike it'll give you more confidence. But for an extra 2 grand or so, getting something new would definitely be worth considering.

How long are you planning on keeping it? Willing to take the depreciation hit as soon as you ride it, only to sell it a year later. On a positive note, the bikes you're considering aren't really the type to be thrashed within an inch of their life (ie baby sportsbikes) but don't be fooled, no one buys a motorbike to go slowly

4th July 2008 - 07:24 PM  Reply  Quote

To me once they hit 40 thou you may as well bin them! I sold my last bike with 20 on the clock and this one wont be much more when i get rid of it

4th July 2008 - 10:26 PM  Reply  Quote

How many km's on you're RR mate?

5th July 2008 - 04:46 AM  Reply  Quote

anything with more than 50,000k's are very high k's in my opinion. average/high k's 30,000 - 50,000k's, low k's are less than 15,000. i personally would not buy a bike (normally) with more than 20,000k's, and i would have gotten rid of it by 30,000k's.

if you know the history behind the bike, and how it has been treated would depend on the k's aswell. a mate of mine has a K4 GSXR1000 with 45,000k's, most cars would beat him in the traffic light derby, it is just a commuter for him. not to mention he's a qualified mechanic and takes good care of his vehicles, if i were in the market for a used k4 i wouldn't look at any other bike.

if your considering a SV650 i'd probably buy one new considering the price is pretty good already, like you said, warranty, fresh rego, no k's, any colour you want, new tyres, chain, and you know it has never had accident history.

5th July 2008 - 08:28 PM  Reply  Quote

Bike engines are designed to take a flogging, they love it. Much like the human body, if you dont use them, they will get fat, slow and out of breath

6th July 2008 - 12:49 AM  Reply  Quote

i used to think that 50000+ kms was a lot for a bike but I'm not so sure now. I bought my bike 5 months ago with 62000kms, its up over 66000kms now and will start first time, even tho its freezing cold. and mines a 'sports bike'. I knew the history of the bike for the last 2 owners, i bought it off a mate whos real anal about everything he owns and looks after every little detail. the owner before that was a mechanic who was much the same as my mate.
all in all of you've got 10k to spend u may as well get somthing newer, with less kms but i will be happy to know that when i sell my bike whenever that is i will probably only sell of for 1000$ less than i bought it for.
so yeah, if u find a good example that they have reciepts and u can tell its been looked after then don't be shy cuz of high kms, but make sure the price reflects the kms as well. u could get a good deal on a bike with high kms that will last you ages and you wont have any problems with, but when you go to sell the bike it will have even more and that will reflect in the price you will be able to get....

6th July 2008 - 12:41 PM  Reply  Quote

I simply wouldn't touch a bike with that many km's on it. They are cheap enough brand new, let alone a year or two old with under 5000km's.

6th July 2008 - 06:42 PM  Reply  Quote

Traditionally, bikes have "low" kilometres on them as they tend to be toys for fair weather and not many people do bulk k's on them... just because they're mostly low k's doesn't mean a 'high' ks bike with say $50k has anything wrong with it as long as it's received oil changes.

I look at my 12R which has "a lot" of k's for a two year old bike (20,500) but in reality it's just run in and I have no doubts it will do 250,000km+ without needing anything more than normal servicing, tyres and a new clutch or two.

Don't be afraid to buy a bike with some k's on it if it otherwise presents well, although bear in mind that a lot of people are 'scared' of bikes with more than 30,000km on it so if you don't plan on keeping it, it may be hard to on-sell. Also as you mentioned you may not save much by getting one with exttra k's on the clock so you might be better off getting a low k bike anyway.... though as you said you WILL drop it as some stage so don't spend too much.

7th July 2008 - 10:49 AM  Reply  Quote

But when the price difference doesnt reflect the kays then why bother buying one with 20,000 more km for the sake of 2-3 grand?

7th July 2008 - 10:22 PM  Reply  Quote

Thanks a lot for the advice guys! Good info in this thread!

8th July 2008 - 12:00 PM  Reply  Quote

i might have to cut down on the km - i do anywhere from 500 a week

9th July 2008 - 05:51 PM  Reply  Quote

I cannot believe some of the stuff(i'll be polite) i'm reading on mileage on bikes. I've been riding for 20 years and have owned a LOT of bikes. In the last 10-12 years the metals and tolerances in motorcycle engines have become some of the best in the business. Throw in the fact that oil has improved viscosity and now prevents major wear issues during cold start up and you have a recipe for good, reliable, longevity. It's true a lot of ppl are shying away from bikes with over 50K klms on them - but in all reality, you shouldn't be. Maintenance is the key though and oil changes are the best thing you can do for any IT engine. I'ev seen 4 cylinder 600's with over 200,K klms on them with nothing more than a top end freshen up. I'even had a 250 road trail singe that got 80,k klms and was only then starting to lose performance, compression....

I sought of agree with the price thing but to me motorcycle ownership is a bit more than just buying and ridin. I like to do all the work myself after seeing too many times what comes out of a bike shop. ie leaking forks, bad mounts on discs, brake lines tangle round head stock etc etc. learn a bit about yuor bike, do your own maintenance and it all adds to the ownership pleasure - plus you'll get great satisfaction from doing a major service for $100 rather than the $900 the dealer charges and may / may have not done.....It's also your safety that the apprentie is "playing" with.....

My 2 cents and all that......

29th July 2008 - 05:02 PM  Reply  Quote

I do everything myself also, including fitting anything aftermarket. The only thing I wont do on this bike is tune the PC when the time comes simply because I cant.

Still wont keep it for long though, once a bike hits 40 thou you really have to spend some coin on them to keep them "feeling right" - shock, forks, bearing for swingarm, wheels etc etc

30th July 2008 - 08:42 AM  Reply  Quote

I used to get invited to track days from several manufacturers when new model bikes would be released. It was amazing how many ppl would sign up for the new model bike because it "felt" so much better..Of course, everyone was invited to bring there old bikes along for comparisons....It's amazing what a set of tyres, fresh suspension, new brakes can do to the feel of a motorcycle....Then again, there are a lot of vain ppl out there that just have to have all the "new" stuff....there the ppl that keep the bike shops afloat though!
Si.

30th July 2008 - 09:46 AM  Reply  Quote

Nah, not having a shot at all mate - if you can afford to do that all well and good. I;ve been down that path previously and now, too me, ownership is about keeping the bike in good cond, spending some time in the shed, fixing things up, improving on stuff as it wears out. Getting to know the bike inside out is almost as much fun as flogging the puppies...must be gettign old.
PS - not sure how many ppl know this but for back in 2002 - for a longevity test, Honda held the 954 fireblade at 500 rpms below redline for a 24 hour period then pulled the engine down to see how bad it was....you can guess the result - perfect internals. Can you imagine that - 24 hours, at 11,000rpm ????!!!! Who knows twat they do these days to test components. One other thing "a bit silly really" in mileage's favour....The GSXR1000's that were raced by the late David Jefferies in 02 or 03 (not sure which year now) made 6 horsepower more after the 240 mile race than b4. The idea was that the head carboned up around and it sought of ported itself to streamline intake / exhuast gases....there's a bit of useless info 4 ya cause it aint that far, and aint real world....Anyways, Cheers, Later...
Si

30th July 2008 - 04:58 PM  Reply  Quote

You sound quite knowledgeable on the topic of motorbikes! I did hear about Honda running those kinds of tests. I know a lot of car manufactures will test their engines to the limit for days and kilometres on end, it does go to show you how over engineered they are.
I would love to be able to work on my bike 100%. I did pull all the fairings off, just to see how to do it. I have fitted my slip-on and Pazzo leavers, but I would not trust myself touching the brakes, suspension or any components that could result in a major malfunction. Plus my bike still has a 1 year 10,000km warranty, so I would like to keep that valid.

30th July 2008 - 06:03 PM  Reply  Quote

The old blokse are right - I have found in the past that heavily modified bikes lose money over something stock or just with a pipe. A classic recent example - I was trying to sell a nitrous injected gsxr1000 for past few months without success, i removed all the gear and sold the bike almost immediately for same price....strange.....

We just had this same argument at work re high klms - cept with cars. I really like listening to people talk about shit they have no ideas on - but I heard some classics today...."Subaru WRX's - absolutely stuffed after 80-90k klms because they are turbo....V6 commodores - 150K klms - throw them away as they are not balanced engines...."or my fav "" V8's last longer than any other engine because they have more pistons..."

Fuggen 'ell - It was all I could do to hold my tounge when this crap started coming out.....
Oh well....takes all kinds...
Later
Si.

5th August 2008 - 12:50 PM  Reply  Quote