[Newbie Advice] Buying A Used Motorcycle

[Watchman]

I guess we've discussed a lot relating to things to look out for when buying a car, but I dont recall reading much on motorcylce buying advice. So I thought a new thread could be useful. In this case; for me.

I'm planning on buying a scrambler (200cc or less for now cos that's what the s'pore law says). Being a complete newbie to bikes I've joined a local forum to see what's happening in the local scene. But when it comes to mechanical advice I prefer asking a forum that I trust more cos we all know all forum's have their share of dumb-asses no matter when they joined or how many posts they have.

The local forum has a buying guide, which seems quite comprehensive but still better safe than sorry i guess. So Any general advice you guys have is most welcome. I guess I (and anyone else) can post more specific questions as we go on.

Thanks guys!

[Kavvz]

And after a fair bit of searching found a nice YOM2001 specimen and went for it... that was earlier this month... and finally today got around to take a few photos of it; and thought of sharing it with you.

What's that square metallic attachment on the handle bars for? Is it some kinda GPS unit?

[Ripper]

What's that square metallic attachment on the handle bars for? Is it some kinda GPS unit?

odd size for a gps! i was thinking whether it was some kind of a toll road device!

[Watchman]

What's that square metallic attachment on the handle bars for? Is it some kinda GPS unit?

Yep, ripper's right.

Its the IU (in-vehicle unit) for ERPs (Electronic road pricing).. Basically you insert a preloaded cashcard into it and everytime you enter the city area or use a expressway during peak hours you get charged a fee (deducted from the card).. the 'readers' for these are mounted above the road and do it wireless without you having to stop or even slow down for it...They also use it to charge you for some carparks... You see these in all S'pore imported cars too...

[Watchman]

and the triangle on the front (and back) are the 'probationary plates' all drivers/riders have to display for their first year of driving/riding.. just clarifying in case someone mistook it for a bad cosmetic taste

[Watchman]

You back in Singa? Thought you were here for good

yeah dude... it was just a short holiday that i went to SL for

[Straga]

Guys, a friend is looking to buy a bike and hes decided on a Suzuki Bandit. Is it a good bike? Whats kinda worrying me is that the general market price seems to a bit on the cheaper side, compared to bikes like the honda hornet.. Is that just the usual srilankan steorotype issue or is there some specific problem with this bike?

[Straga]

No one?

[oberon]

Guys, a friend is looking to buy a bike and hes decided on a Suzuki Bandit. Is it a good bike? Whats kinda worrying me is that the general market price seems to a bit on the cheaper side, compared to bikes like the honda hornet.. Is that just the usual srilankan steorotype issue or is there some specific problem with this bike?

Curious too..

[anuradhaplanter]

guys buying bike for 50k is not realistic i have a ktm990smr cost me 8.5 laks even a good xr cost arround 3 lak if u want the looks and performance dont buy a bike below 1.50 then go fo indian used bajaj its better than most old japanese bikes,if u want a good japanese bike at least u must have 1.50 then u can go for a volty ,a sr 400

[anuradhaplanter]

Guys, a friend is looking to buy a bike and hes decided on a Suzuki Bandit. Is it a good bike? Whats kinda worrying me is that the general market price seems to a bit on the cheaper side, compared to bikes like the honda hornet.. Is that just the usual srilankan steorotype issue or is there some specific problem with this bike?

never buy a bandit it will ruin u

[kevin1462]

According to what I've heard from friends bandit is a good bike but unlike other bikes in SL it needs a tank full of fuel (at least more than half) in order to generate an adequate pressure to pump fuel to the carburetors. Most of the Sri Lankan users don't pump a full tank of fuel as we know. What they do is pumping fuel whenever they are using the bike. So when you try to start the bike using the electric starter (The bike has only an electric starter) the excessive load on the electrical system on can cause long term electrical problems and also low pressure fuel can damage the carbs. If you buy an unregistered bandit and use it with care it really is a good bike like a Honda hornet. Also SL bike users are popular for messing with the carbs for so called better fuel economy. So please don’t even think about buying a bandit from an SL owner unless he seems to be an enthusiast.

[Cyclist]

According to what I've heard from friends bandit is a good bike but unlike other bikes in SL it needs a tank full of fuel (at least more than half) in order to generate an adequate pressure to pump fuel to the carburetors. Most of the Sri Lankan users don't pump a full tank of fuel as we know. What they do is pumping fuel whenever they are using the bike. So when you try to start the bike using the electric starter (The bike has only an electric starter) the excessive load on the electrical system on can cause long term electrical problems and also low pressure fuel can damage the carbs. If you buy an unregistered bandit and use it with care it really is a good bike like a Honda hornet. Also SL bike users are popular for messing with the carbs for so called better fuel economy. So please don’t even think about buying a bandit from an SL owner unless he seems to be an enthusiast.

Dont tell utter lies man!

[kevin1462]

Dont tell utter lies man!

well that's one persons openion anyway thank you for your comments. Would you please point out what i said wrong. My knoledge about bikes is not perfect.

[Cyclist]

well that's one persons openion anyway thank you for your comments. Would you please point out what i said wrong. My knoledge about bikes is not perfect.

well you sound like more than perfect. go figure yourself!

[kevin1462]

please dont be mean im sorry if i did something to you.

[Ripper]

According to what I've heard from friends bandit is a good bike but unlike other bikes in SL it needs a tank full of fuel (at least more than half) in order to generate an adequate pressure to pump fuel to the carburetors. Most of the Sri Lankan users don't pump a full tank of fuel as we know. What they do is pumping fuel whenever they are using the bike. So when you try to start the bike using the electric starter (The bike has only an electric starter) the excessive load on the electrical system on can cause long term electrical problems and also low pressure fuel can damage the carbs. If you buy an unregistered bandit and use it with care it really is a good bike like a Honda hornet. Also SL bike users are popular for messing with the carbs for so called better fuel economy. So please don’t even think about buying a bandit from an SL owner unless he seems to be an enthusiast.

fuel pressure story is utter BS.

If you go by that logic, even the manufacturers didn't really know about their own bikes as it's only meant to work properly on full tank of gas i mean, c'mon....

traditional carb driven bikes have a float system that controls fuel so after that reservoir fills only, the jet can inject fuel into the air mix.

fuel pressure from the tank has no bearing on how this works....it's kinda like how a capacitor works...

I too own an electric legged XR...i can fire her up with one press of a button with fuel filled up only to the petcock...meaning the tank is completely bone dry and only the lines have fuel.

How on earth can "low fuel pressure" damage carbs??? Care to elaborate?

Maybe your friends bike needed a tank cleanup or the petcock fuel filter was blocked or something. Maybe that caused fuel to flow slowly into the carb making it perform poorly and starting issues etc.

As for the bandit...dont have first hand experience to comment. But i doubt it's bad as people are claiming here.

If i'm not wrong, member ChootiPutha owned one. will drop a note to him to check this thread out...

[Chooti Putha]

fuel pressure story is utter BS.

If you go by that logic, even the manufacturers didn't really know about their own bikes as it's only meant to work properly on full tank of gas i mean, c'mon....

traditional carb driven bikes have a float system that controls fuel so after that reservoir fills only, the jet can inject fuel into the air mix.

fuel pressure from the tank has no bearing on how this works....it's kinda like how a capacitor works...

I too own an electric legged XR...i can fire her up with one press of a button with fuel filled up only to the petcock...meaning the tank is completely bone dry and only the lines have fuel.

How on earth can "low fuel pressure" damage carbs??? Care to elaborate?

Maybe your friends bike needed a tank cleanup or the petcock fuel filter was blocked or something. Maybe that caused fuel to flow slowly into the carb making it perform poorly and starting issues etc.

As for the bandit...dont have first hand experience to comment. But i doubt it's bad as people are claiming here.

If i'm not wrong, member ChootiPutha owned one. will drop a note to him to check this thread out...

The Bandit was my first bike. Got it unreg had some problems with the carb initially but once the carbs are set up properly its a fun bike to ride around. I had it for around two years

[kevin1462]

fuel pressure story is utter BS.

If you go by that logic, even the manufacturers didn't really know about their own bikes as it's only meant to work properly on full tank of gas i mean, c'mon....

traditional carb driven bikes have a float system that controls fuel so after that reservoir fills only, the jet can inject fuel into the air mix.

fuel pressure from the tank has no bearing on how this works....it's kinda like how a capacitor works...

I too own an electric legged XR...i can fire her up with one press of a button with fuel filled up only to the petcock...meaning the tank is completely bone dry and only the lines have fuel.

How on earth can "low fuel pressure" damage carbs??? Care to elaborate?

Maybe your friends bike needed a tank cleanup or the petcock fuel filter was blocked or something. Maybe that caused fuel to flow slowly into the carb making it perform poorly and starting issues etc.

As for the bandit...dont have first hand experience to comment. But i doubt it's bad as people are claiming here.

If i'm not wrong, member ChootiPutha owned one. will drop a note to him to check this thread out...

I'm sorry for my ignorance. Thanks for the valuable info pal.

[Cyclist]

please dont be mean im sorry if i did something to you.

If you could do a small research yourself , you could have learned a lot more about bike.

Since ripper decided to spoon feed you, now you learned easy way

Don't take everything friends say as gospel truth like kids. ( or may be you ARE a kid, im sorry if thats the case)

Do a small research on the web and see. e.g Google the word "carburetor" before telling stories about it.

[dingy]

guys i am looking for a trailer bike between 60 and 80 for my bro if u gys hv ny leads on this plz let me knw thnx

[Watchman]

guys i am looking for a trailer bike between 60 and 80 for my bro if u gys hv ny leads on this plz let me knw thnx

I'm curious too either you're one super optimistic SOB or just living under a rock. How much was the last scrambler.trail-bike you saw for sale selling for?

[Cyclist]

guys i am looking for a trailer bike between 60 and 80 for my bro if u gys hv ny leads on this plz let me knw thnx

You can get a XL250 for that price, but not English numbers for sure. but they are very hard to kill.

[Ripper]

You can get a XL250 for that price, but not English numbers for sure. but they are very hard to kill.

it'll be very hard to get an XL250 in good nick. possibly a 125 but 250's in decent shape are very rare.

And owners wont part with a good specimen anyways. especially the 250r

[Watchman]

it'll be very hard to get an XL250 in good nick. possibly a 125 but 250's in decent shape are very rare.

And owners wont part with a good specimen anyways. especially the 250r

How much would a decent (reliable) XR250 cost? I'm not too picky about cosmetics, but more the mechanical components. Are they available in the market or do you really have to go hunting for them?

[Cyclist]

it'll be very hard to get an XL250 in good nick. possibly a 125 but 250's in decent shape are very rare.

And owners wont part with a good specimen anyways. especially the 250r

Yes mate, hard to get a perfect one, but can get a one in running condition. I saw one good looking bike on another auto sale site. PMed you dingy. Its modified a bit. still looks good and its a XL250R. what a bike XL250Rs are !