Thinking about getting a motorcycle

OK I have never riden a motorcycle in my whole life but im thinking about getting one to save money.

With Gas that will no doubt hit 4 dollars a gallon I think this is a good choice. So Im thinking about trading in my car (a 350z) and getting a Yamaha V Star 1300

What do you all think?

Gas is cheaper, insurance is cheaper, and my payment will be cheaper.

But all I keep hearing from everyone is they are unsafe, what about when its hot ( I love in phoenix, az) and what about when it rains.

If someone can give me some encouragment that would be great or tell me why I shouldnt.

Is there anyone out there that has a motorcycle for their primary transportation? Do you hate it? Or love it?

I have a couple of cycles and wouldn't recommend it as an only vehicle. I love to ride on nice days and stuff, but there isn't much room for carrying stuff and people. Rain is a pain in the butt, especially if you have to go somewhere nice.

If you're worried about gas prices, I say trade up for a Toyota Corolla or something like that. The new corollas are getting around 37MPG highway. The Honda Civics re getting 30city/40 highway. That's almost the same as some motorcycles. Then you have room for passengers and packages and stuff.

I have never ridden either, except for some off-road many years ago.

I think that DiabolusFireDragon gives good advice, but as you note, you love and presumably live in Phoenix, so even if you own a car and a motorcycle, you'll get a lot of sunny days to ride places where cargo and attire are not an issue.

I used to ride all the time. it's great, it's fun, it's exciting and it is cheap. Plus it's easier to find parking.

the downside is the people in the cars. Most of them have never driven a motorcycle in their lives. They have no comprehension that when a motorcycle has to brake hard, there's a good chance the rider will go down and at the very least lose some skin if they don't pick up the knack of bike surfing in a hurry.

They resent bikes because (in my state at least) bikes are allowed to lane share in heavy traffic, so when a car is stuck in bumper to bumper rush hour delight on an interstate highway, the motorcycles can squeeze through between them, going a fair clip and getting home faster. Never mind that bikes are generally air cooled so sitting in bumper to bumper like the cars have to is not good for the bike, as well as the fact that the rider is in greater danger sitting there in traffic with the rest of the commute zombies. Some people will deliberately swerve into the bike's way.

The only times I went down on mine were when I had to deal with wet conditions (riding on railroad tracks, or across them in the rain sucks), or a moron in a four wheeled vehicle. Which leads me eventually to the point I'm trying to get at.

I had a nice little city bike, a Kawasaki 550 GPZ. I had ridden over to SF to help work on a mural. It was morning rush hour and I had to cross the SoMa corridor o' hell to get to the Inner Mission. I was coming up on a light on a two way street, going about 35. Just as I was getting into the zone of no return, the light turned yellow. I had a choice -- slam on the front brakes and maybe find out if my bike surfing abilities were up to snuff, or gun it through the intersection.

I chose option B. I was a good rider, and I didn't feel like laying down the bike or going over the handlebars. As I got to the other side of the intersection, the second car in line, whose driver apparently didn't see me, got impatient with the first car, who was waiting for me to finish crossing the intersection, and tried to pass the first car on the left, by crossing a double yellow line.

I hit him head on. I heard a crunch, my vision blacked out, and I had a vague sense of flying through the air, then a crunch, then nothing for a while. I came to, lying in the street, with my helmet pushed over my eyes and my leg screaming in agony -- my first broken bones. I was wearing good gear, so I had a scuff on my leather jacket, and a couple scuffs on the helmet, but my left leg had snapped just above the top of my Doc Marten.

I'll spare you all the details of the humiliation of having the paramedics cut all my clothes off right there in the street, the insanity of an insurance debacle that wouldn't pay for me to be treated in SF so I had to be sent from the ER at SF General back to Berkeley, the agony of the surgery to insert a titanium rod in my leg to keep it straight nor the three days of waiting for the fever to come down before they could operate at all, and the long, boring, painful recovery and learning how to walk again.

I'll never ride again. I was lucky. I know people who've been badly hurt, and some friends of friends have been killed. I miss it. But it's bloody dangerous.

So I'm not telling you NOT to get a bike, but I am trying to tell you that there could be dire and painful consequences from this choice you're trying to make.

If you do get one, invest in a really good set of riding leathers and good boots, helmet and gloves. Never ride in shorts and sandals. Having your skin look like raw hamburger is no fun.

And keep in mind that people who work in the ER call bikes "donor cycles" for good reason.

Wow, MM, i think you just convinced me right there.

I was thinking about getting one a while back. But the insureence for it was so high.

So i am just keeping my Honda Civic, it gets good MPG.

Sell the Nissan! You live in Arizona! I was thinking about moving down there for the same reason. Year around motorcycle weather. I have a cafe'd Triumph 750cc Bonneville and am real close to buying a '07 Ducati Sport Classic Bi-posto. Motorcycles whatever type are the ultimate machine. Ultimate agility, speed, and just the feel of the wind in your face is worth it. Girls love a guy who doesn't give a f and rides a motorcycle everywhere. I have a '04 STI and that thing is also about to be gone once I get out of Utah.

You could go sport, cruiser, and hopefully not enduro. I have a bunch of friends who are amateur stunters, and I'm IN love with the GSX-R1000's. It all depends. What would you use it for?

Im thinking about getting a crusier, My girlfriend has a car so I can use that when needed. It just really sucks that they are so unsafe because the bike I want will cost me the following...

Bike Payment-$150 dollars a month

Car Payment-$360 a month

Bike Insurance- $60 a month

Car Insurance- $210 a month

Bike gas- $40 a month (est)

Car gas- $175 a month (est)

I mean those numbers cannot be denied. But I cant use the extra money I save while Im dead...

UGHHHH this is so frustrating.

Well I have been riding for well over 30 years and I'm not dead yet...

At least I don't think I am... (Checking..... Nope, not dead)

For many years I had only the Cycle for transportation, and lived in Delaware at that time. Rain and snow are sure no fun, but really minor inconvenience in the long run...

I now have a beautiful 1200 Screaming Eagle Sportster and absolutely LOVE it....

Over 50 MPH and less than 200.00 a YEAR in insurance...

So I say go for it...

Remember, you only live once...

Semper

Oh, the days I yerned for a "Death Machine"..... Not!

Hey wait! Maybe I'm just jealous that they can drive in the commuter lane or continue riding even when there is a huge line of cars stopped at the light.

Damn all motorcycle riders for getting home on time!

Edit Added:

I confess..... Ooooops Wrong thread!

I like the idea of cruising around in a Harley. I grew up with bikers my whole life!

[edit on 3-11-2007 by MrMysticism]

It's my first Harley, always owned Jap bikes before... Possibly the best bike I have ever had prior to this one was a Yamaha Seca 750.. Man that bike was fast...

I will confess these facts though..

1. I have really gotten to like the "image" of the "Harley rider" when I am cruising around.

and

2. I do like the 1200 CC engine on a 450 pound frame... Very quick and nimble..

I also like the "sit up" and "Lay back" riding attitude of this type bike...Forward controls, Comfy Seat, etc.... The "Crotch Rocket" style was never "ME"

Semper

reply to post by semperfortis


They didn't have any guy bikes at the dealership?



I kid. I nearly bought bought one myself. Something really tempting about an American twin for under $10,000 dollars out the door. Not bad looking if you do them right either. My next bike is the Ducati L twin 992CC. I'll joke about your rear cylinder not breathing, but I'll be in the garage fixing my bike while I'm doing it.

You win some, you lose some. haha..

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

OH MAN!!!!!

You have no idea how many "Girl Bike" jokes I have had to endure.... All in good fun of course....

The bigger Harleys are just not nimble enough for the riding I do...

The Ducati is an OUTSTANDING machine..

Semper

reply to post by semperfortis


I'm too young to be into "cruising" though. If I didn't feel that way, you can bet I would be rocking a Road King Classic or something. You know, if had the 973,987 dollars it costs to buy one. That's one reason I don't think I'll ever succumb to the Harley craze. They're like that wild slut you used to mess around with that decided she was classy all the sudden, married a CEO and had an amazing life, even had a kid named Buell. Life ruiners.

reply to post by semperfortis


And I wish they made the '07 bipostos with that classic dry clutch. I'll be happy to have a wet one, but just something nostalgic about it. The sound is different too. The guy told me they recommend servicing it every 2,000 miles though.. # that...

all that mattered to my wife and i was being in the wind. we will have a harley someday, hopefully.

a few years back, we bought an 02 kawasaki vulcan classic on the kaw car for like 6 grand out the dor. 805cc.

that was the cost of the bike but i bought some pipes and put those on myself and then they put th ejet kit in for me and we charged that too.

no interest and payments were ony like $115 a month.
back was getting worse and it was not high on the list anymore.

i don't think i would own one as my only form of transportation unless i could ride it in a climate that would allow for year round riding...little rain, no snow, hopefully not cold.

everyone has their preferences but like anything else, you maintain it and it will be fine.
we love that bike and would buy another one in a second.

my style is a 1978 shovelhead, stock.
just oldschool harley....'

i don't care though. if i don't get any better and can't really put in ride time, i'll buy a $1k japanese rat, polish it up and my wife and i will ride it to her moms house thats a few miles away and things like that..
ride it up to the beach and sit and look at the water.

you could always get a new or 'nice' bike for pripary and a rat car for secondary

Just an update....

I went down and pulled the trigger, I bought a Yamaha Vstar 1100 custom. Its pretty cool...

I guess I dont have that "instant gratification" for my purchase because I cant ride it to well yet.

It has this weird shifting, getting it into neutral is kinda a pain in the ass.

Should be a blast when I learn how to ride it though!

[edit on 5-11-2007 by Perfectenemy123]

Cool Have fun and ALWAYS be on the look out for cages(cars). Every intersection/driveway/etc... keep it in the back of you're mind that a car just might pull out in front of you. Apparently motorcycles are invisible to some people. Have fun & stay safe!

reply to post by DiabolusFireDragon


Honestly, I didn't really start looking for motorcycles until I started riding them. You don't know how crazy it can get if you haven't been on one...

ive ridden bikes all my life, and road bikes for 20 yrs.
heck within 6mth of getting a car i had decided i would prefer a bike.

but you have to treat everyone on the road like they are a complete Ahole so you are always prepared for the worst if it does happen.

"defensive driving" as they call it these days, and motorcyclists have to be as defensive as they come.

but i do say bikes are good for teaching you a lot of things that cars dont.

When riding bikes (especially in bad conditions) you have to read every inch of the road surface. look for water puddles at traffic lights and avoid them (oil floats on water causing very slippery road) and you have slippery white lines, pot holes, metal man hole covers are slippery too.

everyone loves a ride through the hills but just because you went around corner A previously, it doesnt mean its still safe to fly around when you return 10mins later. trucks lose gravel or dirt, stuff rolls off hill sides, cars drop fluids.
like a boxer if you drop your guard you will be knocked down for the count.

A mate got a bike from the dealership and within 3 turns he dropped it right infront of me because he wasnt lookingat the road surface. "what the hell happened" he said while picking up his bike. i replied "didnt you see there was a little bit of gravel scattered in the intersection?

he was of the typical tin top driver mentality, just in his own little world cruising along expecting pristine road conditions.

ive had 8 road bikes, my favourites were a 3Cyl Suzuki GT750 waterbottle from 1974 750cc water cooled two stroke because it was so rare. (how many 750cc two strokes have you seen?)

but my all time fav. was my last bike, the original Ninja 900 A1 from back in 84'. it wasnt upright like a cruiser but i wasnt stretched over the tank either. typical sports bike sitting position.
(i hate riding bikes where i feel like im on a stretching rack just to reach the bars, and i am 6' 2".)

ride smart. ride defensive. and keep it rubber side down.

'Think carefully' would be my advice.

I have a bike license, and have done for many years now... do I have a bike at the moment? No. Do I have a car? Yes.

I *love* bikes. I dream of bikes. I crave bikes. I literally adore them.

My best memories on the roads and track are of my 'old' 2001 Suzuki GSX-R 1000. This was just ballistic, and honestly the most fun I have ever had in automotive terms.

I pass bike showrooms and go in, I look at brochures, I lust after every new Ducati, every classic BSA or Vincent.

Will I buy one? No way, not a chance.

I'll say why.

Although riders don't admit it, we ride for the one 'perfect' day, the one perfect road.

I look back, and it was no fun at all being on a Supersports bike in the rain, in full leathers, helmet steamed up, trying not to skid on the petrol some idiot dropped on the road, trying to avoid all the idiot car drivers who pull out on you and don't use their mirrors, all the while ice cld water seeping in your leathers and visor steaming up...

Or I look at the summers days when I would be sitting at the lights in my leathers, *baking* and praying for the green light so the air would cool me, trying to avoid all the 'bank holiday' drivers dawdling about, or the boy racers in cheap hot hatches who think you want to race them all the time, the police cameras and speed traps...

And then you want to go and do some shopping....

It is so hard to get more than a days shopping under the seat of a bike, or in a tank bag. And then while you are doing your shopping coming out to find some kid sitting on your bike, or hooligans who have tipped it over (all happened to me).

And then someone says, hey, can you give me a lift? Can you help me move house? Can you pick up my Dog (or something! )

My best advice... Buy a car, and when you are rich enough, and still want a bike, buy one for track usage only...

Peace,

FF