[Closed] Motorbikers a question (insurance)

It'll cost very little, even for a big bike. My lad had a 900 at 21, second bike but a few months after passing his test, cost £200. That was 7 years ago but judging by my premium it wouldn't be much more now.

I'm 38 and passed my full test in November on a DAS, no previous experience or no claims. I have a 2008 Triumph 675 Street triple and it costs me £173 full comp.

I bought a 650cc Honda Deauville after doing my DAS and I still think that was a great choice. I moved onto other bikes after a couple of years but kept the Deauville as my commuter/tourer for about 10 years. Insurance was never expensive on it.

Sounds promising, its just so hard to decide as I have only ever ridden MX/enduro bikes.
I have a 650 bandit, BMW GS650 or a BMW F800r to choose to practice on, anyone had any experience riding any of these.
Going to sit on them all and pick one that feels best.

I had an old F650 which is essentiallyvthe same as the G650. Was a good bile to "learn" on. Had a bandit 600 as a hire bike after mine lost an argument with a bin wagon. It was horrible, uncomfortable. Fast as **** though but felt like riding a demented sewing machine after my big single.

Passed my full test at 38,wanted a sit up and beg, tall, comfortable, excellent mpg. Reliable.

Got an ex demo Honda NC700X

Couldn't be happier

Poddy has one too.

70+ mpg all day even on the motorway carrying Lil ol 95kg me and hard panniers.

£148 fully comprehensive with 2yrs NCB carries over from scooter

As you're not buying a sports bike, it'll be sensible money. Took me 20 years NCB to get my GSXR1000 under 300 quid fully comp, but a Bandit 1250 was £150 straight off.

On the other hand, you're prime 'born-again biker', so it may by silly.

My f650 cost about £140 to insure. 5 year no claims made it £90.

Passed my das a few years ago.
Waited a couple of years before getting a bike (no riding in between).
I had an old gs500 for 10 months which cost £100 tp. replaced bike with a street triple 675 and had to move insurers. New policy was something like £300. After a couple of years it's only about £150 fully comp.
Street triple is a hoot btw, but I appreciate that's not really the big adventure bike you are thinking of.

Thanks for the replys folks.
Stoner never heard of the Honda NC700X but thanks for bringing them up, I have just had a gander on ebay and really like the look of them.
I was originally drawn to the transalp but these look more modern, are there any issues or problems the NC suffers from?

I am a returning motorcyclist, having had a gsxr 750 in my early 30s. The itch returned and I bought an er 6, cost me 14 quid a month at hastings direct, I was amazed, I am now on an MT 09 Tracer and it costs me the same, 500 excess is the only downside

Slight hijack guys but please be careful , the Scottish police service are pulling bikers over at 5pm , they are very nice at the start. , nice bike etc and asking where have you been , soon as you say at work the mood changes , have you got commuting to and from work on your policy. ! They then contact your insurance to confirm. , if not the bikes uplifted ! And you get a nice six points on your licence , this has happened to a good few folk I know. So either. , get the right insurance or say u been shopping , sorry to cut in but better to know !

I bought a 500 in my, oh, 30s I think. NCBis not transferable from a car.

First year's insurance was in the region of £130, went to around 90 in the second year. I think.

Shop around is your best bet as with any insurance. I'm 33, bike licence for 9 years but no bike for over two so lost NCD. Company car so no car NCD either, with 3 points also. MCE covered me on an R1 TPFT for £315.00. With breakdown cover included.

I spent 3 years on older 750 sports bikes (GSXRs) on TPFT before I could afford FC insurance on a more expensive 750. It was still £700 FC though. It took about 8 years before my insurance dropped below £300 (never claimed or had an accident, car or bike and was mid/late 30s).

Getting a cheaper bike just for experience and lower your cost of insurance sounds like a good idea to me.
I've got a GS800F now, great do it all bike. A little under powered for what I would like, but it slows me down and can still be fun enough. Had a go on a the new water cooled GS1200 whilst mine was in for a service. That was so much better engine wise, loads more grunt and power, but far too much to buy for me.

I always dreamed of a transalp. So I tested one back to back with the NC700 and it was a no brainer.

The NC is a "new concept" in Honda. It's powered by half a Honda jazz engine. Parallel twin, rides like a disesl, very sympathetic and torquey at low revs. Unbeatable mpg.

It's not got any bells and whistles, basic suspension. I cant really compare it to much as I'm a newb but I'm very pleased with it.

Really like the big adventure bikes but would I be better getting a 600/700cc bike and using that for a year or so

Have a look at the Triumph 800 explorer. A lot of bike for the money and a cracking 1st big bike.
Insurance shouldn't be too silly either.

I'm selling my 02 plate 650 Transalp if you are interested?

I've ridden pretty much all my life,juts bought a ZX9r last month after not riding for 7 years.
Clean license and I struggled to get insured, eventually did £400 with Carole Nash. I insure 2 cars for that, which are worth 30 times as much!

With comments above regarding sports bikes I think it depends on brand.

You see lots of Jap sports bikes ridden poorly because you can get them cheap and they cost peanuts to maintain. My theory is they get crashed more as there are more of them. Hence the higher prices to insure.

My Ducati 749s cost £115 fully comp. Quite a rare bike being an 'S' model too and if you crashed one of those the cost of parts was horrific.

So what you might think of being unaffordable to insure might actually not be the case.

Just run your details through Confused.com and see what comes back. The biggest difference to premiums in my experience is not how long you've had your licence but how long you've had the bike. I've had my Ducati for over ten years but I sold it a few years ago then bought it back so I can only honestly say I've owned it for two years. If I tell them I've had it for ten years my premium halves (both examples with zero no claims as well).

I'm paying more than most here

RR8 Fireblade, 33 now, been riding 7 years. IAM too. Paying around £350, alarmed and garaged. No claims and no points.

But that's a reflection of where I live - London (a nice bit)

I couldn't get insured on my Street Triple R when I had it unless it was put in the garage (I just left the bike before that on the drive)

I don't know how keen I'd be on a BIG adventure bike. They're big and heavy. A smaller engined adventure will be almost as much fun, and easier to ride slowly and move around. Anything 650-800 will be great

I had one of those NC700X's as a courtesy bike a couple of times. It was ace. Very different from what I normally ride so I actually had to ride it, plan overtakes properly etc and not just rely on power.

I ride a Blackbird, over 40, max NCB; £180 p/a. Just renewed it.

[i]Have a look at the Triumph 800 explorer. A lot of bike for the money and a cracking 1st big bike.[/i]

I'm glad in a way that when I started biking there were lots of smaller bikes available and cost (and insurance) meant that you didn't buy big bikes straight off.

I'm not sure how we'd all have survived if we'd gone out onto CB900, GPz's and the like. For me it was - 50cc, 80cc, 250cc, 350cc * 3, 600cc, 750cc, 900cc, 1000cc and then 1050cc *2.

IMO better to get something small (both in power and size) and learn how to survive on the roads.

I have a FAZER thou. Garaged no alarm or data tag. I'm 46 and pay 80 quid a year fully comp including commuting. Its far cheaper than my car (an old diesel passat) but it'll do 160mph

It's just like cars, some are expensive, some not- race rep 600s frinstance tend to be expensive, partly because they're bought by people who want to go fast and partly because they're very expensive to crash. Big tourers and the like, not so much. My little SV cost nowt to insure when it was stock.

But have a think about what you actually want and what you feel comfortable with, rather than insurance... a big tourer can be quite a lot of bike to deal with- just physically bulky and heavy, and sometimes a bit compromised on the road, it's extra hassle you might not want in a first bike. And depending on which one, can be expensive to drop too.

There's a really good argument for getting something pretty basic and inexpensive to tool about on for a year and figure everything out- doesn't have to be rubbish, maybe an SV650 or ER5 or 6 or similiar, there's a ton of them out there with a bunch of previous owners who've done the exact same thing. That way, you can get the embarassing car park drops and the like out of the way on a cheap and easy to pick up bike, but also you'll know exactly what you want bike #2 to be and make the right choice for you

b r - Member
IMO better to get something small (both in power and size) and learn how to survive on the roads.

I wish I'd had the opportunity to do that. Bikes were verboten in our house so I came to it late 20's when my parents didn't have a say. I went from a 125 learner bike to a 750 then straight into litre bikes and above.

I envy those that served their apprenticeship and actually learned to ride properly rather than point and shoot with phenomenal power.

It's surprisingly cheap, passed my DAS in 2009, defied all the opinions of all the seasoned bikers I knew and bought a CBR600 - cost me less than £200 a year fully comp!

I've got a mate with a knackered old, not even slightly road worthy Honda Melody stuck in the back of the garage - it's fully insured though at £38 a year, keeping his NCB topped up for when he's got the time for a proper bike again.

Good idea for an adventure bike, I've a Tiger Explorer 1200 😀 Try a Tiger 800, stick some engine bars on for when you drop it, when not if 😉 Should be reasonable to insure as you won't be claiming for £1k of plastic fairings just saying "oh bugger" (other swear words are available) picking it up and riding off 😀
How much are you looking at spending?

Oh, and get some advanced training, learn road positioning, counter steering etc. Plenty of vids on youtube https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=advanced+riding+techniques

Twist of the wrist, very good

Big trail bikes are great. Had an f650 funduro for a few years after passing my test then got a triumph tiger 955i. As a word of warning big trailes are tall and often top heavy. You may find a large one quite a handful at slow speed until you have more experience. 9 yrs no claims, 42 and only £85 fully comp.

NC700s are fine if you don't have an adrenal gland.

If you are used to Mx/Enduro kit you will be used to tall bikes with wide bars. Go big is my advice, GS1200 or the Adventure are easy to tootle around on. KTM Adventure are really good as well, not as refined on the road but capable off road.

All interesting stuff I will probably stick to my plan of something quite tame compared to a Ducati Hypermotard which I also like the look,power and sound of.
6 points in the 1st two years and its a ban so I have to be sensible Brrrraaaaap 😆

"NC700s are fine if you don't have an adrenal gland."
I have both of those!
I use my NC700X for commuting at which it's great, economical, practical and versatile.
I also have a Triumph 900 Scrambler which has a much harder edge to it.

NC700s are fine if you don't have an adrenal gland.

Talking of adrenal glands kayla, do I need different spacers to fit a SP rear wheel to an Aprilia RS 125, and if I do, do you guys make them?

Sobriety- do you mean the Marchesini wheels? If so, yes you need slightly different spacers (the right side is captive behind a circlip) and yes we can make them but we'll need sizes as I sold the Marchesinis I had and I've got the poverty-spec five spokers on mine again 🙁

OP- soz for the hijack!

Last year I paid under £240 to insure my Ducati Monster 1100 Evo fully comp. Just had my renewal letter asking for £900, no change in circumstances. Daylight robbery from Bennetts! Spent a while on comparison sites and got it down to £250. Always shop around.

kayla1 - Member
NC700s are fine if you don't have an adrenal gland.

Aahhh OK. My gland works fine it's just a different kind of riding. More transport than motorcycling. As a change it was fine. Not sure I'd buy one mind 😀

All interesting stuff I will probably stick to my plan of something quite tame compared to a Ducati Hypermotard which I also like the look,power and sound of.
6 points in the 1st two years and its a ban so I have to be sensible Brrrraaaaap

I have a 15 plate DL1000 which cost me £375 fully comp (8k/annum, commuting, ungararged but rural/off street, 50yo with only 1 years NCD).

I'd highly advise against a 'big' bike as a first bike. You haven't even passed your test yet so I'll hazard a guess you can't actually ride a bike properly. It took me a good 6 months and knocking on 5k miles before I could hand on heart say I could actually ride.

I was lucky in that my main biker mate is an IAM observer and I did a couple runs with the local club so I learnt about roadcraft (you know, road position, gas through corners and 'positive' steering) and didn't get the oppurtunity to develop bad habits... On your own, it might take a little longer.

I had a DL650 as my first bike and I'm convinced it was the right choice as its pretty forgiving but is still nippy enough. But not nippy enough to be able to overtake wherever I wanted. Its a good discipline, having to plan... I also looked at a Tiger 800, but its just shy of 100 bhp, that can get you in to trouble fast enough (loved the bike though). The 650 was around £270 FC as a new rider (and that was with my brother as a named rider, he passed his test 30 years earlier knocking off £30!). The Tiger would've been £300+

GS's are big bastarding bikes, the DL1000 is as big as I'd personally like to go, just for lugging it about (it's not significantly bigger/heavier in feel than the 650). When I was investigating a first bike the beemer 700/800 crowd all seemed to accept that they would drop their bike before they got used to it...

So I'd say get a cheap 650 and run it a year first (plus you're less likely to cry when you drop it) and learn to ride it properly. [i]Then[/i] go big.

Just my tuppence...

Sobriety- do you mean the Marchesini wheels? If so, yes you need slightly different spacers (the right side is captive behind a circlip)

Yup they're the ones, I think it's come with the captive spacer in it. I'll have a look and a measure and give you guys a ring.

If you already have your car licence then that 6 points business doesn't apply.

[quote="boblo"]Aahhh OK. My gland works fine it's just a different kind of riding. More transport than motorcycling. As a change it was fine. Not sure I'd buy one mind

That's sort of what I meant, maybe I came across as a bit of an arse 😆 For me a car is just a tool or a way to move stuff and a motorcycle is for fun. If I needed to commute on two wheels I'd look for something like a cheap big cc scooter and look for a cheap-ish 'proper' bike for fun. I quite fancy a Pegaso Strada 😕

I have a mx/ enduro day booked in July where I will be riding a Kawasaki KLX 450R in the woods in the morning then on an mx track in the afternoon.
The last time we did it we started on a Honda CRF250x which we were impresed with but then spent the afternoon on the CRF450x's, once I opened the 450 up there was no way I was going back to the 250.
Would love an enduro bike but with the restrictions on green laning I can't see me getting one.
I have owned lots of bikes as a youth with a couple of Honda XR250's being my faves, so drawn to the Honda reliability.

I passed my DAS a while ago and the insurance was too high on anything I actualy wanted so haven't done anything with it.

In the meantime quotes have dropped about 50%-75% for a CBR600FS.

But it does seem to be completley random, statistics based rather than common sense, at one point I was plugging in superbike details in and getting cheaper quotes than 400's, presubably more 20somethings had crashed NC30's than Fireblades.

Thinking I might get a CBR600F this summer and just stick a 33bhp kit on it for a few weeks/months so I don't kill myself while I get used to it. Cheaper and much better ergonomicly for me at 6ft than a VFR400.

First I need a helmet to fit my oversized bonce!

I took it that you had competed in Mx and Enduro, if you have just had one day at it then ignore my recommendation for a big Gs or the like.

I passed my DAS in Oct 2014. I was looking at Ducati Multistradas, Triumph Explorer insuarnce was around 1200 and 900 resepctively. I looked at a insurance for 2012 BMW R1200GS adventure. £280!!!!

Pig face I thought you were being pretty cavalier recommending a 230kg bike to a newbie. Those buggers are easy for inexperienced riders to tip over just moving them into a bike bay and can be a handful to filter at slow speed on.

grunty - Member

I passed my DAS in Oct 2014. I was looking at Ducati Multistradas, Triumph Explorer insuarnce was around 1200 and 900 resepctively. I looked at a insurance for 2012 BMW R1200GS adventure. £280!!!!

They know their onions. Ducati owners go too fast and crash, Triumph owners ride all the time and crash. Adventure owners spend all their waking hours bolting Touratech kit to their bike that it becomes too heavy to move under its own power, and planning world tours that they'll never do, therefore are a very low risk.

Adventure owners spend all their waking hours bolting Touratech kit to their bike that it becomes too heavy to move under its own power, and planning world tours that they'll never do, therefore are a very low risk.

It's true!! 😆

As in so many things, I am a bit of an exception on my Adventure - 10500 miles completed, including non-tarmac, since June 2014.

Rachel

Thanks for the concern pigface, I have not competed in mx/enduro but owned them as a youth up intil I was in my mid 20's.
It all comes down to money once test is passed I can't see the Mrs liking me spending thousands on a big BMW as me first bike.
Tbh I will be fine on any bike really, five mins to get used to the weight and feel and your away just don't bin it in the first two 😆
The GS 1200 are huge though but my instructors use them and say they are real stable at slow speeds.

Gs1200 have a much lower centre of gravity than most big trailies due to engine shape and how low it is mounted. My old shape tiger has much higher c of g but is marginally lighter.

I was originally drawn to the transalp but these look more modern, are there any issues or problems the NC suffers from?

Nothing serious. The engine is basically half a 1.4 Honda Jazz engine and only revs to 6500 rpm. It's basically unbreakable. There's reports of more than one NC with well over 100,000 or 200,000 miles on it.
The finish is generally very good too, mines held up to 24,000 miles and 2 winters very well.
There are a few things that wear out:
The OEM chain and sprockets are shit. No other word for it. 10,000 miles is doing well. I replaced mine with the best quality one I could find. Twins are generally heavy on chains though anyway.
The OEM tyres are crap too (Unless you get Bridgestone BT023s, Michelin Pilot Roads or similar)
I got 12,000 miles out of Pilot Road 2s and am fully expecting 16,000 to of the PR4s I swapped them for
The DCT (automatic) version has had a few issues getting stuck in gear, but not many of them
Only one brake disc and a 218kg bike means front pads wear quickly too. 8,000-12,000 miles a set
Rear wheel bearings typically last between 18,000-24,000 miles but are cheap and easy to replace (£15/pair, DIY job) I'll put SKFs in next time, if that day comes.

The bike itself is superb, but only if you 'get it'. It's not fast, in fact it's quite slow in bike terms, but it'll munch miles with ease at 70-80mph, and hack through traffic as if it's not there. It's a low revving bike and even then I very rarely go over 4500rpm myself, I just ride the wave of torque.
It handles very well indeed, as the weight is VERY low down. It's more manoeuvrable than the maxi scooter I had before, and high up to see over traffic. Brakes are decent, ABS is standard (I won't ever have another bike without ABS)
The storage compartment where the tank should be is immensely useful. It'll take most full face lids. I'll struggle if I change to bike without one.
Tank range (Without riding like you stole it) is 200-250 miles. I was averaging just under 85mpg when I finished my long commute. £13 in fuel for 200 miles.... 🙂

Like I say, if you 'get' the NC, you'll love it. It's not a weekend fun bike, it's a tool for a job - commuting, distance, frugality. Personally I think it's brilliant, simply superb. A genuinely new concept (That's what NC stands for apparently) that has no direct rivals. There's nothing out there that can do all of what it does.
£85 full comp insurance for me and Mrs PP to ride too! 🙂

I'm not sure PP. Do you like it or not?
😉

Thanks PP

NC stands for New Concept?

Nah, this is more like it and near enough 30 years ago:

@robidoo If you could get one of those nc's s/h, it'd make a good first bike. Not too much power but handles well and is reasonable fun without being silly. They've only been out a couple of years so you might struggle getting a s/h bargain.

Eye boblo I have seen a few for sale round the 3/4K mark but 1st things 1st test must be passed I have my mod 1 this month so hopefully have the licence soon and take a few different bikes for test rides.

By the sounds of Peters post the NC700 doesn't sound that great. I had an ER-6 for 45k miles and sounds like the reliability was similar, (except the oem chain last 30k, it comes with twin brakes that last 25k+) but they do close to 70mpg anyway and cost alot less to buy! ...But running costs is not the point of your first bike so don't worry about it. It'll take a good year before the minor differences between bikes will make any effect on your riding (as long as you don't get a sports bike!)

I've recently helped two friends buy their first bikes and rather than look for a specific model, we looked for bikes being sold privately in the local area from sound, honest people. One guy bought a Honda Hornet and the other a Suzuki SV650. I wouldn't get too hung up on what bike to get, just aim for something below 100bhp (ideally 70ish) and not too old (under 10yrs old if you can) as you can get weird failures from older bikes that sit around collecting dust, as many do! The insurance for these guys on their bikes at 29yrs old was only £150-300.

Ive not read the whole lot but just to say owt you fancy get a quote as some of the quotes are very surprising. I was gonna get a bandit 6 a while back and it was 180 for the year but the bandit 12 was only 110. I questioned it and guy said they charged more on certain bikes as they were known beginners bikes and therefore likely to be ridden by new riders so it was reflected in the premiums

+1 for the NC700.
I've had mine close on two years and now done just under 8000 miles, the rear tyre is going to need replacing in the next 2000 miles or so.
Still on the original chain and sprokets, not the best quality granted, but when I change them it will be for something a bit better.
I use it mainly for commuting, as it gives me a more reliable journey time, and I can park much nearer to where I work.
It's great in traffic, especially with the DCT, it has a good upright riding position for a good view ahead.
I do go other places on it, both locally and further afield.
My average so far isn't very different from PP's, about 84mpg, my last fill up was after 250 miles, it took 13.3 litres to fill, costing £15.28.
So yes, it's a 'tool bike', doesn't tug at your heart strings like some do, but I'd miss mine and I would buy another NC tomorrow.
Just on thing, it doesn't have half a car engine, that was tried early on and didn't work very well, so they designed a new engine for the NC range along similar lines to the Jazz/Fit 1339cc LA13, there maybe one or two components that they have in common as well as the capacity.

defender, when you get a new chain, read Poddy's thread on NC forum first for some useful info

http://www.nc700.co.uk/index.php?/topic/8653-chains-this-may-be-of-interest/

Sorry Stoner, that link doesn't work :-/

Firestarter, I think that Bandit issue is that the rear footrests on the older 600's are part of the frame so a low speed spill or parking drop will bend them effectively writing off the bike. On the 1200 they are a separate part.

a, sorry boblo, forgot the riff-raff arent allowed into the forum over there 🙂

[img] [/img]

As we all know NCs are heavy on chain wear. Twins generally are but the crappy OEM ones really don't last.
So, anyway, I was doing my own 24,000 mile service and decided to fit a new chain and sprockets as the bike will be getting a lot less use, and the old chain (16,000 miles old) was tight on every link. If I was going to be using it at the same 1000 miles a month rate I'd have left it a while, but it'll seize solid if left unused.
I was going to put a DID chain on but Busters had a lot of choice and the JT chains were listed as a lot stronger for £20 cheaper. Silly not to, right?
After I took the old chain off I compared it to the new JT. It was obviously thinner and the JT seemed heavier....
So I measured it.
Honda chain 17.3mm and almost exactly 4lbs in weight
JT Z1R 18.6mm and almost exactly 5lbs in weight.
Both are 520 pitch, both the exact same length.
You can even see the JT is beefier!

[img] [/img]

and a pic of mine just because
[img] [/img]

Interesting rockhopper . Must back away from motorbike thread 🙂

My bike past its mot this week.

[img] [/img]

It has a dummy tank with storage space so Honda came up with their "new concept" in about 1975