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After the fashion of your average mid-life crisis, I quit my job in December last year and after a few months figuring what to do I start full-time 5-days-a-week college in August. College is in Dunfermline, about 25 miles away, so I need to start thinking about how to get there. My pickup does less than 30mpg so I don't think it's going to make financial sense to use that, Mrs FO has a pretty frugal Skoda but she doesn't like driving the truck, so I'm thinking of a cheap bike. The journey can be either a mix of motorway, A & B roads, or for an extra 5 miles or so I can miss out the motorway (I'm thinking this makes most sense with a little bike).
Anyone got any advice? I've been looking at all sorts, from 2-stroke Aprilias to the likes of the Mutt Mongrel, down to the really cheap Lexmoto things. The higher the mpg the better, and I'm drawn more towards the retro styling of the Mutt than the wanabe motoGP Lexmotos.
Previous biking experience ranges from 80s "superbike" to Vespa scooter to huge V-twin cruiser to 2015 GSXR-750.
I was in a similar position last year and a friend was selling a SV650. That's been great for a returnee - easy to ride, comfy, not too big. If it's not faired then buy a screen. I found it too uncomfortable without. It's fine when enjoy8ng yourself on twisty roads but the constant buffeting on 20 miles of the A9 is wearing .
Hmmm, I'm trying to stay away from the bigger bikes purely because there's little difference in economy between them and the Skoda. FWIW I have an RF900 in the garage that just needs a new gearbox (which I already have), I suppose I could get that back on the road. Doesn't light any fires in me though.
I'd not want anything smaller for my commute. The main driver for me was parking, so less of a concern over fuel economy though that is working out just under 50mpg on a commute.
In the true STW fashion of recommending what you have then a Honda CB500X. It does about 80mpg and can cope with motorways. They are only about £5500 new so a second hand one should be pretty cheap.
I commute 26 miles on mine a couple of days a week on nsl a roads but used it for 4 months to commute from east Kent to Dorset and it has been faultless.
I wouldnt want to go smaller than a 250. I have a honda crf250l in mind for commuting if and when the mrs car dies...fingers crossed!
A scooter? Some of them are quite powerful - 600cc or so
If you’re coming from glenrothes, be aware that the camera van sits in random lay-bys on the A92 most days.
also, it’s almost always at the big asda roundabout just after the college on a Friday afternoon..
Consider buses too, a fife megarider ticket, which gives unlimited travel on any stagecoach bus in fife and includes Edinburgh/dundee/livi/falkirk/stirling can be bought for £30
you ain’t gonna travel any cheaper than that.
sv650 is a good shout. Avoid any customisation, im not sure I’d even bother with a screen for that distance.
I would not want to go on the A92 without the ability to effortlessly reach the speed limit, but if you are happy using back roads, just about any 4 stroke 125 would be fine too.
Funnily enough, I’m looking at similar commute, bit of back road, bit of A road and dual carriageway as well as a few miles urban. I thought about getting a cheap blade but was shocked how high the insurance was going to be with 0NCB, even for an old git like me. Always fancied a twin and dont like the look of the er6 so think it’ll be an SV650 for me.
Insurance doesn't seem to be too bad whatever I choose, somewhere between £200-300. Even the GSXR was only just over £300.
The CB500X suggestion above lead me to the NC700X which looks like it could be a winner. Decent enough grunt and 80mpg.
NC700X owner here.
Great bike. WIll get to 110mph, Current mpg: 
http://www.fuelly.com/motorcycle/honda/nc700x/2013/northmalvern/300682
Best @ 85mpg. And that's at an average speed of more than, ahem, 65mph mainly motorway runs, with 95Kg me on top like a big fleshy kite.
Great bike really, I think postierich has one too?
Very practical, excellent to ride, easy to look after.
Consider a Kawasaki z250sl. 26 bhp and 95mph top speed. Does 77 mpg. Can be bought for £3000-3600 brand new https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201412109553694?advertising-location=at_bikes&postcode=bb33hz&model=Z250&page=1&make=KAWASAKI
I had one to test ride when my 650 was in for a service. Fantastic bike. They also do a Ninja 250sl sportier looking, but same engine and slightly quicker.
How about something like a DRZ400 trail bike, nice off the motorway and the option of a bit of trail riding.
Big scooter evey time. Plenty that will do well over the national limit. fuss free commuting
The finest bike you could possibly buy would be a Honda NC700X or S. I was doing a 52 mile round trip all year round on one until recently. Over 40,000 miles riding I AVERAGED 83mpg. Yes. 83mpg. Best was 96, worst 67. I tracked all the running costs (everything but tax and insurance) and all in it was cheaper than just the fuel on a reasonably efficient car. The NC range is utter genius if you need a frugal, reliable workhorse. There’s simply nothing to touch it. It even looked pretty good with 48,500 miles and 3 winters under its belt. Mine went for £2400.
I’m currently averaging nearly 60mpg from a Honda Africa Twin CRF1000L, which is basically the NCs bigger brother.
sorry, I meant poddy, not postierich.
£2400 for 40k+ is pretty good. Has yours suffered from much corrosion on bolts/hose crimps etc?
If you've got the replacement gearbox for the RF900 why don't you rebuild that?
If you don't like the RF you could then sell it & use the money for a middle weight twin.
Have a demo on one of those MT07 Yamaha's.
£2400 for 40k+ is pretty good. Has yours suffered from much corrosion on bolts/hose crimps etc?
No, it was in pretty good nick to be fair. Bit of rust on the swing arm and the odd bit here and there but considering I hardly ever washed it it was good. I saw more than one SV650 with 1/5 of the milage on it that was buggered cosmetically.
SV650 is a good shout- cheap to buy, impossible to kill, cheap to fix, powerful enough to be a laugh without being superbike quick, handling is... alright. Not really a commuter machine but they can do it.
Faired Hornet is another one. A lot of the actual brilliant commuter bikes like a Dullsville keep their value better so something that's just decent at it can save a fortune. And is also an excuse to get something fun rather than a 2 wheeled car, if you're so inclined
Though, it's cheaper for me to run my mondeo as a commuter, which is why my SV is now dusty in the garage. But it's not really about cheap, it's about not getting stuck.
Sorry for the hijack: Peterpoddy, how are you finding the Africa Twin? I am seriously considering chopping in the CB500X one but can't decide between the Africa Twin or a Triumph Tiger 800 XRX.
how are you finding the Africa Twin?
In sort, it's astonishing.
Yes, it's big, but at 5'8" 30" inside leg and the standard seat in the low position I can get both feet down, but not flat. Low seat is available
The engine is superb. It's not the most powerful thing out there, no, but it'll potter round at 2-4000rpm all day like my NC, and feel quite perky, then there's plenty of oomph above that when you need it, no dips in the power, no top end rush, just smooth and predicable shove. Sounds good with the standard can on it too, like the test bike we rode but ours came with an Akropovic can which was nice. 70-75mph is a tad over 4000rpm and the engine is utterly vibration free.
Suspension feels very good to me but I might get a stiffer spring for the rear as we'll be going 2-up a lot and it need maximum preload for that without luggage. It dives when you brake, yes, but it's off road biased so I'd expect that. Other then that it feels reasonably taut but forgiving and fine in the corners. Standard tyres seem fine to me but I'll put Bridgestone A41s on when we change them (Road biased) Lots of people do go off road on them and fit knobblies though.
Round the back roads of north Notts and the Peak District it's proper weapon! It devours tight lanes with ease and it's great fun. Proper BRAAAAP! BRAAAAAAAP! stuff! Motorways are easy as they should be with that suspension and engine!
It's not as manoeuvrable as my NC, but it's slim and can filter well, especially as you can see so much from up there! And the big wide bars help too.
They're very sensitive to screens! Some cause a lot of buffeting and from the online forums, some people try a few before they settle on one. The test bike had a Givi one on which was awful, loads of buffeting like you're being bashed on the top of the head. Ours came with the Honda touring screen which was better but still buffeting and we both found it too high as it cut into our vision, especially at night. We've gone back to the OEM screen with a Rugged Roads air dam that fits between the tank and forks. Lots of people find this is a good combination. Probably more wind round tour shoulders but it's a clean flow and that works for us. (It's shared between my wife and I)
Seat is good for about 2 hours but it's easy to stand up and stretch your legs. Feels very natural to ride standing up.
Headlights are great. Mirrors are the same as on the NC and also great.
The standard luggage is fine as long as you're not going off road because it's plastic and breaks easily. It clips directly to the bike with no frames, which I love. Very neat indeed.
Light. Handles well. Very economical and surprisingly quick. It's mine and 'for sale'.
Great write up, thanks. I heard reports of the throttle response being a bit jerky just off idle and was concerned about the high of the seat but sounds like these aren't a problem.
I really like the CB500 but it just starts to run out of steam above 75 and I do need to drop down a gear or two to overtake on A roads. Sounds like the Africa Twin has plenty of power for what I need (ie better cruising rpm on the motorway).
How long is the course? You're going to have to see considerable MPG increases to offset the cost of buying, insuring and maintaining another vehicle. Fine if you just want one, but do the maths for the real costs.
Edit: Assuming that the course is for 1 year with 180 days attendance, the difference in fuel costs between 30mpg and 75mpg is around £1,000
Obviously there are other costs, but the savings aren't going to be huge.
I heard reports of the throttle response being a bit jerky just off idle
Some people have no finesse. Keep the chain adjusted and it’ll be fine. 😀
If you don't mind how tall are you, PP?
Also watching with interest. Have a new, mostly motorway commute and the Doblo does 30 odd over the route.
Sat on all the NCs and CB500s, head says NC-S with a screen, heart says CB500-X. Both would be secondhand, from a local Honda main dealer.
Not ridden much apart from friends bikes for ages, but the NC-X just felt a bit big. CB-X fitted really well and a bit less toylike than the unfaired CB.
If you don’t mind how tall are you, PP?
5 ft 8in, 30in inside leg, it's in the post above! 🙂
To be fair I rode the same two you did and I preferred the CB500X as it felt lighter and zippier, but the NCx was cheaper (Used) and that's why I bought it and I was always glad I did. Far better for what I used it for I think and it sipped fuel. The high up riding position was ace in traffic and wide bars and a low CofG means it can be really thrown around. I'd go for the X if you can, not the S, it's more practical (weather protection) and looks better IMO
I had an SV650s, would work fine for what you're after. I find most motorcycles get good economy - i'll get 40mpg from my CBR1000RR fireblade even when i'm pushing it, strangely has the same economy as a 600cc sportsbike. Economy on the NC700x sounds amazing!
For those doing long mileage what tyres were you using? How did you avoid them getting squared off? I had an urban commute on my SV650s and my street triple r and both had very squared off tyres, I was only doing c. 7k miles per year on average
Triumph Tiger 800s are great bikes. I've got an XCX and I had the previous model 'roadie' bike before last. The latest one does 55mpg most of the time. Plenty of power, handles well enough to surprise people on a track day (not me, a mate). How about a Bonneville? Previous air-cooled 900 would make a good commuter. Should be able to get 55 mpg out of one easily. Can you tell I like Triumphs? This Tiger is my 7th in a row!
Honda blackbird, mines like riding a fast sofa. Get circa 40mpg on the A road commute, more on motorways.
Still looking. Just missed out on a very underpriced Kawasaki ER6F, didn't put a higher bid in after checking the MOT history but I'm kicking myself now. It was about £2k less than market value and realistically just needed some new bearings in the steering head.
Now looking at a Yamaha MT07...
Some of these fuel efficiencies seem a bit surprising. I’m getting average 47mpg out of my s1000xr and I’m not exactly cruising.
Rachel
I just read an article where they were comparing the RF900 with a modern ZX10. Even though the modern bike had all the bells and whistles the testers admitted that the RF wasn't far off the mark and both enjoyed it. Might be worth getting it back on the road seeing if it'll be different this time around? If not it'll at least give you something to trade in.
I'll admit that it's ridiculously quick. Moreso than I'm comfortable with if I'm honest. Having said that it's comfier than the GSXR and feels a bit lazier (but in a good way). However, it's in bits and the fairings are all pretty knackered. I've been toying with the idea of rebuilding it as a kind of streetfighter-esque thing but finding the time to do it is the problem.
No idea if suggesting something like this is some kind of heresy in motorbike circles but I've ridden the non-road version of this and it's quite a lot of fun. It wouldn't do motorway but it should be extremely cheap to run!
In case anyone's interested, this was recently delivered to the house:
Decided based on advice above that a 125 might not be the best, read around, ended up with a KTM Duke 390. Seems to be in a class of it's own, ticks all the economy boxes and between the heated grips it already has and the hand guards I've ordered it should be ok for ¾ hour ride each way.
The only bad thing about it is it is at home and I'm at work so I've not seen it in the flesh yet.
I looked at those KTM's at the bike show,really liked them.
I'm just halfway (just about to do my mod1 on Friday) through Direct access training.
I have been building an SR250 scrambler for 4 years which is miles off being finished 🙁
So in a moment of madness I put a deposit down on one of these, it should be here by the end of June 🙂
This will be mainly used for the 25 mile either way commute, sorry to the OP as it probably does not fit into the 'cheap' category 🙁
Warm right leg on that trumpet no?
not according to all the reviews I have read/watched (and believe me I have watched loads) 🙁