So my son has just been in touch and is v keen to do a 10 day Euro trip on motorbikes (4-6 hours riding per day). We've done 2 Euro trips, each of 6 weeks, riding every day, camping and they were brilliant.
He sold his bike a year ago, an old Suzuki Bandit 600 (my old one!). So I have my bike, and he needs one and he's thinking of the following:
- he's got an A2 licence, so he'll do the final bit to get a full licence
- he now lives in London and fancies having a bike over summer for pleasure rides out of London (no commuting)
- buy now and sell end of summer
- he doesn't have much cash! I'd help him out, and he covers the difference between purchase and sale
- a lightish mid sized bike. Not a out and out sports bike. He happily did 750miles in 1 day on his unfaired Bandit, so doesn't need to be a true tourer
- he'd love a Street Triple, who wouldn't!
- he'll need to be able to sling over his soft panniers and bungee a pack to the rear, so practicality required
He's a good rider, but does have the bravado of youth so nothing too bonkers.
So what are good suggestions? Obviously budget is key - between us we could get £4000 on the assumption it's sold end summer (but less £ would be much preferable). Resale is an important consideration.
My shortlist so far:
- Street Triple
- Fazer 600
- SV650 (unfaired)
- ER6N (a Z650 new one would be nice, altho struggle within budget)
Alternatively, he rides my old Speed Triple and I pick up a GPZ9 and rekindle a love affair!!
Cheers
I know a lot of people here love the ER6N for a first 'heavy' bike, there are also enough around that second hand prices are decent. I see the odd faired version around, but they are rare.
Save with the SV650. I wanted one, but there are so few of them around that they are more expensive and finding a faired one is tricky. My girlfriend took one for a test ride for me (which we thought was likely knicked at the end) and her comment was "I hope you like changing gear". The power band is narrower than the Bandit 650 I ended up getting.
Another choice might be the MT-07. They have a really good rep as a first bike.
SV650. Reliable. Bulletproof. Plentiful and reasonably priced.
Thinking about getting one myself for track day use.
Tracer 700?
How old for the SV650?
My mate is selling his Gen 1 which would be a good bit under your budget.
It's a great bike. Never let him down as a weekend warrior bike, but he's gone bigger now.
Like this.
Thanks.
MT07 might be a bit of a budget stretch?
Ideally ULEZ compliant, so I think, post 2007.
Really, the cheaper the better. SV650 definitely a good shout
How about a Honda cb500x. I bought one 6 months ago. Great bike comfy. Great on fuel and honda reliability.
This is a great resource if you’re considering an sv650,
https://forums.sv650.org/
Lad at work has a ER6N and loves it,although being a lanky chap does find it just a wee bit cramped on long rides.I had a go on it last summer and it was very easy to get on with.
Go for the Street Triple! A level above the other bikes mentioned and a nice step up from the Bandit, not sure the others are. Residuals also strong, I've had mine over two years and I doubt I'd have trouble selling it for purchase price.
Probably bears no relevance to your post, aside from it being a motorbike, but if I ever get round to doing my bike test this year, then this will be my purchase - or at least one very similar
10 days dicking about on bikes in Europe, I wouldn't really care what I'm riding so long as it starts every morning, have a great time and buy something that won't spoil the trip
I had a curvy SV650s. a gen 1 semi faired one. It was my first bike, I loved it.
But the street triple r I bought after that was MUCH more fun
+1 MT-07
The CP2 engines are great and you should be able to get one for £4k.
Street Triples are also very nice, but running costs might be a bit more.
All bikes are cool 😎😎
Kawasaki versys
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/165328727593?hash=item267e5c2e29:g:kbwAAOSwaN9iBWc9
Suzuki V-Strom 650
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/275092693243?hash=item400ccd60fb:g:phwAAOSwsR5hmRzW
BMW gs650
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/294815913859?hash=item44a465d783:g:dCkAAOSwBKdiDDsl
BMW gs800
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/234401163532?hash=item369365e90c:g:DlYAAOSwZKBiCpv1
Only because we are sort of looking for similar spec..
https://gvbikes.co.uk/webshop/used-bikes/honda-cb500f/
You'll get an MT-07 for £4k... Might not be the newest or the lowest miles, but you'll get one. And I'd find it very hard to look past this, especially considering you need to sell it on at the end of summer for minimal loss.
Bargains do turn up though. Know someone who picked up a one owner 64 plate Street Triple R recently for well within your budget. It needed a bit of tidying and an oil change, but was a decent honest bike that he could probably punt on for a reasonable profit right now. Another friend picked up an MT-07 in November, paid a crazy price for it... Less than £4k, but it wasn't much more than a year old with a few thousand miles on the clock. The previous owner won it on one of those raffle sites that are super popular now, hadn't realised that he wouldn't be able to ride it on a CBT, so punted it on as quick as he could whilst it was parked outside his parents house uninsured... My mate just happened to live just down the road, and had the cash sitting spare!
Thinking a little more practically though, especially given the task in hand... Why not look at bikes more specifically suited to a bit of touring action? Old oilhead R1200GS' can be picked up for under £4k now in good condition, and will cover the miles happily... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/234416742763?hash=item369453a16b:g:G90AAOSwTcdiDTo8
Or there is of course the obvious answer... Pass his A2 license ASAP, and pickup an old VFR800 for half the budget (honestly, even as a current R1200GS owner, if I was heading off on a 10 day trip round Europe tomorrow, I can't think of a better bike to do it on than a VFR800, most comfortable bike I've ever owned and still huge fun to ride!)... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/175158208293?hash=item28c83e2725:g:SoYAAOSwGw5hRima Best bit is even despite the age, they are clean enough for ULEZ... You need to write to Honda for them to send you confirmation of the C02 emissions and send it to the DVLA, which is a minor bugbear and can take a couple of weeks. But once done, he can ride into London as often as he likes and not pay the charge on a 20+yr old bike! 👍🏻
In the time honoured recommend what you've got fashion - BMW F800R (or ST for touring). You should be able to find an older odd-headlight one for £4000. They go surprisingly well, are comfy and incredibly frugal, if that matters. Not quite as much fun as a Street Triple, but not far off and more practical. Just stay away from BMW dealers .....
mboy - that's possibly a game changer re getting ULEZ on an older bike ... Googling a few forums, sounds like it's doable but one needs a fair bit of tenacity to get it done!
He fancies an MT07 or Street Triple - of course he does! But if I can half the money that'd be good, altho I should be maybe more focused on the resale and cutting any losses.
Here's our shortlist so far (not including mboy's option of an older bike and getting it signed off for ULEZ):
1. Kawasaki ER6N – c.£2.5K
2. Suzuki SV650 (naked not the sports one I’d suggest) - £3K
3. Honda CB500F - £3K
4. Kawasaki Z650 - £3.5K
5. Yamaha MT07 - £4K (highish mileage)
6. Street Triple (2008/9) - £4K
And final consideration is practicality of carrying luggage/tent - would the Street Triple be OK for soft panniers? The others look like they would be?
For your requirements I would just search Autotrader for 600-800cc bikes and buy on condition not model, ideally locally and privately. A more commuter friendly bike will probably be better suited for a long trip and easier to sell as the weather turns at the end of summer. I had an ER6 when they first came out, it was great fun and good for some touring, I put 40k on it and even tracked it once when my RSV1000 decided to not work.
https://superbikefactory.co.uk/2009-triumph-street-triple-675-black-with-22738-miles/
Street triple with panniers. I have a rack as I have the underseat cans but have used Rhinowalk tail pack as well. For the cash there's not much to complain about. Fwiw I'd say that the ST in the above ad is fairly overpriced, nearer 3k imo.
That's a really dangerous website @YoKaiser... Have just found the newer version of my bike for 3k and the 3k to 4k category has some epic bikes, including a Versys 650 ( https://superbikefactory.co.uk/2009-kawasaki-versys-650-kle-a9f-orange-with-8523-miles/) and a lovely Transalp ( https://superbikefactory.co.uk/2004-honda-xl650-transalp-blue-with-18399-miles/)!
they're Webuyanybike
They'll give poor PX figures, but if buying they're cheap.
I would not buy sight unseen based upon a few stories though.
Versys is nice - the older mk1/mk2 are great as well - probably depends on height though, it's a bigger more spacious version of the ER6, so if he's tall, the Veryss will be more comfy.
He's not too keen on the adventure styling...thinking ER6N, F800R or Street Triple. Checking insurance stuff now
The answer to the questions of “What motorbike?” is always easy…
The fastest one that’s black.
Or there is of course the obvious answer… Pass his A2 license ASAP, and pickup an old VFR800 for half the budget (honestly, even as a current R1200GS owner, if I was heading off on a 10 day trip round Europe tomorrow, I can’t think of a better bike to do it on than a VFR800, most comfortable bike I’ve ever owned and still huge fun to ride!)…
I was thinking about suggesting a VFR800, but they're both heavy, and with the fairing, easy to wind on and look down and be doing three figures quite easily!!
Agreed though, they're awesome bikes and great for touring. And the sound... Oh the sound (so long as you get the correct 5th gen one with straight cut cam gears and no VTEC 😉 )
How do I know? 3000 miles and 2 weeks in the Alps, dolomites, black forest, and Switzerland to Kent in a day.
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The fastest one that’s black.
Silly boy, everyone knows red ones are faster!!
Absolut! You only need to look at Ducati fr the evidence of this!
Bro-in-law has a speed triple with soft panniers so I don't think there would be any issues with the same on a street triple. He's done long distance no issues.
Leftfield suggest-what-you've-got: KTM Supermoto of some flavour. I've got a 990SM because I absolutely love the looks and prefer a twin cylinder engine. Doubt I'll ever sell it, it's just the perfect bike for me: equal parts long distance tourer/nip to the shops/b-road hooligan. Cost me £4200 at the start of Covid. There's an SMT version with a larger tank and more suited to long distance stuff, or a 950SM if carbs are your thing, or even an Adventure if you're planning on any off-road stuff at all.
Either way a lot of bike with an absolute peach of an engine for around £4k and it'll not lose a penny when it comes to resale.
Sold my street triple R last October. I miss that bike a lot. With the twin high exhausts I don't suppose it would work well with throw over panniers, but it was so good to ride.
After much consideration, picked this up
Low miles (10k), new tyres and C&S, well well under budge. Did a 100 miles on it but to check it(!) and seems good. Fingers crossed!
Looks great. I loved my ER6....they're amazing to wheelie!!
Looks nicer than the MT-07 IMO.
Thanks, he's v chuffed and it's soooo much lighter than his old Bandit (loved that bike).
I'll not mention the wheelie potential!!
And fingers crossed, it was a price that we hope he'll be pretty close to selling it for end summer (fingers crossed!).