Thinking of buying a cheap motorbike

[dodgy]

Quite fancy an electric scooter, the Niu stuff looks good, but I think the tech isn't quite there yet. If they could use public charging infrastructure I'd probably buy one. I've had a Vespa in the past and miss it, also a VFR 800.

 

[MarkF]

Hi,
As the weeks have rolled along being stuck at home I've been watching lots of YouTube content. Somehow I've managed to get watching clips on motorbikes and it's reignited my interest in them. Ive got a full bike licence but it's been many many years since I've owned one.
I've been looking at the cheap Chinese bikes and although a little dubious about there quality and longevity they really seem to have come along way in the last few years with quality. I'm quite taken with the lexmoto assault 125. I don't want anything fast but would like something that can be used for light green laneing along the filthy lanes that abundant my area. It would also can in handy as a commuter back that would do more than 100mpg.
New they cost £1500 with a claimed good warranty and service back up.
I'm pretty tempted to take the plunge back into motorbikes again but still sitting on the fence as to what to do 🤔

If I bought a Chinese bike for £1500 and put 3000 miles on it, I'd have a bike worth £1000 (hopefully). I bought a Suzuki RV125 for £1200 to commute, I've put 3000 miles on it and it's actually increased in value so I don't see the Chinese bike as being "cheap" compared. You could buy a RV125 for around the same price, it will be older but has long term proven reliabilty, good residual values and with a guaranteed cheap spares supply forever. People go around the world on them so green laning is not a problem.

 

[Smokin Joe]

If I bought a Chinese bike for £1500 and put 3000 miles on it, I'd have a bike worth £1000 (hopefully). I bought a Suzuki RV125 for £1200 to commute, I've put 3000 miles on it and it's actually increased in value so I don't see the Chinese bike as being "cheap" compared. You could buy a RV125 for around the same price, it will be older but has long term proven reliabilty, good residual values and with a guaranteed cheap spares supply forever. People go around the world on them so green laning is not a problem.

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Buying a used 125 is a lot more difficult than it is with larger bikes. I've looked at loads and most have been sorry specimens that have spent their lives in the hands of less than careful youthful owners, kept outside exposed to the elements and with evidence of mechanical neglect and slides down the road. One Honda had just over 3000 miles on the clock and SEVEN previous owners. Of course you can get a good one if you look long and hard enough, but living well away from any large city where their is plenty of choice it is a different matter unless you want to spend a whole day travelling to look at something which may or may not be worth a punt.

As for second hand values, I keep my vehicles till they are worth next to nothing anyway, so that does not matter. My last two bikes owed me nothing when I got rid of them.

 

[MarkF]

Buying a used 125 is a lot more difficult than it is with larger bikes. I've looked at loads and most have been sorry specimens that have spent their lives in the hands of less than careful youthful owners, kept outside exposed to the elements and with evidence of mechanical neglect and slides down the road. One Honda had just over 3000 miles on the clock and SEVEN previous owners. Of course you can get a good one if you look long and hard enough, but living well away from any large city where their is plenty of choice it is a different matter unless you want to spend a whole day travelling to look at something which may or may not be worth a punt.

As for second hand values, I keep my vehicles till they are worth next to nothing anyway, so that does not matter. My last two bikes owed me nothing when I got rid of them.

They are mostly stepping stones to a full license, I bought mine with 4000 miles from SIX owners, I've had a different use for it and have put on 3000. It's a minefield that, as usual, I took no notice of and bought mine unseen, 100+ miles away off an internet advert. I agree with you about larger bikes, there are a ton of 600 sports bikes that are astonishing value, one owner, low miles, all for sub £2k.

 

[Smudge]

Obviously this will only apply to full licence holders, but if i were looking for a small cc lightweight bike, then i would go for a 250 or a 300. Not a huge more weight than a 125, but 2 or 3 times the power and its still a lightweight motorcycle. Buying these secondhand, they wont have been used and abused by L plate riders and tend to be owned by older more experienced riders, so will likely have been looked after better. They are pretty cheap new as well.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I had a BMW in a month back for a brake light fault, very convoluted system where the engine management tells the light to illuminate.

Turned out to be a fault in the wiring loom, would been a pain without diagnostics.

Anyhow, it ran like a dream and 100,000 miles on the clocks! so can forgive it for a wiring fault.

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Pulled ours out of the garage last Wednesday, been there since the Friday before lockdown to go for it's MOT, before then it was last September I think. Damn thing wouldn't start as soon as you pressed the start button the horn sounded, spent a couple of hours trying to diagnose it & thought it was the starter motor. Charged the battery up fully, we had been using jump leads, pressed the starter, it faired, ran as though nothing had ever been wrong!!!

 

[keithmac]

Pulled ours out of the garage last Wednesday, been there since the Friday before lockdown to go for it's MOT, before then it was last September I think. Damn thing wouldn't start as soon as you pressed the start button the horn sounded, spent a couple of hours trying to diagnose it & thought it was the starter motor. Charged the battery up fully, we had been using jump leads, pressed the starter, it faired, ran as though nothing had ever been wrong!!!

I'm not a fan of jump starting anything nowadays, much prefer to charge the battery up correctly with a decent charger.

Seen batteries that appear good still take a day to fully charge/ condition.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I'm not a fan of jump starting anything nowadays, much prefer to charge the battery up correctly with a decent charger.

Seen batteries that appear good still take a day to fully charge/ condition.

Yes it's illogical why it doesn't work, we tried it with both a running engine & a stopped engine, but it didn't like either. Before I put the battery on charge it had less than 10V in it, had to use an old charger to pump it up a couple of hours before putting it on a modern charger. I thought a cell had gone, but it appears to have come back okay, it's a Yuasa only 15 month old so should be good. Problem with the BMW is it's Canbus so you have no idea really what's going on with the electrics, somebody has suggested on the forum that the ECU has a direct feed from the battery & that when he tried to jump it, it got it's knickers in a twist & that leaving the battery off for 24 hours allowed all the cicuits to reset back to Zero. Then connected a battery of the correct voltage allowed it to start, seems logical, but never like it when you don't know the reason.

 

[Smokin Joe]

My Chinese cheapo sunbathing on the drive yesterday after having it's engine run for a while. It still waits patiently for it's first run on the road, hopefully soon. I sent a picture to my cousin in Oz and he asked me if it was a Harley

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Doesn't look half bad, nice to see they are calming down their way of doing things & making them more Western

 

[Smudge]

It does look pretty good... and £1500 is dirt cheap for a brand new 125. It would be interesting to hear what its like after a couple of years and a few thou on the clock after its been treated right and not owned by some young un who will abuse it and never clean or service it.

 

[Smokin Joe]

It does look pretty good... and £1500 is dirt cheap for a brand new 125. It would be interesting to hear what its like after a couple of years and a few thou on the clock after its been treated right and not owned by some young un who will abuse it and never clean or service it.

I'll keep you informed, warts and all. I've got two years warranty and a decent dealer so even if it loses 2/3 of it's value in that time compared to 1/3 off a similar Japanese bike I won't be any worse off cash wise. I've always been very meticulous with my motorcycles, never garaged wet or dirty and always complimented on condition when I've sold or traded in, so we'll see.

 

[johnnyb47]

That really looks like a nice bike. After seeing yours I'm tempted to go and have a look at one of those

 

[johnnyb47]

@Smokin Joe
Curiosity got the better of me today so i popped over to the Lexmoto dealer to have a look at the Isca.
I was half expecting to see a nice looking bike on the surface but cheap when i looked close up.
I was pleasantly surprised by how good the build quality was. All the plastic panels were really of a high quality and so was everything else for that matter. It also looks very easy the work on maintenance wise. The one i saw was blue and looked quite striking..
After seeing yours i just had to go and see one in the flesh, and it looks as good as yours in the pictures.
I think for the extra £100 of the Isca over the Assault, it's well worth it and I'm really tempted to splash out on one.

 

[Smokin Joe]

@Smokin Joe
Curiosity got the better of me today so i popped over to the Lexmoto dealer to have a look at the Isca.
I was half expecting to see a nice looking bike on the surface but cheap when i looked close up.
I was pleasantly surprised by how good the build quality was. All the plastic panels were really of a high quality and so was everything else for that matter. It also looks very easy the work on maintenance wise. The one i saw was blue and looked quite striking..
After seeing yours i just had to go and see one in the flesh, and it looks as good as yours in the pictures.
I think for the extra £100 of the Isca over the Assault, it's well worth it and I'm really tempted to splash out on one.

They certainly look nice, and as you say they don't look shoddily put together either. Unfortunately I still can't tell you what mine rides like which is doubly frustrating as it is perfect motorcycling weather today 😢 With a bit of luck Friday's visit to the surgery will see the bandage finally removed, they're putting less on each time.

I don't know if you've looked on YouTube but there are some decent reviews and footage from the testers helmet cam.