help buying first bike
 

Hey guys,

Looking to buy my first bike, ever. Looking for street riding only for now.

Thinking about a 2003 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R.

40000km on odo, 16000km on engine, Clean title, Pazzo Levers, Frame sliders, Puig smoked double bubble windscreen, Akrapovic Slip-on, fender eliminator and integrated signals. New tires and front brakes (less than 500km on both).

Includes passenger seat and solo cowl, stock levers, passenger seat and solo cowl, windscreen, signals, and a set of track stands.

I was leaning towards an f4i too, but this guy guy will give it to me for $3500. Think this is a decent deal?
Any info/help would be great 'cuz I am green as they come. I am going to get it taken in to get a look over at a shop before I buy it too. I'm 6'2" 220lbs.

Thanks.

It looks like a clean bike but with the km's being different how hard did this guy ride it? sounds like he blew up the motor and had it replaced or rebuilt. might want to keep looking if thats the deal. maybe something with less wear and tear on it.

welcome to KF!

I personally wouldn't recommend that type of bike for a beginner. If you have never ridden before nor have enough seat time(usually 1 season) a bike of that power is not your best choice for many reasons.

1. It has too much power and you are inexperienced. You are better off with a smaller less powerful bike like a Ninja 250/500/Suzuki SV650 or a bike of that sort. A smaller bike will allow you to be a better rider and much better for learning on.

2. A smaller bike is more forgiving than a SS bike and being a new rider you are going to make mistakes, grab too much throttle,come into a turn too hot, etc. If you do that on a smaller bike, it could allow you to recover(might scare you a bit), but on a SS bike, it will put your ass into a ditch or worse, into some other object.

I can go on and on about the what if's and I have seen quite a few friends hurt themselves and wreck their bikes because they had no experience but were on a SS bike and made mistakes and wrecked. If they were on a smaller bike, they wouldn't have wrecked.

If it were me, I would get one of these.
Attachment 22676

Oh wait I do. :)

That does not sound like a good deal. Too many questions and there are better bikes out there. As far as whats a good first bike, I agree with what has been said. IMHO a late model 600 will get you in trouble very fast. I started on a Honda XL100S. Crashed that getting cocky and crazy. I would look for an SV650 to be honest. But in any case, I would move on from that bike. Welcome by the way :)

Thanks for the info guys, I e-mailed him further and the guy said...

The engine replacement was done by the previous owner. He replaced the engine because he didn't do a very good job of checking the oil in the first engine and had to replace it at around 24000km. I purchased the bike in April 2007 with 30000km on it. It been totally trouble free for me, and I've put 10000km on it.

I just replaced the oil and filter this weekend.

So, you think this model is too much power for a first time rider? I was also looking at an '02/'03 honda f4i, do you feel the same way about those as well?

I guess it really boils down to what kind of person you are. If you like to drive fast and can be wreckless, a fast bike as your first bike can get you in trouble fast. If your the kind of person who is not easily drawn into a race and are not out to show off, then you would be fine. But on any sportbike is like learning to drive in a Corvette. It can be done, but most people would get into trouble quickly :) The other problem with a sportbike is the bodywork. When your learning how to ride, your going to drop it. It will happen. And bodywork can get very expensive.

You will learn more, learn it better, learn it faster and survive to tell the tale if you start with something like a Ninja 250.

This probably is not what you want to hear, but it is nontheless true. When you can rag the arse off a 250, and are able to push it in traffic without hitting anything, which will take you about a year or a bit more - reckon 10K miles, then you'll be able to ride a ZX-6r with a good chance of learning how to master it. Most owners never really can do this as well as they might.

Get one as first bike and either you'll give up riding through fear, never develop the confidence to fully utilise the bikes capabilities, or more simply, just die.

Try not to let your balls or your ego override your brain.

I started teaching people how to ride over 30 years ago, and my experience shows that with with very few exceptions, those who start on a low powered (not necessarily physically small) bikes end up being by far the better riders. Any sports styled bike over 400cc has too much power and 400s are marginal as good learning tools. 250s are ideal, and most really experienced riders will also tell you that being able to ride them flat out under road conditions makes them a lot more fun than bikes which have to be constantly held back.

Rob

why would you want to push it in traffic??:confused:


"When you can rag the arse off a 250, and are able to push it in traffic without hitting anything, "