500cc Commuter/Courier Motorbike Recommendations

[Hunts887]

Hello all,

I was wondering if you all had any advice or recommendations on a good courier motorbike around 500cc. I state 500c as most courier insurance only cover up to 500cc.

I understand that 2 of the most common 500cc bikes are the Kawasaki er-5, and the Honda CB500 or CBF500, but my main concern is, which one will be the most reliable? Any other suggestions of bikes I would appreciate.

Also, in regards to the er-5, if I was to buy one, what is a fair price for say example, a 2005 plate? I am aware of a local seller but he is asking for 7-750 which seems a bit steep.

I know Gumtree, eBay Facebook are the main places to by, but if anyone has any other recommendations for sites or places to buy i'd appreciate it.

Regards.

[croyde]

Beware getting a pre 2006 bike as it may well be not ULEZ compliant.

I'm presuming you are dispatching in London.

[Hunts887]

Should have said, it will be in Newcastle

[EagleMoto4-2]

I have owned two CBR500R bikes (2013 and 2016) and had no issues with them, commuting 20 miles a day. If you must have the naked CB500 then I dont expect you will find any problems. Honda's are known for quality and reliability after all.

[trickywoo]

EagleMoto4-2 said:

Honda's are known for quality and reliability after all.

Apart from reg/recs and oil burning (on certain models).

[EagleMoto4-2]

trickywoo said:

EagleMoto4-2 said:

Honda's are known for quality and reliability after all.

Apart from reg/recs and oil burning (on certain models).

Yes, had heard of reg/rec issues but never had an issue on my bikes.

[Donbot]

If it is a decent bike for £750 I'd be snapping their hands off.

Ropy bikes can quickly become a money pit.

[Krikkit]

EagleMoto4-2 said:

trickywoo said:

EagleMoto4-2 said:

Honda's are known for quality and reliability after all.

Apart from reg/recs and oil burning (on certain models).

Yes, had heard of reg/rec issues but never had an issue on my bikes.

And they're not hard to fix either, plenty of regs can be adapted in.

[Hunts887]

Krikkit said:

EagleMoto4-2 said:

trickywoo said:

EagleMoto4-2 said:

Honda's are known for quality and reliability after all.

Apart from reg/recs and oil burning (on certain models).

Yes, had heard of reg/rec issues but never had an issue on my bikes.

And they're not hard to fix either, plenty of regs can be adapted in.

Any more recommendations of good commuters or all-rounders other than stated? Any good Sport Tourers around that price point?

Cheers

[jchesh]

The CB500 (the 90s one) is a superb bike. Nice revvy engine (thrives at 6-9k rpm on the back roads), easy to work on, great handling, comfortable, never let me down in any way... I put 145,000 on one before retiring it for parts (it was still going strong) and now have another which so far has 75,000 on it (plus a VTR1000 with 95,000 on!).

I'd say the CB500 is slightly better build quality than the ER-5 and perhaps a smidgen more reliable (that's just a guess though as I've never owned an ER-5), but both are a bit more sophisticated (liquid cooled for a start) than the Suzuki GS500. However the Kawasaki GPZ500 is another option (more power than any of the above 500s).

I don't know much at all about the newer CB500s (CB500F, CB500X, CBR500R) other than that my 1997 one would beat them all in a race... That said, the newer ones, being fuel injected and just newer, would have a fair bit better fuel economy than the older (carbed) model.

Edited by jchesh on Sunday 9th June 20:55