Cost of becoming a biker?

[MElliottUK]

Looking as experience some proper performance and a bike fits the bill for the money i would have. I'm just wandering how much if will cost to get me going. I have guesstimated a breakdown below, does it seem about right?

Bike - £2500
Insurance - £450
Tax - £50
Mot - £40
Helmet - £200
Clothing, inc boots and gloves - £400
Direct access - £600

So total of £4240

Is that about right or have i got some of the costs completely wrong?

Thanks

Matt

[FunkyNige]

Seems about right to me. Maybe the Direct Access is a touch on the high side.

[Alex@POD]

Sounds about right depending on the bike you want of course, I am doing this kind of planning at the moment too. You might have to ass the CBT on top of that though... DAS where I go is 540...

[RemaL]

No for a 5 day it looks about right. You can get stuff much cheaper such as a helmet but as everyone keeps telling me "buy what the best you can afford"

My DAS cost me about £500-600 include CBT, test etc..
Teknic jacket and trousers £380
Gloves and boots £190
Helmet £350 Aria Corsair ( top bit of kit , would buy one again without a doubt)
MOT £46 Fazer 600
Bike 2003 Fazer 4100 miles, mint Cond, £2799 from Duke dealer
Insurance £520 Fully comp , No NCB, age 29 live in Brizzel

so hope it will give you a bit of infor

Edited by RemaL on Saturday 3rd March 19:24

[DennisTheMenace]

Fazers are cheap to insure and a damn good bike , mine was £79 to do this year , although it cant beat £68 for a year on the 1000cc thunderace , absolute bargain

im having a couple years break from bikes but i will be back OH

[RemaL]

DennisTheMenace said:

Fazers are cheap to insure and a damn good bike , mine was £79 to do this year , although it cant beat £68 for a year on the 1000cc thunderace , absolute bargain

im having a couple years break from bikes but i will be back OH

HOW little. £79 so you got 20 years NCB, 30 years licence etc.... etc.... Because If you don't I want to know were you got insured

[yellowvette]

Certainly not far out I'd say. I can't comment on the test cost as I did mine back in 1988. Insurance is dependant on so many factors (bike, your age, garaged, etc. etc.) so only you can really know that - presumably you've got quotes? Tax depends on bike capacity but I have a 748 which is highest band and it cocsts £33 for 6 months, I SORN it for the other 6 months.
I would say regarding clothing though - you maybe a little under with that. I recently changed all my gear except the lid (have an Arai and would recommend you buy the best, as Matt says). I bought Dainese 2 piece from a bike dealer on ebay for £415, down from nearly £600. A pair of Dainese boots worn once on ebay for £60, because the seller listed it so badly you had to really search to find them, so I had no competition. And a pair of Dainese race gloves, new, for just £40 from a Dainese clearance house. It's possible to get decent kit cheap but buy carefully.

[yellowvette]

RemaL said:

DennisTheMenace said:

Fazers are cheap to insure and a damn good bike , mine was £79 to do this year , although it cant beat £68 for a year on the 1000cc thunderace , absolute bargain

im having a couple years break from bikes but i will be back OH

HOW little. £79 so you got 20 years NCB, 30 years licence etc.... etc.... Because If you don't I want to know were you got insured

I can believe that Matt. I'm 40 (was 39 when I last insured) and paid £250 fully-comp for both my Duke 748 SPS and my XJR1300 (now sold, so should be cheaper this year). That was for 3000 miles p/ann each and bikes garaged/alarmed etc. I am fortunate to be able to say I've never claimed though, and I've been riding since I was 17

[wedg1e]

You might also want to add a decent lock & chain for the bike, maybe an alarm/ immobiliser... tankbag and harness, throwovers, wet weather gear, intercom, duplicate set of gear for the girlie... it just keeps on going!

Quick tot-up for me (since December)...

'03 ST1300 £5100
AGV S4 lid £170
Hein Gericke jacket £210
HG trousers £140
Alpinestars boots £160
HG Pathan gloves £40 (OK, a xmas present)
Comp Insurance £300
Tax £62 (? I think)
Lock and chain £50
Honda alarm £75
Baglux harness and tankbag £40

£6307 (!!)

Then add in for our lass...
HG jacket £200
HG trousers £180
AGV lid £140
HG boots £80
HG Pathan gloves £40

£6947 ()

Now the bike needs a rear tyre... £120+
... it absolutely HAD to have a DiGI gear indicator £35
... a top box to carry me sarnies £127
... inner liners for the panniers and topbox £75
... and I've just ordered the power-screen kit £388

£7572 (without the tyre...)... and all that's with me already having a licence!

Y'see, it doesn't stop once you get on the road...

[DennisTheMenace]

RemaL said:

DennisTheMenace said:

Fazers are cheap to insure and a damn good bike , mine was £79 to do this year , although it cant beat £68 for a year on the 1000cc thunderace , absolute bargain

im having a couple years break from bikes but i will be back OH

HOW little. £79 so you got 20 years NCB, 30 years licence etc.... etc.... Because If you don't I want to know were you got insured

Living in the sticks helps , ive got 6 years riding and 4 years ncb , would have had 6 but there was a cock up and i lost some im insured with bennetts

[RemaL]

yellowvette said:

RemaL said:

DennisTheMenace said:

Fazers are cheap to insure and a damn good bike , mine was £79 to do this year , although it cant beat £68 for a year on the 1000cc thunderace , absolute bargain

im having a couple years break from bikes but i will be back OH

HOW little. £79 so you got 20 years NCB, 30 years licence etc.... etc.... Because If you don't I want to know were you got insured

I can believe that Matt. I'm 40 (was 39 when I last insured) and paid £250 fully-comp for both my Duke 748 SPS and my XJR1300 (now sold, so should be cheaper this year). That was for 3000 miles p/ann each and bikes garaged/alarmed etc. I am fortunate to be able to say I've never claimed though, and I've been riding since I was 17

the age and experance makes a hell of a difference Mike. Just hope when I decide to Test ride a Speed tripe and Superduke at the end of this year they take into account he 1 years NCB I hope to have

[RemaL]

DennisTheMenace said:

RemaL said:

DennisTheMenace said:

Fazers are cheap to insure and a damn good bike , mine was £79 to do this year , although it cant beat £68 for a year on the 1000cc thunderace , absolute bargain

im having a couple years break from bikes but i will be back OH

HOW little. £79 so you got 20 years NCB, 30 years licence etc.... etc.... Because If you don't I want to know were you got insured

Living in the sticks helps , ive got 6 years riding and 4 years ncb , would have had 6 but there was a cock up and i lost some im insured with bennetts

Well I had to offs in 8 fecking bastard shi&&&g mother hunting days back IN Jan 07. But paied for th edamage in the second accident which did not cost too much and the first off was not my fault. All sorted just waiting for the money to come through which should be nice.

But lets just keep my fingers corssed and the next few years gets cheaper for insurance As if

[DennisTheMenace]

Stick with the fazer mate , and shop around for insurance at renewal time

[MElliottUK]

Thanks for all the good responses. Looks like im in the right ball park then, maybe more for clothing.

Adds up doesnt it, still want one tho.

[Mad Dave]

Ride careful or it could cost you an arm and a leg


coat, door, gone

[scotia_steve74]

Just done mine:

Bike - CBR600F - 6095
DAS - 600
Helmet - Arai RX7-Edwards - 450
Technik Trousers - 140
Street Wise Waterproof Jacket - 100
Alpinestars SMX4 - 140
Dianese GTX/Thin Gloves - 100
Alpinestars Track Pants - 270
Aplinestars Leather Jacket - 270
Insurance 1 year - 900

Total: 9065....

[momentofmadness]

scotia_steve74 said:

Just done mine:

Bike - CBR600F - 6095
DAS - 600
Helmet - Arai RX7-Edwards - 450
Technik Trousers - 140
Street Wise Waterproof Jacket - 100
Alpinestars SMX4 - 140
Dianese GTX/Thin Gloves - 100
Alpinestars Track Pants - 270
Aplinestars Leather Jacket - 270
Insurance 1 year - 900

Total: 9065....

[711]

If you want branded or decent clothing, your estimate for that is too low if you want it all new.

I was lucky and got a set of hardly used Crowtrees from ebay for £250. If you want winter gear, that will cost for decent stuff as well. I paid about £600 for the Hein Gericke winter textiles...

[anonymous-user]

Miles out, if you're anything like me . . .

£4200 may be a reasonable starting point, but once the demons start . . .

"Mmm . . . a sports bike would be good . . . R1 . . . maybe GSX-R . . . or how about a shiny new 1098? . . . but then a supermotard looks fun too . . . or what about a tourer, or a retro bike or a naked . . . track days seem like a good idea . . . that'll be sticky tyres then, sprocket change, new fairings, training . . . oh what the hell, why don't I just buy a track bike . . . oh yes, and some nice new leathers . . . and boots, and gloves . . . oh yes, and a helmet . . . "

AAARRRGGGHH! It never stops . . . !!

Good luck and welcome to the joys of biking!

[Talksteer]

Costs:

SV650S -1999 - £1900
Helmet -AGV ST-4 £150 (down from £250 in the sales)
Jacket/Trousers/Gloves - Frank Thomas Textiles - £240
Boots - Falco Waterproof - £100
Locks - £50
Shed - £300
Direct Access inc CBT - £650
Insurance - TPFT+personal injury £200 (25y/o Derby)

= £3590

Provided you get a helemt worth more than £150 with a composite shell they are all pretty much as effective. If you buy at the end of season in the winter you can get most kit significantly cheaper and you can get designer kit with graphics on them for the same price as plain stuff as the designs will soon be changed (kind of like buying last years football strip).

Edited by Talksteer on Monday 5th March 13:16