Purchasing a new motorcycle | GTAMotorcycle.com

Purchasing a new motorcycle

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ScorpionT16

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Hello riders,

I'm new to these forums, though I've been scanning and reading through threads for months, all very helpful.

I just got my M2 a few weeks back, and was looking at getting a bike. I don't want to ride/insure it this year, but early next year. My dad has been riding for over 40yrs+ and worked on bikes, I was looking at getting a Yamaha XJ600 Seca II 1992 to start on, I'm not into sport bikes and love duals, but can't afford a BMW F800s, GS etc... yet, nor do i have the confidence for one.

I have a few reasons for getting this particular bike to begin on, I just wanted to ask, If I see one for sale and want to buy it, yet not insure/ride it till next season how do I go about the ownership at the MTO? My dad has a Ford F-150 and I can rent a U-haul motorcycle trailer to pick it (only $30-35).

I have looked at insurance quotes, and it is reasonable. Its an upright style bike, not too powerful for a 600CC, and from what I hear a great starter biker in the 600 range. Reason for waiting to ride it till next season is 1.I rather pay of my car before starting bike insurance, and buy better gear till next year 2. I know its an older bike, and would need some tlc, wanted to do basics during the winter, like brake lines, pads, new tires, carbs etc... and start the season with a ship-shape bike, and the skills to fix it or future bikes.

Thanks for the input in advance!
 
I dunno - what does dad think..

I'd say a KLR650 makes more sense - bullet proof. But what is your inseam.
 
Never mind with the old bikes. Until you ride to live and live to ride regularly it's all just a bunch of theory anyway. Start making sensible choices instead of excuses.
 
MacDoc said:
I dunno - what does dad think..

I'd say a KLR650 makes more sense - bullet proof. But what is your inseam.
Click to expand...

A v-strom rider recommending a KLR?! Well I... how... but... err... I'm so overcome with emotions I don't know what to say. Never thought I'd see this day.

Do as MacDoc does, not says. Get a v-strom 650!

Or do as you're planning, sounds reasonable. You don't need insurance now, if you're not going to ride it. Buy it now, insure it when you start riding.
 
He's happier than when I was looking at 1988 CB450S's, since those have drum brakes rear, and dual spring coil suspension rather than the monolink. He does say look at whats comfortable and a fit in person. My second choice is the 1990's Suzuki 400cc bandits, I personally love the exposed frames on such bikes (like Ducati Monsters) and round headlights. (Was going to Naked conversion the XJ600 eventually).

The KLRs, V-Stroms, varederos etc.. are nice, and eventually i'll look at some. Though good ones are in the $4-5k range, and decent XJs are in the $1-2k range, almost half, so i can spend more on quality gear and basic small upgrades to learn bike maintenance. I would love to do tours and rides with him, and he says anything less than 500CC will get tiring long distance, and anything too big (engine and bike size) won't be ideal for a beginner.

His seen the XJ600, and says once he sees one in person in good shape then we can decide. Though just need to know if i do like one, and pick it, and not insure it till next year, how does the transfer of ownership and all work.

EDIT - I believe inseam is 32", i'm 6ft tall, large frame, 165lbs.
 
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Forgive my outburst, I was blinded by emotion and not thinking clearly. MacDoc also rides a KLR. Don't listen to me, I'm just here for the pop corn.

*high-fives everyone!*
 
A 1992 anything is likely to need more than mere TLC. Expect to quickly have to replace everything made of rubber. Carbs will need to be completely disassembled and thoroughly cleaned. Previous owner hack jobs will need to be fixed and updated with your own hack jobs.

Not saying this to discourage you - I went that way (twice) 'cause I like to tinker. Just saying, if you expect trouble-free riding right from the start from a $1000 bike, it ain't happening.
 
Thanks for the input everyone, much appreciated.

im not expecting a $1k bike from the 90's to be perfect, close would be nice lol, so my budget is $2k, and that's why I wanted to have 5-6 months in the winter to work on things, since parts may take time to arrive or need to be sourced. I love to work on things mechanically, and get to know what is where. What I don't want is a complete project bike, that doesn't start or run, not worth the time.

I find modern bikes look too angry from a design point, even some of the duals like the newer KLR and V-storms, and dirt bikes. The lights look aggressive, not what I like to portray on the road. I'm an architect and industrial designer by trade, I don't care what others think of my bike, but aesthetically I like the older bikes better. The BMWs look very nice and less angry though.

I'm 25, 26 next season. I did call for quotes, and they are affordable for the 600 range. If I did find a specific bike I like, I would get the VIN, get a quote again to confirm, then pick it up. Read up too many people who buy then figure out the costs, even met guys at the MSC who bought new Ducati Monsters and CBRs 1000s, and didn't know how to ride let alone get quotes lol (whaaa?)
 
OP - what I would do this year is take the motocross course at MotoPark in Chatsworth.
It will give wonderful base for riding and if you did have some money saved up .....get a Honda 230 or some such and leave it there.
Get dad to drive you up on weekends.

Great fun - then sell the Honda next year.
 
We were actually going to do that earlier on, get some Honda Moto's and ride up North. Thing is I do cyclocross and still love my bicycle (so my weekends are shot there, plus side work) I also want to pay off my car by November before getting knee deep into a bike+insurance , we're also saving to eventually get a cottage where we can ride and store the moto bikes if we go that route. Pretty much what we did in Kenya, since moving here things have been financially tight.

For now my sister moved to Calgary, my dad made a trip there and said it's motorcycle heaven and he dreams of riding there sometime. His looking at the V-storms and BMW F800s/GS style bikes, I figure with a 90s bike around, I have more excuses to ride his nicer bike after some experince lol

EDIT: was looking at the Moto site, actually looks like crazy fun and decent rates. Only thing is would I have to get all Moto gear now? Just started investing in street gear. I doubt a Shoe RF-1200 is motocross ready lol.

Also has anyone gone the ATV route and bought one, and used the up north 5k+ trails with membership?
 
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They have gear for you and a lot of gear is cross over these days. armored shirt is excellent for hot days...helmets are cross over ( I were an AFX on the street ) Knee pads are cheap and I wear mine under jeans.

There was a 2010 Vstrom for $4k or so on Kiji ....total steal.
 
If I understood Scorpion's initial post, he is not looking for a critique of the preferred bike, or of his riding skills.
The answer to your question is yes, you can purchase a motorcycle without insurance and you don't have to register the sale with MOT at once.
Buy the bike and truck it home. Get the current owner to sign the transfer part of the ownership along with a bill of sale.
The current owner removes the plates.
When you are ready to start riding the bike (I assume next spring) you will need to insure it and get a safety certificate to get a plate.
Good luck and happy riding.
 
statsman said:
If I understood Scorpion's initial post, he is not looking for a critique of the preferred bike, or of his riding skills.
The answer to your question is yes, you can purchase a motorcycle without insurance and you don't have to register the sale with MOT at once.
Buy the bike and truck it home. Get the current owner to sign the transfer part of the ownership along with a bill of sale.
The current owner removes the plates.
When you are ready to start riding the bike (I assume next spring) you will need to insure it and get a safety certificate to get a plate.
Good luck and happy riding.
Click to expand...


A helpful post on these forums?!

BLASPHEMY!
 
One modification to statsman's detail is that I would go into MTO and transfer the registration right away. In an unfit status / no plate.

On a another note, you are looking for a very specific bike. I'd suggest keeping an eye on kijiji, as something else might pop up that may suit you. Could be a newer bike for low $ or a different make/mfr that you never considered.
 
I see no real advantage to transferring the ownership at once.
The bike is not insured and the new owner has a bill of sale to prove ownership.
You certainly could transfer it now as "unfit" but there is no real reason to do so.
Unless you have a fetish for standing in Service Ontario line ups. :)
 
Well, technically six days to transfer is the law. Also when you go to get your plates later the taxes have already been paid.
However I have held the ownership for several months before transfer previously with no issues or problems.

Sent from my Le Pan TC802A using Tapatalk
 
statsman said:
you don't have to register the sale with MOT at once.
Click to expand...

statsman said:
I see no real advantage to transferring the ownership at once.
Click to expand...

As mentioned above it's typically not a problem to delay such, BUT as per the MTO website it is listed as a ticketable HTA offence. Curiously enough I just looked in the HTA and can't actually find a related fine, and it's also been my experience that the MTO themselves doesn't care (my wife didn't change her last bike over, unbeknownst to me, for 4 months) but it is what it is. I'd want to change it over fairly quickly so that it doesn't show in the old owners name anymore - the cost is minimal to register it as "unfit" in the meantime - just the taxes and the cost of the ownership. When you get it certified you go back with the papers and insurance slip and they give you a new ownership in FIT status along with your new plates and sticker.

As for the Seca...I wouldn't discount it just because of it's age unless it's sat unused for 5 or 10 years or something. If it's currently being ridden and shows some level of maintenance and care, if the price is right, look it over and make sure it's reasonable and go for it. My first bike was an 83 Seca 900 so I have a bit of a soft spot for the Secas. The 600 Seca2 was a simple bike with a reliable engine and insurance should be reasonable so long as it's not in the classic-bike category yet which it shouldn't be.
 
I think he's getting a discount because of the age.
 
PrivatePilot said:
As mentioned above it's typically not a problem to delay such, BUT as per the MTO website it is listed as a ticketable HTA offence. Curiously enough I just looked in the HTA and can't actually find a related fine, and it's also been my experience that the MTO themselves doesn't care (my wife didn't change her last bike over, unbeknownst to me, for 4 months) but it is what it is. I'd want to change it over fairly quickly so that it doesn't show in the old owners name anymore - the cost is minimal to register it as "unfit" in the meantime - just the taxes and the cost of the ownership. When you get it certified you go back with the papers and insurance slip and they give you a new ownership in FIT status along with your new plates and sticker.
Click to expand...

You are correct, there is a time limit where the vehicle must be registered.
However, as it will be sitting in a garage until the new owner is ready to ride it, there is no HTA offence.
Unless a LEO gets a search warrant for your garage.
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