Soon to be new rider, and have questions!

[ttocs84]

Well to be honest, i don't ride yet. I have operated dirt bikes for years, however i do not yet own a bike. I found this forum while doing research on bikes and safety courses. I have been considering purchasing a bike for a while and think that the gz250 would be a good starter bike for me. i do have questions however, after having been reading these forums for several days now, some of my concerns might not have been covered yet, so here goes.....

I want a bike, for two basic reasons,
1) I want to cruise and enjoy the ride, i am not looking to race around town, and don't personally prefer the sport bikes(crotch rockets)
2) I want something that will save me fuel costs, and the idea of 70mpg or so sounds great. See i drive approx 90 miles a day 5-6 days a week for work, even though my old ford gives me 19-20mpg that still costs me quite a bit.
My plan is to purchase a brand new gz250 from the local dealer that way its new with a warranty, plus i can finance it since i cant afford it outright. This being said, i'm still in the research phase, plenty of time to change my mind or get different viewpoints, that's why i'm here.

What is the average life expectancy out of these bikes? i wouldn't want to finance something for a couple years if i cant get that kind of mileage out of it. I am mechanically inclined, i used to own my own auto repair shop, and as such i am usually a stickler for proper maintenance. is the life expectancy of these bikes any different than other bikes, maybe say twin cyl. bikes or other brands?

Also, this is a big deciding factor, how will the gz250 perform in sand? I live back in the woods, down about a half mile dirt road, and by dirt i mean soft, close to beach sand in some spots. the entire rest of my ride is 45 miles of 2 lane highway, but if i cant get to and from my house, than this whole idea is moot! My uncles, both experienced riders for years, have said that if careful i could manage(with practice), but i am curious what you all think.

[JWR]

If you plan to make a 90 mile round trip daily, comfort and power are two things you want.

The GZ will do what you want but there are better options.



As a side note.

Any bike will do what you want with in limits.

[bpdchief]

Your going to be hard pressed to find a "new" GZ 250 as it has been replaced by the TU250X. As I said earlier, the GZ will do 65 all day and get 70+mpg doing it.

Sand and a bike chain are not friends! That being said, the GZ will do your road, but, you're going to be cleaning and re-lubing the chain often.

You might want to consider a slightly used Yamaha V-star 650... more power for the commute, SHAFT DRIVE :2tup: and I'm told will still get in the upper 50 - mid 60 mpg range. It will also have a much more comfortable seat. :yes:

Do some more studying - do some test rides. An educated decision is usually better than a blind grab.

[Water Warrior 2]

Welcome aboard. Glad you found us in Geezerland. Commuting on a bike can get old real fast. The bike will do it but can you live with a steady diet of 2 wheels? A somewhat larger more comfy bike with more power in reserve will be on your wish list in a relatively short time. Been there once upon a time and didn't like it much. A 45 mile run after a hard day is not something I would look forward to in good weather let alone iffy weather and the need to pack proper riding gear.
As suggested, a VStar 650 would be a better mount to saddle up every morning. It is larger, more comfy for most riders and has a handful of power that the GZ will be lacking in headwinds and faster traffic conditions.
Maybe snoop around for a good condition older 500 or 600 V-twin. There is a world of difference in their capabilities compared to a single cylinder 250 cc bike.
As a dirt rider you know what to expect in sandy conditions. An actual street bike will do your sandy road but it will be a challenge til you get used to it. It will always be a challenge but you can do it. The only time I ever felt in control on sand was with a Kawi KDX 200 off road bike with the knobby tires working their magic.
Do lots of test sits on bikes and make up a short list of potential bikes that feel good to you. Google everything on the list and lurk on as many forums as possible. Get a feel for the general attitude of the forum members and how they use their bikes. More riding and less wrenching is a good indication of the bike's quality and stamina. There is no one perfect bike out there but you can easily eliminate some of the lesser bikes by the comments and amount of down time spent on repairs and fussing about.
Let us know what you find, we have a lot of experience with other rides and probably some horror stories too.

[mhoughton]

Although I don't commute 90 miles a day on my bike I do drive about 70. About 1/2 of my commute is 2 lane roads and the other half is highways. I, too, was a bit concerned about the ability of my GZ to do that kind of mileage but was pleasantly surprised to find out it did fine. The GZ does tend to run out of power on the highways but I drive the speed limit so there isn't any sort of issues. It's a blast to ride on the 2 lane roads!

A lot of my motorcycle consideration was cost related. I was a beginner two and a half months ago and needed a bike CHEAP. I do not regret my decision at all but if you have the ability to purchase a bigger bike you won't regret it. If you have a GZ budget the bike won't let you down.

By the way, I'm a pretty big guy and get about 67 mpg out of mine.

[mrlmd1]

What speed do you anticipate driving on, on the 2 lane highway? Do you mean 2 lanes in each direction, or one lane in each direction?
If you are going to be in the 50-55 mph range, look at a Yamaha TW200 for more fun with the off-road dirt rides, since you have to ride on dirt anyway.
I have one of those and it's a lot of fun, very reliable, also single cylinder (196cc), 70-80+ mpg. Search on here for Busyweb's posts (what ever happened to him?) and see what the bike looks like.

[northsidegz]

I was a newbie to riding a motorcycle. Went wtih the GZ250 because that's what I took my course on and wanted to retain that comfort level. Now that I' ve put around 2K on the bike, I'm kind of wishing I had a little more power. But it was good for me to start off with the GZ given the very newness of motorcycling to me. I drive 18 miles each way (36 total) on a daily basis. I can go anywhere from 3mph in rushour to 70mph when traffic is light. My weight is around 220.

Personally, if you have experience with motorcycles in some capacity already (sounds like you do), and you're going to be going at higher speeds (i.e. above 55mph), I'd look at something bigger. The miles per gallon are great, but I'd gladly sacrifice it for something with a little more power (and in your case, given the longer distance, something a little more comfortable unless you replace the stock seat). Likewise, the vibration will become annoying for that length of time. I still have the stock grips on and at about mile #12 (going 65 mph the whole way), I start to get a lot of throttle finger numbness (and by mile #18 I'm definitely ready for a break). I can't imagine going 45 miles dealing with that (this site does have some recommendations to try to help with that, I just haven't implemented it yet).

Just my 2c's that might be helpful.

(note: I have no experience with sand, but don't picture the GZ handling it well, but then again, I'm still relatively new to riding, so I avoid sand as much as possible).

[ttocs84]

Its a 1 lane each direction road, and the speed limit is 55mph.

Your going to be hard pressed to find a "new" GZ 250 as it has been replaced by the TU250X

Does anyone have any experience with the TU250X, it looks good also. Or am i to understand that for my commuting i should get something bigger than a 250.

[mhoughton]

Does anyone have any experience with this bike, it looks good also. Or am i to understand that for my commuting i should get something bigger than a 250.

If you have the skills to ride it safely and the budget to do it, go bigger. If you want to ride but only have a GZ budget, you'll be fine with the GZ.

[Rookie Rider]

Go bigger.... Welcome to the forum, ride safe.

[dentheman]

I rode a GZ during the course, so I looked to purchase one for a while. But there were none, so I started looking at other bikes. One day a beautiful blue 2007 Honda Shadow Spirit 750 caught my attention at the dealership. I sat on it, looked it over, and bought it there and then. I had never ridden a motorcycle before the course, and after it was delivered I thought I had made a mistake getting a bike so 'big'. But after a couple weeks of practice, the bike seemed to be made for me. Plenty of power, but it is very newbie friendly. If I had bought something smaller as a beginner bike I would have soon 'outgrown' it and wanted something larger. It gets arounf 45-50 mpg, and with shaft drive I don't have to clean, lube, and replace a chain/sprockets.

But she is a handfull in sand/dirt,and loose gravel. Doable, but scary as I have no 'off-road' experience.

[alantf]

Is there any way you can lay some boards down over the sand?

[ttocs84]

Well i could, but a half mile dirt road with other residents pondering what im doing, might be costly, lol!

[mrlmd1]

Wait a little while longer before you go to a bigger bike, the experience you will gain in the meantime will be invaluable. And you have lots more time to look at other bikes, and must ride them to really see what you want or need. The prices will be coming down as the colder weather approaches too. Don't rush too fast into a bigger bike or get talked into one until you gain the knowledge to make a good decision.

[vikz250]

I'm a newbie myself and I would listen to some of the suggestion they say, 45 miles each way is a long haul, I think GZ can handle it but you the rider will be the one to deal with it...

[Water Warrior 2]

Just thinking about that commute every day. I think I would be looking at a Corolla at 0% financing for 6 years.