A few days ago, Peter asked me what bikes I recommend for a new rider with a freshly earned motorcycle endorsement. This is a question that I think more people should ask. New motorcyclists don’t have a ton of skill, and they will be using their first bike to gain experience and talent. Ideally, the motorcycle that you choose shouldn’t be so powerful that you’re too scared to learn motorcycle dynamics, nor should it be so heavy that you never properly learn how to do low-speed maneuvers. With that in mind, here are my five picks for great two-wheelers for new motorcyclists.
The motorcycle season is getting close to its end for a lot of Americans. Come October or November, a lot of bikes in the Midwest and the East are going to get parked in garages to wait for spring 2026. Yet, others in America, namely those in the South, Southwest, and Pacific Northwest, live in regions conducive to year-round riding.
Normally, I write about beginner motorcycles every spring, but not everyone gets their endorsement bright and early in the year. Likewise, in my experience, sometimes you can get some great used motorcycle deals at the end of the season as some folks don’t feel like paying to store their ride over the winter. Their loss can be your gain!
There are a few ways to go about buying a motorcycle after you get your endorsement. Some folks buy their dream motorcycles right away, some buy new, and some buy used.
A lesson I was taught by my riding instructors is that you probably shouldn’t buy that dream Suzuki Hayabusa or that heavy Indian right when you’re fresh out of the class. I get it, you might not be salivating over the bikes on deck for today, but as a new rider, you are likely to make a mistake and either drop your bike or have a (hopefully minor) crash. There’s a neither will happen – I didn’t drop a bike for the first time until six years into riding – but do you really want to chance breaking your dream bike?
This is also why you want to be careful in buying a new bike for your first bike. If you do choose to buy new, ask yourself if you’ll be okay with it possibly getting scratched and dented. Also, be sure to look up the prices for common parts like levers, shifters, pegs, fairings, mirrors, turn signals, or other parts that are likely to be damaged in a drop. Then there are other factors to consider when buying new, like a plummeting resale value.
This is why I love the idea of a used motorcycle for a first bike. You can buy a used machine for dirt cheap, use it long enough to hone your skills, and then usually sell it for pretty close to what you paid for it. You can always buy your dream bike later! That’s what I did.
This time, I challenged myself to find newer used motorcycles that are great for beginners, bikes that have technologies like fuel injection or maybe even ABS.
2019 Honda Rebel 500 – Around $4,000
One of the best beginner bikes of the modern day is the Honda Rebel. Buying a Rebel gives you an easy entry into the cruiser riding style. These bikes are known for their reliability and forgiving dynamics. Newer Rebels like this one benefit from modern technology, including anti-lock brakes and fuel injection, too. The smallest of the modern Rebels are the 300 and the 500. These machines aren’t going to impress your Harley friends, but it’s great to learn on if cruisers sound like the path that you want to take.
Honda is pretty upfront about the Rebel’s positioning as your first bike, saying that when the line launched in the 1980s, it was supposed to make cruisers accessible for everyone. The original Rebel was also a member of Honda’s ‘Spirit of the Phoenix’ project of the 1970s, which embraced American custom bike culture.
The Rebel 300 is powered by a 286cc liquid-cooled fuel-injected single, good for 27 HP and 17.6 lb-ft of torque. This engine is capable of getting the 370-pound Rebel 300 ABS to 60 mph in about 8 seconds, and the bike races on to a top speed of about 88 mph on a good day without a headwind. This is very slow by motorcycle standards, but also very safe for a newbie! The 408.1-pound Rebel 500 steps things up to a 471cc parallel-twin good for 45.6 HP, 60 mph acceleration in about six seconds, and a top speed of around 110 mph.
Plusses with both versions include minimal bodywork, a good record for reliability, and a low seat height of just 27.2 inches. You should be able to find a Rebel 500 with a few thousand miles on the odometer for around $4,000, maybe even less if the owner dropped it at some point. A Rebel 300 gets even cheaper at around $3,000 under similar conditions. Of course, prices in your market may vary.
Riders seem to suggest the 500 as a great first bike as it offers just enough performance to keep things exciting after you get some experience, but the 300 is an option if you’re on a tight budget. If you’re on a super tight budget, the old-school carbureted CMX250C Rebel is also an option. You can get one of those for around $1,500 or less if you dig deep enough, and these are even more beginner-friendly with only 18.5 HP on tap and a top speed that’s closer to 75 mph.
If you get a bike that’s very slow, you may end up growing out of it quickly. I had a Rebel 250 that I owned for only a month because my skill had already surpassed the limits of the Rebel 250. So keep that in mind. With that said, the little 250 remains popular among beginners on a tight budget. It’s also popular among urban riders who may never see more than 70 mph, anyway.
2015 Yamaha YZF-R3 – Around $3,500
Alright, so maybe the whole cruiser thing seems so foreign to you, and you’d rather be leaned over and looking like you’re going 100 mph even when you’re stuck in traffic. Hey, I get it! As luck would have it, Japanese brands have perfected the beginner sportbike. These motorcycles are low on weight and power, but big on fun, which is a perfect concoction for beginners.
Honestly, throw a dart at a wall of Japanese motorcycle brands, and no matter which one the dart lands on, you’re probably going to get something good. This time, I’m going to highlight the beloved Yamaha R3. As Yamaha says, the R3 takes a lot of the technology of the firm’s iconic R-Series and trickles it down into a package that every rider can enjoy every day, regardless of skill level.
The R3 was introduced in 2015, and brought along a 321cc 40 HP liquid-cooled twin and a six-speed transmission for the ride. This bike weighs 368 pounds wet, has an accessible 30.7-inch seat height, and has a top speed exceeding 110 mph depending on the rider. R3s can hit 60 mph in under 5.5 seconds stock.
In other words, this is a bike with a tiny, low-power engine, but it has plenty of grunt for beginner fun. But it’s also light enough to toss around. Trust me, if you’re fresh out of training, this machine will feel like strapping yourself to a Saturn V rocket.
Now, there is a risk in getting a sportbike for a first bike, and it’s that these machines are covered in fairings that don’t take too kindly to falling onto the ground. Personally, I recommend getting one that’s been dropped already. Not only will these cost less, but you won’t care too much if you follow the lead of the previous owner and end up dropping it, too.
You should be able to find an early R3 for around $3,500 or so, depending on your local market. If that’s too rich for your blood, go older, and you can get a cheaper bike. For example, the Kawasaki Ninja 250R is a classic beginner sportbike that still goes plenty fast for a beginner and is great to learn on, but costs around $1,500 for a decent example. One that’s been beaten up might be had for under $1,000!
Yamaha TW200 From Any Year – Around $3,500
Yamaha gets two nods in this one because not only does the firm build a great beginner sportbike, but it also builds what some riders feel is pretty much the definitive simple farm and trail bike, the TW200. Many riders don’t really care about hunching over on a sportbike or prowling the streets on a cruiser, but they do want to get far off the beaten path. The TW200 is not just an excellent start for off-roading, but many experienced riders own these things for their simplicity, reliability, and capability.
The Yamaha TW200 launched in Japan in 1987, and it’s famous for having a design that has largely been unchanged through nearly four decades of production. Seriously, this is a bike that you can buy new with a rear drum brake, a carburetor, a five-speed transmission, and a wee 196cc air-cooled single cylinder engine. The biggest advancement to ever come to the TW200 was the addition of a disc brake in 2001.
The TW200 is neither fast nor powerful. The engine makes all of 16 vintage horses, and on a really good day, your top speed is 70 mph. You will eventually hit 60 mph, and even the guy on the Rebel 250 will outrun you. However, what the TW200 lacks in speed, it makes up for in incredible versatility. This is a bike that weighs only 278 pounds wet and has a fat 14-inch balloon tire on the rear.
The TW200 is such a good bike for all skill levels that you’ll sometimes find them in rider training classes, and the TW200 still gets nominated as one of the best dual-sports that money can buy.
The TW200 breaks my challenge rule of finding only bikes with EFI, but I think the TW200 is a good exception to the rule. You can repair a TW200 with a wrench and duct tape.
The TW200 holds its value well. Newer ones will cost you over $4,000, while older ones cost below $3,000. Really old ones might cost you under $2,000. A brand-new one costs $4,999, but honestly, don’t bother. As I said earlier, these bikes have been largely unchanged after nearly 40 years of production. Let someone else buy one new and then buy it used later.
2022 Genuine Hooligan 170i – Around $2,600
A lot of riders don’t really care for the whole motorcycle thing and rather enjoy the equally fun thrill ride that is the step-through scooter. That’s perfectly fine! Scooters are a fantastic way to enjoy the two-wheel life. They’re easy to ride, easy to fix, and easy to live with. There are scooters for all kinds of riders, from the under-50cc scooters that may not require a license to the fast maxi-scooters that are capable of exceeding 100 mph.
If anything, it might be harder to pick a scooter because the choices are practically limitless. You cannot go wrong with a Honda, and a Vespa is iconic. China also sends over countless cheap scoots that you can ride on the tightest of budgets. For this, I’m choosing a scooter that’s a great all-rounder. The Genuine Hooligan 170i is not so slow that you cannot ride it on real roads, not so fast that it’s going to be a danger to a new rider, doesn’t carry the “Honda tax,” and is made by a known entity.
The Genuine Hooligan is a scooter of the Genuine Scooter Company. You might know this outfit for being the American brand that sold my Genuine Stella when it was new. Genuine outsources the builds of its scooters and that’s not a bad thing. The Hooligan is built by PGO of Taiwan and features a concoction of parts from the PGO X-Hot and the PGO Libra with some special Genuine Scooters flair.
The great thing about the Hooligan is that it offers a ton of bang for its buck. You get fuel injection, pretty decent underseat storage, front and rear disc brakes, and even a USB port to charge your phone. Power comes from a 168.9cc air-cooled single, good for 11.2 HP. Genuine Scooters says that the Hooligan can hit 60 mph, get well over 100 mpg, and has a low weight of just 278 pounds. Even the seat height is an accessible 30.75 inches.
Sure, the Hooligan doesn’t have the name recognition of Honda or the flair of a Vespa, but these appear to be pretty reliable steeds for all kinds of riders. Reader Shop-Teacher has owned more than one Hooligan over the years, and he swears by the little cutie.
It shouldn’t be too hard to score a used Hooligan for under $3,000, or even under $2,000 if you don’t mind some miles and maybe a scratch or a few. New, these scoots cost only $3,699.
2022 Royal Enfield Classic 350 – $3,500
Alright, so you love a motorcycle with classic looks, but you don’t want to deal with a 40-year-old bike’s carbs or electrical system. I get that!
Last year, I recommended a 1978 BMW R 80/7 as a great beginner-friendly vintage bike. If you won’t mind spinning a wrench, I still recommend vintage bikes. They’re often cheap to buy, great to teach yourself how to wrench, not very fast, and are often already imperfect with the bumps, scrapes, and dents of several decades on this planet. Most of my earliest bikes were Japanese machines from the 1980s because these bikes were built so well that they were still reliable decades later.
However, vintage bikes do have their quirks. My old 1982 Suzuki GS850 was ridiculously top-heavy, and it would have sucked to lift if I ever dropped it. I also had silly failures. One time, my clutch cable snapped, forcing me to nurse the bike home using rev-matching and the starter motor. My time with that bike ended when the gas tank’s protective coating started breaking off and clogging the rack of four carbs.
Understandably, you, as a beginner, might not want to deal with all of that. Thankfully, you can buy modern motorcycles that look vintage, and Royal Enfield has been the beginner favorite for years. Royal Enfield’s motorcycles aren’t just cheap to buy, but they are cheap to repair when a beginner drops their bike. Sure, these bikes are going to be very slow and have more frequent service intervals than the competition, but they are easy on beginners. The folks of RevZilla found out that Royal Enfields are light to pick up when dropped, too!
Honestly, Royal Enfield’s lineup is full of rockstars right now, and you should have a ton of fun no matter which bike you pick. I’m a huge fan of the Classic 350, which is a standard motorcycle that’s styled like a classic, but features modern bits of kit like fuel injection, a USB port, and dual-channel ABS. You can even fit a neat turn-by-turn navigation device onto the Classic 350 and still maintain the bike’s excellent visuals. I put my money where my mouth is and bought one for myself, and I’m still in love with my purchase.
Power comes from a 349.34cc air and oil-cooled thumper making 20.2 HP and 19.9 lb-ft torque. This is less than the kind of power that 250s made three decades ago. Obviously, speed is not really in the wheelhouse of the Classic 350, but mine will hit 75 mph given no wind and a very long enough stretch of road to slowly watch the speedometer needle rise. Cruising speed is really closer to 60 mph, so the Classic 350 is a better fit for country roads rather than the highway.
One of the quirks with the Classic 350 is that it weighs a chunky 430 pounds. This is largely because it features heavy metal in places other manufacturers have long replaced with plastic or other lighter materials. That fender? It’s metal, baby!
These bikes hold their value relatively well, and you can usually find them for under $4,000. Some sellers who are desperate to get rid of theirs might let them go for $3,000 or maybe less. New, a Classic 350 runs $4,999, but you’ll be paying closer to $6,000 after fees.
If the 350 is too slow, you can get more than double the power out of Royal Enfield’s 650 platform, which consists of parallel twins that make 47 HP. These should be easy to find under $5,000, and sometimes you will find them for under $4,000.
Gear Up And Have Fun
One motorcycle that I have not included on this list is the Suzuki SV650. This motorcycle is often suggested for beginners, especially those who might want to try out track riding someday. However, I’ve also often seen people recommend against the SV650, which makes over 70 HP, because it’s a lot of motorcycle for someone who might have ridden a slow sub-10 HP 125cc motorcycle in their training class. But it is an option if you think you’re at a skill level where you can handle the power.
Other honorable mentions that I’ve included in pictures are the KTM 390 Duke, the BMW G 310 R, and the new Triumph 400s. Lots of novice riders are on these bikes and are having a ton of fun.
If you’re not already a motorcyclist and are interested in becoming one, I highly recommend taking a motorcycle safety class. There are motorcycle safety schools all over the country, from various sources, from local organizations to companies like Harley-Davidson. I recommend paying a visit to the Motorcycle Safety Foundation and finding a class near you. These classes will teach you the basics of riding a motorcycle as well as life-saving skills that can even help you behind the wheel of a car or at the controls of an aircraft. Depending on where you live, motorcycle training may be free! These classes tend to be full at the beginning of the season, but you may have luck now as the traditional riding season nears its end.
Either way, before you head out onto the road, be sure to dress for the slide, not the ride. Buy the best gear that your money can afford. Even cheap gear is better than no gear at all. I may look like a goofy Power Ranger when I ride, but it has meant that I have survived two motorcycle crashes with little more than a shaken emotional state and a cool story to tell. Riding a motorcycle is fun, but coming home to your family is even better. Be safe out there!
This list is not an exhaustive one. There are lots of other great beginner motorcycles out there. I didn’t even touch KTM, BMW, Triumph, or what other brands are doing with beginner-friendly bikes. If I did, I would be at this all day. At the very least, if you’re looking to dip your toes into two wheels, at least this should give you a good idea.
(Correction: The TW200 got a new brake and a removed kick start in 2001, not the addition of electric start. We corrected the issue and regret the error.)
I started on a suzuki 400 single kick start only with a missing decompression lever. I still have scars.
I would suggest new riders avoid very old bikes with bad carbs, questionable suspension parts and drum brakes.
the Savage 650 thumper is/was a good starter bike for the street, though the Yamaha vertical twins, 400 and 650 versions usually had both kick and electric start on the same bike. that certainly saved me a few times on my first street bike.
my last bike was the S40 the newer version of the savage 650 thumper. It could not haul my fat ass well on the highway but it was fun everywhere else.
I’m a huge fan of the KTM Duke 390’s cousins, the husky pilen twins in this role as well. And the Zero fxe, with incentives they have currently, comes tantalizing close to fitting the bill.
I would add Triumphs modern classics to that line. Either older 865cc twins or newer 1200s (HT versions). They aren’t fast, but enough to be entertaining for what they are and are generally great bikes. And if you want a bit more pep, changing gearing a bit helps a lot. Bonneville/Street Twin is very good universal bike that tours, commutes and looks great. Aftermarket support is second to none. And very good bike for DIY as everything is so accesible. Valve check in older 865 is like 10 minute job, adjusting is more involved though. Vs my old Africa Twin where I have to disasseble the bike for an hour to get access to inspection ports.
And did I mention that they look great?
They’re heavy for a novice. I think the Royal Enfields mentioned are too heavy for novices, and the Triumphs are heavier still. Even though they sure are purty.
They are a bit heavy, but not that high. Of course I would not recommend them for super short people.
But I think they are way better starter bike than SV650.
And they look great.
Heartily concur with the TW. Related is the XT225/230 which Yamaha also made for years. A good off road bike for us shorter people, and can get you around town fine. A bit underpowered for the interstate, but who buys a bike to ride there?
My son started with a Ninja 300, which turned out to be an excellent choice. Not too quick for beginners, but stable and fast enough for freeways. Very reliable too.
The Royal Enfield Himalayan is simple, light, and cheap.
I’m not arguing for an overpowered first bike. But if you can’t safely merge on to a freeway, because it’s just not powerful enough, rent it for the brief duration you’re learning, don’t buy it.
There are stupid numbers of 250cc Rebels on Craigslist, where the poor beginners were assured they were amazing learner bikes and then, less than 300 miles later, don’t want it but can’t understand why $300 off what they paid for it isn’t enough to shift the thing.
Take a good training course. Get the basics there, pass the test there… but then you’re going to want something freeway capable very quickly. Given the average size of the average American, a lot of the bikes on this list will struggle with that.
Some of us have zero interest in riding on freeways. Hard pass for me.
I get their point, though. Even if you have no intention of riding on freeways, there may come a time when you unexpectedly find yourself on one for whatever reason. Makes sense that you should have something with enough power to handle that if need be.
Valid point, but I don’t think that’s a common enough issue to buy more bike than is necessary or advisable.
I would argue new riders should stay off the highways until they graduate to a bigger bike.
Performance should NEVER be a first time rider’s need, and taking the MSF training really should be required. That was my first dance with the little Yamaha 250 v twin… what fun! Peg scraping all around the course.
However, it is also a place where you may wash out. My daughter could not find confidence and that has to be ok with everyone involved.
I have a 2012 Genuine Buddy 50, and I’ll say a modern step-thru scooter is a great way to get onto two wheels. I’ll not stop beating that drum for how convenient these things are for errand runs.
An employee of mine has a TW200 from a couple years ago. He searched for a VERY long time before he found a dealer who had one and was not adding markup. Everyone else basically saying, “that’s the price, try to find one.” So I’m not at all surprised they are holding value.
Yes! Scooters are so great at making errand runs fun!
Concur, but I don’t think a scooter is a super entry to motorbikes. You’re learning how gravity affects you on two wheels, and weight is carried much differently between the two types of vehicles.
Slight correction- in 2001 the TW’s “upgrade” was a front disc brake (and a resettable trip meter). They also eliminated the kickstart. Since then, it’s just been “BNGs”.
They always had electric start. It’s a fairly common mod to just get the clutch cover/kicker from a pre-01 and stick it on later models to add the kickstart back. It bolts right on. They’re so easy to kick you can literally just push it down with your hand and fire it up (or waddle it along in 2nd and drop the clutch).
Rebels are a solid pick for cruisers, although there are oceans of used Boulevards (Suzuki), Vulcan (Kawasaki) and Vstars (Yamaha) out there as well, all of which sell quite cheaply because “fake Harley”. Having owned or ridden all of them at some point, my pick of the litter is the Vulcan 900. They’re a bit punchier and smoother than the Vstar 950 or Boulevard 800 (C50), new enough for EFI, and came in a few variants, there was a “T” model with a windshield and saddlebags, and a “Custom” one that was kind of chopper-y if that’s your thing. They seem to go from anywhere from $1000 for a rough one that might need some work to $3k for a nice one.
That said, ABS is a big safety feature especially for beginners who might not have a great handle on brake control or dealing with low traction conditions, and to me probably worth looking to something newer that’s so equipped.
My first bike was a ZXR400. 65 bhp for speed, but bugger all torque so traction wasn’t an issue (except that one time I rode on snow, not recommended).
I’ve not had a crash yet, but I would have done last week when a van did an illegal U-turn on me. Fortunately my new bike has ABS, so when I panicked it just stopped, rather than locking up or flipping me over the bars. I don’t think I could go back to not having ABS.
I always ride like everyone else is trying to kill me, but sometimes one of the bastards puts extra effort in to it.
You are not paranoid they are out to get us, don’t let your guard down.
I have one bike with ABS I’ve triggered it in the rain, it has traction control too but I not sure how useful it is on a 650. My other bike has nothing and I know it and I know how to handle it.
Having said that probably a lot of riders,especially new, don’t know how to work the lever and with the fewer and fewer non-ABS bikes out there may never do so.
I predict in the next 5 years it will become hard to sell non-ABS bikes on the used market.
I’ve also got traction control, and anti-wheelie, but after a couple of decades of riding I don’t think I’ll ever need them.
First ride was ‘73 Suzuki TS100 smoker that rarely saw pavement, but was adequate to learn the basics of riding. Took a MSF safety course before next bike. First road bike was an ‘83 Honda Ascot VT 500 shaft drive which was perfect for year round riding in the Philippines where roads are dodgy and hazards are many. T-boned a water buffalo one night, but both bike and buff escaped unharmed. Followed up the Ascot with an ‘85 Honda VF 750 Interceptor which was fast as hell, but not all that comfortable on long rides. Moved to Germany and bought an ‘86 BMW K75S – a fast, flexible and comfortable ride for two years. After an 8-year hiatus from riding decided to get back in the saddle. Took an MSF refresher course first. I knew what I wanted and after a long search found an 11 year-old black and red Honda SC CB700SC Nighthawk S abandoned in a shed. Paid $900 and after a jump start wrestled it home where it went into the basement for a complete teardown. Two months and $1600 in parts later, I had a great restored ride that served me well for 23 years until I stopped riding. Never went for anything larger though I was sorely tempted by the ST 1100 for awhile. All of my bikes, except the Suzuki, were medium bikes with plenty power, yet would also be easy to learn on. Not the Interceptor, though; that required more rider finesse. Bought both new and used bikes, but the one I had the longest and enjoyed the most was a used throw away I bought cheap, so I agree that used is the way to go for new riders and even veterans.
It is half a century ago for me, a different world started on a dirt bike, 3 years later hit the road on a Triumph 250 Trophy. Still riding a Honda, Shadow 750 sleeper, and a Kawasaki Versys 650 LT, that one is stock as a stone.
I’m working the “what ifs” as my Granddaughter was considering getting her bike license.
Of your selection the only one I would consider is the Rebel 500 it can get out of its own way is reliable and available with ABS. I won’t stream the why nots on the rest of the picks, but geez. (-=
Keep your head on a swivel, always do your lifesavers, wear all the gear all the time, and look at vehciles front wheels to get an indication as to whether they are about to turn.
Also you will come off. It’s when, not if.
I’m part of 5 brothers who all had motorcycles. Oldest brother (sadly no longer on earth) had ‘real’ Triumphs, Vincent black Shadow, BSA’s, Nortons and later in life Beemers with sidecar and Beemers without sidecar, hell he won a Harley Softail in a church raffle for $6 and had the audacity to complain about the CT tax. We have had many, Hondas, My trail 350 with upswept pipes was a blast. I still have a 68 Trail 90 in the shed that is yellow and restored and my oldest daughter says it is her birthright bike. Youngest brother has a flock of Beemers, next up in age loved his heavy cruisers and the lawyer brother went flying after someone hit him on his Aeromacchi (sp?) Sprint.
I know a whole lot of backstory…The point is, after driving for a business,my wife started going all over the state of Wisconsin, and putting on 45,000 or more miles a year I know I will never get on another bike. The quality or lack thereof of our fellow motorists is atrocious. And this was before obsequiousness of texting etc. I have seen people reading fucking newspapers while they drove, shaving, putting full regalia makeup, eating with one hand while slurping soda with the other. Mostly in massive SUV’s that if they hit you, they probably wouldn’t even know, never mind stopping to check if you were dead or mostly dead. It is sad because you know that you will be hit, you will be hurt, and it is truly not if but when and when is probably going to be a lot sooner than you can imagine. That said that Royal Enfield looks the business,
The problem with a lot of these “small” bikes is when you’re a very long person they just don’t fit and are uncomfortable. For those people, there are a lot of options in the 400-500 CC range which are usually close to “full size” but are still light and low powered.
The Kawasaki 400/500 bikes have long been ubiquitous and class leaders of this section and are highly recommended for someone who is new and tall (in my opinion)
Trail bikes and supermotos are your friend here. I learnt on and spent a year riding before taking my test, a Husqvarna SMS 125.
Unfortunately that would be too small in my area too as the legal requirement for freeways is >150cc and it is a royal pain sometimes to get places without using the freeway. It’s also nice to have fairings and a windscreen which Trails/Supermotos typically do not have.
Yeah if I was going to play the game again the Kawasaki klx300sm would be a ideal hooliganic start.
It’s like you’re always right or something.
It’s uncanny really.
Sigh, last time I tried a motorcycle I ended up with a scar roughly from my right wrist to elbow. At 20 or so shrugged it off but can’t pushing 50. I’m thinking e-bike/e-cycle if anything.
Spouse and I bought Specialized Brand Como’s 5 years ago and love love love them. That said: NEVER never trust a car.
“Personally, I recommend getting one that’s been dropped already.”
Yeah no. Having dropped a bike myself, the resulting alignment problems and repairs aren’t something I would, in good conscience, have a new rider inherit.
Never take that risk with your first bike.
Also there’s a good chance, if you take a safety course, you’ll learn on a Honda Mini Moto like the Grom or Monkey. Consider just owning one of those as well.
I minor drop and a dented tank or scratched fairing is no big deal. Unless it’s a serious crash you can usually realign everything on the front by loosening the triple clamps and retightening them.
ya but every bike from facebook marketplace was “dropped in a parking lot” even when it wasn’t. Every year i have at least 2 people come in the shop with “I just bought this bike and the previous owner says it needs X” but never mentioned Y and Z the bike needs too. As i just explained to some kid trying to buy a project bike off of me to learn on, when you’re learning to ride you don’t want to be learning how to rebuild a vintage motorcycle at the same time. You wouldn’t even have the frame of reference to know something is wrong most of the time.
Tl;DR New rider = New bike or a prepurchase inspection
Nice to see a tawianese bike they tend to get overlooked as well as Korean bikes. Both have great quality and are often much cheaper then others. China bikes have come along way too. Especially zongshien csc imports several that are great quality for about what a used jap bike goes for. A fair amount of efi China bikes out there now too that seem to have better reliability. Still something so simple and great with the 80s Honda clone bikes but I can see why a new rider would want easy reliably and not have to worry about the possibility of tuning a carb.
And then there is Thailand and India and probably more, globalization is big in motorcycles. Check the VIN’s.
I wonder how the Tariffs are hitting?
My Versys 650 was a Thailand build, three years and no surprises.
most non perishable goods are stocked up for the rest of the year but come christmas to january these tarrif prices are going to hit consumers like a truck. orange man extended the tarrif deadline JUUUSt long enough for the holiday stock to come in without the extra tariffs on them.
True but they aren’t Thai, Vietnamese, or really Indian brands imported. A lot of European and Japanese brands are built in Thailand or Vietnam. People don’t think of their vespa or triumph as Thai bikes but they are likely built there. I guess Royal Enfield is Indian owned and built but leans heavy on its British legacy. If you buy a hyosung you know it’s Korean as it’s a Korean brand or if you buy a genuine or tgb you know its tawianese because it’s a tawianese brand. They both have supply lines and manufacturing across south East Asia so it’s possible to get one made in the Philippines or Malaysia or Indonesia.
Love this. So glad you talked about the need for good gear above all else. Motorcycles are not a safe hobby, but good gear makes a huge difference, and we’re living in a golden age of “good enough, but not too expensive” gear being sold at retail outlets like CycleGear/Revzilla. On that note, you might want to include more about the safety ratings of gear – I personally wont buy anything thats not CE AA rated, and prefer AAA rating when its practical. Also possibly out of the price range of a beginner is an airbag vest. I’m on my third and have crashed once in my second vest. Not cheap, but arguably as important as a good helmet. Speaking of helmets, until the US gets is act together and has a meaningful standard, you want an ECE 22.06 rated helmet. Here’s where I have a serious bone to pick as an MSF instructor – I don’t really believe in the beginner bike thing per se any more, I just tell people to get a bike that they feel comfortable on that has ABS and traction control. Those two things (which are not featured on several of your choices) are, in my experience WAY, WAY, more likely to prevent an accident as a beginner than low displacement or small size.
I can tell you that although I understand the push for gear, I think it should be mentioned since you are an instructor, that a good riders safety course is far and away more important than all the gear int he world. and if someone comes away from that and immediately goes to liter class rockets, or 900 lb geezer glides, they will have a bad day at some point. But knowing what to do in an emergency and being able to do that comfortably is by far the most life saving thing out there.
Yip, think of the road as the grater and your skin the cheese. Been there 40 years ago in thin cotton, and still got the scars all down one side. And that was low speed with no bones broken. Luckily was wearing full face helmet, which had a scratch from top of left forehead to bottom of right jaw.
three that are missing yet should not be. Yamaha makes a 250 V twin Virago that is now called the Vstar 250 I believe. IT has….never changed in the 3 decades or so I have seen it rolling around the US. you can get one new for $4700 and it genuinely hits above the weight class it sits in. I had a used one for I think I paid 900 bucks for and it drug my large butt around surprisingly well when I took it out for a ride to burn through gas. I was keeping it around for a spare/loaner bike for visitors if need be.
Yamaha also made a Vstar 650, that looks much larger than it is and you can use for a biut longer than the usual year or less that those tempted by the 250 tend to live with. it can go highway speeds adequately and looks like a bigger cruiser for alow entry price. they tend to go for around 2K all day these days.
Finally, for the true beginner just getting used to balancing on 2 wheels, the Navi is pretty good(under 2K new). it is worse than the 1/4 liter class stuff on the highway, but around town, it is essentially the Honda Spree that many of us 80’s kids learned to street ride when our Dirt bikes were stored up and illegal to ride on the street.
My Grandad has a T-dub two-hundo (you can tell by my name we’re a Yamaha family) and it is just plain FUN! Takes you back to being a kid and feeling like you have the whole world just bombing around the backyard
Certainly limited capability on the road, so use cases may vary. But if you can take advantage of it off road, it will certainly be fun for a long time.
Similarly, I’d advocate for any small displacement dual-sport or supermoto. At my height, I don’t think my DRZ-400sm would be a great beginner bike (would be if you were pushing 6ft) but there are shorter bikes out there. They are a ton of fun on the road, they can be fun off the road, and you can ride for a year and resell them without losing money.
Yamaha vstar comes in all sorts of displacements and avoid the harley tax.
Nice to see the Hooligan get some love!
I have put about 10k miles combined on a pair of Hooligans. They are PERFECT for the suburbs. Plenty of power to scoot into a normal traffic gap, and right at home on roads up to about a 45mph speed limit. While they technically can get up to 60, I’ve found 55mph to be the practical top speed. While I’ve done long rural highway trips on it, I’d like to add a 300cc scoot to my fleet for those and keep the Hooligan for closer to home.
The Hooligan has a nice big storage cubby, an optional beefy rear rack that I have a top case on, and outstanding brakes. The brakes are my favorite thing about the scooter. Way better than any other scooter I’ve owned, and I’ve owned a bunch.
The bike I bought right after getting my motorcycle license was a Suzuki GS500E, which for my nervous self may have been too much bike at the time, but it certainly was an easy bike to start with.
I definitely wanted an SV650 as my second bike, but never got it…eventually gave up riding after a couple of years due to finances and having only a 6 month riding season.
I always eyed the SV650 as a second bike as well and never got there. The current crop of 300-400cc bikes (the Kawi Z400 in particular) have kind of taken over my short-list if I was going to get a bike again. Plenty quick and fuel-injected convenience. But I still love the look of the SV
Might I add another honorable mention. When I was buying my bike circa 2006, everyone was getting the SV650s and completely overlooking the Yamaha FZ6. Has a retuned R6 motor with good (for a small 4 cylinder) torque down low and a lot of rev band to get into the horsepower up top. Add to it a very neutral riding position that allows to be ridden tons of miles but also can tuck down for some shenanigans. It’s been a great bike all these years.