Schoolboy 125cc options

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GS12

Pack Dog
Joined
Feb 25, 2009
Messages
204
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Bike
BMW (all models)
I have a 16 year old that’s local travel demands are diving me nuts, I just cant get to everything so like most others have experienced a 125cc could be the solution. He is a big lad at 90kg and 1.77m but isn't a novice rider as he rides a KTM 250 exc-f with me off-road.

He is quite ok with a scooter, very unlike most of us were many years ago when we would not be seen dead on a “girls” bike, but times have changed and they are quite cool for the lads too now, damn I may even ride it LOL. We have looked at:
Honda XR125L R37500 incl on-road
Suzuki Burgman UB125 R26500 incl on-road
Big Boy RS 125 R20000 incl on-road
Discounts on these bikes don't seem to exist as demand seems high and margins apparently very low.

Both the XR and Big Boy have 150cc options which look just like the 125cc but I’m not sure I want to go down that rabbit hole. Cops are easy to get around however the insurance and personal liability risk Im not sure are worth it, considering you only get about 1.5kw and 2nm odd more tourque.

All seem to hold their values quite well and should return a fair portion of capital layout after 2 years use. XR’s seem very popular but are quite heavy at 130kg and a bit bigger and more cumbersome that the scooters, albeit more powerful but that is maybe lost in the extra 22kg they weigh more than the scooters.

The Suzuki seems to be much better quality (touch and feel) even coming from India (stand to be corrected) than the Chinese Big Boy. It has a nice digital dash and even fuel-injection, more modern than the XR or Big Boy. The Big Boy has big 13” wheels whilst the Suzuki has a 12’’ front and 10”’ rear, not sure if this will affect stability at town speeds (50-80). Reports on Big Boy seem mixed with some having no issues and others reporting electrical and other issues with back-up not always great, although it does have a better warranty than Suzuki/Honda but if backup isn't great Im not sure what that’s worth. Suzuki reports on the Burgman are seldomnly negative if the inter-webs are to be trusted and the XR doesn't ever seem to break.

I would appreciate your experiences advice



 
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