First bike, not first time riding, help!

[Too New To Know]

hi guys! i know you get alot of newbies asking what bike and all that, but heres my problem...

i used to ride dirtbikes for about 4 years, but havent rode one for like 2 years now...
what i'm saying is im not a totally fresh newbie, im confident that i have the basic contol of a motorbike, exept the traffic experience that comes with a roadbike.

I've read here about getting a piece of shit to start with, but i dont want something you sit on like a dirt bike (i think there called cruisers?)
because i want to get the feel of sitting on a real sportish bike. do you not reccommend this? i only want a 250 because here in my part of Australia, that's all learners are allowed (which is a damn good idea, one of the best policies we have!)

I was looking at a Kawasaki GPX250, whats your opinions?
any help on the matter will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much for your time, your opinions to help this newbie wont be disregarged

[aussieidiot]

good to see another aussie here

the gpx 250 (bloody yanks call it a ninja250) is a good starter.

spend the money on safety gear and save on the bike because you'll want to upgrade as soon as you can. i bought a FZR 250RR and it was real quick for a 250 and i had minimal dirt bike experience.
good starters (in OZ) are cbr250rr 91+, fzr250rr 91+ and zxr250, look for twin disc on the front. buy as cheap as possible because they lose value real quick. my mate bought a brand new cbr for 12000aus and sold for 7500 in 12 months

[Too New To Know]

hey dude, thanks heaps for all that, you got MSN ? wouldnt mind having a chat about all this sometime

[aussieidiot]

feel free to chat here. all the info should be seen by all interested newbies. you'll notice that a few of us chat here and are quite often completely off topic. if not send private message

[Too New To Know]

ok dude

so, if you have any knowledge on the 3 bikes you mentioned, what are some pro's and cons of each?

im not really fussed because i will be selling it when i feel i've outgrown it, but if one's better than the other in a certain way, i'd like to know
thanks

BTW where in aus are you?
im 30mins from Melb

[Too New To Know]

oh oh! and whats the RR all about at the end of the model name? race spec or something?

[aussieidiot]

i'm in sydney
the rr is just the different variation of the previous models
the older bikes were single front disc
cbr is noisyer (motor wise) due to chain driven cams and is a bit more cramped. probably the quickest of the three though

fzr is quieter and has a bit more leg room

zxr is very sharp down low and is the easiest to wheelie (still bloody hard to get a 250 up)

should pay around 3500-5000 for a 91-95 in good condition. if you buy from a dealer you should get a pack which includes helmet, jacket and gloves. good option due to reliability of the bike but upgrade the safety gear. you'll pay a bit more but at least you have the security of a dealer warranty perhaps. i paid 8200 in 97 for a 91 fzr with 2900 k's with a dainese jacket, gloves and shoei X9 helmet. sold the bike 18months later for 4000 with 12000k's

[Too New To Know]

ok ok,your gonna kill me for asking so much, but what about reliability

also, are these all 2 stroke? i've been advised to go for a 4stroke, i know all the 2stroke dirt bikes are moving to 4 now, so there must be a reason? more effiecient because of more accurate internal combustion procedure is one reason i think??

thanks for your patience with me dude

[speediva]

I'm not positive, but I believe all of those should be 4 stroke. I'm one of Blayne's "bloody yanks" and we don't have many 250s so I can't help you much there, but I will say that I am all but certain that all of the models posted will be 4 strokes.

[Too New To Know]

ok thanks tangerine!

also, blayne or yourself, im looking at a cbr 250, the RR's seem to be more expensive and im on a tight budget so im going for a standard model. whats the big deal about bikes under 1991? alot of difference? does twin brakes help ALOT? or can i learn to ride without them?

thanks for the help once again

P.S i just landed a job so i'll be getting a loan for a bike VERY soon, liscence and training first though!

[aussieidiot]

pre 91's usually have a single disc. the older you get one the more abuse it will have. all newbies abuse their bike's more through mishap than anything else.
twin brakes do make a difference but it depends how you ride. i wanted the best i could afford and wanted to be safe as well. the cbr/fzr/zxr are the quickest of the allowed 250's and they do stop well. if budget is a concern check out the zzr for a full size look or a suzuki across. these will be cheaper. 250's can be expensive only because you need to have one. let me know and i'll write a list of things to look out for
ps cbr/fzr/zxr are 4cyl 4stroke gpx/zzr/across are 4 stroke but may be 2cyl, i'm not 100%sure about them

[Too New To Know]

hey blayne, found a cheaper alternative i think, but i need your opinion on the bike itself, suzuki gsx250f across.... what's your two cents?

[Too New To Know]

hey, this is for anyone who's got damn good eyes and knows there bikes well, i downloaded a movie a while back and theres a tiny clip of this real nice bike in it, but because of my newb status, i dont have a clue as to what it is.... do YOU? (filesize = 167kb)

http://www.angelfire.com/ultra/slow/whatbikeisthis.wmv

[aussieidiot]

the across is a good bike to start on but do not expect top performance. i like the way the 'fuel tank' is storage. just keep in mind that you'll upgrade as soon as possible so a cheap bike isn't forever
it's also a bit more comfortable than full sports. go for it if the price is good

[Too New To Know]

thanks dude! i just got my job too so i might be buying the exact one thats my avatar.. the only problem is, the jobs cash in hand, so i cant get a loan.... one of my mates has a rich dad "owns a couple car yards", so im thinking of asking him for a 8month loan....

hey, if the 'fuel tank' is storage, wheres the actual fuel tank? under the fake 'fuel tank'??

lol go on, say it again....








fuel tank! :P