Used Motorcycle Buyers Guide (Part 2)

How to find a reliable used motorcycle and what to look for:

Kuala Klawang Ride

I like the expression: "While most improbable it is not impossible" and that can sum up every used motorcycle of every model ever for sale. Some people will have the world's worst motorcycle commonly known and take it around the world, own it all their lives, put 250,000 miles/kilometers on it and never have an once of trouble. While 80% of those same models didn't last and were problematic as soon as they left the showroom, Go Figure!

This might come as a shock to you but Manufacturers actually design inherent flaws into the design. Like the lightbulb, they can (and have) made them to last forever, Edison's original light bulb is still on for over 100 years and hasn't died yet! So if they made motorcycles that reliable, there wouldn't be any motorcycle manufacturers around since there would be no profit in it. But sometimes, they put together something REALLY good that lasts and lasts and it is these chance motorcycle is what you should look out for.

So, you are probably wondering how do you know if UVW model motorcycle is more reliable than XYZ model? Well, let me tell you some trade secrets then...

Trade Secret Tip #1:

Cameron Ride

Generally horsepower and torque is not conductive of reliability.

Everyone likes horsepower and torque and lots of it please. It is fun, cool and all the rest, but in the long run it can be quite destructive on the engine. A motorcycle engine is small compared to a car, but they easily pack loads of horsepower and torque in there. The more you pack into an engine the higher you stress that engine and it's design. Folks, that isn't good if you want the engine to last a long time.

To put it into perspective, it is prestigious to own the most powerful motorcycle in its class, but unless they designed that engine super well, then it is like burning the candle at both ends. What you should look for is an "average" powerful bike in the category of its time, or a sleeper engine. Take the new Suzuki Bandit 1200 for example, 98.5hp for a 1200cc engine. You look at that versus the GSX-R750 with 145hp for a 750cc engine. Now what engine do you think is stressed? What engine do you think should last longer?

This is just a rule of thumb, there are exceptions; it may be the owner of the GSX-R is a little old lady and the Bandit owner loves the race track...

Side Note #1: Generally speaking the bigger cc the engine is (and less stressed it is) the longer it will last as well. You might think big slow V-Twin engine with low horsepower would last a long time, but then you have to consider the bike's weight the engine has to push/pull around. The more the bike weights, the more stress on the engine as well.

source TMW