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I'm a little confused cause some guides say to buy easy to manuever 250cc, but then a lot of other people say buy used, when there are brand new ones that are 2000 - 3000 dollars cheaper and even if its old it can still be powerful. So, basically I understand buy a 250cc cause there easier to manuever for first bike, but why exactly should you buy used?

Thats exactly what I was asking 3 or 4 days ago.

And still haven't gotten my bike, but heres why.

You go, buy a new bike you drop it, or do something that damages it, its going to get alot, or atleast some scratches on it, with an older, "used" one, it may already have some scratches, so what do the scratches really matter?
A new bike may also cost more to repair.

First, you don't get too panic or upset after you drop the bike.
Second, someone already paid depreciation for your bike.
Third, also someone already paid for maintenance service for you (600 miles service isn't cheap)
If you wanna sell the bike later on, then your loss isn't that much you might even sell it at the same price you bought.

For me used bike is the bike which is between 2-4 years old which still in pretty good condition. You might be able to find 2-4 years old bike with milage less than 5000.

all the reasons above and insurance is cheaper as well.

Where did you see brand new 250cc motorcycles that were $2000 or $3000 cheaper than a used one? Sounds like you really want to buy a brand new bike and are trying to justify it to yourself. Don't feel bad about it - if you really want a new bike and can afford it, go for it. There's nothing wrong with it. Hell, someone has to buy them.

The reasons for buying used though, are pretty solid. If I could only buy one brand bew bike in my life I wouldn't want it to be my first. Everyone is different of course, but I think the perfect order of procession is: get a small used bike to get your feet wet - learn everything about it, put a couple thousand miles or kilometers on it and sell it for what you paid for it. Get a bit larger bike and put at least a season on it and build your skills even more and use it to think about what kind of riding you really enjoy most. At this point you probably have a really good idea of what your dream bike is. If you can afford it, go for it! If you're like most of us you'll probably have to compromise, but at least you'll have a lot more knowledge to use when making your decision by this point and you haven't chewed up a ton of cash in the meantime.


I never buy new cars or motorcycles. I make financial decisions all day at work being the general manager of a construction business and I can't just turn that off when I go home. The fact is, cars and motorcycles depreciate a lot the first day you drive them home. A case in point - A new Honda Rebel 250 retails for ~ $3100 plus tax - if you take it home and drive it for six months you'd be pretty fortunate to get more than $2500 for it if that. I admit I got a good deal, but I got an '01 for my wife with just a few thousand miles on it for $1500. It's virtually identical to the new models and I saved well over $1500. Not only that, but if we take care of the bike it's quite possible that we could sell it in two years for more than we paid for it. Well cared for used motorcycles hold their value extremely well. New bikes.... not so much. There's exceptions to everything, so before the collector's edition harley guys jump on me about resale value, please consider whether or not you think a $20,000 Harley is a good first bike

Sorry so long. That's just some food for thought and your mileage may vary. Good luck with whatever you choose.

When considering the $3000 price I opted to buy new. i have never dropped one so it wasn't an issue. And even if I ever do i'm more interested in knowing that all my parts are new and I know exactly what the bike has been through. depreciation isn't the same on a bike as it is a car so I don't really care about that either. The insurance on my 05 Rebel is cheaper then my friends 85 magna so you have that consideration also. i'm not opposed to used bikes, but i prefer new. It's really about the choice you want to make and how much money you have to make it. if someone else wants a used bike, more power to them. If you want a new one more power to you. do what puts the biggest grin on your face.

i found the advantage in buying used was...not everything on the bike worked exactly like it should...so i got a lot of experience and knowledge just from figureing all that out with the help of friends. but it was a pain and would like to be riding already...so there is and ebb and flow haha

Any financial advisor will tell you that a car is not an investment, I a positive this appies to motorcycles. Any talk of depreciation is ludicrous. Buy what you want or can afford.

I like shiny new things, but I also know myself. I bought a beater, learned how to ride on that. I am going to buy a shiny new Z1000 when I feel I am ready.

Randy wrote:Any financial advisor will tell you that a car is not an investment, I a positive this appies to motorcycles. Any talk of depreciation is ludicrous. Buy what you want or can afford.

Chill. No one said anything about investments, a subject I know plenty about if I don't mind saying so myself. When making a large purchase of any kind it is anything but ludicrous to think about depreciation (especially something you plan on selling later)... or a number of other financial considerations. It's certainly not the final arbiter of anything, but as one factor of many to consider for the vast majority of us... definitely. An opinion was asked for and I gave mine. Hell, I as much as said go buy the new bike if that's what you really want. Oddly enough, you told me considering depreciation was ludicrous but plan on doing exactly as I suggested!

cb360 wrote:Where did you see brand new 250cc motorcycles that were $2000 or $3000 cheaper than a used one? Sounds like you really want to buy a brand new bike and are trying to justify it to yourself. Don't feel bad about it - if you really want a new bike and can afford it, go for it. There's nothing wrong with it. Hell, someone has to buy them.

I'm sorry I wasn't more clear on this, when I found said 2000 - 3-- dollars cheaper I meant, because when i looked through my local paper (i don't feel right buying something from someone who lives out of state) all I found we're like '03 and '04 models, of the really powerful ones, thats why they were cheaper.

Thank You everyone for there help, this is probably the most help I've ever gotten from a forum on any topic.