50cc bikes/mopeds.

[Tom]

Hi guys i have a feelin the general idea around here will be wait another year and get a car...but ive already considered this and do want something when i am sixteen in may.

I've heard a little about one thing in particular: The aprilia RS-50 and i am so far very impressed with it. does anyone know of any other good alternatives to this?

here is a picture of the 2004 model:



cheers

tom

[Rave]

If you can afford one then go for it. I had a moped when I was 16 and it was cool to be mobile. Still, I'd be inclined to get a cheaper bike, maybe something like a Kawasaki AR50, and save your money so you can get a decent bike when you're 17. The Aprilia can apparently do 60mph or so if you derestrict it, but that's illegal when you're 16 and will almost certainly invalidate your insurance. You can derestrict it when you're 17, but you'll be better off buying a 125 unless you enjoy thrapping a tiny little bike to within an inch of its life.

Also, make sure you get a pukka lock and try and lock the bike to something solid, even at home. A bike like the Aprilia is extremely nickable.

Rich :¬)

[5lab]

if you get co-op insurance, you can transfer a years ncb from a bike/moped onto a car policy. dead handy to get cheaper car insurance when the time comes

[Mozzer]

Haw, just wait.
I'm 16 in may also but i'm just going to get a car when i'm old enough and not have the ridicule of riding a hairdryer on wheels.

What does "RS" on the side stand for then? Really Slow?

[Rave]

Um, yeah. Enjoy getting the bus for another year then.

Rich :¬)

[Tumble]

Well.. tbh mate you'd be better off getting the 'priller, or any other 50cc bike with a proper gearbox - all the other marques do a 50cc machine - Aprillia even do a 50cc off-rodaer, that's quicker and more capable than my 125... but whatever you do - DON'T GET A FLUPPIN SCOOTER those things are awful whiny little sods, the wheels are far too small (pothole + 8" wheel = pain) speaking from experience here.... and they just don't go - you'r on full hole all the time and you get treated like crap. At least the machines like the Aprillia and it's japanese bretheren are in the same chassis as their 125 counterparts, so you won't look like too much of a tart - although you will have to dance a bit on the old gearbox to get any decent performance out of it.. and remember - the beuty of those things is their weight.. you may only be able to to do 50 tops, but... you can do it round the corners too if YOU'RE capable of it, cos the bike certainly is...

[Tom]

yea iv looked a little more into the bike and heard that when derestricted it can do seventy five so at shouldnt struggle with the speeds it is restricted to (35). i had a feelin that one of there would be more stable than a scooter, and i would look less like a tart. would also be a good startin point to progress onto bigger bikes as it would give me experience...they are six speed manuals so i could get used to gear shiftin etc.

does anyone have any rough guesses on the insurance on one of these?

cheers

tom

[Rave]

yea iv looked a little more into the bike and heard that when derestricted it can do seventy five so at shouldnt struggle with the speeds it is restricted to (35).

It would be good if they had an electronic speed limiter so that you still got decent-ish acceleration ou of it, but unfortunately the bikes are limited to 35mph by restricting the power output of the engine, usually by putting a washer in the exhaust. That makes them fairly dog slow unfortunately. My old AR50 wouldn't pull 30 up a moderately steep hill.

BTW, MCN tested a bunch of derestricted 50cc bikes a few months ago, and they all topped out at 50-60mph. You'll need a steep hill to get up to 70mph on one.

If you mean that the chassis will be well able to cope with the speeds you'll be doing, you'd be right. Tumble is right about the handling of these things, You'll probably struggle to find a corner that you can't take at 30mph TBH. On my AR50 someone had fitted oversize tyres, so the edges of the tyre were almost vertical; no matter how far I leant the bike over I never managed to scrub the edges of the tyre in. One time I was turning left from one narrow road into another, and I basically didn't brake, just rolled off the throttle and hurled it in, cutting the apex on the way in. I managed to ground the toe of my boot and I was kind of so surprised that I'd made it that I didn't get on the throttle again, so the bike sat up a little and slightly wobbled onto the other side of the road, but I carried on home with no probs. When I got home and actually looked at what kind of lean angle was required to ground my toe, it was about 60-65 degrees!

i had a feelin that one of there would be more stable than a scooter, and i would look less like a tart. would also be a good startin point to progress onto bigger bikes as it would give me experience...they are six speed manuals so i could get used to gear shiftin etc.

Yeah, don't get a scooter, proper bikes are much more fun.

does anyone have any rough guesses on the insurance on one of these?

No, but I suspect that it'll be a lot, partly because the Aprilia is probably crashed quite a lot by race rep wannabes, and partly because they're so pinchable. Again, I'd suggest a Kawasaki AR50, it doesn't look cool but it'll be as fast as a restricted Aprilia, and the handling, although probably not as good as the Aprilia, is still more than good enough for carving up the streets at 35mph. They're much cheaper to buy, and because they're older, cheaper and less fashionable, the insurance should cost less as well. Yeah, you won't look as cool, but if you need a bike to impress mates/girls, you'd be better off working on your social skills anyway.

Rich :¬)

[Punky]

i got a scooter, tis great. well, as long as you overlook the fact that its pretty slow and sounds like a hairdryer on crack. they are a laff tho, and very easy to weave through traffic on, if you're daring enuff. i did crash mine (piaggio zip 50cc), but that was only cos i was goin too fast and ended up twatting into the floor when i went round a corner about 3 times too fast. i'd say that scooters are more urban, whilst proper bikes are better for out of towns/cities. thats from my experience neways.
peace.

[ollie#13]

hi tom,
if anyone tells you to wait a year and get a car ignore them,rs is a good bike but you will hear stories of them being unreliable etc.they are not if treated right,the problem is most are deristricted and tuned and then spend most of their lives being revved about 2000rpm past redline and also 16 year olds with little money putting cheap 2 stroke oil in,dont!
I would spend as little as poss on a 50,you dont need it to be immaculate as you will probably fall off a few times,i would also budget for it having been thrashed and needing a new barrel and piston etc fairly soon no matter how tidy it looks.

There are also a number of bikes which use the same engine as the aprillia,which is a motor minerelli engine.These bikes include yam tzr 50,motorhispania rx/furia,reiju ??,peugout xr6?. these bikes are often cheaper and should def be considered.all of these bikes inc aprillia need a very good battery voltage to start on button but should bumpstart easily.specific parts for these other bikes will be harder to find than aprilia but you just get the aprilia part for engine.

i have just last weekend bought a motorhispania rx50 for my stepson which needs some work but cleaned the carb yesterday so now runs perfect,i have a couple of small jobs to do which will cost a few pounds and prob halfday in shed and then she is ready for mot.this bike has 70cc bigbore kit on at moment( pulls brilliant even with my 14 stone on!)and also came with 50cc parts and original carb to put back on if needed.the bodywork has some scrapes and repaired cracks but looks pretty tidy is a 2001 with 11000 on clocks,i paid £375 which was very good i think but you need to be able to do work yourself to make these cheapies viable.

aprillia and motorhispania and poss some others also make a motorcross style bike using this same engine,these are worth considering especially if you live in a busy city as the upright and high riding position gives very good visability over the cars and these handlebars make direction changes at slow speed easier.hope some of my info is of help.main thing is to get out there and enjoy but dont get caught by police if your bike aint standard,and if you aint ridden before learn at your own pace dont get bullied into racing older kids wioth more experience tll your ready to beat them.

[schmunk]

Almost five years old, almost....

[Konan555]

Um, yeah. Enjoy getting the bus for another year then

Or walk and arrive with dignity

[Rave]

Almost five years old, almost....

Yes but bizarrely it's a prettty helpful post. I didn't know they all used the same engine, for example.