Miles on a motorcycle

[clemson357]

I'm thinking of buying a used motorcycle. Someone once told me to multiply the miles on a bike by 3 to get a comparable number to miles on a car. I.e. if a motorcycle has 20k miles on it, think of it as being comparable to 60k miles on a car. Is this true? He was talking about a crotch rocket at the time. Does this apply equally to cruisers?

I am thinking about getting a Honda VTX1300.

 

[Mudge]

There is no real way to compare, but a rocket is something that does 10-15k depending on the model/year. That probably wont last as long as something that normally sees 3-5k RPM.

Cruisers may not be pushed as hard, and are way lower in the RPM scale, so if you are talking about a big Vtwin mileage is probably not too big a deal depending on how it was cared for. Plenty of people have Honda twins that are 50k commuters without problems.

 

[Burner02]

I put 19k on my '99 F4 way back when. It needed a valve adjustment, but still ran perfect beyond that. I replaced the sprockets and chain. several sets of tires, but I bet its still running today if the current owner has maintained it/not wrecked it.

I'd go w/ Mudge about the cruisers. Most aren't pushed all that hard...just weekend joy riders...

 

[maniclion]

Honda makes a good engine, 50,000 isn't even anything to sweat..... The MurderCycles that scream down the highway are a different story those are like sports cars....

 

[Mudge]

Most rockets want to see a valve adjustment at 15k or so, I've heard of them doing double and checking out fine - I'm sure a number of factors play into that.

Then there are the Ducatti's, 3-5k valve adjustment...

Chain is your biggest maintenance, especially if you wet wash your bike. I'd spray mine every 300 miles, but different people care for chains differently (wax, etc). Some of that depends on the link type and a bunch of nonsense, most rice bike chains last 8k or so before they need replacement.

Talk to bike guys, go to bike forums (especially for a given brand/type of bike), thats your best bet. Can't be too general with bikes cuz it depends on the beast, and the rider. Track bikes or stunt bikes obviously wont be the same as the Harley a 62 year old doctor rides every other weekend.

 

[The Monkey Man]

Just like anything else...

Look at the number of owners, general upkeep, maintenance record (if avail),
scratches-dings, aftermarket parts,

I always look at the owners personality.

 

[Zaphod]

A VTX1300 is a pretty reliable bike. Only thing to worry about is how well it was maintained. Oil changes, primarily. Being low revving bikes they generally aren't thrashed hard.

 

[TrojanMan60563]

Boils down to how well it has been maintained, and how hard the owner rides.

I've seen a lot of great deals on VERY low mile bikes. I would take time picking one out and getting the best your budget will allow.

To answer your first question mileage is not much differnt from a car to a bike. You have to consider the size of the engine, how high it revs. Smaller higher reving engines will wear out faster. If the bike has been driven with care and maintained properly it can see 100k before needing to think about any rebuids.

 

[Mudge]

Winter is buying time.