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Motorcycle Laws

 
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Captain Obvious 2.0



Joined: 09 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Sun Feb 16, 2003 3:38 am    Post subject: Motorcycle Laws Reply with quote

Does anyone know what the laws are for driving a motorcycle in Korea are? I don't mean 50cc scooter to which the laws say "don't drive on the freeway, don't get hit", but rather what are restrictions on where racing style "crotch rocket" motorcycle can travel.

Apparantly they aren't allowed on freeways or highways, even if licenced and can outperform nearly every car on the road. Or so Koreans have told me.

As such, my dream of driving from Songnae Station to Songdo Station in 15 minutes will be crushed. Which is why I'm trying find out what the rules are besides "Korea's laws don't apply to sexy foreigners".
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BTM



Joined: 20 Jan 2003
Location: Back in the saddle.

PostPosted: Sun Feb 16, 2003 3:46 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Unless things have changed, last I heard you basically couldn't buy a bike with a bigger displacement than 125cc (I think it was) (no matter how snazzed up (see also, Magna) it might be), and all of those weenybikes are prohibited from motorways.

That said, a coworker of mine rode his Magna from Seoul to Busan and back recently on the secondary roads, and had a grand old time, perfectly legally.
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Canadian Teacher



Joined: 22 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Sun Feb 16, 2003 4:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

You can now buy 250cc bikes. I have one, a Hyosung Comet. It is a great little bike for W3.0m, all you would ever need in Korea. I got it last fall and have had a lot of fun on it.

Your car licence is not valid for over 125cc. In my case, I had a motorcycle licence in Canada so they added the motorcycle endorsement onto my Korean licence.

Here it is in living colour:

http://www.hyosungmotors.com.au/gt250.html

Happy Riding
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captain kirk



Joined: 29 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Sun Feb 16, 2003 5:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

a motorbike can't ride on the ultra-freeways, but the secondary highways are no problem. they are more fun to drive with their curves and scenery. i had a vs125 daelim and was doing 80 most of the time and it was a gas. just got a korean car driver's licence for twenty bucks which lasts five years! fantastic korea is making this 250 hyosung comet. more luggage, power with the passenger and up dem mountains!
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Bulsajo



Joined: 16 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Sun Feb 16, 2003 8:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I know you can now get bigger bikes- in 2000 I started seeing couriers driving Honda CBRs, and the motorcycle 'market' area near Tongdaemun was selling 400cc+ bikes. It would be nice to think that highway laws have been revised to account for larger, faster bikes, but I have no idea.
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Canadian Teacher



Joined: 22 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Sun Feb 16, 2003 3:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

There are a few made in USA Honda models imported into Korea such as the CB600R and the Shadow 750 but they are very expensive. There are tons of grey market Japanese bikes getting into Korea now but I would not touch one with a ten foot pole. Most have already had the bag run off of them in Japan by the bike gangs and need serious work. Any Japanese bike will be difficult to service as the shops lack the manuals and necessary tools.

My Comet 250 is a great little bike for the money. The 250 V-twin has a great rumble to it and lots of low end torque. It is more than fast enough for Korean conditions. The styling is cool, too. My only complaint is that the seat is too hard.

You are not allowed on expressways on any bike in Korea. If you have never ridden a bike before, stay with a 125 for a year or so.
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Zyzyfer



Joined: 29 Jan 2003
Location: who, what, where, when, why, how?

PostPosted: Sun Feb 16, 2003 6:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Did any of you riders get insurance?

And if you didn't get a motorcycle license in your home country, but know enough to hop on a bike and go, how do you go about getting a license here?

I'm lazily considering going legit, bike-wise.
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hellofaniceguy



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Location: On your computer screen!

PostPosted: Sun Feb 16, 2003 7:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

CC's? No problem. I have a 1300 cc Harley full dresser. The engine is bigger than most korean car engines and still the big bikes can't use the highways! Yet, the cops ride their Harleys on the highway all the time! I have seen many high proformance bikes around town that can run 300 km easily!
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captain kirk



Joined: 29 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Mon Feb 17, 2003 1:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

hey zyzyfer, up to 125cc you don't need a bike licence. to get a korean driver's licence which costs twenty bucks and lasts five years (and is a laminated card with your photo on it) i went with my hogwon boss to the nearest driver's testing/admin centre. it was an eye test, some kind of 'can you walk a straight line' balance test, and a wiggle your fingers manual dexterity test.plus show one's valid driver's licence from one's native country. the insurance/registration also with hagwon wonjonim at the city hall in the town i lived in. that cost about 80,000 won. got extra insurance through the wonjonim, re; worries about theft (but that was overkill in hindsight). don't know about the special motorbike licence for bikes over 125cc and how to get it. anybody?
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Derrek



Joined: 15 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Mon Feb 17, 2003 2:56 am    Post subject: of course the fast bikes are here! Reply with quote

Of course the fast bikes are here!

A Korean friend tells me that there is a big problem with Sportbike packs in Seoul running late at night (between 1am and 6am) at all-out hellbent speeds and causing big problems for police who can't catch them in their little 4-cylinder Hyndai cars (or whatever it is they drive).

A Yamaha store near Guui has a big 2003 R1 in the window. It's 1000cc's of superbike. They also have R6's and lots of cruisers.

I saw a VMAX in Itaewon today. I see some guy driving his new Honda 929 around Itaewon all the time (lucky dude!). Some guy parks his massive GSX-R 1300 Hayabusa at the Yagwon by my house sometimes.

I've seen Harleys too.

Back home, I went through a sport bike a year for three years -- had a YZF750R, a GSX-R 750, and a ZX-11. Just for fun, I worked Saturdays at a Kawasaki/Suzuki dealership back home.

I don't think I'd buy a 1000cc bike for Seoul. I'd feel depressed not being able to open her up like I'd want to! It's serious overkill in this city, and damn they can run HOT HOT HOT in the summertime! Sitting through a dozen lights in a traffic jam with an oven between my legs and a steamy helmet on my head is not my idea of fun.

Personally, if I could have a bike like my old 1996 GSX-R 750, I'd LOVE it! The new style GSX-R 750 will kick its butt in many situations, however the older 750 is a lot more comfortable for me and is still an awesome bike. I could scoop one up for a lot less too. Something about the way I feel on the older 750 is more comfortable for me. Man, I miss that machine!

In all likelyhood, if I were to purchase a new superbike in Korea(which I never would -- I'd buy used), it would be a 600cc machine. The lighter and more controllable, the better.

Before that I had cruisers for two or three years. I just wonder how to get the liscense to drive them in Korea?

I think that based on what I see here, I would feel safest on a 600 or 750 sportbike rather than a cruiser. If you know what you're doing, these bikes offer a lot more control and power in a smaller more "flickable" package. I'd DEFINATELY get some darn good sticky tires though... and even still, I see so much oil and crap on the roads here... yikes!

Riding a fatboy in Seoul would scare the heck out of me! I'd feel like a big fat target.
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Canadian Teacher



Joined: 22 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Mon Feb 17, 2003 5:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

A 1000cc bike is overkill pretty much anywhere but it is REALLY overkill in Korea. You'd never get it out of third gear. Added to that big bike cost a fortune to run, way more than a car like an Avante. I know this from experience. Buy a chain, sprockets, tires and service your GSXR-1000 and see how much change you have out of a $1000 bill! Ride much and you'll do that a couple of times a year, no to mention brakes and suspension parts.

I always found that middle weights were the most fun to ride, not too heavy and fast enought for anybody. If I were back in Canada I would have a Suzuki SV-650, a great all around bike because since I am over 40, I do not need to go 100 km/h all day.

Still, I have tons of fun on my Comet 250. My students think I am some freak from Mars when I pull up for class on it! And all for W3.0m! Try getting ANYTHING Japanese for that money!
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Zyzyfer



Joined: 29 Jan 2003
Location: who, what, where, when, why, how?

PostPosted: Mon Feb 17, 2003 5:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kirk: Do I need a Korean driver's license to hop on a 125cc bike? That's probably all I'd need to get, since my last one was a Daelim piece of junk green blob.
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captain kirk



Joined: 29 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Tue Feb 18, 2003 3:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

zyzyfer; a person doesn't need a 'motorcycle' licence in korea to drive anything up to 125cc. over that and you need a motorcycle licence. just a standard car driver's licence for 125cc and under. with your home country valid driver's licence to the driver's licence administration facility (the one for kwangju was out in the middle of nowhere, a big set of buildings with testing track). with twenty dollars and going through a vision and reflexes check there and then you get a laminated photo korean car driver's licence valid five years. i'd still like to know how to get a motorcycle licence necessary for 125cc and over. anybody?
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Zyzyfer



Joined: 29 Jan 2003
Location: who, what, where, when, why, how?

PostPosted: Tue Feb 18, 2003 8:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the info.
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