Korean Job Discussion Forums

[pjmancktelow]

i am about to buy a bike out here in korea, i have my license out here ill be all legit. the question is, what bike to buy? ive been riding since my teens (back home) so i know how to handle a bike and ive lived in other cities around asia with a vehicle so im not worried about the crazy cab drivers etc.

i'd like another fireblade or similar, but i live in the real world. im looking to spend between 1 and 2 million. what can i get for that? though, and here is the big one, i really hate cruiser style bikes, like the mirage etc. people love them i know, but i just prefer a normal road bike style or a dirt bike style, just my taste.

so what kinda bike can i get for that money in that style.

thanks in advance.

[Bibbitybop]

I'm a cruiser man myself and can't give you any solid advice on sport bikes, but I can tell you that buying Korean is much less expensive and so are maintenance costs.

You can find a lot of information in "The official motorcycle/scooter thread" in the off topics forum.

[optik404]

im hoping to find a honda cbr 125r in the summertime for 2million

[earthbound14]

At this price you are looking at a very small number of bikes.

So do you want 125cc or 250cc? Racer, naked or dual sport

In the 125cc range there are a few bikes worth looking at for urban warfare.

The Daelim Roadwin 125 or Roadwin R (injected), named the Vjf-i here in Korea.

http://www.dmc.co.kr/main.asp

The Honda CBR 125 also injected but a bit pricier than the Daelim. There is also a Honda dealership in Korea so you can get warranty service.

The Suzuki Van Van 125 isn't bad either but it's more of a bike you'd buy for style. It's got some classic styling. There is a Suzuki shop in Seoul.

The Hyosung RX125SM and RT125D are both fun little bikes that will let you drop curbs and do a little single track or dirt roads. I'm not a huge fan of Hyosung bikes but they are the only local company making these bikes. I'd go with the RX Super Moto over the RT because it has a few better components on it, but the RT can look really cool with some small mods (changing the seat and removing alot of the plastic body work). I owned one, very fun and cool little bike.

http://www.hyosungmotors.co.kr/

The next step up would be

Honda - FTR 223, A retro flat track styled bike with good fuel efficiency, good build quality and a little more jam than the 125cc bikes. You might be able to find one of these in your price range.

or

Yamaha - Tricker 250 - About 20 HP but lots of torque, this is an odd but pretty fun lookin bike that can do anything the street or dirt road might throw at it. Sometimes you see them going cheap but it seems Koreans have started to like them and the price has gone up.


Last is the

Hyosung - Comet 250 - Race or Naked - nice looking bike, poor fit and finish, but solid engine and a solid 30HP and pretty good fuel efficiency. You will easily find one of these in your prcie range. I generally think these bikes are junk but they are the only practical 250s to buy in the country. Hyosung still has a little ways to go before I proclaim their bikes good quality...rideable, yes, quality, big NO. The only saving grace of this bike is its looks and the engine really is solid (nothing else is, it shifts like a tractor). I'd buy it and ride it with glee, but I'd rather have a VTR or Ninja.

Honda - 250 VTR - a really nice little bike but over priced here in the land of the Han, a real shame as it slaughters the Comet 250. Sometimes you even see a Hornet 250 kickin around, very revvy little bike that is ready to race and super easy to flick. This is a tough bike to come across and often over priced.

No Kawasaki Ninja 250s, and no 250 Motards (well you may see 1 or 2 very over priced and heavily abused ones sitting around but I wouldn't buy em).

The most affordable and easy to find bikes are the Daelim 125 injected (a good little bike but a little underpowered for the highway) and the Comet 250 (unfortunately the only practical 250 in the country). All the Japanese bikes are overpriced due to import tarifs and are in short supply. The Honda CBR 125 is pretty well priced here though and the Hyosung dual sport bikes are fun to ride. That's really about it.

Not much of a choice, but that's the way it is in the land of the Han.

look on bikemart.co.kr to find prices

http://info.bikemart.co.kr/trade/new_sellbuy/sell_list_main2.html

[pjmancktelow]

thanks earthbound, great advice. i think the comet is the bike for me, preferably the race, but the naked looks good. what you said is true, no practical bikes out here and jap bikes are too expensive including any parts so im told due to import taxes. so a comet it is. aside from bike mart, ive heard there is a street in seoul where you can finds loads of bike shops clustered together. do you know where this is?

[earthbound14]

Chungmurro Station (Don't remember the exit #). I think it's north of the station, past the pet shops. Pretty easy to find.

[pjmancktelow]

excellent, thanks a great deal for superb advice.

[bassexpander]

I've owned everything from 50cc scooters to Kawasaki 1200 Ninjas. I'll be flat honest: The best bike I had in Seoul -- bar none -- was a Daelim 125cc Forte.

There is no other motorbike more useful for getting around in Seoul, and just having fun. You can weave through traffic with ease. It's got a flat floor for storing 2 big bags of crap when you shop. It holds 2 comfortably. It's zippy up to 60kmh, and goes up to 105 to 110kmh.

Beautiful little all-purpose machine. I had a Yamaha R6 at the same time, and sold it within a month because I enjoyed the Daelim that much more.

[Bibbitybop]

[verve]

I've seen plenty of Honda CB1's around (liquid cooled 400cc straight four). Rode one back home.

Solid bike with plenty of power and fun to boot. I've seen them in good nic for 3mil. It's what I'd get if I was willing to brave Seoul traffic.

[crazycanuck]

I would recommend the Hyosung Mirage 250cc.
I have owned two of them now. One was purchased new from the dealership and I had ZERO complaints about it. I rode it for 3 years and had no work done other than regular oil changes. I sold it when I left Korea. The second one was purchased used from Busan and ridden to Incheon where it has had some minor repairs such as brake shoes, one chain, brake calipers, and other very minor repairs. I have ridden over 20,000 kms with the two bikes and have never been disappointed with either. They handle well and always start.