opinions about which moto to buy in Colombia

vicshere says on Nov 17, 2007, 11:31:

Mr. A I would suggest your buy the biggest bike that you can afford.....I have a 125cc and for around town its ok...but don't think of going on a long trip with it......I am hopefully in the next year looking at a Suzuki 650 2 cylinders (these are running about 13,000,000 for a 4-5 year old bike new about 17-18)...these are the bikes used by the Highway police in Colombia.....I would like to have my Canadian bike here..but not possible at this time due to import laws (1979 Suzuki GS850GLX) dam I miss that bike.....I cant image riding around town on a 90cc and carry a passenger....I find my bike so light and sometimes it just jumps off the road when you go over a bump...but for going to work and running errands it fine ..I guess.
also I would stick with national brands like Suzuki,Honda, those pulsars are made in Indian assembled in Colombia and have no track record yet......also many of the other brand they are very new to Colombia and you might have a problem with expensive or non existence parts
and please stay away from 2 stroke.....I wish those things were outlawed in Colombia ..they are nothing but smoke makers
too add United Motor is a bike from Korean originally from Hyosung which originated or began buy people from Suzuki in the late 1980s....I actually own a Hyosung and its been good to me....I just rebuilt the engine a year ago and it running very well

listo

webmanco says on Nov 17, 2007, 12:20:

Take your pick

http://www.clasificar.com/guias_clasificar/top10/lasmotosmaslujosas/AR....

BMW K 1200 LT ($94.000.000)


Harley Davidson Touring Ultra Classic Electra Glide ($68.570.000)

KTM Adventure 990 LC8 ($47.000.000)

Honda Super Sport CBR 1000 RR ($40.000.000)

Yamaha MT01 1670 ($35.238.500)

Suzuki Turismo V Strom 1000 ($27.990.000)

Kawasaki Versys 650 ($25.000.000)

United Motors V2C 650 S ($17.000.000)



My pick for affordavility would be the Susuki Turismo V Storm. I wish I could take a couple of years of and hit the road, South of Colombia

But, I'm going to start making some assumptions here.... Which means I might actually end up making an ass out of myself ..........Thu 04 17, 2008 11:34 am

elk says on Nov 17, 2007, 12:57:

I bought the Suzuki DL650 V-Strom and couldn't be happier. Great bike and plenty of power for cruising the country area around Medellin. Cost was 20,000,000 COP in September.

Chriscan says on Nov 17, 2007, 13:02:

I love the way a 2 stroke preforms but will never drive another out of respct for the air

************* WARNING ************* my words often come from my ass

vicshere says on Nov 17, 2007, 13:06:

"I love the way a 2 stroke preforms but will never drive another out of respct for the air"
way to go Chriscan we all have to do our part ......unfortunately in Colombia protecting the environment is very much unheard of

listo

mranderson says on Nov 17, 2007, 13:57:

Thanks for the input. All those bikes you listed are way out of my price range. Some of them cost as much as a house. Pulsars don't have a track record yet? They are very popular here in Medellin. I was learning more towards the yamaha xt225 which is a 4 stroke but wondering if anyone has ever ridden one or something similiar. There are a lot of 200 cc 4 strokes, just unsure how they actaully perform.

If a 2 stroke is properly tuned it shouldn't smoke that much. I prefer a 4 stroke for the street, just can't afford a 650 cc. My price range will only be about 8-10 million.

Lowell says on Nov 17, 2007, 14:08:

Been real happy with my 200cc Accuro Enduro. Good on power, great for pot holes and speed bunmps. Nice to be able to accelerate away from jerks or fool drivers. Price last week was still below 5 million. I paid 4.3 for mine a year ago Sept. Wife also has a 110cc step thru. It's pretty good on power.

Alfred E. Newman. "What. Me Worry?"

vicshere says on Nov 17, 2007, 14:13:

Mr A do you work on your own bike?
""If a 2 stroke is properly tuned it shouldn't smoke that much""
you are right problem is no one care or want to spend the money to keep a 2 stroke tuned
That Yamaha 225 sounds nice.
Have you looked at the UM 220 sport 4,500,000
http://www.umamerica.com/site/COL/motorcycles/sp/features/features5.ht...
maybe a cruiser 250 11,000,000 new
http://www.umamerica.com/site/COL/motorcycles/cr/features/features2.ht...

listo

mranderson says on Nov 17, 2007, 14:18:

Never heard of Accuro. How much horsepower does it have? The website doesn't say anything about performance. When you say good power, can you accelerate past all the cars going up a steep hill? The bike is only 105 kg which is impressive. Most of the other 200's are 120-140 kg. Don't know why they are so heavy.

GregYohn says on Nov 17, 2007, 14:29:

Hola!

I have to admit, I am married to a filipina and soom expecting my annullment!

The Honda Wave is GREAT! I loved it and would say everyone should be using it!
It is NOT 2 cycle! I have to admit, I will not be going there anymore to see its performance!

Mi Novia es fantastico!

12VOIP.com gives free calls to Colombia.Greg

mranderson says on Nov 17, 2007, 15:01:

vic- Yes I went to UM and checked out their bikes. I like the 200 cc enduro a lot but I'm worried about the performance since it's only rated at 14.5 horsepower and it's also a relatively heavy bike at 125 kg. The UM 220 sport has the exact same motor. The bike is priced right at about 5 mil for the enduro. I'm trying to compare that bike with the yamaha xt225 and the honda xl200 which are both much more expensive. Also the honda XL200 only comes in white. Bad color for me. But I'm really curious as to how well these bikes can climb hills. My wife got scared on the AKT125 because it couldn't climb the hill.

Also a bike that can do wheelies is a plus!

Chelesupercono says on Nov 17, 2007, 15:10:

I just read an article that said that 72% of all accidents in Colombia are with motos of all types and account for 82% of all deaths........

Anytime someone tells me that they are buying a bike I offer to take out as many life insurance policies as possible.......food for thought my friend.......it's really dangerous in Colombia.

never go to bed with someone crazier then you are, you will do it and you will regret it.......

vicshere says on Nov 17, 2007, 16:03:

cheles motos aren't dangerous the rider are

listo

Lowell says on Nov 17, 2007, 16:17:

I weigh 250Lbs and I blow people off all the time. I can climb the hill from Cartago to Pereira with speed and ease. My book might have the hp. Will look. Wifes Primo a Yamaha mechanic said the motor was a very good design. No Cam chain? He was impressed with the acceleration too. Bright orange eye catcher. Ya, need all the chances you can make for yourself here. Even the other day as I was just about to follow a left fork in the road, I was almost sideswiped by another moto as the fool blast past me on my left. 5 feet of room to my left and 20 to my right. Real smart. I've learned to keep my thumb always on my horn button. Wife has taught me to also honk a any intersection that may have unseen merging traffic.

Alfred E. Newman. "What. Me Worry?"

expatriate says on Nov 18, 2007, 08:27:

I really miss my 1975 Kawasaki 750 2-stroke triple, (0-60 in less than 2 seconds) and my chopped and chromed 1972 Honda 750, in my early 20's in California, but those days are over. My suggestion is that if you can't afford a moto over 350cc's, don't buy a moto at all, unless you have a death wish.
Now the most appropriate vehicle for the "streets" and bottomless potholes of Cali is pictured below.


Chelesupercono, can you post a link to that article?

Robert Jorge says on Nov 18, 2007, 09:52:

I wish I could take this to Colombia. It has good hill power. 159 kilos, 190 hp.

vicshere says on Nov 18, 2007, 10:41:

190 horse you sure ???holy shit man what did you change to get the extra HP? typically they come with around 170 HP

listo

mranderson says on Nov 18, 2007, 10:43:

I was reading reviews about the smaller bikes. They are ok for in the city. Lightwieght and very manueverable which is mainly what I want a bike for. As far as going out of the city I think I'd rather have a bigger bike so I want something in between.

Suzuki has a 400 cc enduro which would do the trick. At 18 mil pesos I can't afford one at this time though. I'm thinking the KMX125 (24 peak horsepower) or the pulsar 180. My brother in law works for auteco so I can get an 800.000 discount on a new one.

After all during rush hour when the road turns into a parking lot I want something that can manuver through without too much trouble.

Robert Jorge says on Nov 18, 2007, 11:11:

Out of the box, it is rated at 175.5hp, I just checked the title. Last year, it was knocked over while parked, by a drunk driver in a mall parking lot. For once in my life, I was lucky and the driver actually stayed and his insurance payed for the pretty massive repair bill. Well, I saw the list of parts costs in the estimate, and the factory exhaust pipe costs $1600 to replace. I was like, "holy sh*t, that is ridiculous." So, I had the dealer install a Yosh racing header, pipe and barely street legal can. I still had $700 left over even with those upgrades. The mechanic also did something with the timing, ignition, air intake - hell, I really don't know what they did - I am not a gear-head. I just told them to use up the $700 difference to tweak it out. When I asked the guys at the dealer what the horsepower was when I went to pick it up, they said they could only guess without putting it on a dyno, but a good estimate was in the 190hp range.

I pretty much just ride it as a cruiser around town. It is scary quick and fast. I will never explore it's potential. I guess I am just a poser. I let a riding buddy take it out once. He said he broke 115mph in first gear.

vicshere says on Nov 18, 2007, 12:28:

nice going RJ ...on the fix...i wasnt too far off on HP......would be nice to put it on dyno to check....but seams about right with those headers

listo

webmanco says on Nov 18, 2007, 16:37:

Experiencie Tour from Fox Sport will cover the event. From December 1 will depart at Cabo de la Vela and will be at Ushuaia, Argentina on January 20.

But, I'm going to start making some assumptions here.... Which means I might actually end up making an ass out of myself ..........Thu 04 17, 2008 11:34 am

BAQ says on Nov 20, 2007, 07:45:

I would suggerst you forget the entire idea, they way they drive here, you will probably be dead within a year and NO, they dont have level 1 trauma centers here to fix you up.

Dont get me wrong, its not YOU I am worried about, its the other idiots on the road, you are prabably used to rules of the road and people following them. Here, the rules of the road are NO RULES, drive on the right, left, pass on the right, left, drive at night without headlights, tail lights ect.

So beware.

Semper Fidelis !

webmanco says on Nov 20, 2007, 13:08:

Here, the rules of the road are NO RULES, drive on the right, left, pass on the right, left, drive at night without headlights, tail lights ect.

That kinds of make it a little more interesting.

But, I'm going to start making some assumptions here.... Which means I might actually end up making an ass out of myself ..........Thu 04 17, 2008 11:34 am

Nomadic Max says on Nov 20, 2007, 13:29:

SUZUKI GN125H ¿pa k mas? 45 km/litro -- speedometer goes up to 120km/hr

mranderson says on May 14, 2008, 10:47:

ok, I decided on the honda cbf 150. It's similar to the pulsar 180. 30cc's less but from the reviews that I have read online it has similar performance. I was up in the air over the pulsar and cbf but auteco made my decision for me. They won't let me finance because I haven't been in colombia for 4 years and my wife doesn't have "excellent credit". Also the salespeople at auteco didn't seem very professional to me. Like they didn't give a rat's ass about selling motos.

Besides I think honda is a better brand and it has a better suspension(monoshock). It's a small bike but it should be great for just running around the city and of course get excellent milage. I think it will be fine for short trips outside the city too.

All I'm waiting for are the papers from my work and my wife's saying how much I earn for the financing.

vicshere says on May 14, 2008, 10:50:

good choice Mr. A those Hondas last forever....and if your not touring around the country this bike is great for running around the city

listo

jonas says on May 14, 2008, 10:59:

I guess you could even tour around the country on that bike. I crossed the Alps from Germany to Kroatia on a Honda MTX 80cc (that´s 2stroke!) when I was 16 and had no problems.

TAKE IT EASY on the new engine for the first 500-1000 KM and you will have a great bike.

What I have, I do not want to lose, but Where I am I do not want to stay, but those I love, I do not want to leave, but those I know I no longer want to see, but Where I die, I do not want to go;I want to stay where I have never been

vicshere says on May 14, 2008, 11:05:

TAKE IT EASY on the new engine for the first 500-1000 KM and you will have a great bike.
good advice

the first 500 kms are important vary the engine rpms but not redline so don't run the engine at the same rpms for a long time

also change the oil and filter at 300 kms then every 1,000 to 1,200

listo

mranderson says on May 14, 2008, 11:12:

Yep, that's exaclty why I want to buy new. The way a lot of these colombians ride their bikes I kinda doubt they took it easy for the first 500-1000 kms.