Annual Cost Of A Dirt Bike,

[kona.stinky.]

Hey guys, I was looking at getting a 1997 yamaha YZ 250, 2-stroke, and I was wondering what the annual cost of having a bike is, if I were to go for a ride every week, I can fix quite allot of minor problems, but what is the cost of owning one? including servicing, mechanic fee's, motor parts, all the costs, (excluding petrol)

cheer.s

[some_guy]

thats a very broad question
depends on the history of the bike
how u ride
what parts need replacing blah blah blah
it would vary for each person

[RussS]

^^ What he said ^^


I'm an animal and destroy bikes regularly so my costs don't relate to the average rider.
I would say that for a 'clubman' type rider that rides most weekends but not very hard and keeps on top of maintenance you would look at a set of rings every 6 months and a piston once a year. If you ride a bit harder I would suggest rings every 3 months and a piston every 6 mths.

I think having a couple air filters allows you to keep a clean, pre-oiled opne in a ziplock bag to change when things are a bit dusty. Probably get by with 1 new front tire every year and a rear every 6 mths.


http://www.bits4bikes.co.nz/parts/yamaha/1441.aspx

[cruiser]

In a year you'll spend at least a grand on servicing and maintenance materials then add fuel, travel to riding destinations plus organised rides have entry fees. But if you ride it til it dies like some guys it won't cost that much
My bike costs me $25-$35 fuel usually for an ave ride. 2 strokes suck the gas.
After every ride there's Chain lubing, and general lube.

Every few rides it's air filter clean and re-oil, oil change etc.

Pistons are very much based on barrel condition, rider maintenance and style, racers go every 20-50 hours, cruising with good maintenance could get 2-300 hours per piston if using good 2 stroke oil and cleaning the filter.

Chains, sprockets, forkseals need replacing once a year for an average thrasher riding often, more if you're hard on it. tyres depend on ground being ridden on - I've been on some rides where tyres are shredded in a couple hours.

Then there are the arsehole costs like clutches, linkages, brake and clutch levers, spark plugs, etc etc etc.

generally speaking A 97 YZ will cost you more to maintain in 2-3 years than the cost of the bike.

But in saying that, MX bikes are better than sex

[kona.stinky.]

ok, I don't ride hard, I only like trail riding, I will do about 4 competitions a year, for example the Suzuki pumice blast, I don't need to worry about entry fee's or petrol or getting there,

[dicks-naughty-account]

why a motocross bike then? why not get something like a drz-400 that can be ridden on the road, cost fuck all to maintain, yet be perfectly competent off road at the same time.

[cruiser]

ok, I don't ride hard, I only like trail riding, I will do about 4 competitions a year, for example the Suzuki pumice blast, I don't need to worry about entry fee's or petrol or getting there,

sounds like you just want us to say it'll be cheap...go buy it, ride it to your budget.

Personally a 97 2 stroke would have to be pretty special to buy it, generally speaking it'll be a tired worn out crapper with no guts, no doubt an 'expert' has told you it's a good bike.

[kona.stinky.]

why a motocross bike then? why not get something like a drz-400 that can be ridden on the road, cost fuck all to maintain, yet be perfectly competent off road at the same time.

I'm to young to get a motorbike licence,

would a 1999 yamaha 250cc 4-stroke be better?

[shmoodiver]

why a motocross bike then? why not get something like a drz-400 that can be ridden on the road, cost fuck all to maintain, yet be perfectly competent off road at the same time.

i had a DRZ 400 and it was a super swede bike, fun on the trails, reliable as fuck and it had a STARTER MOTOR!

[cruiser]

yeah starter motor's are the shit!

My buddy (I do have one) has a KTM 300EXC with elec start and a Rekluse Auto Clutch. F..k that thing is just point and shoot power

[Nathan007]

Your too young to get a licence but old enough to handle a YZ250?

[klxracer]

+2 for the DRZ... Get the 250 version if you are a learner. If you are deadset on the monster that is the YZ250, budget for rings say 3 times a year, and a new piston at least once - assuming you are just trail riding, but doing a reasonable amount on it.

Save yourself a good lump of money by checking the bearings (headset, swingarm, linkage) BEFORE you buy it, and once you have it, strip them down and give them a good lube. Better yet, invest in a thread tap and put some grease nipples in for ease of lubrication.

Filters wise - keep oiled filters in a big zip lock bag, and make sure you buy some heavy duty surgical gloves for wearing while you wash and oil up filters - the oil is grotty stuff, and takes an age to get off your hands.

Aside from that, keep the maintenance up - particularly on chain and sprockets - and keep it rubber side down!! Enjoy, it's a hell of a lot of fun.

Paul

[kona.stinky.]

Your too young to get a licence but old enough to handle a YZ250?

14, I was going to get my licence next year, but I don't think that will be happening...

[Nathan007]

From lots of previous experience 14 is a bit youong to get a YZ250. It's a waste of time getting a Motocross bike if you mainly do trail riding. You may as well look for a good DR, XR, KLX of TT250.
Would be more reliable and easier to ride.

[znomit]

Whats your riding history?