Skip to main content

Want to save money? Don't buy a motorcycle

With gas prices at the level they are, many of you might be considering buying a motorcycle to save a bit of money. While it's true that you can get enough performance to crush even the fastest super cars, while getting Toyota Prius gas mileage, the true cost of motorcycle ownership might startle you.
Posted: June 10, 2011 - 4:49PM
Author: Roman Rosa

First start with yourself. As a motorcyclist, at the very least, you're going to need a helmet, jacket, gloves and boots. Don't think that's necessary? Look at yourself in the mirror. Look at how squishy you are. The fact that you're 80% water means you're essentially a water balloon. We all know what happens to them. Not convinced? Well try this: strip down naked, run as fast as you can down the road, and throw yourself on the ground. Hurts, doesn't it? All that road rash will sting for a few days (or months if it's at motorcycle speed). Figure on spending around $600 for a decent mid-level protective gear set.

As far as the bikes themselves are concerned, motorcycles require replacement maintenance parts far more frequently than cars do. Neglecting maintenance on your motorcycle is like being a professional sky-diver and forgetting to take care of your parachute, or forgetting to feed your 6000 pound pet tiger, who sleeps in your bed.

While a car usually needs new tires every 30-50 thousand miles, most sporting motorcycles will wear out their tires in around six thousand miles, with ten thousand miles as an extreme before the belts are showing. Name brand tires will normally cost you $300 or more installed, or roughly $.05 per mile.

The drive-chain which connects the transmission to the rear wheel, lasts around 15 thousand miles. The sprockets should be changed when the chain is replaced since the sprockets wear with the chain. The cost of a good name-brand chain and equal quality sprockets will be in the neighborhood of $250, or roughly $.017 per mile.

Changing the oil in a motorcycle is important because the oil in most motorcycles lubricates not only the engine, but the transmission and the clutch as well. Because the oil gets smashed up in the transmission and because it collects clutch matter as well as engine debris, changing the oil is done quite often. Two thousand miles is the normal interval for most motorcyclists. This comes at a cost of $50 or so, or roughly $.025 per mile.

The engine on your motorcycle will probably need to have its valves adjusted every 15 thousand miles or so. The average cost is $300 to get it done at the dealer. Hopefully you can do this yourself in an afternoon. If not, you will have to add a cost per mile of $.02.

The total price is $.11 per mile of just absolute basic maintenance. Taking a trip to Miami from Tampa? a 600 mile round trip will cost you $66 in maintenance alone. Fancy a two day, 1000 mile trip to the Grand Canyon? That will cost you $110 in maintenance alone.

Most sporting motorcycles these days are so mind blowingly fast that if you twist the throttle, it'll take your brain a while to catch up to the speed. By the time your brain does, you're already in a completely different zip code. A motorcycle truly is a two wheeled teleportation machine that can achieve MPG in the high 30's, but you will pay for it my friends, one way or another you will.

Automotive News

Comments

Chris (not verified)    June 11, 2018 - 1:12PM

Permalink

Hello! You forgot the fun factor!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That makes up for any extra cost. Life is short. Enjoy it!

Harley Jenkins (not verified)    June 15, 2018 - 8:18AM

Permalink

If you dont ride a Harley then your not really riding. Charlie also has no clue what he is talking about and he probably doesnt even have a bike.Harley require zero maintenance because there american built and are done right. The only thing you have to do is change the oil once every 15k. Nothing else besides an occasional tire replacement.

Joe (not verified)    October 9, 2018 - 7:40PM

Permalink

Fairly accurate no matter what you're riding. If you put miles on your bike,you will open the wallet wide and often. I bring it to the dealer for everything. I do not work on my bike. 120$ an hour!!! With the big maintenance (16000) mile or 24 costing close to if not over 1000$ . I ride a honda. It has gotten to the point to where I can no longer afford to own and ride.

Ron Sindric (not verified)    October 11, 2018 - 10:39PM

Permalink

I do about half of my bike maintenance myself. My bike shop is run by a fantastic mechanic who is not only savvy about bikes, he is reliable, fast and charges $40.00 an hour. Oh, did I say he is FAST too ? My last electronic black-box problem took him FIFTEEN MINUTES to diagnose and repair [ a quarter of an hour's worth of labor ]. When I travel in Netherlands, Germany, Italy and France, gasoline prices are higher than here. Today [ 10/10/2018 ] gasoline costs 1.57 EUROS PER LITER or 6.89 USD PER GALLON !!! Now, if you rent an ENZO [ Ferrari ] to drive in BELLA ITALIA, this hypercar gets 8 mpg. Gas cost; ROME-to-PARIS is around 226.00 USD ONE WAY !!! My HARLEY STREET gets ( 47.3 mpg average ). You do the math ! Buying an ENZO today sets you back THREE MILLION USD, while a 1943 air-worthy BOEING-STEARMAN PT-17 would set you back only SEVENTY THOUSAND and it is a heck or a lot "cooler" [ literally since it is an open cockpit biplane ] and gas consumption is ~12.5 MILES PER GALLON at a cruising speed of 95 mph and a service ceiling of 13,200 feet where the scenery is much more impressive than less than 2 METERS off the ground in an ENZO.

Bottom line? If your Soul does not SING the first time you Pilot a MOTORCYCLE [ or an OPEN COCKPIT BIPLANE ] you have no idea what you are talking about when you criticize those who DO ! So you should remain SILENT !!!

Ron Sindric (not verified)    October 11, 2018 - 10:54PM

Permalink

You obviously do not have the SOUL of a Biker. SOUL? I stop riding here in the Northern Midwest when the snow flies thick or the air temp drops below MINUS TWENTY degrees Fahrenheit. Simple maintenance even 16K mile work is not hard. Start doing your own wrenching. Or, I'll give you FIFTY BUCKS to take your HONDA off your hands :-) My girlfriend rides the AUTOBAHN every day to grad school ( Physics ) on her S1000RR MOTORSPORT EDITION BMW. She recently sold her car and rides her BEEMER exclusively.. At 250 kph she says nothing can compare.

bob (not verified)    April 16, 2020 - 10:59PM

Permalink

People saying biking is cheap are big liars, especially for a new rider. Owning a motorcycle is not cheaper than a car, and people saying otherwise probably consider their time free. Trying to buy a used bike as a brand new rider is not easy, gear is not cheap unless you want shit from bilt and even then I'd budget $800-1000 not 600. As an new/ignorant buyer you are also going to get ripped off on craigslist. Also, that mythical $40 an hour mechanic is bull, you'll never find that price unless he is your friend. Minimum you are probably going to see is $100 an hour and more likely 160 if you live in the city. Motorcycling is a hobby, not a cheaper way to get around.

Jim T (not verified)    October 9, 2020 - 9:07AM

Permalink

Wow. The good thing about articles like these is that it opens up a bit of a hornet’s nest with a lot of people flinging insults at each other. First of all you are unlikely to change anyone’s mind if they are truly not open to it. As a biker this is my perspective and honestly I don’t care if you agree or not. It’s totally your choice.

I ride and we have a couple of cars in our family. Is it cheaper to ride? For me it is and I take my 2016 Triumph America out whenever I can. There is more to it than cost...you feel like you are part of the road and not just watching it on TV (through your car windshield). Anyway there are pros and cons beyond cost but this article is questioning cost.

If you live somewhere where you can ride year round a bike will save you on fuel, depreciation and maintenance. That said some high priced bikes will depreciate a lot if you buy new and some not so much. If you buy a good starter bike like a Yamaha VStar 250 a year or two old you will pay maybe $3500 and when you upgrade it you likely won’t lose a dime. They only depreciate so much...but say you do lose $500? What does depreciation look like on a car?

I put 10K on my bike this year and about the same on my car. Not only did I save on gas and enjoy the trip more but I saved wear and tear on my car? When do I drive my car? Winter or when I have to take the kids somewhere. If you are single, live in a part of the country without snow, and don’t mind getting a bit wet from time to time you might not even need a car.

I could go on and on (and maybe I have). If you are interested in riding a motorcycle ask a biker. If you are ever sitting at the side of the road a fellow motorcyclist will inevitably stop, ask if you are okay, and if you are not help you out as much as possible. Bikers help bikers...it’s just the way it is.

At the end of the day if you are not a biker you just won’t get it. And that’s okay too.