Hello all,

Like the title says I need some biker advice. (Long Post)

Its the deep dark winter in Ottawa and life is throwing some curves.

A bit about me:

I am 42 single and no children, I lived abroad for 12 years and learned to love motorcycling in Vietnam while teaching English there. I have done solo trips around Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and parts of China while working there on contract. I love doing bike trips and it seems to be when I am most happy... no the bike in a remote area... just riding, most drive 250 Honda's XR's and FTRS while in Laos and Vietnam, loved those bikes. I also had a CB400 SF that for some reason seems like my Z900RS in some respects.

Now my father has recently passed away, and I am slowly going through the grieving process and find myself dreaming of being on the road again. I have inherited the house and have minimal debt to worry about. My job prospects have tried up over night and my work place was bought out and I was let go... This is actually NOT a big worry for me as I have several offers available... I am just taking some time to decide what to do.

Whats pinging round my head is going to England and buying a bike there... I am leaning towards a Kawa Versys 300 as it seems to fit what I would want in a cross country motorcycle. I want to take my time and visit Europe, eastern Europe and Russia then Mongolia and China (if possible and depending on the political situation at that time). I am not interested in going south from Canada through Mexico and south/central America... not sure why, but the safety issue is real and I have spent a year already in South America so that covered that itch.

1. Is it cheaper to buy a bike in England than shipping one from Canada? I would sell my RS and there are some Versys 300's here I could trade it for but it just doesn't seem worth while. The exchange does't make buying in the US that favorable right now also. It will be at least $1000 USD to ship a motorcycle over sea from Canada to England (or else where in Europe?) (where I want to start the trip). I wonder if there is any where else in Europe that purchasing the bike would be easier or more cost effective?

2. A co worker of mine has suggested looking at buying a used motorcycle in Portugal or German as the prices are cheaper than else where in Europe?

3. Opinions on the Versys 300 for this trip? TEAPOT ONE did it on a sport bike (nuts) and I am a small guy so the 1000 CC stuff is out for me and I am not interested in those heavy bikes.. It would mostly be onroad with some off road capability if needed and a tire swap can transform a bike like this when needed. Also considering the Honda CB500x, RE Himalayan or a Tenere but I don't think I will fit on one of those.

Sorry long post, but hope to get some feedback .

Thank you

I've always had good luck finding a bike in Germany, with Stefan Knopf of knopftours.com, I think.

Sent from my moto g(6) play using Tapatalk

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Greg "WANDRR" Turp
2WANDRRs.com

Hi, if u buy a bike in the UK, then unless u intend to export it then u will have to register it, which will require an address over here. U will also have to insure it, tax and mot it, assuming it does not have one. Don't be tempted to try and avoid this, whilst there may not b many visible police around, there are cameras pretty much everywhere, including the ports and an uninsured /unregistered bike will ping up immediately and it will be seized. Don't want to worry u but that's the way it is. Also don't what ever u do get ur self false documents and use them here, u may get away with it but if u r stopped then u will b in a deep hole. Keep it legit and all will b fine.
Safe travels.
Ps if u end up buying a bike in Germany then they have tuv type approval which relates to accessories as well eg end cans. U will need the certificates for any changes, the German police can b very particular about this, without them u r effectively illegal.

Hello all,

I fully plan on following the proper procedure to get the bike registered no matter where I buy it.

Since I am flexible what country I start my trip from, I am wondering where the best prices are for used motorcycles like a Versys 300x?

The UK seems more difficult because of the paperwork, but they seem to ahve a very strong used bike market?

France is worse than the UK to register a vehicle - you need proof of residency/address I.e. utility or tax bills. Also for some reason bikes are more expensive than other European countries - but they don’t have any roadworthy tests at present.

I don't think that particular bike was a huge seller in the UK to b honest, certainly not seen any on the road. This may b down to the type of bikes used to take ur test on..... Hence Alot of 500cc ones of all makes on the road. As for prices have a look at motorcycle news on line, they have a for sale section and it will give u a better idea. Best of luck

Martin at https://motofeirme.com is the man to speak to. He's in the Republic or Ireland

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Brighty's website: TheBrightStuffDotCom

CURRENT RR WITH REGULAR UPDATES: The Wife Takes on Chlamydia: A South American Retrospective

Hi Stosskraft,

Firstly I'm sorry for your loss, may your father rest in peace.

Consider spending 1250 eur for one way air freighting and then on your way back is the same, to that's 2500 eur min for that option. If you are really tied to that bike then ship that one as it makes sense, in other way i suggest the following

I would invest that money into buying a good bike that suits your needs and would serve your well for the intended trip. You can resell the bike later and will loose a fraction of the money you will be spending to ship your bike to EU. Pricing would be in the range 3000-5000 eur for really well maintained and serviced bike.
Buying in Germany is considered a great option as they keep their bikes well, but you can't get residency there and you can't register the bike and insure it. Same goes for Italy.
Above Chris mentioned Martin/Motofeirme, he is in Ireland, and besides Martin, we're also offering option of bike purchase here in Croatia, Zagreb.
We're known in the overlanding community offering one stop shop service from bike purchase, green card insurance (EU, Balkans, Turkey etc), service, tires, air, sea and land freighting to CDP, VISA, LOI's, mapping, routing and sale and buy back.

More info is on our thread here on HUBB or on ADVrider as well:

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...torcycle-95881

https://advrider.com/f/threads/new-e...chase.1075077/

You have links in my signature for more info on our website.

We're located 1,5 h from Alps and 1,5 h from the Adriatic, Bosnia is just 1 h ride from us. Getting to Africa like Tunisia or Morocco is just 2 ferries away or 24-48 h.

You can PM me or send email also directly: borderinsurance@lobagola.com or mototours@lobagola.com

Enjoy your planning,

cheers
Dooby

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Bike purchase, storage, expedition tours / insurance, health & repatriation, transport, rally training
www.lobagola-mototours.com/ www.lobagola-insurance.com/

Almost inevitably and with any destination, as long as you don't treat the bike you have as "free" and unsellable. If you factor in what you get by selling your current bike, then the extra thousand bucks at least, is a cost you can easily avoid. People ship their own bikes because they already have something they set up exactly as they wanted.

The UK is actually a fairly cheap market for used bikes, but you have to consider a couple of issues. One, the bike's headlight might need to be adjusted for LHD countries (more of a courtesy/safety issue than a legal one, they won't stop you at the border). Two, the UK's about to drop out of the EU, so there might be some confusion about paperwork recognition. Three, insurance in the UK is insanely expensive.

Go to mobile.de, that's the big German used vehicle sales website - it will give you an idea of what's available and how much bikes cost. Non-residents can buy German bikes on export plates, valid for up to 12 months, and you can then sell that bike basically anywhere outside of Germany.

I don't know what the bureaucracy is like in Portugal, but it's definitely a place with a strong bike culture, the used market should be very healthy.

Some other countries are easy as well, if you have a local to represent you. Here in Estonia, it took an hour to get two local bikes registered in the names of non-EU, non-resident citizens - with no problems or questions from the authorities at all.

I've sat on both the X-300 and the new 2019 CB500X, and did a long trip around New Zealand on a rented CB500X. Honestly, I don't think the X-300 is that much shorter - it felt about as tall and wide as the Versys 650, and I don't see much reason to go for the X-300 if you're not limited to an A2 license.

The CB500X really is the sweet spot in the market - they've also been around for longer, so you can get a cheaper used one.

And you should at least give serious thought to the Suzuki DL650 V-Strom. You can get a used one for next to nothing; they're not exciting, but I've yet to hear an owner say a bad word about one.

Currently available X-300s in/around Germany.

Currently available CB500Xs in Germany.

Price is the same, starting at just under 4k, but you get a little bit lower mileage with it on the X-300s.

Oh, one more thing in favor of Germany: very good retail support to buy gear, luggage, etc. Every big city in Germany has a Louis Megashop. If you aim for the northwest of Germany, then just outside Aachen/Cologne is the warehouse of fc-moto.de, and you can just show up and buy from their online stock. (And online purchases in Europe always have free 14-day returns.)

Thank you all for the great response. I am definitely checking out the links everyone sent and seeing whats out there.

In the spring here I will go to some local dealerships and sit on a Versys 300x and Honda CB500X and check the seat height, I think the Honda might even be shorter rom the factory. I am riding a Kawasaki Z900RS at the moment and I am not completely flat footed on it but it is not an issue.... I love that bike by the way but I am going to sell it

I watch a vbloger 'AndyManCam' who is based in Germany and he always talking about 'Louis' so it would be cook to check them out, here in Canada we do not have a big motorcycle culture so most of my gear is ordered online.

Would 'Louis' have something like this? https://cariboucases.com/side-luggage-for-givi-racks/

One a side note a friend of mine in England thinks that after brexit, the Canadian dollar will go father in the UK...should be interesting to see what happens.

You can check out what they have here: https://www.louis.eu/

The other big one is https://www.fc-moto.de/ (don't really have a brick-and-mortar network, but great for online shopping)

For sidecases, personally I just went to my local Kappa dealer. Kappa is Givi's zero-marketing side brand, it's all interchangeable with Givi racks, but cheaper.

Thanks for the links, I didn't realize Kappa was made by Givi.

I went and sat on the Kawasaki Versys 300x and Honda CB500X, the Honda definitely has a lower seat and felt more comfortable for me.

Hello Stosskraft:

I suggest you favour a 500cc bike over a 300cc bike. If you are going to be riding around for some time in Europe, you will be carrying your stuff on the bike, and my experience (a month touring in Europe every year on my Canadian-registered motorcycle) is that the "stuff" typically winds up weighing about 50 pounds.

Add to that your own weight, the weight of your protective clothing, etc., and you will probably find that a 300cc bike comes up a little bit short on power for highway riding. I'm not talking about autobahns, just the usual 100 km/h highways. The other issue to consider is that you will be demanding almost full power output from a 300cc bike if you are riding it in any kind of hilly terrain... it's always good to have a wee bit of power in reserve, and not have to run a vehicle at wide open throttle for long lengths of time.

As for purchase & registration of the motorcycle, you might want to consider asking the selling dealer (assuming you buy from a dealer) if they are willing to register the moto in their name on your behalf. My Swiss dealer offered to do this for me if I wanted to purchase a new motorcycle from them.

I don't know how the above process would work, in particular, I don't know what would be involved in insuring the moto, so you will have to do some investigation. But it is a possibility worth looking at.

Michael (Toronto)