Car versus motorcycle? costs

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kingdragonfly

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#232128 31-Mar-2018 09:49

From a practical and financial stand-point, what is more practical? A motorcycle or a car?

MOTORCYCLE PROS

- free parking

- can use some bus lanes legally (not "bus only")

- lane splitting

- less speeding tickets from speed cameras (no front tag)

MOTORCYCLE CONS

- safety

- storage (boot)

- comfort

COSTS???

Let's assume both a motorcycle and car purchase cost is the same.

What I don't know are the differences in the costs of

- registering

- WoF

- License

- insurance

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#1986278 31-Mar-2018 10:13

Motorcycles can save you a lot of cash, especially (as you noted):

Free Parking.
-> I live in Auckland, and all Auckland Council parking buildings allow free motorcycle parking (as do other such as Auckland Hospital).
-> In single car parking spaces (such as those around the viaduct) you can park 1 motorcycle at the end of each space, for free (I check with AT about this)
-> There are several areas around Auckland that offer free (some are time limited) spaces, either on the road, or in pedestrian areas such as Fort Street

Bus Lanes - you can ride in any bus lane on any road. You CANNOT ride on motorway bus-only lanes
-> You can go in the T2 and T3 lanes and onramps

Lane Splitting - a real time saver, unless you have an accident. I am a big lane splitter but my last accident was front being knocked off whilst doing this. I see several bikes who never do this on the motorway. However in heavy traffic you are unlikely to get seriously injured
-> At the lights this is a HUGE time saver. And at places like the Greenlane Roundabout, which can take 30 minutes just to get through to the motorway, I can be through it in 2 mins on my bike

Safety is always the biggest issue. After my accident (which wrote off my scooter) I bought a brand new bike with ABS, a and proper jacket. Next up are boots (protect your feet and ankles!!!).

I see lots of comments on geekzone from people who like bikes but would never own one, especially in Auckland, due to the generally poor driving ability of other drivers.

For storage I jut use a backpack - I can get everything I need in there, everything I don't need to carry just stays at work (spare shoes, raincoat, etc.). Its more just being organised so you don't have to take 10kg of crap every day!

The biggest discrepancy between cars and bikes is registration. I just renewed for 3 months and it cost $133, vs. about $80 for a car for a whole year. For insurance, my bike (around $13,000 new) is the same per month as per car (approx $25,000) but does include coverage for bike gear if damaged in an accident.

kingdragonfly

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#1986289 31-Mar-2018 10:48

So in your example motorcycle registration is $532 versus car $80, or $452 more per year.

I'd heard ACC charged a lot.

I don't understand this comment

"In single car parking spaces (such as those around the viaduct) you can park 1 motorcycle at the end of each space, for free (I check with AT about this)"

Is this what you mean?

Or this

askelon

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#1986290 31-Mar-2018 10:49

I solely ride a bike. Dont like driving cars and haven't driven in ... 20 years now?

I don't really mind the Auckland traffic all that much - been bought up in it though with 25 years of riding a bike in it. I occasionally use the free parking in town but really find its easier and less hassle to bus most of the time from West Auckland. I lane split but not crazy like you see lots on the motorways - my rule of thumb is if the traffics moving at say 30-40km/h then Im pretty happy with that and cant be bothered. If its at a standstill, whole other story :). Bus lanes are fantastic but you still get idiots that just pull straight into them regularly.. And theres these huge monstrosities that keep stopping in front of you :p

Comfort wise, well I guess its what your used to, the style of bike your riding etc. I currently have a Honda CBR600 and find it extremely comfortable apart from the air vents directly under my thighs. Prior to that I had a Yamaha XJ600 and its more upright position actually wasnt all that comfortable in traffic. Same with cruisers (Ive had Harley's etc over the years). I normally wear a backpack. Had pack racks on previous bikes and that was fine and all but I just like being able to put on my backpack, do my work etc without having to lug some huge pack around.

Rego will be more than twice the average car.

Good gear isn't overly cheap and will probably be replaced every few years (at least for me with waterproof jackets/pants). Gloves I tend to replace almost yearly - although now I have a set of winter ones too so Im guessing both will last me around 2 years of use. You need GOOD boots and gloves! You can get some nice helmets for not too unrealistic prices nowadays but no matter what you get you'll have to factor in regular replacements. I never ride without wearing my boots, gloves, jacket, helmet - the pants is a little more iffy just due to the heat but for the most part I do wear them 75% of the time.

From a financial point my bike costs me more to run than a car due to replacement gear, rego (WOF is pretty much the same price - just most places dont do bike ones).

Petrol wise I get around 20k/l - no idea if this is good or bad. Most of my traveling is stop start city traveling. Its relatively similar to most bikes Ive owned over the years. I guess modern cars are probably more economical.

So to sum it up, a $20k bike will cost more than a $20k car if you dont factor in downtown parking. Storage space will always be at a premium but you learn real quick what you need and dont need - I used to be able to get my whole tournament paintball kit on my bikes with very little room to spare. When it rains you get wet, when its sunny and your wearing your wet weather gear you get wet. The cat WILL claw up your seat - especially if you go and get a nice after market leather seat, cause cats are special like that. You will stink for days if you get stuck behind a cattle truck (god help you if you wear an open face helmet!!). Idiots on the roads will stop phasing you after a few years.

All in all its fantastic riding a bike despite all these things :)

gzt

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#1986337 31-Mar-2018 12:18

scottjpalmer

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#1986342 31-Mar-2018 12:31

Motorcycle tyres are expensive and don't last anywhere near the km car ones do.

timmmay

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#1986350 31-Mar-2018 12:56

I've had a couple of friends die or get seriously injured in motorcycle crashes, and I stopped riding in uni when a good friend was killed on the way home from my house (Palmerston North to Sanson). None of my friends have had serious car accidents. Your risk is higher with a motorcycle, and if you have an accident your chance of death is much higher than with a car.

I'm not going to follow this thread, and I'm sure others will disagree. That's fine.

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cruxis

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#1986371 31-Mar-2018 13:44

I did notice it was not an option on the census as a mode of transport that you use. Must skew the numbers a bit?

CamH

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#1986373 31-Mar-2018 13:47

A couple of weeks ago, I was the first person to stop when a girl on a scooter over-judged where she was going and went face first through a bush and into a fence. She can't have been going more than 40km/h, but the damage to her alone was enough to put me off ever considering a bike.

Sure there are benefits, but one wrong move by another driver, sun strike or other distraction and that could be it. I'll stick with my car that has a 5* ANCAP Safety rating and pay $6 per hour to park in the central city thanks.

kingdragonfly

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#1986375 31-Mar-2018 14:13

$6 per hour x 8 hours/day x 5 days/week x 46 weeks:

over $11,000/year parking

The average yearly income in Auckland is $80,000, so a pretty good percentage for anyone.

This doesn't include lost time waiting in traffic

timbosan

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#1986377 31-Mar-2018 14:16

scottjpalmer: Motorcycle tyres are expensive and don't last anywhere near the km car ones do.

Yes and no - a car has 4 tires, so at $250 each that $1000. My rear tire on my bike is around $500.

As to the age thing, it depends on the bike and how you ride. And how far over you like to lean (which affects the wear pattern).

Aredwood

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#1986378 31-Mar-2018 14:17

CamH:
A couple of weeks ago, I was the first person to stop when a girl on a scooter over-judged where she was going and went face first through a bush and into a fence. She can't have been going more than 40km/h, but the damage to her alone was enough to put me off ever considering a bike.

Sure there are benefits, but one wrong move by another driver, sun strike or other distraction and that could be it. I'll stick with my car that has a 5* ANCAP Safety rating and pay $6 per hour to park in the central city thanks.

Unless you have to drive a forward control van. Some models like the Mitsubishi L300 have such a bad crash safety rating. That riding a motorbike is safer.

I used to have to drive an L300. When I became self employed, crash safety was top of the list when selecting a new van.

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timbosan

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#1986379 31-Mar-2018 14:18

kingdragonfly: So in your example motorcycle registration is $532 versus car $80, or $452 more per year.

I'd heard ACC charged a lot.

I don't understand this comment

"In single car parking spaces (such as those around the viaduct) you can park 1 motorcycle at the end of each space, for free (I check with AT about this)"

Is this what you mean?

I mean like this:

There are islands between each part. AT says that as long as there is only 1 bike in each park and its not blocking the car, its fine to park there.

kingdragonfly

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#1986413 31-Mar-2018 15:46

@timbosan, you might be trying to use a PNG file in your reply.

Geekzone forum seems to only like JPG files.

timbosan

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#1986425 31-Mar-2018 16:28

Thanks @kingdragonfly !!

Attempt 2:

CJC

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#1987760 3-Apr-2018 16:41

Commuted into Wellington on a bike on and off for a couple of years - mostly in summer. The rest of the time I was going by train. After a couple of near misses, kids and a mortgage came along and I found I wasn't riding enough (or at all) to counter the cost of ownership. Registration and insurance being the killers when the bike is just sitting there ...

I'm actually enjoying having someone else drive me to work, so I don't have to deal with the muppets on the road.

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