Trying to decide on a scooter

TheAtomicAss

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It isn't looking good for this year. I've got $6,500 available on a Suzuki card, and very little on my other cards, which I'm hoping to pay off somewhat this year. At best it would be VERY late in the year.

But this begs mention of another problem. I've promised myself I would kick the 4-wheel habit. I sold my truck in January, and took my Pontirag to the junkyard last month, so I'm left with my Ninja, which, in it's current state of tune, is running significantly rich in the low and mid range, and is getting atrocious gas mileage. I also suspect I will be dealing with fouled plugs before too long. Instead of leaving myself stranded when I make a tuning change that results in an immobile bike, I'd like to have a commuter scooter around.

Here's where I stand fiscally: I've got the Suzuki card mentioned above. I'd like to save it for buying a Busa, but I might be swayed. About 1/4 of my average income is taken up by my monthly bills, counting the minimums on the cc's. This is violently flexible, as I've been through 3 jobs in a months time, and have had about 1/2 of my normal income through the month of April. Saving up the balance between what the suz card has and what a Busa costs is pretty much out of the question. I don't have a significant amount of available credit on any of my cards.

So far of 3 scooters I've looked at, 2 are actual honest-to-god scooters.
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The Suzuki SV650S, the Suzuki Burgman 400, and the Yamaha Morphus. Any suggestions on other cheap FI vehicles are welcome, these are just the 3 that jump out and say 'buy me!'.

I know some are going to say, buy used! Save money! No thanks. I'd rather not buy someone's problems.

I like the trunk on the Burgman. It is fuggin' HUGE. Like you could carry a spare drivetrain, under the damn seat kind of huge. The Morphus is kinda hmm, not much trunk space. But it does have a flip up trunk lid behind the seat, which is operated via the ignition key, which is good for some cool points. The SV has NO trunk space. Maybe it'll have enough space for my paperwork. Maybe not. But I do have all those bags on my Ninja... But they don't lock onto the bike.

The Morphus would probably get the best mileage. CVT, 250cc engine, aerodynamics of a seadoo... Yeah, it better get good gas mileage. Don't know for sure though, since it's a new release, so there's not a huge fanbase behind it. The Burgman would probably be next in line, with a 400cc engine, but most people report over 60mpg which is what I was getting on my Ninja last summer. The SV is gonna lose out on gas mileage, because I would be riding to work on one wheel, guaranteed.
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So, help me decide on a useful daily rider? Or try to sway me towards the dark side...
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busa isn't all of the above...sorry, no good on gas, ins, expensive...and the worst part is it will suck you dry to the bone...
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3 jobs in a months time.
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Might want to get that straight before any major purchases. Just my opinion
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Good luck with whatever you decide.
 
get a LOAN!!!!

sounds like to me you don't mind paying bills. If only 1/4 of you monthly income is taken up and unless you make VERY little a busa with 6.5% or so only costs ~$200 a month
 
I did forget to mention the BIG BIG issue, insurance. It's alot. Like more than the payments on a Busa. So collision insurance is a big no-no, but all the loan companies are saying yes-yes!
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Which is why I would either have to pay cash, put all or part of a Busa on credit cards, or use the Suzuki card.

You're right, I don't mind paying bills. That's all I do anymore. My income is usually in the $1200/month range. I work for a temporary agency, (no one will hire me direct and I suspect it has to do with Equifax), so that is part of the reason for the shaky employment. April was especially horrible though, I don't foresee anymore incidents were my income dips below $1K/month.

Now if someone knows where I can get a job as a computer network engineer, that would help greatly...
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Sv650 sounds to me to be best choice. Nice upgrade from the 250 ninja. Lots of aftermarked support for it if you decide to do upgrades later. Still decent gas mileage and not bad on insurance. Plus a great handling biek and fun to play with. Control your right wrist and you will get better gas mileage.
 
Control my right wrist?
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You do realize, of course, that I'm a hooligan?
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And I sat on a 650S today, (Couldn't find any of the non-s models at the dealerships I visited), HOLY SHID that would take some serious getting used to. It seems like from the website the non-S models' bars would be a lot friendlier. I was really reaching when I sat on the S model, and I couldn't flat foot it, either. Felt light though. I took it off the stand and leaned it over a good bit and it felt as light as my Ninja.
 
+1 on the loan. As long as your credit is decent, I don't see why you can't get approved for 11,000 @ 6-7% interest w/ payments around $218-$230/month. But the job thing is something you may want to pay particular attention to. You don't wanna add another debt OBLIGATION on top of your existing debt should something go sour in the next year or so (AND I'M HOPING IT'LL STAY GOOD).

Believe me, The Busa is a lot of fun but not if you're gonna be hurtin for cash and struggling from month to month. NOT WORTH IT IN MY OPINION. It aint the best on gas, tires, parts and sometimes insurance. Getting the Loan will require Full Coverage Insurance. Make sure you got a clean driving record.
 
Whatever I decide on, though, is more than likely to sit out in the rain.  Frequently.  Dunno if I wanna do that with the SV.  I know I wouldn't wanna do that with a Busa.

Make sure you got a clean driving record.[/QUOTE]

Yeah right.
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No chance of that happening.



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I would say grab a second job, bank some money, and car pool until you can crush your debt. Then you have more flexibility.

My girl has me on Opras debt diet, because of my expensive taste.
 
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