I bought the m50 for my first bike not that long ago so I'll share my thoughts. Consider carefully the kind of riding you want to do. If you are just gonna tootle around town, you can't go wrong with any of your listed choices. If you plan on doing longer rides and/or highway riding, having the floorboards on the c50 will probably be more comfortable and you will absolutely want a windshield which i think is standard on the c50. Between the c50 and m50 get whichever appeals to you more. Saddlebags are convenient if you plan on riding daily or long rides where you'll want to be able to carry rain or other emergency gear with you.
As far as the s40 goes, there's no doubt that a smaller and cheaper bike is safer for a beginner, but you will want to upgrade after a couple thousand miles and the c50/m50 are not too much bike for average beginners. I put roughly 1000 miles a month on my bike and get on the hwy 2-3 times week and I definitely feel ready for something bigger.
Other than that, the only thing you mentioned that I would argue against is buying new for a first bike. You will make mistakes and your pretty new toy will get scratched/dented/dinged. It was more a budgetary constraint than choice but I'm glad I bought used. Of course it's your money so do what you like.

 

Any help or insights would be greatly appreciated!

My personal opinion is that nobody should finance their "toys"; more specifically, no first time rider should finance a BRAND NEW bike.

You will know more about your needs after the course but the standard advice is that your first bike should be:
Used.
Relatively inexpensive (cash if possible)
Relatively small
Not a lot of plastic body work

A used S40 would be good if it fits your body size good.
Then 6 months or a year down the road, you can trade it in and lose little of nothing off your original purchase price.

 

You should tell us of your build. If you're 6' 6", you'd look funny on an S40. Also, there's plenty of 50's out there used for reasonable pricing that would be more cost effective than buying new. You don't want to buy a new S40. You'll outgrow it too fast and lose chunks of bucks. It's not really a good ride for interstate travelling, if you wanted to do that. There's also a lot of Vulcans to be had reasonably and that's another good choice.

 

I'm 6'2" and 250 lbs. So by no means am I a small person.

I am also not trying to consider this a "toy." My only other mode of transportation is a car I do not own, but rather was given (along with its payment and ridiculous insurance). I am rather young and still live with my parents.

I was also planning on paying off the bike within the first year and a half at most. Helping to build my dismal credit while also having my own vehicle should I have to find another residency.

This is what is fostering my concern over the S40 being to small. Although the bigger bikes may take longer than 1.5 years to be fully paid.

Although I will keep an eye out for a used bike.

 

I am also not trying to consider this a "toy."

Although the bigger bikes may take longer than 1.5 years to be fully paid.

It takes a really rugged individual to have a bike as his ONLY transportation.....riding through rain and cold is no fun, dark even too.
Where do you live ??

Given your size, an M50, small Vulcan, Shadow 600 or 750, Vstar 650 or 950 might all be good choices.......USED.

 

Your size says "no" to the S40. Believe me, you won't fit on it comfortably. If you really need to borrow against a bike, find a decent price used one and get a 3 year loan. All the choices Easy stated are good picks and good prices can be found. Don't buy a cheap one as it may come with issues. Find a rider not a sitter. Older bikes with low miles tend to have issues pop up and sideline you. If you go to buy from someone, tell them you want to check out a cold bike. A seller may warm up a hard starting bike to make it seem like an easy start. If they're confident in their bike, they won't need to pre start it before you arrive. You'll also have fewer issues if you get a fuel injected bike as opposed to carbureted. Tires are date coded, so check them out. Four digits clearly stated. The 1st 2 are the week and the 2nd 2 are the year. The code is near the rim, not towards the tread. If the tires are 5 years or older, you can use that as a bargaining chip to lower the price. Expect to pay between $250-$400 for tires and labor depending on what you buy, but exceeding $300 should be avoided as most of these bikes have reasonably priced tires, the rest is labor. Tread means nothing to a tire, it's age before beauty no matter what the seller says or how good they look. Riding on bad or old tires is dangerous. When you find a ride, come here and tell us about it before you buy, we'll help you make a wise choice.

 

After doing a quick search for the C50 (seems to be more my style) I noticed a couple that have 5000 miles, 15000 miles, 22000 miles and 45000 miles. As you stated the 5000 mile one would be one to avoid, but what about the 22000 mile and the 45000 mile one? Are those to used? Or would it be based upon actually seeing the bike and taking a ride?

 

Put years with miles. 5000 is ok if it's a newer bike. 45,000 is out because you can do better. 15000 is ok mileage if the bike is well maintained. 22000 can be iffy, but not so much out if price and condition play a good part. C50 is definitely a good choice and also fuel injected. But throw some years and prices on each and we'll go from there.

 

Put years with miles. 5000 is ok if it's a newer bike.

Even if it's "older" but the miles were put on consistently.

The only ones to shy away from are ones that have " been in storage for 5 years".

 

I bought my first bike last month. It's a 2005 s50. I took the course last weekend and after having my Temps for only a month I got my license. I feel myself wanting a bugger bike already like stated above. However it's still a fun bike and I love it. Not to mention she still scoots when my gf is on it with me. I agree with other posters. I wouldn't finance a brand new bike for your first bike unless you have riding experience. And I recommend getting a bike before your class so your not one of those people who barely make it through the course because your afraid to get out of first gear.

 

. And I recommend getting a bike before your class so your not one of those people who barely make it through the course because your afraid to get out of first gear.

This hasn't been the case in my experience. Roughly half the people in my class were complete newbies and most of them passed the class. Most of the people who failed the class had riding experience.
I think better advice would be: Listen to and follow your course instructor's advice and you will do fine.

 

Easy rider is right. 5k miles on an older bike isn't so bad, so long as the guy rode it somewhat consistently.

You don't want one that sat for months at a time until he rode it 700 miles to sturgis and back. That's not consistent, daily rider or weekend warriors are what you need to find. Mine is more of a weekend warrior, ride it every weekend plus the occasional commute to work. 14k miles on it bought it with 2k on it three years ago. So, 12k in three years. 4k a year average.

The ones that sit for months at a time will eat your lunch on repair bills. If it has been "in storage" for a year or more, pass it up. Move on. Don't even bother. Great advice there from easy rider.




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Easy rider is right.

Thanks for the vote of confidence !! :bluethum:

 

Of course it's true that a consistently ridden bike is ok. The problem is how many sellers are going to admit that their bike has been sitting. Initially when I stated low mile bikes, I was referring to finding like a 10 year old bike with let's say around 1000 miles, for example. There's no way that bike would be consistently ridden. That's why I asked for years on these choices. I've read of widows that are finally ready to give up their deceased husband's bike that he stopped riding years before he passed and then she waited years to sell it. An honest ad, but a questionable choice for purchase. Bikes in the snow belt don't get ridden every month although the owners would probably want to ride them. Many of them don't winterize the bike and create issues. Since the OP is in California, most likely, he'll have a good chance of finding a consistently ridden bike.

 

So my next question is, should I be looking at the Kawasaki Vulcan 900 along with the C50? or would you guys advise staying away from Kawasaki?

 

Kawasaki is a great brand. They make good quality bikes IMO. The Vulcan 900 is a fantastic bike and great value.

It's a little bit bigger ergonomically than my m50. If you're short don't get the 900 custom, it has forward pegs that are a bit of a reach for the vertically challenged. Ask easy rider, he knows.

The 900 classic LT I believe comes with floor boards so that could be an option for a bit more comfort on longer runs. Bottom line...don't ignore the kawis. They're solid bikes. Good power too, and that's always nice. [emoji6]


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Yes, it's a good choice. Did you come up with years and prices on the C's you mentioned earlier?

 

I found a 2013 C50T with 5.8K miles for $7500.
a 2008 C50 with 17K miles for just under $5000
and a 2008 C50T with almost 8K miles for just under $7000

I guess before I didn't ask the correct question, so how many miles does an average rider put on their bike if they're riding it consistently?

 

Do you want the touring package or what? If so, I'd go for the newer C50T. Around the same miles, close to the same price but you get a much newer bike. Easier resale when you go to upgrade in the future. The 2013 might even still have a warranty. Look into that.


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A lot depends on location. Some people can ride 12 months a year. Those that can't or won't should winterize their bikes. I tend to ride mine when I can in the winter, so I don't winterize. The mileage on your choices are good choices although I feel that the '08 for $7000 may be too high, especially when you list a 5 year newer same model with less miles for only $500 more. If you like that '13, that's a great choice if you can get them to drop some bucks for you. Any bank or credit union will give you a reasonable interest rate and 4 year term for a bike that new. $7000 for 4 years at 6% is roughly $165 a month. My credit union offers better rates, but I threw an average in to show you what could be borrowed. The older you go, the less term and higher interest they'll go. That '13 fits the bill, but doesn't mean you should jump right on it. Do a book values check and see what averages are.

 

Blue book value on the '13 is $5600 retail. I doubt you'll get the seller to come down that much, but if other people are doing the math, they're not buying either. Is that a dealer or private seller? If you could get at least to low 6's, you will have a nice bike for many years. The '08's are under $4000, so no lending institution will lend you that much and they don't care too much about what's been added as far as increasing value. Most mods gain very little in retail value.

 

I'm looking for a short term loan. Or at least one where there isn't a penalty for paying it off early. When I first started looking I allotted myself about $400 a month just for payment on the bike. So paying it off quickly to cut down on interest payments was a major factor when I had initially decided to opt for a new bike (Suzuki's 0% interest deal with no penalty for paying it off early sounded amazing).

I also face the problem of banking with U.S. Bank, who doesn't lend to anybody unless they have phenomenal credit (and having just started building credit I'm only at a mid to high 600's), so a dealership's finances also sounded pretty great.

But as I'm relatively new to this financing deal and plan to do much more research, I may find that my assumptions are incorrect to how things are done. So I may be worrying for no reason.

As for the touring package, I planned to buy saddle bags and a backrest for when my girlfriend rides along. And a windshield is nice as well.

 

(Suzuki's 0% interest deal with no penalty for paying it off early sounded amazing).

OK, so here's how that usually works:
It's only for current year models and you usually pay MSRP plus dealer add-ons; that is, NO discount.
AND those deals are usually only available to those with really good credit too.

I terms of total dollars spent, often the only deal WORSE than 0% is a lease.

 

You won't get 0% with a 600 range score. They require 700's. I personally know this from Suzuki's lenders. I had a glitch on my application that the lenders thought I had a 690 score, but was actually a 760. High 600's will get you 2.99%. Having $400 a month would get you a decent rate. Join a credit union, they'll treat you better than most banks.
What about the '13? Dealer or private?

 

That's a dealer

What would a good down payment be? I currently have just shy of $1000, should I save up more for a bigger one?

 

No, that's a good down payment, but since that's a dealer price, it needs to come down. They're asking more than it's worth and even if there's some extras beyond stock, the value doesn't add up like new. Let's say that there's a $600 pipe install. It's not worth $600 anymore and you might not like it, so don't pay for it. I'm guessing this dealer is at least $1000 over taking price. If it was traded in, he probably didn't offer more than $5000 to the trader and didn't take anything off the new purchase. He may only have $4000 into the bike and is hoping to make $2000 clear. This is just speculation on my part but dealer's don't give a retail value for a trade and that bike retails for $5600 right now. I would first ask exactly what will they will take for the bike. If nothing significant comes off, then walk away, because that price is too high. If it's a decent shop and he drops like $800, offer a lower price and see what they say. Don't use your down payment as a bargaining chip because that only helps him get you the financing by bringing the price closer to the value.

 

Wanted to throw this in there for anyone lurking. My wife and I both went through the MSF Basic Rider Course in the last year and we were both new to motorcycles. We ended up getting her an S40 and me an M50.

She's 5'4" with stubby little legs and not physically strong. The s40 is narrow with a low seat. So she fits comfortably on the bike and can stop flat-foot with both feet at a stop. The s40 is also only about 40-50 lbs heavier than the 250cc bikes used in the class.

I'm 5'10" so the M50 fits me a little better with a slightly higher seat and "fatter" bike. I can easily flat-foot both feet at stops. The m50 is almost 200 lbs heavier than the s40 however, it has a low center of gravity which makes a difference when you compare it to to lighter but more top-heavy bikes like the VStar 650/9xx/1100.

I agree with the other posts regarding a used bike for your first bike, unless you have money to throw away, are given a bike, or can find some way to make financing the overall less expensive result due to financing or what have you.

Remember the OP is in Southern California. Work on a cost of living calculator is going to show his cost of living, including transportation, is generally going to be higher than for the rest of us in the U.S.

Otherwise, plenty of good advice from other posters here.

 

I found a 2009 Vulcan 900 LT with 12000 miles for just over $5000. Is this a little to used?

 

Nope, but need a few bucks off. If it's in great condition, it's not too far off. Check the age of the tires. They won't be original with those miles, but could be close to replacement age. Vulcans are good bikes. I wouldn't pay more than $4000, but that's a hunch without seeing the details. Easy knows a bunch about that model.

 

I'd say you hit it right on the head. :bluethum:

As with all used bikes, ASK if it's been wrecked (don't assume) and also ask what "mods" have been made.
If any changes to the pipes or air intake or fuel controller........keep looking.

 

I bought a 2007 C50 and commuted on it for almost 2 years; no vehicle, just the bike, here in north Texas. I'm 5', 5". The bike's 800cc engine will give you enough GO for the most part.
It is also a forgiving bike as you familiarize yourself with its "personality"

After almost 8 years I traded it in for a Moto Guzzi California 1400 Custom. You could say I "upgraded".

I had no windshield - and still don't on the new bike. After a while you just grow used to that.

At your height you might be just this side of high knees while riding - I'd consider some highway foot bars to allow you to stretch your legs.

Alternatives to the C50/M50 could be Vulcan, Triumph Speedmaster or America; Honda's Shadow Phantom is also a decent alternative.

The most apt advice to take away here is, if this is your very first motorcycle, consider finding a used bike on which to get your first miles.
Except in rare exceptions, it's not a question of "IF" you will lay your bike down, but when.

In my case it was almost 2 years owning the C50: Riding to work one February morning. Cold and wet, doing about 7 miles per hour down the alley from my house. Some run-off mud made my front wheel slip out from under me. Down I went in a very slow slide (I was trying to stay upright with my feet sliding along in the mud.
In the end a minor scratch to the handlebar where it fell on its side with my still on it.

So gear up proper and don't look back.

Oh, and be sure to post pics once you get which ever ride you choose.

 

This should probably be in a separate thread, but I'll just ask here.

What at is your guys advice on helmets? Any particular brands that stand above the rest? Or at least styles?

And the same for a jacket/vest. I was originally planning on buying one of those vests that has some serious spinal coverage and just using one of my jackets on top. Is that feasible or should I just buy a motorcycle jacket?

Edit: In regards to the '13 C50 and dropping the price to low 6000s, does that include dealer fees and such (as an out the door price) or before the taxes and fees?

 

Edit: In regards to the '13 C50 and dropping the price to low 6000s, does that include dealer fees and such (as an out the door price) or before the taxes and fees?

The price advertised, quoted or put on a tag on the bike should include EVERYTHING except government fees (sales tax, tags and title).

If it does not, go elsewhere.
A real OTD price is good too but that almost never happens.

Not all dealers try to cheat you by being deceptive. But it seems like a lot of them do.

 

So I went to look at the C50T and it seems like there are age spots on the seat (small brown spots), a scratch on the fuel tank (not super noticeable, but definitely noticeable. Kinda like having a hair on your phone's screen), and the saddlebags seem to be a little saggy. I don't know if that is normal or not but they seem to have had weight on top of them and have gotten a flatter.

I should've taken some pictures but I wasn't thinking straight and was too overwhelmed by motorcycles. Haha.

The salesman was actually pretty rude but did say the bike has been there a while. The registration sticker on the bike expired in 2014, so it has been there a while.

I was planning to use this all to my advantage with a call to the dealership a little later expressing my disappointment in their service. I can't imagine them not trying to make a deal on a bike that's been there for so long.