Ninja 250R - bad investment with license changes coming?

blacknosugar

Hi

I'm thinking of getting a recent or maybe even new Ninja 250r as my first bike, but will the license changes mean no one will want a 33bhp bike if I want to sell it on next year? Or will there still be a market considering high insurance costs in Ireland?

Thoughts?

Thanks!

daenerysstormborn3

I'd say there'll still be a market even regardless of insurance costs. There will always be people who want to start small, even smaller than 250cc.

chrismon

What new laws?

goodlad

I would also like to know what new laws.

gipi

From 2013 a new category will be added to licences for bikers - A2, with a higher restriction limit.

Here's the thread on it

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056549705

Kev.OC

blacknosugar wrote: »

Hi

I'm thinking of getting a recent or maybe even new Ninja 250r as my first bike, but will the license changes mean no one will want a 33bhp bike if I want to sell it on next year? Or will there still be a market considering high insurance costs in Ireland?

Thoughts?

Thanks!

I hope not! I only have my Ninja 250R 6 months! :eek:

FGR

Hang on Hand on..A2 with a higher restriction limit. So here's me on my Full A licence with 2 year restriction. Will I be entitled to drive on a more powerful bike?

dunner515

ForegoneReality wrote: »

Hang on Hand on..A2 with a higher restriction limit. So here's me on my Full A licence with 2 year restriction. Will I be entitled to drive on a more powerful bike?

Thats actually a really good question, I'd like to know that myself

positron

I have a fresh full A license as well, and about 1.9 yrs of restriction to go, but I don't think they would apply the limits retrospectively, so I may have to do the 2 yr restriction by the old laws - I am just guessing.

Reading the PDF, there will be these restrictions for doing your driving test:

AM - less than 50cc, less than 45 kmph, mopeds
A1 - 120 to 400cc, <25 kW and <90 kmph.
A2 - 400 to 600cc, >25 kW and <40 kW and no mention of speed limit
A - 600cc and above, >40 kW

Does this mean you need all these various machines to do various tests as your progress thru the levels (assuming one wants to).


PS: Just want to add this is NOT the definition of the new classes, it's just the restriction of what bike you can use for your practical test. So like Kev.OC pointed out below, you could still drive whatever (a1 < 25kW, a2 < 35kW), but for practical tests, follow the above guideline. It sounds a bit strange - I hope I am wrong in reading it this way.

FGR

That sounds absolutely horrible. Especially the 90kph limit on an A1.

I'm hoping that the Dept of Transport might see some sense in retrospectively allowing those with restricted full licences to apply for the 'new' A licence restriction once the new categories come into being.

Either that or they'll be printing out special driving licences with the old restriction listed on them for us.

If they do the latter it'll be funny considering that a learner-A driver will be able to drive a more powerful bike than someone who's passed the A test.

Kev.OC

positron wrote: »

I have a fresh full A license as well, and about 1.9 yrs of restriction to go, but I don't think they would apply the limits retrospectively, so I may have to do the 2 yr restriction by the old laws - I am just guessing.

Rightly or wrongly that's also my understanding of it. Anyone going for their licences after the commencement of the new regulations will be subjected to the terms of those regulations, but anyone already working through their 2 year restriction will just carry on as usual.

Does this mean you need all these various machines to do various tests as your progress thru the levels (assuming one wants to).

This is an interesting question. I imagine one could do it on an instructors bike, if indeed you need to drive four different bikes in a relatively short period.

Alkers

positron wrote: »

I have a fresh full A license as well, and about 1.9 yrs of restriction to go, but I don't think they would apply the limits retrospectively, so I may have to do the 2 yr restriction by the old laws - I am just guessing.

Reading the PDF, there will be these restrictions for doing your driving test:

AM - less than 50cc, less than 45 kmph, mopeds
A1 - 120 to 400cc, <25 kW and <90 kmph.
A2 - 400 to 600cc, >25 kW and <40 kW and no mention of speed limit
A - 600cc and above, >40 kW

Does this mean you need all these various machines to do various tests as your progress thru the levels (assuming one wants to).

SV 650 (popular with restricted licenses) won't be allowed to be driven by learners due to the 600cc cap :mad:

gilman9955

I started on an sv650 a great bike !!!!

positron

Kev.OC wrote: »

Rightly or wrongly that's also my understanding of it. Anyone going for their licences after the commencement of the new regulations will be subjected to the terms of those regulations, but anyone already working through their 2 year restriction will just carry on as usual.

Reading the PDF again (!!) point (g) of page 7 & 8 says this:

by substituting for Regulation 14 the following:
“14. (1) Subject to paragraph (2), a person granted a driving licence
for the first time on or after 19 January 2013 to drive vehicles in category
A is, until a period of having held a driving licence in the category
for 2 years, restricted to driving only those vehicles in that category
8 [483]
which have a power output not exceeding 35 kW, a power/weight ratio
not exceeding 0.2kW/kg or not derived from a vehicle of more than
double its power.
(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply to a person issued with a certificate
of competency to drive vehicles in category A on or prior to 18
January 2015.”,

So all current provisional holders (and current restricted A holders I would imagine) fall into this category, and the A2 and related laws doesn't apply to them. That's my reading of it anyways, unless there's another statement somewhere else that alters the meaning completely, which is probable..! Horrible horrible legal documents..!!

gipi

Positron,

I think you're correct - The bit you've bolded means that the new categories don't apply to anyone who's passed their A category test on or before 18/1/2015 (and doesn't appear to exclude those still on restriction on that date).

Kev.OC

positron wrote: »

So all current provisional holders (and current restricted A holders I would imagine) fall into this category, and the A2 and related laws doesn't apply to them. That's my reading of it anyways, unless there's another statement somewhere else that alters the meaning completely, which is probable..! Horrible horrible legal documents..!!

gipi wrote: »

Positron,

I think you're correct - The bit you've bolded means that the new categories don't apply to anyone who's passed their A category test on or before 18/1/2015 (and doesn't appear to exclude those still on restriction on that date).

God I hate reading legal documents. I'm open to correction, but the way I now understand it is this;

Someone issued a licence before the 19th of January 2013 is subjected to the current restriction of a bike not exceeding 25kW (or is it 26kW?) or a power to weight ratio of 0.16kW/kg.

Someone issued a licence between the 19th of January 2013 and the 18th of January 2015 is restricted to a bike not exceeding 35kW or a power to weight ratio of 0.2kW/kg.

Someone issued a licence after the 19th of January 2015 will have to jump through the extra hoops the RSA is setting up.