Top Five Things to Consider When Buying a Motorcycle

You’ve removed the training school high-vis for the last time, you’ve stripped your bike of the L plates and sweating nervously in the test centre waiting room will soon be a distant memory – now the real riding fun begins! But where do you start?

It’s very easy to spend your hard-earned pennies on the newest, shiniest bike money can buy but, here’s Triumph’s guide on the top five things to consider when buying a motorcycle.

1. Servicing & Maintenance

To maintain reliability and prolong the lifespan of your new bike, it will need to undergo regular servicing, therefore service and maintenance costs are certainly something that needs to be considered. Think about your mileage – what sort of riding will you be doing? It’s easy to get throttle-happy when enjoying your time in the saddle and before you know if your leisurely Sunday morning ride has turned into a 200-mile round trip.

Find out the service intervals for the models you’re interested in – does this suit your future riding? Various Triumph models offer a class-leading low cost of ownership, including the new Tiger Sport 660 and the Trident 660 which have 10,000 mile service intervals.

Whichever model you choose, Triumph offer a labour-free ‘running in’ service with any brand new bike – you’ll just have to pay for the parts used.

You can use the Online Service Booker to get a good estimate of costs.

Triumph Total Care is a service that offers a premium range of services and products, including service plans. A service plan is an easy and stress-free way to help manage your future servicing costs. After choosing a plan that’s tailored to your riding you make monthly payments that will contribute towards up to 30 months of worry-free future servicing, allowing you to sit in your local dealer and enjoy your coffee whilst the bike is on the ramp.

2. Extended Warranty

The warranty options available on your motorcycle is a key factor to consider when purchasing your next bike.

New Triumph motorcycles come with a two-year unlimited mileage warranty. This means that you have peace of mind knowing that, should any issues arise, only Triumph genuine parts will be used and the work will be carried out by a Triumph trained technician. They also offer an optional Triumph Factory Extended Warranty, available to purchase through your local Triumph dealer, where you can add a further one or two years’ reassurance on top of the standard two year warranty to put your mind at ease – even more relevant if you rack up some extra miles.

3. Insurance

The one thing that we all need and hopefully never have to use, motorcycle insurance is a necessity that comes at a price – more so if you’re a new rider.

The factors to consider when arranging insurance for your new bike include what will your estimated annual mileage be? Will you ride all year round? Will you be taking a pillion? All these questions need answering and will affect the premium.

Triumph insurance has been developed to meet the needs of Triumph riders so you’re in good hands.

To ensure the level of cover is accurate be sure to declare all of the Triumph genuine accessories you’ve had fitted to the bike before taking delivery – should the worst happen you don’t want to lose out.

4. Equipment and clothing

At this stage of your riding journey, you’ll have a little knowledge of motorcycle clothing - whether that’s the ‘nicely worn in’ jacket borrowed from the training school or the trousers you’ve picked up cheap until you’ve passed your test.

Now you have your shiny new A licence in your wallet it’s time to invest in some proper kit.

High quality motorcycle specific clothing isn’t cheap, and that’s for good reason. It is designed and rigorously tested to protect the most important thing in a crash – you.

Don’t cut corners with your investment in helmets, gloves, trousers and jackets. These items protect the most common parts of the body to hit the ground first so it’s worth spending a little extra and getting some proper kit.

On top of that, consider will you be riding all year round, what are the weather implications? Getting cold and wet can affect your riding just as much as getting too hot. Think about wind chill – this will reduce your body temperature. Will you be riding at night? Think about being seen. If you’ve fallen for the beautiful leather jacket you tried on in the showroom, consider a reflective vest to wear over the top when riding in worse conditions. It may not be the coolest thing to wear but being visible is key.

Each piece of Triumph motorcycle clothing from the male and female ranges is designed to suit the style of your motorcycle and conforms to the European technical specification required to be awarded with CE certification

5. Security

Your shiny new bike is guaranteed to attract attention but unfortunately, some of this may be unwanted.

You can’t guarantee the safety of your bike once you’ve parked up and walked away so it’s worth taking extra precautions to prevent it from going missing. Triumph offers a range of security devices including a Datatag Security System that will come fitted to your brand new bike for no extra charge. On top of this, accessory security options range from a variety of locks to alarms and tracking systems to keep your pride and joy safe, which can all potentially help with the cost of insurance.