andrewrooney

I've wondered why Honda doesn't make the Sonic anymore. The motorcycle taxi drivers and Dek Wan kids all love that bike, seems like they're missing out on a pretty obvious segment of the market. The Suzuki Raider is the only real equivalent being sold now.

Is this for real?

Two Dollar notes?

(rolls eyes) yes, $2 notes are real and legal tender.

Quite aware of that.

I'll clear it up for a couple of posters;

What kind of criminal fool would deal in 2 dollar notes?

A bit bulky I'd say.

Not sure if this is in any way related, but I noticed in Cambodia they like to use US$2 bills a lot. Something about them being good luck?

Maybe this guy had a similar superstition, or maybe some of his money was coming from Cambodia?

Just idle conjecture, obviously, but it is kind of odd.

Is Chuwit still quite pro-Thaksin ? I think he is.

Chuwit is mainly pro-Chuwit.

Honestly I enjoy watching his political campaigns and publicity stunts. Seeing him in parliament was refreshing too, he pushed a lot of people's buttons, etc.

God forbid he's ever put in charge of anything, though.

This is, in effect, another rubber-stamp committee anyhow. Who's on it isn't particularly relevant.

I ran into this issue trying to register a second hand KSR about two years ago. I had the green book with a signed copy of the previous owner's ID card etc. I took it to my closest DLT and they told me they couldn't register it because the tax had lapsed for 5 years. I was told I needed to first go to the last DLT where it was registered (in this case Bang Kun Tien), pay all the back taxes, get a letter saying I had done so, THEN go to the main DLT at Jatujak to get a new green book and plates. I decided it wasn't worth the trouble as the bike was in pretty poor shape, I'd paid barely anything for it, and I figured it was easier just to make sure I had 200 baht on my person whenever riding it. It was never an issue, I think the police always saw the bike and assumed I had no money.

Anyway, that was my experience, of course things may be done differently at your local DLT, who knows.

Mirrors are required, and in Bankok at least it seems that it's even enforced. My wife dropped my Wave backing it out of a parking spot about 6 months ago. Not a scratch on the rest of the bike, but one of the mirrors snapped off. A short time later, before I had time to replace it, a cop stopped me at a checkpoint. He didn't ask for any money, but he told me I needed to replace the broken mirror.

Outside of Bangkok, on the other hand... when I lived in Nakhon Pathom it seems like roughly half of the bikes on the road had no mirrors, and nobody really cared.

There's a thread here already:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/757143-cbr300-vs-ninja-250sl/

Anyway I've got the CBR300 and I'm really happy with it. The ninja sl looks pretty nice too and it's a great price, I haven't seen any reviews from anybody that has one yet as it's just come out.

i dont know why we can buy Honda Dream 125 cc (made in thailand) in Cambodia and only 110 cc in Thailand .

Doesn't the Dream 125 sold in Cambodia have a carburetor? All of Honda's current bikes in Thailand are fuel injected. It could have something to do with Thailand's stricter emission standards and/or the decreased availability of benzine here.

Click is the only fully automatic of the three you mentioned. The Wave and the Dream are both semiautomatic (4 speed manual but no clutch). The Wave is a little nicer than the Dream as it has better suspension and front disk brake.

So for full auto, Click is the one. Yamaha Nouvo or Mio aren't bad either.

I already know these words in Thai, but maybe I can pick up this book so I can learn to cuss in Japanese!

Here's a nice comparison between the CBR300R and the Ninja300...

What's the current cost of the Ninja in Thailand at the moment?

http://therideadvice.com/kawasaki-ninja-300-vs-honda-cbr300r-beginner-sportsbike-comparison/

Ninja 300 price is 182,500 baht according to the Kawasaki website. That's almost 50,000 baht more. You get more power for that definitely but it's a big step up in price.

I actually really like the color schemes they've released for the CBR150 this year (the one in Richard's post). They look pretty nice in my opinion. I've never liked the little stubby pipe though, it'll be good if they change that.

PP ive put CB286 so people dont get confused with the 250 models - maybe it hasnt worked. I know Honda claims it has 300cc in its advertising , and thats maybe confusing too. It isnt. Its closer to a 275 engine and i think a CB 275 sticker on the bike would be more suited. Most 250,s are about 249.6cc but that sticker would look silly !.

I'm surprised by the backlash I've read online concerning Honda calling the CBR300R a "300" when it only has 286cc. I've never seen so many people shocked and indignant over a naming strategy like this before. It's the most ridiculously stupid thing I've read online in a long time. Yet even more surprising is that Honda named the CBR500R a "500" when it only has 471cc. Ironically - in terms of percentages - calling a bike with 471cc a "500" (471/500 = 94%) is even MORE extreme than calling a bike with 286cc a "300" (286/300 = 95%) - yet these same stupid people aren't even smart enough to notice the same issue with the CBR500R.

It is pretty silly, especially since rounding off is done by most bike makers... I haven't seen any of these same posters referring to a "Ninja 296," or a "KTM Duke 373."

Work permit is ok too.

Now that I'm thinking about it, though, I might as well ask... do you think my CBR300 qualifies for "Big Bike" parking at Promenade?

(Apologies in advance for incoming )

I went to this show last year. It wasn't a huge show, only Kawa and Yamaha had decent displays, Suzuki had maybe 3 or 4 bikes and I don't think Honda was even there. A few accessories stands too. If you live close by I'd say it's worth checking out, I wouldn't make the trip across town if you live far away though.

I'll add one more thing. If you have a girl friend and you plan for her to be riding pillion often, then stay away from Kawa. Kawa care not one jot for the comfort of the passenger. In that respect Honda wins hands down.

This was actually a big deciding factor for me. I ride with my wife on the back a lot. I had considered buying the Z250 (2cyl version) but after the two of us sat on both bikes together I went for the CBR.

If 133,000 is just the introductory price, it would be a big mistake for them to raise it now that this cheaper Ninja is out.

Whatever, I've got mine already

Sorry Andrew , already posted. Accelration - Honda 0-60 3-5s ----- Kawasaki 0-60 3-0s. Slightly rounded to20% - really 18%. The prices are in post no 1 of this very thread. Last second edit - what i asked dave was did you not say the Honda was 12 KG heavier ?

So you are comparing to the acceleration of the CBR250, not the 300. Understood.

Not sure where the OP got his CBR300 price, but I paid 133,000 for mine.

If the price of the cbr 250cc or 286cc (which Honda DOES keeps advertising as a "real" 300cc ) is 140 to 145,000 Baht and the Kawasaki is just 121,000 Baht (even less in naked form) then i make that over a 20,000 Baht difference !. It was proved recently that the weight of some Hondas (cbr / cb ?) was over 12 KG heavier than Honda has advertised. The 250cc Ninja has more power and MUCH less (true) weight which helps it accelerate nearly 20 % quicker. Thats important. The 286 engine is simply a re-hash of the flawed 250 engine and im very suprised anyone - even die hard "Honda" fans - are going anywhere near this family (CBR / CB / CRF ) of bikes. People are droping them with serious concerns of the much published faults. Im seeing them advertised for 50 / 60,000 Baht just a few years old. What the final selling price is is anyones guess. I would think the Ninja has tubeless tires. Technicaly the Ninja is in a higher class but i like the color scheme of the Repsol , always did when it was first used on the real CBR,s.Obviosly the 300cc (real) Ninja spanks all these as its aimed at a more racy buyer.

I bought my CBR300 for 133,000 baht. Has Honda raised the price already?

Also I'm not sure where you're getting some of these numbers, especially that bit about the 250cc ninja having more power and accelerating "20% quicker." Unless you're comparing the old 2 cylinder 250 ninja to the old CBR250? That would make sense but it hardly seems relevant here.

Agreed that the Ninja 300 is definitely more powerful than the CBR300 (and at the price, it had better be), but let's not let this thread spiral out of control any more than we have to!

I don't think Honda's are better quality wise than Kawasaki, it's about the same man.

Going on the recent platforms available locally, I think all acknowledge Kawasaki as being far better quality wise.

The 250sl is a new platform, which I don't think has been tested in another bike, unless they've taken it from the KLX!

The CBR comes from the CBR250 which has been reportedly less reliable compared to the Kawasaki small motorcycles.

All acknowledge Kawasaki as being far better quality wise? Really? I'm starting to think you own a Kawa dealership somewhere

I've had my CBR300R for about three months now. I've put 4000km on it and the wheels haven't fallen off or the engine exploded yet, so, so far so good! Although from reading your comments in the CB300F thread I should consider myself lucky I'm still alive

That said the 250sl looks pretty good, and they've definitely managed to hit a great price point. No doubt it will be a fun bike. The only sticking point for me is the size. I saw them at the Central World bike show and they simply look too small for me. So, I guess I'll stick with my Honda, despite it only being 286cc and widely acknowledged as a poorly made deathtrap.

I've been thinking about taking this course.

Do they have courses every day or is it something you have to schedule in advance?

And by the way what are you fellows talking about 'changing the oil' or complaining about smoking? Its a two-stroke fellows, it is supposed to smoke. If it isn't smoking there is something wrong. Just keep the oil reservoir full and these old Tenas will last you many, many years.

By 'changed the oil' I meant the gear oil, probably should have clarified that.

I realize a two stroke is supposed to smoke, but not the way this bike did! It was like a house on fire. It was like James Bond's Aston Martin, but not in the good way. Any Catholics living within 5 miles thought that Rome had failed to elect a new pope whenever I drove by.

Anyway I'm not trying to knock your bikes, if they're running well for you that's great. As I said I think two strokes are a lot of fun, and if they've been properly maintained for the life of the bike I don't doubt they can last a very long time. The problem is a very large number of older bikes haven't been well maintained, and unless OP has the patience and free time to tinker with that Tena I think he'd be better served spending a few thousand more on a Wave or something similar.

A Thai motorcycle license is good for any sized bike. They don't have a tiered licensing system here.

Has the tax lapsed for 6 years? If that's the case, yes, you have to go to the last place it was registered.