How practical is an Electric motorbike?

[dj230]

i guess im getting a honda wave, thanks ????

 

also are popping wheelies illegal here? if not i may have to get a motorcycle

Edited August 17, 2021 by dj230

[scubascuba3]

10 minutes ago, dj230 said:

i guess im getting a honda wave, thanks ????

 

also are popping wheelies illegal here? if not i may have to get a motorcycle

you don't want a fully automatic twist and go?

[dj230]

6 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

you don't want a fully automatic twist and go?

wait a second the honda wave isn't automatic? i thought all motorbikes were lol 

 

brand new one is like 30000 baht for the 110cc which is not bad, 60000 for the 125cc, quite a huge price difference for 15cc's

Edited August 17, 2021 by dj230

[scubascuba3]

10 minutes ago, dj230 said:

wait a second the honda wave isn't automatic? i thought all motorbikes were lol 

 

brand new one is like 30000 baht for the 110cc which is not bad, 60000 for the 125cc, quite a huge price difference for 15cc's

Go for the Click 125i or 150i, very good bikes, fully automatic. I've had 125i for 4 years and still enjoy riding it, perfect for around town, plus i use it from Pattaya to Sattahip, 4 years is worth 25k-30k, new is 55k i think

Edited August 17, 2021 by scubascuba3

[dj230]

19 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

Go for the Click 125i or 150i, very good bikes, fully automatic. I've had 125i for 4 years and still enjoy riding it, perfect for around town, plus i use it from Pattaya to Sattahip, 4 years is worth 25k-30k, new is 55k i think

I'll check that out, once I get a 1 year visa and commit to being in thailand, i'll definitely get a motorbike

motorbikes seem kind of pricey though for what you get (a 250cc motorcycle is about the same price in canada as a 125cc motorbike), especially brand new, is there a honda dealership that sells "pre-owned", I'd rather buy from a dealership than some bike shop 

Edited August 17, 2021 by dj230

[impulse]

6 hours ago, dj230 said:

The Niu bikes aren't too expensive, they're brand new too and I figured' saving on gas/maintenance would make up for some of the costs. I most likely would just be travelling locally (in bangkok, down maybe 25km trip max)

 

I was going to just get an electric scooter like a "glion" (the one you stand on) but they're almost the same price as an electric motorbike

I've got a Niu e-scooter in China.  (U- Model) No way I'd use it on Thai roads.  It's nowhere near fast enough to keep up with traffic.  Honest range is about 20-30km, but they do have premium batteries and more expensive models than mine with a longer range.  I use mine as my primary around town transport in China, but they have a much better developed bicycle culture and dedicated bike lanes on just about every local street.  Thailand, not so much.

 

I had 3 e-bikes in Thailand, and they were fine used as bicycles that help you go further with less effort.  But they were definitely bicycles and not suitable for being in traffic.  LA Bicycles was probably the best bet at the time, though there's more selection now than 8-10 years ago when I bought my LA 24" 6 Speed.  (A model that seems to have been discontinued)

 

http://www.labicyclegroup.com/product-EN/2

 

Short answer... If you want a scooter to get around, go gasoline.  If you want a bicycle with electric assist, keep in mind it's a bicycle and not for traffic.  The big issue with Niu e-scooters (though I love mine) is that it's neither a traffic capable scooter, nor a bicycle.  Unless Niu has come up with something more powerful than their N series.  Which is faster and more range than my U series, but still not traffic compatible.

One more caveat...  Make sure you can get registration and (more importantly) insurance on your e-scooter if you're planning on playing in traffic.  You're not immune from a humungous hospital bill if you have an accident.

Edit:  Forgot to mention...  I always took the battery inside to charge my Niu.   Eezy Peezy.  And you wouldn't catch me dead on one of those tiny wheeled standup scooters in Thailand.  The roads are too rough.

 

 

Edited August 17, 2021 by impulse

[dj230]

5 minutes ago, impulse said:

I've got a Niu e-scooter in China.  (U- Model) No way I'd use it on Thai roads.  It's nowhere near fast enough to keep up with traffic.  Honest range is about 20-30km, but they do have premium batteries and more expensive models than mine with a longer range.  I use mine as my primary around town transport in China, but they have a much better developed bicycle culture and dedicated bike lanes on just about every local street.  Thailand, not so much.

 

I had 3 e-bikes in Thailand, and they were fine used as bicycles that help you go further with less effort.  But they were definitely bicycles and not suitable for being in traffic.  LA Bicycles was probably the best bet at the time, though there's more selection now than 8-10 years ago when I bought my LA 24" 6 Speed.  (A model that seems to have been discontinued)

 

http://www.labicyclegroup.com/product-EN/2

 

Short answer... If you want a scooter to get around, go gasoline.  If you want a bicycle with electric assist, keep in mind it's a bicycle and not for traffic.  The big issue with Niu e-scooters (though I love mine) is that it's neither a traffic capable scooter, nor a bicycle.  Unless Niu has come up with something more powerful than their N series.  Which is faster and more range than my U series, but still not traffic compatible.

One more caveat...  Make sure you can get registration and (more importantly) insurance on your e-scooter if you're planning on playing in traffic.  You're not immune from a humungous hospital bill if you have an accident.

Edit:  Forgot to mention...  I always took the battery inside to charge my Niu.   Eezy Peezy.  And you wouldn't catch me dead on one of those tiny wheeled standup scooters in Thailand.  The roads are too rough.

 

 

yea i noticed the niu scooters don't go too fast, so I am thinking gasoline is the way to go

 

thanks for the reply, i was always wondering what it was like having a niu scooter

 

also thanks for the reminder, I definitely will get insurance/registration, a huge con about riding a motorbike is if you crash, chances are you'll be severely injured. I'll just be using the scooter to get around short distances, fairly safely/slowly, no long trips for me. I figured a Niu scooter would be fine for that, but Im a bit skeptical how well it would keep up in traffic.

 

Can you use a slower motorbike like the Niu on the "side" of the road (kind of like as if there was a bike lane)? That would be ideal as I'd like to stay away from cars as much as possible. It's why I had in mind to get those stand up scooters, was going to use it on the sidewalks.

 

Had a motorcycle in Canada and gave it up because of how dangerous they can be, one wrong move from the guy next to you or behind you and you're gone forever. 

 

[impulse]

14 minutes ago, dj230 said:

I figured a Niu scooter would be fine for that, but Im a bit skeptical how well it would keep up in traffic.

If Thailand had bike lanes, I'd jump all over a Niu scooter.  They have great technology and the quality seems very good.   But not for keeping up with traffic.

 

If I were staying (for example) in a hotel in Kanchanaburi, I'd love to have a Niu scooter to get back and forth between the hotel and the Bridge.  Not much traffic, a short distance, and a clear road.  And fine for some very local errands around BKK.  But nowhere near the flexibility of a proper gas scooter.

 

Not to mention, you can buy a 2nd hand gas scooter for peanuts.

Edited August 17, 2021 by impulse

[Airalee]

11 minutes ago, dj230 said:

Can you use a slower motorbike like the Niu on the "side" of the road (kind of like as if there was a bike lane)? That would be ideal as I'd like to stay away from cars as much as possible.

There are no “bike lanes”.  Shoulders on crowded Bangkok freeways are used as just another lane.  Shoulders on rural country roads can have people traveling on a motorbike in the opposite direction…sometimes with a side cart attached.  City streets will have people double and triple parked next to a night market while the owner runs to his favorite food stall to get his evening.

 

if you have to ask so many questions and overthink it….take a taxi.

[Airalee]

15 minutes ago, dj230 said:

Had a motorcycle in Canada and gave it up because of how dangerous they can be, one wrong move from the guy next to you or behind you and you're gone forever. 

 

If you thought Canada was dangerous, you haven’t seen anything yet.  Those “one wrong moves” happen quite frequently here.

[impulse]

18 minutes ago, Airalee said:

If you thought Canada was dangerous, you haven’t seen anything yet.  Those “one wrong moves” happen quite frequently here.

Do you have any evidence that a km on a scooter in Thailand is more dangerous than a km on a scooter in Canada?

 

I looked for scooter fatality data in Thailand for many years, and never found any.  Just a number lumping all traffic fatalities per population.  Nothing breaking it down per km, much less breaking out scooters, cars, trucks and pedestrians.

 

[Orinoco]

1 hour ago, dj230 said:

wait a second the honda wave isn't automatic? i thought all motorbikes were lol 

 

brand new one is like 30000 baht for the 110cc which is not bad, 60000 for the 125cc, quite a huge price difference for 15cc's

Honda Click  twist and go

Honda wave ,semi automatic, ( step through) no hand clutch.

both good to  ride

 

PS,  Roads are deadly over here, you need to  be on full high alert all the time when riding or driving.

its no joke.

 

Edited August 17, 2021 by Orinoco

[Airalee]

2 minutes ago, impulse said:

Do you have any evidence that a km on a scooter in Thailand is more dangerous than a km on a scooter in Canada?

 

I looked for scooter fatality data in Thailand for many years, and never found any.  Just a number lumping all traffic fatalities per population.  Nothing breaking it down per km, much less breaking out scooters, cars, trucks and pedestrians.

 

How often do you see people driving down the opposite side of the road in Canada like you would here?  I would posit that riding a motorbike on the shoulder of a road in Canada is far safer than here and don’t really need to see a government statistic to tell me what I see with my own eyes here in Thailand.

[Airalee]

7 minutes ago, impulse said:

Do you have any evidence that a km on a scooter in Thailand is more dangerous than a km on a scooter in Canada?

 

I looked for scooter fatality data in Thailand for many years, and never found any.  Just a number lumping all traffic fatalities per population.  Nothing breaking it down per km, much less breaking out scooters, cars, trucks and pedestrians.

 

 

“The “In-depth Accident Investigation in Thailand” studied 1,000 road accidents between 2016 and 2020. It found that motorcycle riders’ perceptual failure is the major cause of accidents, while the majority of victims are young riders.

The study aimed to identify the root cause of motorcycle accidents to seek solutions to the problem.

About 20,000 people die each year on Thai roads, which are among the deadliest in the world. Around three-quarters of those fatalities are people riding two- or three-wheeled vehicles.”

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/30403810

 

 

[dj230]

17 minutes ago, Airalee said:

How often do you see people driving down the opposite side of the road in Canada like you would here?  I would posit that riding a motorbike on the shoulder of a road in Canada is far safer than here and don’t really need to see a government statistic to tell me what I see with my own eyes here in Thailand.

Although I have yet to experience thailand roads, in Canada the issue is motorcycles are so uncommon that no one looks out for them, theres still deaths everyday in toronto in the summer from motorcycle crashes even though theres probably 0.1% or less motorcycles in Toronto than Bangkok. I have friends that almost lost there legs (needed severe surgery) and some that just got ran right over at full stops, surprised they're still alive, I guess mandatory helmets help. I almost died myself from a crash and in the hospital the doctors/nurses told me that they called motorcycle riders organ donars.

 

Im sure it's just as bad in Thailand but at least they're used to looking out for motorcycles

Edited August 17, 2021 by dj230

[ktm jeff]

7 hours ago, Doctor Tom said:

God, how I would hate condo living, its restrictions and rules, all intended to fxxk up your life . I own one, but hardly ever use it, even for short breaks, its like being in an open prison that you have to pay for. 

What were you in for ?

[Airalee]

16 minutes ago, dj230 said:

Although I have yet to experience thailand roads,

 

17 minutes ago, dj230 said:

but at least they're used to looking out for motorcycles

You’ll see.

[impulse]

14 minutes ago, Airalee said:

Around three-quarters of those fatalities are people riding two- or three-wheeled vehicles.”

Not surprising, given that 3/4 of the vehicles on the road are 2 wheelers.  In fact, I'm surprised it's not higher.

 

Just because it looks chaotic to us, doesn't mean it's dangerous.  Thai people are masters of defensive driving.  They have to be to survive.  It's a double edge sword.

 

Scooters in Canada are dangerous because the riders are generally fair weather hobbyists and weekend warriors.  And cars are much less adept at sharing the roads with them than in Thailand.  Fewer accidents in total, maybe.  But that's because Canucks put so few miles on their scooters compared to Thai people who use theirs every day.

 

So I'll hold off judging the hazards until someone shows me the numbers...

 

[canthai55]

I am from Canada. Been riding bikes my whole life.

Been here 17 years. Own 6 bikes.

Riding a bike in inherently dangerous. Canada or here.

Be Aware. Beware.

Don't listen to all the naysayers on here moaning about how dangerous it is - quoting stats. Almost all are young men, drunk, speeding, at night.

Don't do that and you will be fine. Most probably.

[VocalNeal]

2 hours ago, dj230 said:

i guess im getting a honda wave, thanks ????

 

also are popping wheelies illegal here? if not i may have to get a motorcycle

Wave is really an upcountry ride. For BKK you will be better of with a Click or similar. 

If you must go semi auto then a CT125. Almost a hipster bike. 

I'm happy on Zoomer X. Won't wheelie though! 

[worgeordie]

Just watched the movie  Snake eyes, they had some electric motor bikes in that,

looked good, unless it was special effects

regards worgeordie

[sherwood]

E Bikes? Think of a busted thong. 

Not yet for this fella, maybe in the future when the infrastructure is in place but I still have a 110 click that works just fine and a big old pick-up. Not just now thanks.

[sherwood]

19 minutes ago, canthai55 said:

I am from Canada. Been riding bikes my whole life.

Been here 17 years. Own 6 bikes.

Riding a bike in inherently dangerous. Canada or here.

Be Aware. Beware.

Don't listen to all the naysayers on here moaning about how dangerous it is - quoting stats. Almost all are young men, drunk, speeding, at night.

Don't do that and you will be fine. Most probably.

Yes you need to be Alert, this country needs more lerts.

[Airalee]

23 minutes ago, impulse said:

Not surprising, given that 3/4 of the vehicles on the road are 2 wheelers.  In fact, I'm surprised it's not higher.

 

Just because it looks chaotic to us, doesn't mean it's dangerous.  Thai people are masters of defensive driving.  They have to be to survive.  It's a double edge sword.

 

Scooters in Canada are dangerous because the riders are generally fair weather hobbyists and weekend warriors.  And cars are much less adept at sharing the roads with them than in Thailand.  Fewer accidents in total, maybe.  But that's because Canucks put so few miles on their scooters compared to Thai people who use theirs every day.

 

So I'll hold off judging the hazards until someone shows me the numbers...

 

My comments come from a position of seeing the OP as a naive kid.  
 

Stand up scooters?  Bike lanes in Bangkok?  Charging stations for motorbikes at condos?  Popping wheelies?

 

How many soccer moms do you see here driving a minivan with an “I share the road with cyclists” bumper sticker?

[dj230]

22 minutes ago, Airalee said:

My comments come from a position of seeing the OP as a naive kid.  
 

Stand up scooters?  Bike lanes in Bangkok?  Charging stations for motorbikes at condos?  Popping wheelies?

 

How many soccer moms do you see here driving a minivan with an “I share the road with cyclists” bumper sticker?

I owned a stand up scooter in Toronto, it actually works great because you can take it on public transit. The Glion folds right up, condo's are usually fairly close to skytrains and it'd be less of a hassle taking a stand up scooter down the road than a motorbike, so it was a viable option in my opinion

 

I asked about riding the shoulder with a slower vehicle like a niu, I saw people doing it quite often

 

Theres a charging station for EV's at the condo i was looking at, I guess it's not a common thing, but I figured some sort of charging for electric motorbikes would have been something Thailand might have integrated, considering the large amount of motorbikes.

 

and the wheelie comment was a joke...

 

[Damrongsak]

2 hours ago, dj230 said:

... Im sure it's just as bad in Thailand but at least they're used to looking out for motorcycles

Not from many videos I've seen.  In one, a car in the right lane and a bike in the left lane were stopped at a red light.  Another car in the right lane approached rapidly  and rather then hitting the car, it swerved into the left lane and flattened the bike rider.  Much less damage to the two cars that way. 

 

Many times in Thailand, it's the bike riders who aren't looking out for cars or their fellow motorcyclists.  I went over the handlebars once due to 2 youths on an old Honda Wave running a t-intersection directly in front of me.  Lucky for them I wasn't in a car or truck.

 

I think a Honda Trail CT125 would be fun to scurry around on.  Pricey - 50% more then a Wave 125.  But it has a nice cargo rack and looks rugged enough to hop curbs and deal with potholes.

 

Edited August 17, 2021 by Damrongsak

[davemos]

Have you looked at a electric bicycle? I have one and it has now got 18776 k on it .iIt has reasonable range and performance and can be  peddled if there is no charge left  .Park anywhere ,no licence/reg required, Great for around. town Bangkok E-bikes gas a good range .

[BTB1977]

Where would you ride it? On the street or sidewalk?  Motor vehicles are illegal on the sidewalk.  

[CartagenaWarlock]

18 hours ago, Doctor Tom said:

God, how I would hate condo living, its restrictions and rules, all intended to fxxk up your life . I own one, but hardly ever use it, even for short breaks, its like being in an open prison that you have to pay for. 

I have lived enormous American houses with five four rooms, private swimming pool, etc. and also 2 bed rooms condos in Bangkok, Pattaya, Las Vegas and Benidorm. Each has it advantages depending on your circumstances and lifestyle. 

[Captain Monday]

Go to China, gas bikes must have been banned. Thousands of Electric scooters everywhere..