Decisions, decisions.....

[tha-mask]

I have had my Burgman K8 now for 4 years, it has done nearly 50,000 miles and hasn't missed a beat. I have only had to replace the rear shocks as one was leaking and for less than the cost of one original Suzuki unit I purchased a pair of new Hagon shocks. Other than that it has only had consumables replaced. It has never let me down at the roadside. The only other bike I had which I had that long was a MK1 Tmax which I loved. The newer MK3 or MK4 looks great, but no ABS, which I'd like to keep.

With about 47,5000 miles on the clock I'm wondering if its time to change it, and if so what for. Perhaps another Burgman 2013 shape, or even and NC700X DCT. The Burgman is a difficult package to beat with great storage space, ease of filtering because of the folding mirrors, super cheap maintenance if you do it yourself, no belt to worry about(though we have all ready about the possible Burgman belt snapping). My ideal would be a NC700x with belt or shaft drive, I did love driving a Mana which I had for 30,000 miles, but it was horribly unreliable to me. Thought about the VFR1200 DCT, some very good prices on second hand ones, also the Crosstourer perhaps, but they are a little beyond my budget currently. I have always loved the DN-01, but its serious lack of storage and filtering ability put me off, but shaft driven and probably bullet proof.

Just wondering if its best to trade it in now whilst its still worth something or trade up for something newer, what do you think a K8 Executive with 47,500 is worth? Its all paid off so doesn't owe me anything, just not sure if its better to sell it in the spring and use the money for a newer bike or keep the Burgman. I have gone round and round in circles and really not sure what is the best to do. 50K is quite a bit of mileage and the Burgman could go on for another 30K to 40K with no issues, or could break and then I have nothing to trade up. I commute everyday from Basildon into the West End, so do about 63 miles per day.

To make matters worse I'm going to the show this weekend, and seeing all those shiny new bikes isn't going to help one bit

Any advice fellow muppets ?

[x10350]

I've had Burgman 650 400 and the Silverwing 600
I rate my current ride Piaggio x10 350 more highly than any of them and under £5K
Regards
Barry

[tha-mask]

Barry.

Thanks for that, with the mileage that I do I was worried about maintenance. I know the schedule is much higher on the Beverley and X10 350c but the brake pumps seem to be an unresolved issue. But the Beverly 350 was another scoot I was considering.

Mark

[poldark]

I enjoyed my brief test ride ona Beverly 350 but it does lack the full feet forward option if that's important to you.

I'd not consider the NC700 now the NC750 is available and from NC Forum reports a worthwhile upgrade, so check the NC750 DCT. Guess the decision there is whether the reduced weather protection is too much to forego ofr the improved dynamics and performance, the servicing costs look very good against many maxiscoots with 8k intervals.

[tha-mask]

I enjoyed my brief test ride ona Beverly 350 but it does lack the full feet forward option if that's important to you.

I'd not consider the NC700 now the NC750 is available and from NC Forum reports a worthwhile upgrade, so check the NC750 DCT. Guess the decision there is whether the reduced weather protection is too much to forego ofr the improved dynamics and performance, the servicing costs look very good against many maxiscoots with 8k intervals.

I have been looking at the NC700x or S purely as there seems to be some good bargains to be had, £4K and £4.4K for s and x respectively second hand. Indeed servicing is excellent by all account on the NC series, even doing the tappets seem a dead easy task, its only a achilles heel seems to be the final drive, reports of the chain not lasting for long, an oiler a defo there I think. Weather protection not a huge issue for me, I rode the Mana for almost 2 years and that was a naked bike, which I loved, shame it turned out to be so damn unreliable, for me anyway, perhaps I had a friday afternoon model, the Burgman certainly seems to be a monday morning version !!!

[poldark]

From the few owner comments and online reviews to date I'd not be tempted by a cheaper NC700, as newer 750 seems better mated to the DCT and extra bhp/torque improves things with no mpg detriment. They've also adapted the DCT programming and early reports are positive.

Maybe it's just me, I'd be fearful of wishing that I'd bought the "better" one rather than save a few hundred pounds. Also some reports that the NC750 is lower insurance, seem weird logic to me but that's the comments so far.

[MrGrumpy]

, what do you think a K8 Executive with 47,500 is worth?

Zilch I suspect! If 2k miles a year is considered normal in biking circles, then 47,500 miles is considered somewhat beyond stratospheric! So, basically its worthless in monetary terms.

If I were you, I'd consider keeping the Burger as a commuter, as its clearly works for you, its a good thing for the job, you like it and its reliable, and it matters not if if gets knacked in the commuting wars. You could then buy a fun bike (say the N750X you are thinking of) which you could keep for weekend use. If you buy a new bike and start commuting on it, then that will worthless as well in a couple of years with that sort of mileage, so you might as well run the Burger into the ground, or until it starts being unreliable.

[spaceprobe]

I found the Maxsym 400 suited me better than the Burgman. If you wanted something bigger I am getting the 600 next month you would be welcome to ride down to Brighton for a cuppa and to have a look.

[tha-mask]

I found the Maxsym 400 suited me better than the Burgman. If you wanted something bigger I am getting the 600 next month you would be welcome to ride down to Brighton for a cuppa and to have a look.

Thanks very much for that offer, much appreciated. The Sym certainly seems to have a good following on here, seems to be a well built scoot at a keen price. What did you prefer over the Burgman 650, and why are you upgrading to the 600 now, do you think staying with the Burgman in hindsight would have been better ?

I do wonder sometimes if I just have a great example of a Burgman which appears so trouble free, like I got a dud with the Mana which cost so much. Though I have to say I do like wet clutch bikes, no judder or noise that dry clutch systems seem to suffer.

[spaceprobe]

I found the Maxsym 400 suited me better than the Burgman. If you wanted something bigger I am getting the 600 next month you would be welcome to ride down to Brighton for a cuppa and to have a look.

Thanks very much for that offer, much appreciated. The Sym certainly seems to have a good following on here, seems to be a well built scoot at a keen price. What did you prefer over the Burgman 650, and why are you upgrading to the 600 now, do you think staying with the Burgman in hindsight would have been better ?

I do wonder sometimes if I just have a great example of a Burgman which appears so trouble free, like I got a dud with the Mana which cost so much. Though I have to say I do like wet clutch bikes, no judder or noise that dry clutch systems seem to suffer.

Well I was interested in the Burg 650 and was offered a very good deal on one but i realised it was heavier than my Vulcan cruiser I was moving on from, and there was also some issues about running costs (MCN long term review) with even the dealer telling me that the service costs were high. So I looked at the Burg 400 and the SYM 400. They are similar the Sym being a little taller and slimmer and I felt had more bike like handling. I also liked the excellent reviews from around the globe and the brands overall reliability. I have been very very pleased with it but at the end of April I retire and plan to do a lot more touring and my mind therefore starting thinking bigger engine. Given how pleased i was with my SYM it stood to reason I would look at their new 600 and certainly on paper it looks good value. The local dealer offered me an amazing deal so I ordered the matt black sports model. They are still on the high sea but SYM UK tell me I will be the first owner in the UK so watch this space.