[delanest]

Does this seem totally mental to anyone.

I have 5 years no claims bonus and have just got my full A1 licence. I applied for a provisional A licence and I must now do a theory test !

[Oryx]

Originally Posted by D'oh!

And as far as having your bike restricted there is now bloody piont, for them to verify the hp they have to run a dyno from the crank and there isnt a dyno for doing this in the country! And besides the insurance company wont ask you anything about it, they never have anyway. So if you can afford the rip off rates ride what ever you can!!

True the insurers wont ask but who wants to take the risk of losing cover? The law here is a bit vague, it has never been established what the weight means, dry, kerb, or with rider, but the bhp is understood to be at the rear wheel, this can be checked on any number of dynos in shops around the country. (When the insurers are grouping bikes they use manufacturers stats)

Also about paying insurance in installments Aon Bikecare do a scheme where you pay 30% up front and 5 monthly installments by direct debit. Ask your local friendly bike dealer.

[IanluvsKathleen]

is vrt calculated on bikes the same way as on cars if i was to bring one in from england????

[Oryx]

VRT on bikes is calculated on the cc of the bike. It is €2 per cc up to 350cc and €1 per cc after that. There is a discount schedule of between 10% and 100% according to the year of the bike.

If you have been domicile in the UK it can be registered vrt free if youve owned the bike in the uk check with the vro.

[a_ominous]

Revenue VRT calculator

[Ninja_Duck]

With regard to what a_ominous mentioned at the start of this thread about most "independent" trainers not having their own school bikes due to insurance costs....

I know of one school that does, that's the Motocycle Safety Association. http://www.msa-ireland.com They are based in Dublin and I found them to be excellent. I didn't have my own bike at the time.

Originally Posted by a_ominous

Lessons
There are various places to learn to ride a bike. Irish School of Motoring (ISM) will provide bikes. As will the Star Rider courses run by Fingal and I believe South Dublin Co Council. These are not year round courses though. And there is a long waiting list for school bikes. Most independent trainers (Irish Rider Training Association IRTA) do not have bikes due to prohibitive insurance costs. This may change with driver instructor certification due in 2004.

[jackal]

About the restriction. I was seriously worried about this so I bought a 250cc hornet... Well it turns out its 40 bhp, so Im over the limit anyway! Unless you want to drive an absolute donkey of a bike, you are going to run into this problem.

Anyway, I was curious, so I asked a bunch of very experienced bikers had they heard of anyone getting into trouble or having a claim rejected? Answer... no. If you think about it its pretty hard to prove... "Go ahead, put the mangled heap formerly known as my bike on the dyno...*clunk*... Whats that? 0 hp? Well there you go, Its *very* restricted."

[Kazujo]

The restrictor is a physical component of the engine that they can actually look for so unless you manage to completely obliterate the engine they can check.

It might not happen everytime someone claims but they can. I wouldn't worry about it on the 250 Hornet as it's only a little over the 33 (is it actually restricted?) but my Bandit is 33Bhp restricted and 85 unrestricted so there is a big differrence.

[johnos]

I have an ongoing problem with cables snapping, probably because my bike isn't garaged and because I'm too lazy to oil them as often as I should.

Does anyone -- motorcycle or bicycle trade -- in the Dublin area repair inner cables? Usually just a matter of fitting a new nipple. I have to order these online from England and it's becoming a needlessly expensive business!


PS: why not have a dedicated motorcycle thread?

[Ninja_Duck]

Hi,

With regard to what a_ominous mentioned at the start of this thread about most "independent" trainers not having their own school bikes due to insurance costs....

I know of one school in Ireland that does rider training and has its own school bikes and that's the Motocycle Safety Association. They are based in Dublin and I found them to be excellent. I didn't have my own bike at the time.

[bbbaldy]

Johnos,
I had same cable Problem on my bike, After going through about 5 cables (one drive from kinnegad to galway with none) it was reccomended to me to slacken the cable a bit, using the adjuster on the cutch handle, it feels a bit sloppy but I have the same cable for 2 years now. 10000m.

[johnos]

Originally Posted by bbbaldy

Johnos,
I had same cable Problem on my bike, After going through about 5 cables (one drive from kinnegad to galway with none) it was reccomended to me to slacken the cable a bit, using the adjuster on the cutch handle, it feels a bit sloppy but I have the same cable for 2 years now. 10000m.

Thanks B -- I think this is just a design problem. The throttle cable is much thinner than standard. I've bought a beefier one, but it wouldn't run smoothly around the throttle grip mechanism. I've adapted to this by always having a spare in the sidepanel.
But I now have a fine collection of cable outers with knackered inner cables: i just wish I could get them mended rather than having to get the whole thing each time.

[Phryxus]

I believe that the easy rider training course will loan you a cb250 for the course and ( I'm about 99% sure on this ) He'll rent you the bike to do your full A test if you do the test prep course. Handy enough if you only have a 125.

[Phryxus]

So is there anything unexpected in the test, from what I know it's just a few turns an upright small circle, driving really slowly but I only got a vague description from someone I hardly knew.

Is it easy to fail/hard to pass, is there anywhere I can get a full rundown of the whole thing?

[spunkymunky]

I did the test there last year and to be honest it was a piece of p*ss. Did it in Finglas and it was drive through this estate (which was a square) one way, so all right turns, then the other way, so all left turns.
The semi hill start, drive slow (which is a brisk walking pace) and the turn about, which i actually put my foot down on.
It was my second time doing the test (first time on a moped so failed from the start). First time i didnt use my mirrors a lot or have good observation turning left. so second time around i made everything really obvious! Make sure he could see me looking in the mirrors (ie move your head a lot) also looked everywhere, especially over my shoulder, when taking off. Idicate around parked cars and overtaking cyclists and stick to the speed limit (that was hard for me). If you know the area drive around it a bit just before and see what hazards are about. Know your enemy !!!
check out
http://www.drivingtest.ie/drivingtes.../frameset.html
Some stuff there
Good luck