Scooter or Motorbike

skiba

skiba

skiba

Soldato
Joined
27 Aug 2004
Posts
2,955
Location
Singapore ExPat
I need some advice, I live in Singapore and it costs about $80kSGD (£40k) for a suzuki swift or about $2kSGD for a Honda Phantom/Piaggio X9.

I've been driving for about 10 years but obviously the cost of a car is fairly prohibitive. So my question is what's going to be more safe between a scooter and a bike, I know its all relative but does one offer more protection than the other? I really don't need speed or distance as Singapore is a small place, just something to cover short trips on.

Thoughts?

Thanks
 
A scooter will likely offer better weather protection, but in terms of crash protection there is probably not much difference - get hit on either and you are likely to get injured. However, in terms of passive safety the larger the bike the better, simply because car drivers tend to push scooters etc. around more than they would with a proper bike.
 
It really all depends what you want to use the scooter/bike for?

Scooter - use to commute and general use, cheap to insure, cheap to run, not much fun to ride but has more storage and you will look ok riding it without any protection. I imagine in Singapore it's always super hot so you would probably never wear full kit anyway.

Motorbike - (anything up to 125cc is like a scooter) - much more fun to ride but requires full protective kit as these can go over 120mph easily (any 600cc+ bike), requires bike license, higher insurance cost and use way more fuel than a scooter (about 4-5 times more). Also you can use a motorbike for pleasure and trust me motorbikes are a lot of fun to ride.

If you want something practical and cheap to run then go for a scooter as this is probably what you want to commute in Singapore .
 
apatia77 said:
It really all depends what you want to use the scooter/bike for?

Scooter - use to commute and general use, cheap to insure, cheap to run, not much fun to ride but has more storage and you will look ok riding it without any protection.
Click to expand...

If the OP is concerned about safety then suggesting he rides with no protective clothing in the name of "looking ok" is not a great idea.
 
Dogbreath said:
If the OP is concerned about safety then suggesting he rides with no protective clothing in the name of "looking ok" is not a great idea.
Click to expand...

How many scooter riders do you see wearing full kit in hot weather (or during any weather)?

I think you should check what people wear in Singapore riding their bikes and I bet that most wear just normal clothing and probably most don't even wear a helmet as probably it isn't even required by law over there.
 
Thanks for the replies chaps. Helmets are required here, Singapore is more 1st world than the UK ;) However standard attire does seem to be whatever you happen to be wearing which is mostly shorts and flip-flops. So I suppose I will probably just go for the scooter then, journeys will rarely be longer than 10 minutes and the weather protection might be useful here (though I don't plan on going out in the rain).

So really there is no clear preference, just whatever I feel safer and more comfortable on.

For the record, to get my license I have to do the following:
4 x 100minute theory classes
1 x RTT (Riders Theory Test)
4 x 100 minute Course Based practical sessions
4 x 100 minute Road Based practical sessions
1 x Practical Exam

This entitles me to ride up to 200cc for 1 year, the following year, another exam and up to 400cc, the next year, another exam and as big as you like.

Seems long-winded but hopefully produces a better calibre of biker.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom