I took my (single part) test in 1974, on a CB160 which cost £15, then bought a Norton Commando 850 (new, for £795). Test fee was £3-25, no CBT, no training, no theory test. Amazingly, I survived and still ride today.
Hi Rick, thanks for the comment and sharing that story. There are even people who didn't take a driving test just applied for the licence (before 1947 you could just upgrade your car licence!). One of the most recent things to be added to the Motorcycle Test is hazard perception as a component of the theory, while that video based test is a bit basic in execution, the actually idea of it is pretty darn useful! Well, glad to hear you have ridden all these years with no major accidents 😊
@@MindfulMotorcyclist Even I don't go back as far as 1947. I got my provisional at 16 in 1970, and in those days you could ride anything up to 250cc on L-plates until you took your test, so for me, and most of my mates at the time, it was bike first, and car much later. Hazard perception was something we had to learn the hard (and sometimes painful) way.
I wish I had learned to ride earlier. I learned when I was 31, it was fairly hard with a CBT, then a theory test (multiple choice questions and hazard perception) then onto the practical which was MOD1 in an off road arena and the MOD2 where the instructor follows you around as you ride on the roads. None of it I thought was a breeze tbh, but glad to get passed and start getting some real experience under my belt!
@@MindfulMotorcyclist Zontes G1. If I do a channel mind if I link your vid as something to look at? Theres perhaps a few things I might add. (But yours is really well done so would be adding my own thoughts). Well perhaps you might consider some of mine a bit picky but I think are relevant issues esp in the current situation (covid etc)
Hi G-Infinity, thanks for the comment. The training for me was around £35/hr for lessons. I think I had 15+ lessons and then some prep before the test. Test prices as of today are £75 for Mod1 and £150 for Mod2 and thats if you do it on a weekday. It goes up if you want to do it on evenings or weekends. So with travelling to the test site and other minor expenses I would say you are pushing on £1k...
I am 26, only have a £2500 budget to get licence + motorcycle and insurance. What motorcycles do you recommend? I am 5 feet so any suggestions would be appreciated.
Hi Kate, thanks for the question. The bikes for you are probably a cruiser type bike (provided you want to get both feet on the ground - I generally like to flat foot a bike). The Kawasaki Vulcan is nice for shorter riders but it's quite expensive. The Royal Enfield Meteor 350 is a nice bike and can be had for around £2.5/2.8k, there are lots of female riders on the Royal Enfield Meteor 350 FB group and they seem to get on just fine. It's a hugely popular bike and well loved by the owners... They will also likely give you a big welcome if you were to join up.
Did I forget insurance? Yikes well it's reasonably cheap if you can store the bike in a locked garage. I had around £350/year for my first bike a 2015 Kawasaki ER6-F. Much cheaper than your first car... If you're younger it would be a lot higher I expect
Hello, I think this would be £500-700 for a brand new rider per year. Very much a guess, if you live in central London for example they might not issue a quote at all. Cheers, Sean
I took my (single part) test in 1974, on a CB160 which cost £15, then bought a Norton Commando 850 (new, for £795). Test fee was £3-25, no CBT, no training, no theory test. Amazingly, I survived and still ride today.
Hi Rick, thanks for the comment and sharing that story. There are even people who didn't take a driving test just applied for the licence (before 1947 you could just upgrade your car licence!). One of the most recent things to be added to the Motorcycle Test is hazard perception as a component of the theory, while that video based test is a bit basic in execution, the actually idea of it is pretty darn useful! Well, glad to hear you have ridden all these years with no major accidents 😊
@@MindfulMotorcyclist Even I don't go back as far as 1947. I got my provisional at 16 in 1970, and in those days you could ride anything up to 250cc on L-plates until you took your test, so for me, and most of my mates at the time, it was bike first, and car much later. Hazard perception was something we had to learn the hard (and sometimes painful) way.
I wish I had learned to ride earlier. I learned when I was 31, it was fairly hard with a CBT, then a theory test (multiple choice questions and hazard perception) then onto the practical which was MOD1 in an off road arena and the MOD2 where the instructor follows you around as you ride on the roads. None of it I thought was a breeze tbh, but glad to get passed and start getting some real experience under my belt!
Thank you for this video
So simple and easily explained 👍
Adam, thank you for such a nice comment. Really appreciate that! 😀
Great vid might do one myself! Got my CBT soon. Bike is on preorder.
Thanks! You should do one! What bike did you order?
@@MindfulMotorcyclist Zontes G1. If I do a channel mind if I link your vid as something to look at? Theres perhaps a few things I might add. (But yours is really well done so would be adding my own thoughts).
Well perhaps you might consider some of mine a bit picky but I think are relevant issues esp in the current situation (covid etc)
Does the training instruction for mod1 and mod2 cost around £700-£900?
Hi G-Infinity, thanks for the comment. The training for me was around £35/hr for lessons. I think I had 15+ lessons and then some prep before the test. Test prices as of today are £75 for Mod1 and £150 for Mod2 and thats if you do it on a weekday. It goes up if you want to do it on evenings or weekends. So with travelling to the test site and other minor expenses I would say you are pushing on £1k...
I am 26, only have a £2500 budget to get licence + motorcycle and insurance. What motorcycles do you recommend? I am 5 feet so any suggestions would be appreciated.
Hi Kate, thanks for the question. The bikes for you are probably a cruiser type bike (provided you want to get both feet on the ground - I generally like to flat foot a bike). The Kawasaki Vulcan is nice for shorter riders but it's quite expensive. The Royal Enfield Meteor 350 is a nice bike and can be had for around £2.5/2.8k, there are lots of female riders on the Royal Enfield Meteor 350 FB group and they seem to get on just fine. It's a hugely popular bike and well loved by the owners... They will also likely give you a big welcome if you were to join up.
Can i choose my bike for A2 exam? I am a short guy and aiming to get just the A2.
Usually you can choose to do it on your own bike, but it might have to make a minimum power output...
No mention of insurance?
Did I forget insurance? Yikes well it's reasonably cheap if you can store the bike in a locked garage. I had around £350/year for my first bike a 2015 Kawasaki ER6-F. Much cheaper than your first car... If you're younger it would be a lot higher I expect
Hey, what about insurance?
Hello, I think this would be £500-700 for a brand new rider per year. Very much a guess, if you live in central London for example they might not issue a quote at all. Cheers, Sean