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How much cheaper is it to drive a scooter vs using a Tuktuk? I spend about $5-6 every day on transportation using the latter. How much fuel does a 125cc consume, service, license fees and so on..?

The main question: Is it better to buy a scooter than using Tuktuks?

Thanks

My guess would be $0.50 for gasoline for the same distance as the tuktuk.

$4 a month to replace the oil.

Occasional tire replacement $7-$12 (depending on the quality of the tire)

I can break this down for you since I just sold my moto after using it for a year.

I bought my moto new for $1350 and sold it for $850 almost exactly a year later. So $500 to use a new moto for a year ($42 a month). My work was far so add in about $8 to $10 a month for gas. $4 for oil change (once a month seems way to often most mechanics reccomend 2000 km) 3 times over the year. License fee was $75 for the plate and registration.

You should really use pass app or grab as they would save you money, but my friend does that and he spends about $150 to $200 a month doing so (travels a long way for work mind you). $5 to $6 a day seems to be in that ballpark.

I realize not everyone can afford to buy a new moto, but it's much cheaper and more convenient if you are comfortable with driving yourself. Some people are not, it can be scary as fuck at times, but you get used to it.

Here's my example on a 110cc (my Wave 110 as an example). Bought new for $1,375.

At 1,000 km a month and at 40 km/l, that's $25 a month. That's a lot of riding though, and I would suspect you'd spend $10 for fuel unless you buy an automatic, in which you would double your fuel cost.

Oil change once every 3 months or 1,000 - 1,200 km (which ever comes first), $3.5-7 per change (depending on bike capacity and oil quality). Mine is 800ml and cost $5 for synthetic "performance" oil.

Tires, so far 13,000 km (lots and lots of riding), about 40% left.

10k engine service quoted $40 at a western mechanic, I just did it myself. Not recommended if you're not a mechanic.

Registration, $100 (fixer came to house, did all the document scanning etc, and then brought the plate to me an hour later and bolted it on. Heard $70 quoted if you go do it yourself at the transport ministry.

If I sold the bike, it'd be worth $750 maybe, but Vietnamese built Waves depreciate REALLY fast. They also are not targets for thieves though, so I rather take the hit on depreciation.

If you bought an automatic Honda, it would be in the area of $2,300 new but would be easy to sell for around $2,000 although you'd best be careful to keep it locked up tight in a safe place because of theft.

Buying a newly imported (but used) motorcycle is a whole other can of worms I wont get into.

I have a pdf of an service manual for a 2007 Suzuki Step oil changes every 4000 kilometers..... there is a theory or old wives tale here to change it more often dur to the humitdiy.....that I dont beleive...

^^Irrelevant, as oil temps in air cooled engines easily get hot enough to evaporate any amount of atmospheric condensation out of the oil in a short bit.

Thanks a lot! Very insightful- the decision is made and I will buy myself a scooter. We’ll see how long I survive

If you're in the city and are on the negative side of 70-75kg and new to riding two wheelers, I highly recommend a fresh import 50cc scooter to start off with. Very easy to control, low enough power to stay out of trouble (although newer models are surprisingly powerful), cheap to buy into, and wont depreciate as much as a new 110 or 125.

You can start off with a nice newly imported (no plate number yet) 2013 Giorno for only $800-1000, or if you want something even cheaper, a Honda Today FI will set you back around $550-700, plus registration. If you feel more confident later on, then you can move up to a more powerful bike/scooter.

A10 wrote: ↑Sat Jun 22, 2019 6:03 pm If you're in the city and are on the negative side of 70-75kg and new to riding two wheelers, I highly recommend a fresh import 50cc scooter to start off with. Very easy to control, low enough power to stay out of trouble (although newer models are surprisingly powerful), cheap to buy into, and wont depreciate as much as a new 110 or 125.

You can start off with a nice newly imported (no plate number yet) 2013 Giorno for only $800-1000, or if you want something even cheaper, a Honda Today FI will set you back around $550-700, plus registration. If you feel more confident later on, then you can move up to a more powerful bike/scooter.

Thanks for the advice. I am not a beginner but it was a long time since I rode a bike. My problem is that I love speed so I can’t buy anything with power, that will just kill me. Self control...

Nixon wrote: ↑Sat Jun 22, 2019 6:16 pm
Thanks for the advice. I am not a beginner but it was a long time since I rode a bike. My problem is that I love speed so I can’t buy anything with power, that will just kill me. Self control...

50cc for you then. I'm actually the same way, and that's why I also have a Honda 50 for my around town errands.

If you are on the "taller" (5'10" plus) or "heavier" side (85kg plus), you can go for a used (no plate number) Vespa 50 which are a little hard to find but offer a much bigger body and suspension. Usually buy in price is very low because people aren't familiar with Vespas here. You will be hit with heavy depreciation possibly (depends on how hard you haggle to begin with), but my last Vespa 50 was $800, the ignition coil went out and then I dumped it for $350 2 years later (but this was back in 2014).

For a 50 it's atrocious on fuel though at around 31-33 km/l, but still cheap compared to a tuk tuk.