£15 for a test ride!

[Beamish]

Trying to ride a new blade so I can decide what to get next but my nearest dealer (Grantham Honda ) want £15 for a test ride! Add petrol because they are almost always empty and its a bit expensive especially if you dont like it. I told them no thanks. Last year it was free and they are blaming it on the ins company. Stu, do George Whites charge for test rides? I have not come up against this before. I want to try an R1, a Blade, a 1098, and a RSVR Mille factory before deciding on my bike purchase. It could get expensive .

[stormingjoe]

honda are doing a nationwide (i think) competition soon where upon you can ride a bike of your choice and be entered into a draw to win it, free. most good dealers would let you ride for nought anyhoo.

[marravtr]

pidcock honda in long eaton dont charge for test rides!

[Beamish]

Yep I am going along to Grantham on Fri/Sun to ride the blade for free . TAZ of Peterborough kindly lent me a 2009 Tuono to test this afternoon. I am glad I rode it, great engine with a great lump of torque from 4-10K but poor fuelling on small throttle openings. Brakes and forks absolutely awesome but I found that with the wide bars I felt uncomfortable at speed, it seemed very twitchy. In the city it was fantastic though and great for threading through the traffic. On one long very bumpy fen straight I kept it pinned in second and the front wheel barely touched the deck for what felt like a mile! I really wanted to like this bike as the Nori Haga rep (in reverse pearl white main colour) looks fantastic.



TAZ are a shop I would certainly deal with again, they sold me my Firestorm and were brilliant.

[Zakalwe]

Sod that for a game of soldiers.

Lancaster Honda have never charged me before.

Don't forget that it is a buyer's market out there.

[Stu]

Beamish - No GW's don't as a rule charge for demos especially on new bikes - we can on used bikes as we have to have them safety checked before they go out and genrally used have more risk of accidents than new - but if we do carge we discount it off the bike when they buy it!

We do have an influx of test pilots in the summer months and have to weed out the suicide pilots, idiots and general wasters - having a 24 hour minimum wait and such like normally rules them out

But there is as mentioned the Honda chance to win from having a demo and registering online

[Beamish]

Enjoy Timbo, its not for me at the mo, decided I still want a fairing but its a brilliant looking bike in the right paint scheme.