Automatic License

Motorcycling
1

Long term, I know that I will probably want to do a manual motorbike test. For now, however, I’ve bought me an automatic bike (Honda S-Wing 125) and will be riding it for a good long while (I plan to keep it even if I buy another bike “for fun” in future). I’m fine with my CBT and L plates, in theory I could just keep redoing the CBT every two years. However… I want to be able to ride on the motorway and take pillion passengers, and I can’t do either of those with just a CBT!

The thing is, I don’t want to pay a fortune to hire a geared bike for a week long training course and spend all that time to pass the test (to do a full A2 or DAS “course and test” including bike hire of manual bike etc comes to somewhere around £500-700 and you have to dedicate 5-6 days to it). Nor do I want to buy a geared bike now - I like the idea of riding a simple automatic twist and go thing for now, I don’t need to have super acceleration and full manual control at this point in my riding career!

So, I had a thought. I reckon that I could pass the motorbike license on my automatic after a couple of months of “day to day” riding, with perhaps a couple of hours riding with an instructor beforehand to get everything down pat. It really doesn’t look that hard. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’d be willing to give it a try. It’s what I did with my driving test (I had four double lessons the week before the test, got in and passed it with flying colours). Am I way off base here? Is the test really that hard on an automatic bike? I’ve done a bit of reading and looking at videos of what is involved, and … is it just me or does it really not look all that hard?

I know that if I did this, I’d only be allowed to ride automatic bikes until I passed it again on a manual. But the way I see it, when I want to ride a manual bike (and I’m sure I will in future!) then I’ll go ahead and do it then…

Thoughts?

-simon

2

wont it cost you more in the long run if you do it that way,bite the bullet and do the full test because you will soon realise you want more power.I bought a 125 twist and go and thought that I would just do my cbt every 2 years,but after a few months I got bit by the bike bug and wanted bigger and better things.I say just do it.

My 2pence worth

3

You misread…I would do the “full test”, just on an automatic for now. I could ride anything with even very high power - as long as it had an automatic gearbox!

There’s a honda 1200cc with an automatic gear box, I believe… :wink:

-simon

4

LMAO Honda S-Wing

Sounds like a bike for swingers

5

na I know what you meant so you can ride any size auto bike but when you want to ride a geared bike you will have to do another test so in the long run it will cost you more money

6

I passed after having 2hrs MOD1 practice, and 4hrs MOD2 practice with an instructor.

I don’t think you will need 5/6 days training.

Hire a geared 125, or buy a cheapo one to pass on and then sell it on.

I think you would regret only having the automatic licence.

If your near south London then I could help you get through mod1.

Not sure i’d want to take MOD1 on a s-wing either.

7

Whatever you decide to do, do it soon.

The bloody EU prats has just passed a concorde that will make the full geared tests and full automatic tests even harder and more expensive/difficult to obtain.

Given their past track record, the DVLA will seize on this and add some more crackpot ideas of their own if the Westminster pussies do their usual “roll over and get rogered” blind acceptance of more stupid EU draft legislation.