whats a good motorcycle for a woman that 4"11, who's just starting?

Question

safty first

Answer 1

Honda's Rebel, there is a 250 or a 450 ,small, low ,fairly light and inexpensive.
I'd say, a good bike for a small woman to start on.

Answer 2

My wife started on a smaller 500 Virago and loved it - she is 5'3".

The 250 Virago is even more user friendly and a very sharp looking little learner, however may not be freeway legal in some states because of its small engine size. Honda 250 Rebels are also very learner friendly.

There is another motorcycle designed specifically for smaller riders called the Ridley (see link below). They're not cheap, but are reliable, solid performers and high quality. They have all the controls pulled in farther and very low seat heights as well as automatic transmissions.

For beginning, I'd shoot for a used bike with low miles and no bodywork. Make sure you take the MSF course and stay away from sportbikes & do not ride passengers until you've got at least a year or two of experience under your belt. Also ignore people who tell you a Sportster is a good bike to learn on - they aren't. They're too top-heavy with slow steering, and the clutch pull is very heavy for most lighter riders. Get one later after you've got some miles and confidence. Don't get discouraged if you drop the bike a couple times - we've all done it when we were newbies... Have fun and stick with it.

Answer 3

The Honda rebel 250 is a very good starter bike. It's also a very low sitting bike. With safety first in mind, I would recommend a motor bike class at a technical school or driving school if available.

Answer 4

The GPZ500 (EX500/Ninja500 in the US) is a popular starter bike, especially for women. Low seat height with an upright riding position. Very cheap and reliable. And just enough power to be interesting.

Answer 5

Honda Shadow VLX 600 or Kawasaki Vulcan 500 are both good middle weights, low to the ground, handle well, make good power.
I know women riders who own these bikes.

Answer 6

vlx 600 virago 700 gz 250 but ifn I were you I would find the model bike I really like and then check the after market for items like lowerseats and lowering kits that would make one you like more suitable to your size the 650 savage is also a great bike for the verticaly challenged

Answer 7

Right off the bat I'll tell you this...anyone that say you oughta be able to fit bike X bcs someone else riding it happens to be a women hasn't walked a mile in your shoes. Between dropping bikes, and calves burnt on exhaust pipes, I will tell you--you can forget any recommendations generalized from someone who's 5'3".

The fact is that your being a woman is not a limiting factor. In fact, your being 4'11 in itself is not the limiting factor either...although it's definitely related.

It's your inseam length...and your past experience on two wheels.

It's simple. You need to be able to form a stance around your bike that's stable enough to recover from slight imbalances. Part of the process of learning to ride is falling out of balance, learning how to correct the imbalance, and stay in balance. If you can't stabilize your bike...you can't learn to ride on it.

At the minimum, you ought to be able to plant the balls of your feet *without* fully extending your ankle. If you plant your feet and can only manage to land the ball of the foot by fully extending your ankle, your ability to lean the bike to one side or the other to stabilize it is nil. I recommend getting on bikes in stores, and try leaning them over a few degrees (gingerly!). As much as it makes you sweat...it makes the salesperson sweat even more. The ones that you plant your feet around with a moderately flexed ankle can be in your consideration set.

The second consideration is engine size and characteristics. A smaller engine obviously is easier to control. You can learn on 1000+cc bikes...but it'll be quite heavy, and quite sensitive to error. I don't recommend anything over 650cc personally, and even that is quite large for a smaller person. A 250cc engine is quite manageable, and still offers highway capabilities (albeit it will be pretty much topped out at 75mph). Frankly, I don't recommend sport bikes because they generally have more aggressive clutches, and a very aggressive engine that loves to rev up. It gives you less margin for error, having those characteristics. It can be done though...but it just places more demand on your skill not to screw up.

Which bikes should you look at? Well, we tried the Ninja 250, the Ninja 500, the Vulcan, the virago, a slew of harleys, bmw's buells, Hondas, Kawasakis, Yamahas,...you name it...we'e sat on it. Here's what we've found:

The Honda Rebel 250 is a great height to start with, is relatively cheap to get and maintain, has relatively good resale value, and is pretty reliable.

The Suzuki Boulevard 50 (also known as the Suzuki Savage) is the 2nd. It has a bigger engine to control--650cc, but the narrow-ness of the seat made it a feasible contender. And if you're steadfast on getting a bigger engine...this is one of the few you could balance.

At a stretch (in terms of seat height), we found that the smallest Buell was a possibility. And also at a stretch (in terms of engine size) we found the lowest smallest harley sportster was a possibility (but pretty darn heavy). Really, I consider these to be more of a 2nd bike than a learner.

I don't recommend the Virago. I don't recommend the Ninja. I don't recommend the vulcans or shadows. Anyone who does...isn't 4'11".

And as always, I recommend you to buy your learner bike...used, cheap, and pre-scuffed. Used learner bikes can almost always be found. In our case, we bought and sold our bikes for the same price! And it's always cheaper to drop a used bike than a new one.

Gluck!