Moving motorcycles

[Renenet]

Hi,

I have to get my scooter from Melbourne to Cairns. Unfortunately I don't have the time to ride it the whole way, but I am thinking of sending it to Brisbane or the Gold Coast and riding from there.

Has anyone ever had to ship a motorcycle, scooter or car long distance? How did you do it and how much did it cost you? Any recommendations for companies would also be wonderful.

Thanks,
Renenet

 

[jedi_339]

I wouldn't suggest riding a scooter from Brisbane to Cairns, I'm not sure if you have one of the faster ones, but the Bruce highway isn't a good road for any scooter in my opinion and possibly not even be legal, and it's a bloody long way to ride, I would say ship it all the way to Cairns.

 

[pythrulz]

A scooter is to small a bike to ride long distance you could send it by train or there are motor cycle transport but would cost more than the scooter is worth so you may be better to sell it and buy a new one when you got to Cairns on most highways or motorways scooters are not allowed because there to slow

 

[Renenet]

Thanks for the feedback. This is a 170cc scooter with 16-inch wheels that easily hits 110 K's. Does that change your opinion at all?

 

[jedi_339]

Well I know on Gold Coast/Brisbane/Sunshine Coast the motorways all have signs prohibiting tractors, animals, pedestrians, scooters etc, but I think the scooter bit is a remnant from the vespa type era, it might be something to check with QLD transport to see if your scooter is allowed on the highways etc.

It's still a long way to Cairns, I've never been there myself, but I know from the Gold Coast to Mackay in a work car (Suzuki Jimny) was a pretty bad drive, the Bruce highway was in poor condition when I went up there, potholes everywhere, and a lot of semis and B doubles, if it were me I wouldn't want to ride a scooter on some parts.

Perhaps you can find a company maybe Linfox or removalist company already making a journey from Melbourne to Cairns, ask if it's possible to pack your scooter into the back of a truck for the journey, it'd be much cheaper if at all possible.

 

[saximus]

I just typed in "motorcycle transport" into Google and got plenty of sites. So you could try there.
I looked into transporting my car from Sydney to Brisbane last year and from memory it was about two or three times what it cost me to drive it up myself. Having said that, I guess you have to weigh up what the extra effort would be worth to you. Either way it's not a bank breaking amount.

 

[Renenet]

Thanks Saximus. I did that search myself but thought it wouldn't hurt to see if any APS members had personal experience with this kind of thing.

A long time ago I looked at the QLD legislation re scooters on highways. I came to the conclusion that they mean things like mopeds that can't keep up with the traffic and that, signs notwithstanding, you'd have to be completely daft to take on a motorway in any case. I'll check it again though.

 

[Tristan]

i think a lot of you don't understand scooters, you can get a scooter (Suzuki) that can do 200km\hr+ Specifications | Burgman 650 Executive | 2011 | Scooter | Scooter | Suzuki Motorcycles, Motorbikes & ATVs Australia

as for going on a long ride on a scooter its no different that doing one on a motor bike, make sure the bike/scooter is capable of safely keeping up with the flow of traffic and speed limits, the only reason some scooters are not allowed on highways is because they are the low powered versions and cannot easily do the speed limit.

Renent can you tell us the make and model of your ride, that will let us look it up and know better if your particular ride is good for a long trip or not

 

[MSD Reptiles]

You should be able to find a company that will ship for around 500-600. And i think you did the right thing by asking here... even if you're not getting the right answers as such. When it comes to companies that deal with this sort of shipping the level or service and safety is paramount in my opinion.

Good luck with it!!

 

[Renenet]

Thanks Tristan and W4NTED.

Renenet can you tell us the make and model of your ride, that will let us look it up and know better if your particular ride is good for a long trip or not

It's a SYM HD200, in my opinion closer to a motorcycle than your typical two-stroke lawnmower scooter. I've taken it freeway and highway riding before. It sits easily on 110 K's with power to spare and is reasonably comfortable to ride. Having said that I'm sure I'll have a sore behind at the end of each day.

Don't underestimate the power of a 50cc scooter either. I know of someone who went around Australia on one.

 

[MSD Reptiles]

My sister has a SYM150 and its surprising actually.... slow after i get off my CBR600, but not bad in its own right. Bit of fun to ride for something different!

 

[Ewan]

I have used bike nut before. They were great and reasonably priced. Or if you ride to Brisbane call Queensland Rail. You might be able to put yourself and the scoot on the Sunlander train to Cairns. Unfortunately the passenger trains between Melbourne and Brisbane won't accept your scoot.

Good luck.

Ewan.

 

[Renenet]

My sister has a SYM150 and its surprising actually....

They're not bad at all.

I have used bike nut before. They were great and reasonably priced. Or if you ride to Brisbane call Queensland Rail. You might be able to put yourself and the scoot on the Sunlander train to Cairns. Unfortunately the passenger trains between Melbourne and Brisbane won't accept your scoot.

Thanks Ewan. I've submitted an online quote to Bike Nut. It's a shame they don't offer a rail service between Melbourne and Brisbane, I'm sure there would be demand for it. I've done a lot of travelling in South-East Australia but very little in Queensland, so I really want to do the ride along the coast!

 

[cactus2u]

Waynes motorcyles towing & transport 19 Ogden St Bungalow Cairns QLD 4870 PH: 0412 859 566

Not used them but have had a few good mentions of them

 

[Renenet]

Thanks Cactus.

In case anyone is interested later on, I've booked transport with Bike Nut. So far they've been great to deal with, answering my emails ASAP, so I hope that continues.

 

[Huskey]

scooter is not a motorbike, just saying.

 

[Renenet]

scooter is not a motorbike, just saying.

Um, thank you?

If I'd called the post "Moving scooters", I probably wouldn't have received quite so many responses. Plus, motor scooters tend to be confused with mobility scooters.

 

[Jungletrans]

I have shipped bikes before [ by rail ] and found if you wrap a thick quilt [ blanket ] over the bike leaving the handlebars , front end , rear wheel and side stand exposed then hold it in place with gaffa tape it saves any nasty surprises from the trip . Emptying the petrol out is good too . Safe and no one can have a joy ride without your knowledge [ it happens ]

 

[browny]

have 'moved' a bike by rail before, short answer is you must be on the train also or they will not take it,
another piece of information for anyone who does go by train with 2-wheels is look where they load it (in each luggage car there is 2 allowances for bikes) and make sure you are there waiting for it to come off as mine was left with keys in the ignition waiting for who ever to pick it up with NO ONE WAITING OR WATCHING IT, I was told go to the desk etc etc after 30mins of the run-a-round I saw it sitting there with some 'interested on-lookers' walking around it, I was not amused. As I didn't get any paperwork given to me only told to go collect it I jumped on it and rode home with no-one knowing it was collected.

Good luck with it Renenet hope it gets done with no hassles/damage, if this was another 6-8 months time I would be in a position to possibly offer to trailer it up to the QLD border as we're going to see the in-laws in Glen Innes.

 

[Renenet]

Hey all. Thanks for the info. This is an old thread and I've already moved my scooter. Thankfully, it was done safely.

And thanks for your offer, Browny. Very kind.