Road legal quad bikes

pettal · 21 January 2005, 15:14

Strange question but has anyone got a road legal quad bike or know anything about them?

1.) Legality and what constitutes a legal road version.
2.) Can an offroad one be converted and what do you have to do.
3.) What types and recommendations.
4.) Anything else you can think of baring in mind I know very little about the subject?

Just one of my brain farts that I have on a Friday afternoon!

Scotty · 21 January 2005, 16:10

Surely they are all road legal once you put a reg plate on it and tax and insure it. But it would be the worst of both worlds !!!! Unlike a motorbike you cant filter in traffic and when it rains you get wet

pettal · 22 January 2005, 10:26

In the UK, possibly but here on Guernsey we are only small and we don't have quite the same traffic build up you have over there. It takes me 6 mins to commute to work!

Ribald · 22 January 2005, 11:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by pettal

It takes me 6 mins to commute to work!

Scotty · 22 January 2005, 14:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by pettal

In the UK, possibly but here on Guernsey we are only small and we don't have quite the same traffic build up you have over there. It takes me 6 mins to commute to work!

Me too but I ride a BMW R1150 GS Adventure

pettal · 22 January 2005, 14:14

I used to have bikes but we don't talk to each other anymore. We had a falling out after the last time an idiot pulled out in front of me and sent me over the bonnet and into a granite wall.

Just one too many accidents on bikes.......admittedly a couple were my fault (too fast.....and too stupid) but the majority were other drivers.

I figured a quad might be a tad safer!?

Zippy · 22 January 2005, 16:34

We used to have a road legal quad on the farm i worked on. affraid i dont know much about them cos i was only 15 at the time and not allowed to use it.

I guess they need taxing and insuring like any normal bike. i do remember seeing on in Brussels last year. he was doing huge wheelies down the road and riding like a mad man! must be something in the strong beer over there!

Ribald · 22 January 2005, 16:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by pettal

I figured a quad might be a tad safer!?

Might be worth asking Ozzy Osbourne that question.

pettal · 22 January 2005, 17:32

Yeah, I've been looking today and it needs a bit more than tax and insurance by the looks of it.

They want speedo, brake lights, indicators and road wheels from what I've managed to glean off the different web sites.

No doubt Guernsey will be different........for some reason they always are!

Thanks Ribald........whilst I like a little dwinky every now and again I'm not quite up to Ozzy's rate of consumption! Well not yet anyway!!!

Graham H · 22 January 2005, 18:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by pettal

Yeah, I've been looking today and it needs a bit more than tax and insurance by the looks of it.

They want speedo, brake lights, indicators and road wheels from what I've managed to glean off the different web sites.

Just buy a Smart car they have all those

SDGANDER · 22 January 2005, 20:44

Don't know much about then either but the one at thte lifeboat (RNLI) station has a max road speed of 20 mph sticker on it...

But most definately road legal.

SDG

Cookee · 23 January 2005, 11:01

If you get bike trader there are tons of adverts in there - Barrus are doing road legal buggies as well now! If you want details Blue Water Marine in Salcombe are dealers and they might be able to help?

Action Man · 23 January 2005, 11:23

kawasaki used to sell a road conversion kit for there bikes I think it had a

tax disk holder (metal)
break lights
number plate
spedo

and a few other thinks i it it was a few hundred quid from what I remember.

Regards

DepSol · 23 January 2005, 21:11

In Guernsey to ride a quad bike with no helmet (or at all) you need to be registered as a farmer such as Mick Le Pelley is.

Otherwise you cant do it as it falls into an in between category with the states.

I could b wrong but thats the position as far as I know it. Worth having a chat with Craig at Venture Garage as he knows about this one I am sure. tell him Dom sent you.

Dom

pettal · 24 January 2005, 08:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by DepSol

In Guernsey to ride a quad bike with no helmet (or at all) you need to be registered as a farmer such as Mick Le Pelley is.

Otherwise you cant do it as it falls into an in between category with the states.

I could b wrong but thats the position as far as I know it. Worth having a chat with Craig at Venture Garage as he knows about this one I am sure. tell him Dom sent you.

Dom

Hi Dom,

One of my mates is a tree surgeon and he can ride one legally on the roads, but maybe tree monkeys are classified in the same way!?

I'll give the old bill and quick call and see what they reckon. A bit silly if I have to become a farmer to drive one!

Cookee · 24 January 2005, 08:51

Over here in sunny Devon nobody needs a helmet on a quad

Bilge Rat · 24 January 2005, 12:12

I was in Sainsburys a few weeks back filling up with petrol and a guy drove one in and parked up behind me to fill it up with petrol, intrigued i had a good look at it, he had lights, number plate and tax disk on the thing and other than the stupidity of driving such a small vehicle on the roads it looked completely legal to me, as i said to him " i'd not fancy trying to over take a 16 wheeler on that thing" though i don thtink it would have made much difference to him as he looked like he'd already had a frontal labotomy.

Jon Brooks · 24 January 2005, 13:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bilge Rat

I was in Sainsburys a few weeks back filling up with petrol and a guy drove one in and parked up behind me to fill it up with petrol, intrigued i had a good look at it, he had lights, number plate and tax disk on the thing and other than the stupidity of driving such a small vehicle on the roads it looked completely legal to me, as i said to him " i'd not fancy trying to over take a 16 wheeler on that thing" though i don thtink it would have made much difference to him as he looked like he'd already had a frontal labotomy.

There is a garage near me in Ramsgate the sells road legal Quads Bikes.
I have been a little tempted myself

Regards

Ribald · 24 January 2005, 17:02

Saw one at the weekend on the road. It had mudguards, lights, no. plate and a very impressive roll cage. The "pilot" (

) had a bone dome on and looked as if he was enjoying himself. Must have been frozen stiff though

pettal · 24 January 2005, 17:46

It's just basically another toy!!!

(shh not too loud or the misses might hear)

But there are some sensible reasons for this:

1.) Guernsey is pretty small and living in town, parking is at a premium, especially since our planning office (our equiv.) has just told me to put my wall back at the front of the house.....where the car is currently parked! However I could fit a quad into the space once the wall is returned.

2.) Our max speed limit is 35mph........anything above that whilst entertaining is wasted unless you travel to Europe or the mainland. I tend to fly and hire rather than drive these days.

3.) My commute is (worst case) 6 mins door to door, so even if the weather isn't that nice it's still not a major headache and definately no worse than spending several hours bouncing across waves in the drizzle!

4.) Savings on road tax, insurance and fuel.

5.) It's just a top toy!

Now that I've used you lot to get my excuses in order I think it's time I approached the Misses on this one!!!!