I have both a Sportster and a Suzuki S40. For the Suzuki, lots of very useful information on the Suzuki Savage forum.

 

Quick story, several years ago in my PA Motorcycle safety course I met a thirty year old girl abot 5"5 150 lbs . Well her Brother and Father to Billet Barge Harley owners talked her into a new 883 Iron . She told me it was to much for her to handle, high center of gravity and heavy weight. As others have stated , not a beginners bike !! Maybe, just maybe the Sporster Low Rider would be ok but not the Irons . If anyone tries to tell you a 883 Iron is a good girls/beginner bike they do not know what they are talking about . I bought mine new in 2016 and I'am 5"8 200 lbs . And I have to wrestle it . I'am thinking of going to a Softail Slim which I have ridden and much easier to handle than the 883 Iron . Now if your woman is 5"10 180 lbs with lots of upper body strenth, yes then . Also several posters have stated might upgrade from a metric to a Sporster, I would say no . Upgrade to a softail .

 

Sweet bike. Put some engine guards on. They are cheap and can save a leg.

 

Beginners should always start out with a smaller machine imo. I'll also say that beginners should be able to upright their machines by themselves in the event of a fall. And please do not skip the Safety Course. Thinking that you can 'get away with out it' simply because you're riding in parking lot is just asking for trouble (both legal and personal/property injury wise). Good luck, and be safe.

 

Great choice Bluraven! After the MSF I rode a little Honda Rebel for a month or so - really learned how to rev it to the max keeping up with my friends Fatboy. I then went to a Suzuki Savage (now called the S40) near the end of my first riding season. Great torque - I loved it. Very easy to keep up with the Fatboy. I rode it all of my second season and near the end of that I was ready for a sporty. I love my Sportster '48.

Two years ago I moved to the dyna family - but kept the sporty because its such a fun bike to ride. I traded in the Suzuki for the dyna. I regret not having it anymore. I'm looking for a used Suzuki S40 for short around town trips - library, store - just for errands. Good luck to the wife as she learns!

 

I bought my wife a Honda CM400, pre-scratched and pre-dented, for $400, a couple of years ago. Kick start only. A little work and it was up and running. She got some good training out of it and is ready for a newer/bigger bike. Just stock up on a couple of mirrors and levers.

 

In the UK it is slightly different, you have to have to pass a CBT.
Compulsory Bike Training, which is done on a 125.
Once you have passed that, one days training, you can then go onto actually taking your full test.
There are 2 routes depending on the riders age.
I took my lessons and test on a Ducati Monster and once I passed was on my 1200 Sportster that day.
So it does depend on her confidence level