Crashed my 2003 VFR - Now what? (w/Vid + Pics)

[image: Posted Image]

Video (sorry it's a large file): http://www.megaupload.com/?d=VHIPBF97

So long story short, I was riding up around Canyon Lake in east Mesa, AZ - an area with twisty roads that are NOT forgiving. Dropoffs, blind corners, trucks hauling boats and horrible pavement abound. I was headed home and came into a left hander a little hot, but not to a degree where the corner was no longer negotiable. I was beginning to enter the lean, on both brakes (light on brakes, very light on the rear - also note this model has the ABS) when my rear tire hit a long patch of gravel that had accumulated in the center of my lane. After the back end came out I had to stand it up to get hard on the brakes for a moment, and by then could no longer make the turn successfully. I watch the slow mo replay and yell at myself "TURN! NOOW!" everytime I watch it as I may have had a last chance of making it....but then I play it back and full speed and recall that all this happened in the span of 1-2 seconds.

In any case, I did crash. Thank GOD, I avoided the drop off and had there been another 12 inches of pavement, would have been able to ride it out actually. Twas not to be. Now the really sad part. I had put the bike up for sale on various outlets just days before the crash. This was my 'Goodbye it's been fun' ride with the VFR. My first child, a son, was born just 11 days prior to this. Needless to say that being airvac'd to a hospital was the last thing my family and I needed at this point. The wife was NOT going to be pleased. (Update: She wasn't).

My question for you all is this: This is the first time I've crashed a (street) motorcycle in 16 years of riding and several bikes. I could still definitely use the money from the sale of what is left. In all honesty, I was pretty amazed at the lack of damage to the bike as it apparently flipped just once and landed on some brush, softening the blow. So, I'm looking for suggestions on how to proceed with the 'sale' of the bike at this point.

The bike details: 2003 VFR800A, 9,xxxx miles, Power Commander, Two Bros exhaust, K&N, HID low beam kit, new battery, Battery Tender, clean title. The bike was MINT prior to the accident and I was asking $5k obo.

The damages: Bent front/rear wheels, flat front tire, dented gas tank, broken plastic on headlight housing, misc minor cracks to left/right fairings, broken windscreen. No frame damage, forks are fine. Bike still starts right up, but is not rideable due to bent wheels.

What is my best plan of attack to get some money out of this? How much might I expect to get out of it? Do salvage yards just completely gouge you? Does the damage listed constitute a 'salvage' title?

In the end I realize that life is what is important and I still have mine, thank you God. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!!

(Note: Images and video are all copyrighted and protected, illegal to reproduce or distribute/post elsewhere)

[image: View Post]BearRacer, on 25 May 2011 - 06:16 PM, said:

[image: Posted Image]

Video (sorry it's a large file): http://www.megaupload.com/?d=VHIPBF97

So long story short, I was riding up around Canyon Lake in east Mesa, AZ - an area with twisty roads that are NOT forgiving. Dropoffs, blind corners, trucks hauling boats and horrible pavement abound. I was headed home and came into a left hander a little hot, but not to a degree where the corner was no longer negotiable. I was beginning to enter the lean, on both brakes (light on brakes, very light on the rear - also note this model has the ABS) when my rear tire hit a long patch of gravel that had accumulated in the center of my lane. After the back end came out I had to stand it up to get hard on the brakes for a moment, and by then could no longer make the turn successfully. I watch the slow mo replay and yell at myself "TURN! NOOW!" everytime I watch it as I may have had a last chance of making it....but then I play it back and full speed and recall that all this happened in the span of 1-2 seconds.

In any case, I did crash. Thank GOD, I avoided the drop off and had there been another 12 inches of pavement, would have been able to ride it out actually. Twas not to be. Now the really sad part. I had put the bike up for sale on various outlets just days before the crash. This was my 'Goodbye it's been fun' ride with the VFR. My first child, a son, was born just 11 days prior to this. Needless to say that being airvac'd to a hospital was the last thing my family and I needed at this point. The wife was NOT going to be pleased. (Update: She wasn't).

My question for you all is this: This is the first time I've crashed a (street) motorcycle in 16 years of riding and several bikes. I could still definitely use the money from the sale of what is left. In all honesty, I was pretty amazed at the lack of damage to the bike as it apparently flipped just once and landed on some brush, softening the blow. So, I'm looking for suggestions on how to proceed with the 'sale' of the bike at this point.

The bike details: 2003 VFR800A, 9,xxxx miles, Power Commander, Two Bros exhaust, K&N, HID low beam kit, new battery, Battery Tender, clean title. The bike was MINT prior to the accident and I was asking $5k obo.

The damages: Bent front/rear wheels, flat front tire, dented gas tank, broken plastic on headlight housing, misc minor cracks to left/right fairings, broken windscreen. No frame damage, forks are fine. Bike still starts right up, but is not rideable due to bent wheels.

What is my best plan of attack to get some money out of this? How much might I expect to get out of it? Do salvage yards just completely gouge you? Does the damage listed constitute a 'salvage' title?

In the end I realize that life is what is important and I still have mine, thank you God. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!!

(Note: Images and video are all copyrighted and protected, illegal to reproduce or distribute/post elsewhere)




If you used your insurance it would be totaled no doubt. You can by it back from the insurace company and fix or part it out.

Parting it out can make money but it is a long process. Most of the sought after items are busted.

Guess I left that important detail out didn't I - I did not have collision on it, just everything else.

The rear wheel may be fixable. The front maybe not.


I'd personally strip all the plastics off and make a list of every single thing that needs to be replaced and the things that can be fixed so you can at least get a total of what it would cost to fix. It's a long process but if you want to keep the bike it's worth every second spent making sure you don't miss anything before getting back on the road. I've read several threads on the Chinese fairings and they seem to be a decent fit for most the people that have ordered a set. So if you can't find OEM for a good price you're set there.


Also keep your eye out for another wrecked 6th gen. Bikes get totaled out even if it's just fairing damage.

Kinda looked like the corner was makeable in the video, although watching in real time, it was over fast.
What's done is done. Good thing you missed that metal post. Glad it wasn't worse. :ohmy:

I'm thinking the easiest thing would be to sell it to someone who wants a project, or wants it for parts.
Won't get you the most money out of it though. Good luck.

there are so many salvage yards in AZ its crazy.. call around. i am sure you can get good parts cheap. :fing02:

Paging Mr. Carver, Mr. Corner Carver...

Wow, I'm glad you are ok. What was your speed? It did not look very fast. I guess that was a good thing.

Man, that is really painful to watch, and I don't mean to make light of how you must be feeling right now, either. Seriously, thanks for sharing the "forensics" of your unfortunate circumstances.

Learned Lesson #1 here for me is DO NOT PUT YOUR FOOT DOWN. That bike weighs more than 500 pounds and you cannot do a Barney Rubble on it if it is moving. I find myself guilty of this same "instinct" about once a year, around some tight turn - and I am trying desperately to unlearn it. Ah well.

It almost looked like you coulda made it had it not been for the boulder. Probably more off-road than you or the bike would've liked, but maybe you could've ridden right back up on the road if the scrub had been less... rocky.

I watch rnickymouse's videos from SoCal canyon roads and see these guys lowside all the time for apparently no reason... It just seems so bizarre that a bike can go out of whack for such a small thing like a bit of sand. Gotta be vigilant out there!

Good luck with the sale and healing.

Sorry about your mishap.
At this point, I see no alternative but to restoring it.
Rear is def. fixable. Your most expensive parts would be plastics and the headlight.
Plastics may be fixable depending on the extent of damage.

Good luck and glad you are in a condition to be editing videos.

[image: View Post]BearRacer, on 25 May 2011 - 06:16 PM, said:

...suggestions.


If you take your time and source parts, you can put the bike back together much cheaper than taking it to a shop for repair. The downside to that is you're going to have to put more money into it to do that. If your intention is to sell it, you have to figure out if the difference between how it sits and what you'd have in it would pay back the time/effort. It's murder trying to sell a m/c right now (better than last summer, but still), especially a 6th gen. I listed mine last year for 4K and got little more than a nibble on it. For the $3 grand or so people wanted to pay I decided to keep it.

I have NO CLUE what a wrecked bike like yours would bring, but I'd guess a grand or so. Unless you have a dealership (or someone REALLY diligent) repair with new parts, your bike's not going to be "mint" anymore and 5K would be at what I'd suspect is the upper end of what a like new similar bike would bring. If you can find decent used parts and do the work yourself you'd probably wind up with (best case) $1500 or more invested.

Is the time, effort and aggravation worth the money to you? You may certainly recoup more money by parting the bike out, but as others have pointed out, it'd be a lot of work as well.

I wrecked my bike the year before last, but the damage wasn't quite as bad as what yours sounds. The estimate from a dealership was about 10K (WTF?!?) but I saved a ton by doing it myself. If interested, you can find the story of my repair HERE.

If you decide to do some repairs, I have a right lower and a rear cowl left over from the set I bought that I'd sell. Holler at me if interested, I've got pix.

Good luck with the bike, the new kid and the wife. It sounds like you'll need it.

Mals

Sorry for your misfortune - just hate to see that. That could happen to anyone. I'm sure I'm not the only one urging it to gather up and turn in - 'come on, you can save it - come on, come on - just a bit more . . . Agggh ' . Thanks for sharing though - it's a sobering reminder how vulnerable we are and how little it takes to put a bike down. Sorry to see your helmet too - Arai's aren't cheap. I think Soichiro's comment was on the money - the most sought after parts are all toast. It's an unfortunate reality for the VFR community that the bikes are not going for a lot of money, and the accessories don't bring near what they cost new. If you choose to part out, the classifieds here are a good bet. For reference, there is a 2005 parts bike on ebay that's been on there for some time - about in the same condition as yours (non ABS however), though the wheels both look to be good. It has $2,000 on it and hasn't had any takers.

Sorry to hear about your accident and glad that you've made it without much damage to yourself.
It could have been much worse had it been at a dodgier spot.
Guess that is the worst thing about uncontrolled surfaces as anything is possible. I remember coming across to a 1/2 foot high mud track caused by a farm tractor that had recently crossed the road I was traveling on. I was glad that I wasn't riding too spirited at that moment.

Since you don't have full insurance coverage, if I was you, I would take this on as a project and take the opportunity to learn and understand this bike more than any usual maintenance activity would allow you.
At least this way you can guarantee a positive outcome otherwise you may end up loosing too much money if you were to sell it as it is.
To a project buyer your bike would be an opportunity for a good deal.

Good luck with all and recover fast.

I was just on that road 2 weeks ago and it is HORRIBLE between the missing pavement and the ridges.
I am not far away from you in queen creek and just feel so bad about that happening to a beautiful bike.

If you fix the bike the best place for mechanical parts is bob's cycle salvage in phoenix. If you part out the bike
that will net you the most money I would think.

I don't get it last year that road was perfect and now its beat to hell from all of the RVs that have a bad tendency of taking up
half your lane. When I was there last time some retard in a hummer tried to swing around the corner and good thing I was toward the right hand part of the lane
otherwise he would've clipped me.

First, thanks for the well wishes guys. It's great to come back here tonight and see a multitude of mature and helpful comments!

[image: View Post]VFR4Lee, on 25 May 2011 - 08:33 PM, said:

Kinda looked like the corner was makeable in the video, although watching in real time, it was over fast.
What's done is done. Good thing you missed that metal post. Glad it wasn't worse. :ohmy:


I can't say I disagree, as I said in the OP after watching the slow mo - but in real time, while on the bike...well, you know the result. There may have been a MILLISECOND of 'Oh sh**' with the accompanying freeze up, but that quickly passed and I rode it out. Right before going off road I do think there was a moment where I could have just leaned it over and went for broke...what did I have to lose, right? Obviously it didn't pass quickly enough. I think I was just moving too quickly. As for the metal post...yeah, I missed that one, but not the next one. It was bent at a 45 degree angle and the bike hadn't reached it - so I have to assume that my body did that. I was out cold when I hit the ground so I can't say for sure. When my front tire hit the boulder I believe the bike came up and my face/head slammed into the windscreen and headlight housing, knocking me out. Glad I picked up that Arai on Craigslist for a mere $200 2 months ago! :cool: Shame though, I loved just looking at that helmet sit in my office when not in use...a piece of art.

[image: View Post]Coastie, on 25 May 2011 - 09:05 PM, said:

Wow, I'm glad you are ok. What was your speed? It did not look very fast. I guess that was a good thing.


Not sure, I'd estimate about 40 when I went off the road.

[image: View Post]carlitos92, on 25 May 2011 - 09:14 PM, said:

Learned Lesson #1 here for me is DO NOT PUT YOUR FOOT DOWN. That bike weighs more than 500 pounds and you cannot do a Barney Rubble on it if it is moving. I find myself guilty of this same "instinct" about once a year, around some tight turn - and I am trying desperately to unlearn it. Ah well.

It almost looked like you coulda made it had it not been for the boulder. Probably more off-road than you or the bike would've liked, but maybe you could've ridden right back up on the road if the scrub had been less... rocky.


Well you see, I put my foot down only because I thought the front end was going to wash out on my once it dropped off the raised pavement and onto the dirt as I was still trying to turn at that time. Good idea? No, and would my foot really have stopped it from lowsiding? We know that answer is no. Thing is, I was resorting to desperate measures by that point. What you don't see in the video is the drop off that I so narrowly missed. It was at least a 75 foot vertical drop to a boulder laden landing area below. I caught a glimpse of this right after my rear tire hit the gravel and my life's goal in those next few seconds was to avoid going over that edge at all costs. And, had it not been for the boulder, I know I could have made it! :angry:

I'm just happy to be 1)alive, and 2) walking with no broken bones. I had to be airvac'd out as I wasted an entire hour waiting for friends to arrive and take me to the hospital (dumb). When the Sherriff/paramedic arrived looking for the rider of the bike they found, the called the medivac due to the remote location and the bruise on my forehead (possible closed head injury). Thankfully all scans and x rays were negative and I went home that same day with a concussion, sprained ankle and badly bruised back.

Anywho, thanks for all the suggestions again, really helps me with some options.

Tried to watch your vid but got some megaupload download site. Not sure how to view video file. Some help?

Sorry to hear about the bike. You can fix it yourself and sell it as clean title if you haven't reported it to DMV. You should be honest with your purchaser about it though. Parting it out is a hassle but the return is slightly higher than selling it as is. (Depending on what's left that is sell able. I wish you luck. If it were me I'd keep it family or not. Store it until you are ready to ride again then resurrect it.

[image: View Post]VFR Capt.Bob, on 26 May 2011 - 01:21 AM, said:

Tried to watch your vid but got some megaupload download site. Not sure how to view video file. Some help?

Sorry to hear about the bike. You can fix it yourself and sell it as clean title if you haven't reported it to DMV. You should be honest with your purchaser about it though. Parting it out is a hassle but the return is slightly higher than selling it as is. (Depending on what's left that is sell able. I wish you luck. If it were me I'd keep it family or not. Store it until you are ready to ride again then resurrect it.


There is a count down on the right dtarting from 45 sec. Wait till that times out and then click the "Regulare Download: button that will appear.

[image: View Post]Graves, on 26 May 2011 - 10:27 AM, said:

[image: View Post]VFR Capt.Bob, on 26 May 2011 - 01:21 AM, said:

Tried to watch your vid but got some megaupload download site. Not sure how to view video file. Some help?

Sorry to hear about the bike. You can fix it yourself and sell it as clean title if you haven't reported it to DMV. You should be honest with your purchaser about it though. Parting it out is a hassle but the return is slightly higher than selling it as is. (Depending on what's left that is sell able. I wish you luck. If it were me I'd keep it family or not. Store it until you are ready to ride again then resurrect it.


There is a count down on the right dtarting from 45 sec. Wait till that times out and then click the "Regulare Download: button that will appear.

Well while that is downloading I'll add two more suggestions. Offer the bike as is for a price that you think is fair on this sight. Someone like me who like working on bikes may be interested in a project bike. I recently passed on creating my own VFR track bike because I found a great deal on a CBR954. Maybe a crash damaged 6th gen touring bike could be my next project bike.

[image: View Post]Graves, on 26 May 2011 - 10:27 AM, said:

[image: View Post]VFR Capt.Bob, on 26 May 2011 - 01:21 AM, said:

Tried to watch your vid but got some megaupload download site. Not sure how to view video file. Some help?

Sorry to hear about the bike. You can fix it yourself and sell it as clean title if you haven't reported it to DMV. You should be honest with your purchaser about it though. Parting it out is a hassle but the return is slightly higher than selling it as is. (Depending on what's left that is sell able. I wish you luck. If it were me I'd keep it family or not. Store it until you are ready to ride again then resurrect it.


There is a count down on the right dtarting from 45 sec. Wait till that times out and then click the "Regulare Download: button that will appear.


I tried the download as well on a high speed connection and the download times out after a couple minutes. The next try seemed to be fed by a 1200 baud modem. I've downloaded from Megaupload before but this one seems to be an exercise in frustration.

Sorry to hear about your crash. Sounds like you're not interested in keeping the bike anyway so you will have to decide whether it's worth more to fix and sell, to part out, or just sell the carcass whole to be done with it. In any case, glad you're OK, that's what counts.

Cheers, BC

Sorry about the crash, sounds similar to one I had about 5 years back. Hope you heal up quick!

I tried getting the video, but the Anti virus on my computer kept throwing up flags, so I backed out.

[image: View Post]BearRacer, on 26 May 2011 - 12:04 AM, said:

I'm just happy to be 1)alive, and 2) walking with no broken bones. I had to be airvac'd out as I wasted an entire hour waiting for friends to arrive and take me to the hospital (dumb). When the Sherriff/paramedic arrived looking for the rider of the bike they found, the called the medivac due to the remote location and the bruise on my forehead (possible closed head injury). Thankfully all scans and x rays were negative and I went home that same day with a concussion, sprained ankle and badly bruised back.

Anywho, thanks for all the suggestions again, really helps me with some options.


I have a friend who just finished an advanced riders course in Little Rock came around a corner an got screwed up by a massive pothole in the ground. brand new GSXR 600 - totaled. Rider - 2 days in ICU for internal injuries, busted up knee and a very bruised Ego.

All said I'd consider you very lucky.

No doubt, consider myself very lucky. I still to this day cannot comprehend why people who decide to own and ride a motorcycle do not wear a helmet. I had an eerie reminder of how lucky I was when I went to pick up the bike at the tow yard. The tow company tows for DPS and they said I was 1 of 3 bike accidents that month. He pointed to a heap of twisted metal, barely recognizable as a motorcycle, in the corner and said, "That was one of them. The other wasn't quite as bad. Both of them died." Harley riders, no helmets. Just like the ones that stopped and picked me up. GREAT group of guys, but none of them (nor their wives) wearing helmets.

You'll have no problem selling the exhaust and power commander if you decide to part it out. But it sounds like selling it as-is might be your best option.

Glad you're safe, that's the important thing, and good luck in whichever route you decide to take.

Video took 20 min. to download but it worked. I think once you chose the early apex inside of the gravel you were doomed to run out of road with out a lot of lean angle and the gravel would have had your back wheel swap and a faster crash would have taken you over the edge lock stock and barrel. To your credit you did a great job of keeping everything straight and slowing it down. For anybody who hasn't tried to complete their turn on a dirt shoulder on the edge of a mt. road, believe me it's all about survival and luck unless you're last name is Rossi and you race moto GP. You kept the bike and yourself on the high ground at least. Nice video too. If you do sell your bike as is, be sure to include some before photos. I strongly recommend all riders attempting to ride their bikes for performance wear full gear. Sorry but I had to say it.

Just to share my part-out experience, you will be able to sell some relatively small desirable parts and then you will be stuck with 99% of the parts that no one wants. Plus, you will have to deal with the sale of each part, which is not fun at all - Lots of time and very little return.

Either sell all of it as is or restore it.

I got serious issues clicking on this... do you feel lucky? /DirtyHarry/

[image: View Post]BearRacer, on 25 May 2011 - 06:16 PM, said:

Video (sorry it's a large file): http://www.megaupload.com/?d=VHIPBF97

For info I downloaded the video( 2 minutes) lowest speed cable.It is an .m4v file & it played on my itunes. I must say congrats on keeping it on the shoulder! I am glad you were not seriously hurt! I did almost the same thing years ago but the shoulder was grass & wet, so as soon as I hit it with the lean I was in the bike went straight down & I fractured 3 ribs.... but at least I was fortunate enough to finish the ride. I wish I could offer you some advise on how to best get some $ out of your bike.
I am just glad for you & your family that it wasn't more serious!


Gary

Quote

Right before going off road I do think there was a moment where I could have just leaned it over and went for broke...what did I have to lose, right?

That's what I was thinking, but not trying to fault you.
Hindsight is 20/20, a Monday morning quarterback I'm not.
You maybe could have tried last second to toss it into the turn, and low sided, or made it.
Who knows how that would have turned out? Nobody. :rolleyes:

Just trying to learn a lesson the easy way. From someone elses school of hard knocks. Not mine.
So, in a weird way, thanks. :goofy:

Sorry to hear about your crash, they suck big time, You are a very lucky person indeed!!

It looks you may have taken to better option at the time, if you tried to ride out the rear step out, you may have ended up under the bike/ slide into the post or boulder and maybe over the edge!!!

Hope you heal up quickly and relax, bikes can be fixed or replaced, count your lucky not be in a worse state!!

I have a big stack before christmas on my CBR (R.I.P) on a double apex corner, gassed it up, rear wheel spin, ran wide into a car cutting the corner coming from the opposite direction! Thrown about 10 metres from where it happened.

Busted my right hand, severe sprain to my ankle. Lucky I was wearing all the right gear, it took most of the load, I must`ve been out for a few minutes.

Sorry about your crash Bearracer!

I would think that rebuilding or selling to someone as is for track bike would be the best options. Maybe someone here would want a track bike? Personally, I would slowly rebuild over 2 years or so. But I'm not you. Whatever you decide, good luck and just enjoy being healthy and being a new father. Congrats on the new family BTW..... :fing02:

C