I own a fourth gen in my avatar, Charlotte. I'm not looking to do anything with her.
For you 5th gen owners, what mileage is TOO much for you to look at another bike? I know, the purchase price is food for thought.
There is a 5th gen with a salvage title with over 65k on it for $750. I'm trying to convince my friend to get on it as he would ride it. Bike looks good, but of course that is subjective.
My first fifth gen, an 'o1 with 4k when I bought it went 105,000+ miles when it was totaled. It had been on the ground many times, some serious. There was one front end/fork rebuild. But she was still running very well to the end.
The moral of this story is they can run for a lot of miles. 65K is not that much.
I bought mine with 2,900 miles on it and it has almost 68k now. They will run a lot of miles. At this point it isn't worth much for me to sell it which sucks, but it is good for someone looking to buy one.
sooo, is the price right at 750 w/a salvage and a 1.5 hour drive?
I would say that depends on why the salvage title. When was that title originally issued? If it was within the last year or so, it wouldn't have needed anything major to happen to it in order to be totaled out. Additionally, what does it need for maintenance or specific repairs? You could easily have to sink a bunch of money into it to get it road ready, making $750 way too much to spend on it.
^^^ Me too ^^
she runs and rides apparently. Needs tires and chain and sprockets. Title was issued 5 years ago. Owner has no idea why it was salvaged.
so, that said, what is a fair price?
Can you get registered ?
yes, I can get it registered. VA DMV takes the title through their headquarters and verifies everything. I have pics of the title etc and all appears in order. Spoke to the DMV today on it. I had an issue with a 92 last year like this and they had me a new title in 3 weeks
mcrwt644she runs and rides apparently. Needs tires and chain and sprockets. Title was issued 5 years ago. Owner has no idea why it was salvaged.
so, that said, what is a fair price?
Tires = $400 (by the time you're done with mounting, tire disposal fees, etc.)
Chain / Sprockets = $200 for something decent, assuming you (he) does the work
Fork service, oil and filter, coolant flush are "mandatory" unless current owner can show proof of them being done
What year is it? The 98/99 models have a LOT of trouble with the R/R, the 00/01 have SOME trouble with the R/R - assume this hasn't been done
Battery will end up needing replacement just because that's how these things go
What sort of shape is the stator in? Likely ok, but you just never know.
Does -everything- on the bike work electrically? Those problems are HARD to chase down and correct
How are the brakes? The clutches? Are the rims true? Forks straight?
Unless you're actually able to check some of these bigger things, it's risky. You could easily end up into it for $2000 or more. And, for that money, you're better off buying one with a clear title.
To me, Salvage Title = significantly diminished value. Take a look at the bike and determine what parts on it could reasonably be sold off individually and at what profit. Multuiply by .30 (as in take 30%) and that's what you offer. That way, if it turns out to be a gigantic can of worms when you start in on it, just stop and sell the parts. Make some cash back and use THAT to buy something.
you bring up some very solid points, and I have Charlotte to ride
Location is everything. Out here I'd snag that right away. It's worth 3X that much in parts alone. Beat 5th gens go for $2.5K+ around here.
It sounds like a deal for a complete bike.
Just for comparison, my current fifth gen project I've been trying to keep my total invest below $2k, because I know I probably won't be able to sell it for more (it's got just under 70k miles). But like everything, with paint work I'm probably over that now... but it's set up to my liking, and I plan to keep it!
My last Sixth gen was a great bike... but when I was trying to sell it and get this fifth gen, no one wanted it.. there were too many bikes for sale that had 6k miles, or 12k miles... that mine looked like a risk with 72k miles. The market value isn't dropping because the bikes have a lot of failures at that mileage, it's just that most competitive motorcycles for sale have such low mileage in comparison.
+1 for Location and Electrical issue
-Location:depends on where u live, for example i always se american on CL way cheaper than a similar bike here in Canada (plus, we pay tax on used vehicles too)
-Electrical: most people look closely for condition of the frame, engine, brakes, clutch ... etc. and kinda of over look the electrical systems (R/R,alternator, ignitions, starter, harness/wiring, instrument, ...etc.) assuming they're just fine. so far with all the bikes i've had before, most of the problems i encountered was electrical issue, varying from a turn signal thats not working because stupid PO did some crap wiring to somewhat bigger/annoying ones like wiring harness rubbing against frame and grounded and/or stripped some wires, digital speedometer problems and charging system
MaxSwellMy first fifth gen, it went 105,000+ miles when it was totaled.
I have about half of that milage on my 2000 5th gen, so many miles ahead then :fing02:
Bought mine with 5300 miles last September and I now have 8000 miles. Time to change the oil, spark plugs, and any other fiddling I want to do while the fairings are off.
As long as the frame is straight, I'd say 750 is a great price. If you part it out, you will make your money back. 1.5 hours is nothing. Hell I have sat in traffic for that long and I only live 10 miles away from my work! If you are not living paycheck to paycheck, I'd do it.
I think I would fo for $750 for no other reason then to have spares.
Interesting timing. I just dumped my '99er on the highway. Damage was confirmed by shop to be entirely cosmetic, but at that point I had reported it to my insurance company. And they had to total it -- not because it was in any way unridable, but because at 14 years and 111k miles, it would have exceeded a certain cost threshold to repair.
I opted to sell it to the insurance company, but only because they offered my 2k more than they initially guessed! Had I kept it, I would have had a mechanically excellent, but ugly (if i didn't have the fairings etc replaced) ride. 200k would not have surprised me.
I'd have the alignment checked. You don't want to fight a twisted frame or forks. Compression check wouldn't hurt.
"Salvage title" doesn't mean bad, bad bike. It means the insurance companuy ran a cost analysis on repairs and the number exceeded a threshold, based on typical resale value. The older the bike, but lower the threshold.
65k miles on a fifth gen? An adolescent. $750 could be a steal. Note, could be.
Aram
Yep.. And that's exactly what I meant by "it depends" on why it was totaled out. Cost to fix > value = totaled. And, it doesn't matter WHY... On a 15 year old bike, fairings cost more than the bike is worth (according to NADA/KBB).
Keep in mind that you can argue with the insurance company to SHOW (based on market) how much the bike is -really- worth.
I wouldnt reject a 65k mile 5th gen, because of the miles, but if your patient, there are ultra low mile 5th gens out there that even though you spend a few dollars more on the initial purchase, you will still be money ahead. Its always less expensive to find a pristine bike ready to go, than to get that fixer that needs endless $ thrown at it. -- Of course sometimes the fix up is the point of it.