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there are also the folks who customize/trick out their bikes and think that you should pay huge money because they sunk "over 4000 dollars worth of extras" into it.

those ads always make me laugh. just because those extras cost you 4grand doesn't mean they are worth 4 grand to me....people just don't get that.

in short there are good deals out there and there are clowns who try to turn a profit on a bike/car/atv whatever...find a good deal or buy new/used off a dealer

ofblong wrote:Ok I have been looking at cycle trader and my local newspapers. it seems like every bike available is just about what a brand new bike costs. I found a ducati that is $500 under brand new and its 3 yrs old and has no extras. Then I saw a Honda Shadow with no extras that was only $300 less than brand new and it was 4 years old. It looks to me like bikes almost dont lose any value to them as they get used and abused. Any thoughts or am I just looking in all the wrong places cause the way I see it if its only $500 less than brand new I would rather go brand new.

I too have observed this, and always assumed that the asker is expecting to have to bargain.

That said, the main thing preventing me from buying a new bike is that I will also be in the learning stage, and I don't really want to be cranking out RPMs when I don't really have enough experience on the road.

i've gone down this route over my search for my bike.
The feedback fora newbie is usually to look for a used bike since in most cases, we'll end up dropping them, but as i look for bikes, there doesnt seem to be a good discount on used bikes and as most folks, i'll pay the extra cash for a new bike.

I have been so surprised to see old bikes ( from the 80's and early 90's) and how much they cost (expensive). I have had no luck finding any bike that runs for under $1000 for my 1st one. Maybe its the Chicago market.

bok wrote:there are also the folks who customize/trick out their bikes and think that you should pay huge money because they sunk "over 4000 dollars worth of extras" into it.

those ads always make me laugh. just because those extras cost you 4grand doesn't mean they are worth 4 grand to me....people just don't get that.

in short there are good deals out there and there are clowns who try to turn a profit on a bike/car/atv whatever...find a good deal or buy new/used off a dealer

That's all well and good, if those modifications aren't worth it to you. You can just walk away, no harm no foul. However, I certainly wouldn't sell my bike for blue book price considering the extent of modifications I have done. It's unreasonable to ask full-price for the extras, but it's perfectly reasonable to attach a value to them and adjust your asking price accordingly. Chances are, someone will come along who will like what was done to the bike and will take advantage of the time/money/hassle savings of having it finished already.

It's probably the timing more than anything. This is "motorcycle season"... and with gas prices, it's also "keeping the cycle will save me more than I'd get selling it" time.

I've seen really nice bikes for $500... usually while it was raining. Now...well... I bough new 'cause I didn't see the point of getting a 3-year old bike of uncertain history to save $600.

SocialDistortion, i think the reason most of us say get a used bike is so it doesn't hurt you as much if you drop it or break something off of it while you learn. it's just easier to swallow losing 2 grand than 12grand if something goes horribly wrong.
unfortunately for buyers, bikes are in high demand currently. I stopped in yesterday to a dealer and they said they sold 9 bikes that morning, which is what they used to do on a busy saturday.

ZooTech, i was more getting at a guy who puts 4 grand in chrome on his bike and thinks i should pay the kbb plus 4 grand. if i like what has been done i will pay over the kbb, but i wouldn't pay full retail price for all the extras. same way as i wouldn't pay the same for a bike with 3 times the mileage on it. I'd walk away if the person wasn't willing to bargain for sure.

I went the same route in my shopping venture. Spring, high gas prices, popularity of motorcycling, and people's high expectation of resale value all contribute to what everyone is seeing.

After litterally months of shopping during spring, I've found the best deals to be at a dealerships. I'm sure that's not the case everywhere, but it's what I've noticed.

Personally, if you're looking at 2-3 year old bike and they're only off by $500 or less than new (despite upgrades), I'd buy new. You then know what it's been through and can mod it knowing it currently sits at factory spec. I don't like buying bikes that are modded out simply because I don't know whether they re-calced the performance accurately after the mods.

If you can wait til fall, you're going to see a dramatic drop on a lot of those bikes. If not, go new for the reasons listed above.

looks like I might be waiting till next year. I could go buy a bike now but am still on the "call list" for the MSF courses near me. I am looking to see whats out there and prices.

if fall brings lower prices for used ones does it also bring more deals from dealerships?

I also noticed this when I was looking for a used bike. The only bikes I could find were dirtbikes and personally that's not my style. I was looking for more of a 250-500cc bike to learn on. But even the Kawasaki Ninja Ex250 is still selling for alot with very little depreciation. Brand new retail it's around $3K but when I looked online I found alot of '00 and 01 models going for $2.5K and 2.6K, all of them having over 28K miles on them and in questionable condition.

So I'm in a similar situation. In the end after I get all my safety gear, pass my MSF and get my license. I will probably end up forking out the $3K for the Ninja 250.

I have a lot of experience in selling my bikes myself, everybody looking at it will tell you they don't want the bike for the accesories on it and they refuse to pay extra for what they never wanted in the first place, and nobody will buy it unless they get you down on ur asking price. I have my 05 Suzuki M50 for sale now I want $5000 for it, I have it in a newspaper add for $5400. I got over 10 phone calls about it now at this time I waiting for 1 guy to show up to look at it, if he offers me $5000 its sold. Everybody that called have no idea what a M50 is I told them its a power sports cruiser bike and yes I have a clear title for it. The reason im selling it myself is one dealer only offered me $2700 for it trade in price. I still never made up my mind what new bike im going to buy, leaning towards the Suzuki V Strom 1000 or the Kawasaki Contours, or the Honda VTX 1800, or Yamaha FZ1. all 4 bikes are around the same price, the Kawasaki is almost $1000 cheaper, its a cheaper made bike and I can accept that.