Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Hey guys,
This forum is great. Every noob question of mine so far has been answered very clearly. I really appreciate it guys. Having no biker buddies at all, it really helps in navigating the newbie world of bikes. I now have a very good idea of what class of bikes would be most suitable, their advantages and so on.

I just have one more question and it is about purchasing/pricing. I don't understand this NADA price guide. I mean, EVERY bike add I've seen so far is listed at a price so much higher than the NADA value. I'm not talking about just $200 more for bargaining.
How is the NADA value of any help? Is it the TRUE value that I am supposed to be paying or just some vague guide. Am I being suckered if I pay more than NADA value? Assuming that mileage/condition is in the normal range.

To add to this confusion, if I want a loan, my bank will finance only 80% of the price and that is 80% of the NADA value. So if I go for a newer (2000-2003) motorcycle, I can't go too far beyond the Nada range
But of course, nobody is willing to sell at that price.

As for older motorcycles, got to throw the NADA out the window. I see ads for bikes listed at $1500 and so on and the NADA value for that will be like $500. A 1987 Honda Magna 700 with 10K miles for example. 550 miles/yr? Good or bad? It probably was just sitting.


NADA values are adjusted for local variations too apparently.
IS NADA value + a couple hunder bucks what I should be aiming for?
This is really frustrating

From what I understand KBB's values are the dealers' ASKING price. So the real buying price has to be about $200 or so lesser..

some more confusion:

For some bikes, KBB and Nada values match. For some, KBB's trade-in value is equal to NADA's Retail value. On some cycles the difference is about $800.
The prices below are KBB's Retail Value and NADA's Average Retail.

1994 Yamaha XV535S Virago / KBB - 2395 / NADA - 1610
(KBB's Trade-in Value: 1610)

1998 Kawasaki VN800-A4 Vulcan / KBB - 3155 / NADA - 2205
(KBB's trade-in value: 2145)

1998 Yamaha XVS65A V-Star Custom / KBB - 2925 / NADA - 2720
(KBB's trade-in value: 1980)

What's a guy supposed to make of all this?

I think the NADA guide is a little bit better. The KBB has two figures: 1) trade-in, 2) dealer retail. To figure out how much a private party used bike should go for add both figures and divide by 2.

c-los wrote:I think the NADA guide is a little bit better. The KBB has two figures: 1) trade-in, 2) dealer retail. To figure out how much a private party used bike should go for add both figures and divide by 2.

Yeah NADA seems to be the primary guide for motorcycle values.. But does it actually reflect the market?

i think the KBB prices are way high it shows what people Think they should be getting when they sell their vehichle. the dealer trade in shows the lowest price the dealers think they can get your vehicle for and not loose money on later. i think the kbb dealer trade in and nada reflect better what a bike is worth.

kbb price is inflated by sellers thinking their stuff is worth way to much because they want more money...

Think of both of these as guides. They are based on sales so should be a fairly accurate reflection of the market. But again, they are a starting place. Previous poster was correct, a good place to settle is between wholesale and retail...or as NADA puts it, trade-in and retail. (online they say low and average retail). Now that applies to cars and I ASSume it applies to motorcycles as well. I fairly new to cycling.

My example: I bought an 04 Vulcan 800. The NADA said 4895 and KBB said 4750 for "high" retail or retail. The lower price (about 3700) would be what dealers would give you or even less (wholesale price). 4750 (retail) was less than the asking price. The bike had 500 miles with a bunch of extras. I was not about to of offer high 3000 or low 4000's. It was worth more than 4750 but not according to KBB. I offered and he took it. Essentially a new bike for 1800 under retail with extras added. Many people don't even look at a book price. Dealers sell vehicles for over the book price all the time and people just buy them. Stupid.

iwannadie wrote:i think the KBB prices are way high it shows what people Think they should be getting when they sell their vehichle. the dealer trade in shows the lowest price the dealers think they can get your vehicle for and not loose money on later. i think the kbb dealer trade in and nada reflect better what a bike is worth.

kbb price is inflated by sellers thinking their stuff is worth way to much because they want more money...

ah, i get it now. can't blame seelers for trying to seel it for as much as possible. i just wanted to get a fair idea for how much bikes are really worth and how much i should be willing to shell out.

jeff_connors wrote:Think of both of these as guides. They are based on sales so should be a fairly accurate reflection of the market. But again, they are a starting place. Previous poster was correct, a good place to settle is between wholesale and retail...or as NADA puts it, trade-in and retail. (online they say low and average retail). Now that applies to cars and I ASSume it applies to motorcycles as well. I fairly new to cycling.

My example: I bought an 04 Vulcan 800. The NADA said 4895 and KBB said 4750 for "high" retail or retail. The lower price (about 3700) would be what dealers would give you or even less (wholesale price). 4750 (retail) was less than the asking price. The bike had 500 miles with a bunch of extras. I was not about to of offer high 3000 or low 4000's. It was worth more than 4750 but not according to KBB. I offered and he took it. Essentially a new bike for 1800 under retail with extras added. Many people don't even look at a book price. Dealers sell vehicles for over the book price all the time and people just buy them. Stupid.

Thanks for explaining it. My bank said they will finance 80% of NADA's trade-in value. So if I buy a motorcycle for the NADA average retail value, the bank will be funding about 60% of the total price I think.

The NADA values and KBB values differ significantly for many bikes. What then?

Your message is not clear on how much you actually paid for your vulcan.

I have posted 3 exampels in the 2nd post of the thread. I'd appreciate it if you would tell me how much YOU would actually consider paying for those 3 motorcycles. A ballpark estimate will be just fine. That will give me a good idea.