Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Opinion on Bike... What do you think?

I am just finished a motorcycle training safety course and am in the market for a used bike... nothing too powerful but something reliable and safe for beginners (commuting) under $2k. Here is one i am considering:

1984 nighthawk 750cc - $1400 , 22k miles, in good condition....


what do you guys think? what questions should i ask the guy when i go see it?

The bike is 21 years old and has done 22 thousand miles? Maybe it did a lap of the odometer that he did not notice.

Mine was an '84 and had similar mileage. Hell, my first bike was a '78 CX500 with just over 9000 on the odometer when I got it three years ago.

I see alot of '84', '85' bikes with mileage in the 20's not sure why, but if it runs nice and you like it it doesn't sound like a bad deal at all. You could easily put twice that many miles on it and not realize how old it is. Just make sure the tires and the brakes are in good shape.

It sounds ok to me - maybe a tad high on the price for 22k, but that's not real bad at all. My bike is 4 years older than that and only had 1400 miles on the clock!

Look it over really good. Aside from big itmes like rust and broken things, pay attention to little thing slike the condition of little rubber grommets, fasteners, hose connections, etc... those are the things that die from old age and can be a real pita to replace on some old bikes.

Old bikes' worst problems are rubber--grommets, fuel and vacuum lines, tires, and such, and rust--check the tank interior. Was it stored for a long time with gas in it? May need a carb cleaning. Old grease in steering heads, wheel bearings and swingarms can harden and become innefective, too. My '83 only had 4700 miles on it in 20 years and I had to do some repairs to make it roadworthy. On the other hand, doing those repairs yourself is a great bonding exercise.

oldnslo wrote:Old bikes' worst problems are rubber--grommets, fuel and vacuum lines, tires, and such, and rust--check the tank interior. Was it stored for a long time with gas in it? May need a carb cleaning. Old grease in steering heads, wheel bearings and swingarms can harden and become innefective, too. My '83 only had 4700 miles on it in 20 years and I had to do some repairs to make it roadworthy. On the other hand, doing those repairs yourself is a great bonding exercise.

so true...mines an 82 yammy and it 7200 when i bought it. but doing all the work myself replacing the rubbers and little dodads here and there makes me feel safer. and it makes you want to go to sleep on your bike.

I just picked up a '96 750 Nighthawk yesterday with 10K on the odometer. What a sweet bike. Quiet and smooth riding...riding it is almost like being on a magic carpet.

If the engine sounds good and the appearance of the bike you are looking at seems appropriate for a well loved bike for its age, I'd say go for it.

Sadly, now that I have this one the wife is going to make me part with my 05 EX250 Ninja. She says I cant have 3 bikes.

non-sense. Just stick it in your bed where she used to sleep....
I'm always on the lookout for a third bike.. but I don't have a wife, so it works out nicely.