Craigslist project bike pricing

I have noticed an odd trend of late on my local CL. The ad usually goes something like this.

2005 Yamaha R6 Been down and needs new fairings and headlight. Parts are available on ebay for $1000 10000 miles, runs great, blah blah blah $3500.

In my area an 05 R6 goes for about $4000. So if I get this one and want to fix it, by the time I'm done I'm going to be at the exact same price as if I bought one in good condition in the first place. Just doesn't compute to me.

Even if they are going to make a streetfighter out of it a $500 dollar savings doesn't seem like enough of a bargain to warrant buying the bike over a known good one.

I would much rather go to an insurance auction and get one for say $1200 to turn into a fighter.

Anyone else notice this or can point out the flaw in my logic to me?

The flaw in logic is that you dont have the self interest of the seller.

Just send him a lowball, to annoy them if nothing else.

I hate "runs great, just needs new battery and carbs cleaned." Well, put in a battery and clean the carbs, you lazy fuck.

Agree 100%!

Amen to that!!!! Even saw that posted on a bike from a dealership (car dealership that got a bike on trade but a dealership none the less)

You would think they could grasp the concept of spending a couple hundred to get it sorted and then being able to ask quite a bit more.

One has to ask if the carbs need to be cleaned how could it run great???

It's more of a "runs great... in theory" kind of situation.

didn't you know that craigs list adds have nothing to due with the kbb price of the bike.
i am always amazed the the sellers don't realize their bike won't sell for more than $1000+
above kbb. i have seen bikes on cl for over a year.


ran great when parked....2+ years ago

Title's branded.

How's that different from any other used vehicle ad? It isn't up to the seller to determine what constitutes value to you or to anybody else. Don't like it, don't inquire. So simple.

There was a local Honda dealer that had one of those on a Honda- an absolutely cherry '80s VFR that had been left to sit too long.

Probably the bike will never be worth the labor $$$ it'd take for the dealer to make it right.

I don't see your point. If similar bike in better condition is sold on CL for $XXX
then whats the problem of listing yours for $XXX - price for parts needed.

Why I, as a seller, should invest more into the bike that I'm already selling, if at the end, every fucker out there is still gonna low ball me?

Don't like the price, move on, its an agreement of both parties.

I hate these people with self entitlement complex, who try to low ball expecting a cherry for a price of a junker.

Edit: Not only that, but if the bike needs parts or service, I'd rather get bike for cheaper and buy parts and work on it myself, knowing that the parts that are broken I will replace with quality parts, not some e-bay junk that will fail on me two weeks after the purchase. Same with service if its basic stuff like old battery, clogged up carb, etc.

And keeping with the Craigslist theme. Ladies and Gentlemen...I give you your Craigslist Idiot of the Day!

That sounds like Virginia to me!

I used to look for motorcycles and mountain bikes on Craig's list about once a week. Everything was either way over priced or a piece of shit so I stopped looking.

Amen to that.

A dealership has to PAY their employees to work on a bike, and could be that their mechanic doesn't know a damned thing about bikes. Or carbs. OTOH lots of guys here on ADV seem to value their time at zero. So if the dealership decides to give a try for letting it go cheap without investing the paid labor as well as the parts, I don't hold it against a car dealer to give it a try selling a bike that needs work "as-is".

Same as any other seller who doesn't do their own work for free. For them fixing up the bike isn't just the cost of parts, it's also the labor. But they might find a buyer who regards the cost as parts only. Or not. And if not, then it won't sell. And if it doesn't, it's not my problem, not a fuck is given.

Ever since shows like American Pickers (or whatever it's called) came out, people think garbage is gold!

It wasn't too long ago that you could buy old bikes that were running for less than $1 per cc, but not anymore. Now everything is "classic," "vintage," and "rare."

And, WTF is the deal with all the "no title, but would be easy to get" ads? If it's that easy, get the damn title for it!

As the buyer you have no fucking idea why the thing doesn't run. Dead battery? clogged carbs? Blown engine? If the problem is a battery and carbs, fix the stupid thing before you sell it. If you don't I have to asume you're either a liar or an idiot, or both. A bike that doesn't run is worth what you can part it out for, not a penny more.

Exactly. "No, it's not easy to get, you stupid fuck. If it was easy to get, you would have gotten it."

The only problem with that argument is that you can part out just about any bike and get a better return than you would selling the unit complete.