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How much should I be spending?

4605 Views 14 Replies 10 Participants Last post by muchojackdaniels, Mar 7, 2008

64082

Discussion Starter · Feb 25, 2008

Hey all,

I have been to visit a guy selling off of craigslist. The bike under the spotlight is a 1994 Kawi ZX-6e (Ninja) with 23,659 miles on it. The bike has had many upgrades and mods to it, including a full muzzy exhaust, new fork seals, new grips, new spark plugs, new seat, new turn signals and a few others. The bike has been laid down on both sides and the owner has replaced the broken lighs and are working perfectly now, the bike is solid other than a few cosmetics (the front fairing is damaged but he has one to replace it it just needs some paint). The tire treads are good and the bike fires right up...

I like the feel of this bike as it is an older sportbike and has already been laid down... now I can get over the imperfections and wont be as bummed when I lay it down (which i very well may). As a learner I just want your opinion on how much I should be willing to spend on a bike like this. The guy has an asking price of $2,500.

What would you pay the guy (and if you would never by a sportbike because they kill) how much would you value it as?

I have heard that this being an older bike my insurance on it shouldn't be too bad, true?

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BrowningBAR

· #2 · Feb 25, 2008

Here's the thing, on a 1995 Kawi ZX-6 the average retail is 1,580 - $2,059. This was as far back as NADA goes. Now, if you combine what seems to be too much of an asking price, plus upgrades that may or may not have been professional installed, plus high mileage, plus laid down...twice, I would think twice. If you still like the feel of the bike, than offer $1500 and see what the reaction is.

Second, is this your first bike? If so, I would just go with an EX500 or the 250 ninja. Both used bikes can be had for the same that this guy is offering, but with far lower miles on it and a lot better condition. Both of these bike are worth keeping if you move up to a bigger bike at a later date. You can get a new 250 ninja for about 500 buck more than what this guy is asking and it comes with a warranty. I know that we generally say stay away from new for a first bike, but I would rather go new in this case than the used example you are giving.

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The_AirHawk

· #3 · Feb 25, 2008 (Edited)

OnlyISay said:
I like the feel of this bike as it is an older sportbike and has already been laid down... now I can get over the imperfections and wont be as bummed when I lay it down (which i very well may). As a learner I just want your opinion on how much I should be willing to spend on a bike like this. The guy has an asking price of $2,500.

What would you pay the guy (and if you would never by a sportbike because they kill) how much would you value it as?

You pays what you feels like payin'. Is it worth $2500 to YOU? Kelly Blue Book sez retail is $2875 w/average condition, stock, unmolested. (quote worth exactly what you paid for it)

The general rule of thumb is: things like aftermarket exhaust, paint, etc. - add little or no value to a bike.

And, it HAS been dropped.

Twice.

At least.

OnlyISay said:
I have heard that this being an older bike my insurance on it shouldn't be too bad, true?

Kirk would probably know for sure, but a LOT of InsCo's go by cc's - and don't care what age the bike is. Hell, State Farm still asks if the bike is a Turbo (remember the early-'80s Honda CX500/650-T and its Kawi counterpart?), and has a surcharge-bracket if you answer "Yes". (as if one of those could come CLOSE to the acceleration of even an early/mid-'90s Supersport like the ZX-6)

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The_AirHawk

· #4 · Feb 25, 2008

BrowningBAR said:
You can get a new 250 ninja for about 500 buck more than what this guy is asking and it comes with a warranty. I know that we generally say stay away from new for a first bike, but I would rather go new in this case than the used example you are giving.

They bumped MSRP of the quarter-liter mosquito-splatterer to $3499.

But, a savvy buyer could certainly own the payment-book on one for less.

BrowningBAR

· #5 · Feb 26, 2008

Don't question me in front of the children! You know what our therapist told you about speaking down to me!

***To all that are new to this site, this is light-hearted humor between me and Airhawk. Nothing to see here, move along***

The_Aerodynamic_Head

· #6 · Feb 26, 2008

Whatever your therapist is charging you, it's too much.

acecycleins

· #7 · Feb 26, 2008

Without looking at the bike, I'd say the thing would be worth $2000-2300. "E" bikes are very old technology and if you look close you can find ZZR models for around $3k. The ZZR is the E bike replacement. The difference is the ZZR is rated as a sporttour bike with Progressive. That will save you a thousand dollars from just about everyone except State Farm. SF still uses a calculation based on age and cc size. Not all of their markets are the same though. In reality, if you go ZZR you could be in the house for around $500-$600 a year. With the E bike you'll be buying someone elses unwanted headache.
If you want to cap your budget at $2500 then look for a late 90s YZF600r. It's a better overall ride and has waaaaay better service intervals.

ejis

· #8 · Feb 26, 2008

If you've got money to burn and like that bike, than go for it. Personally, I'd stay away from it (though of all the 600cc sportbike, the 6e is certainly one of the better ones to use as a first bike). For well under $2k you can find a much better condition "first bike" that will be worth just as much when you want to sell it as it is when you buy it - unless of course you wreck it. These bikes are listed in many threads, all over the forum so I'm not going to rehash it here.

This Ninja has been beaten up, probably used for stunts, and likely abused. You really have no idea what to expect out of the motor, transmission, electricals...it could completely implode on you soon after purchase.

You do seem to have a good attitude about this though, so think about what you want out of your first bike and remember that it's your FIRST bike - and by no means your last. Good luck, and welcome!

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The_AirHawk

· #9 · Feb 26, 2008

BrowningBAR said:
Don't question me in front of the children! You know what our therapist told you about speaking down to me!

Sigmoid Fraud there is a Flake! I demand you stop seeing him - I've my suspicions he wants you for himself.........

seruzawa

· #10 · Feb 26, 2008

Trannies are a weak point on the supersports. I'd stay away from a 600 that old. Yeah yeah, I know I'm going to get people telling me how many miles they have on their supersports. But the trannies won't take too many wheelies and this bike has been seriously abused. For all you know his favorite pastime was revving it up and dumping the clutch for burnouts. Without knowing the bike's history I'd never touch a well used 600SS. A broken tranny can easily cost $2000 to repair.

63022

· #11 · Feb 26, 2008

I agree seruzawa, sport bikes are like sports cars in my mind. Both are meant to driven hard and used ones usually have been. I like the little New Ninja 250 idea from BrowningBar. Especially for a first bike.

sarnali2

· #12 · Feb 26, 2008 (Edited)

I wouldn't touch that one with a ten foot pole, run, don't walk away.......

To recap, the bike has been beat to tears, down at least twice, has high miles and bolt on upgrades that may or may not work.

You can do a whole lot better than that for your money. if your heart's set on a ZX6, try to find a stock one. Whatever you get, remember stock is best. Most performance upgrades rarely result in actual real world improvements and nothing is free, if they do add horsepower it's usually at the upper rpm's and they take away from the lower and mid range where you spend most of your time. Save your money for oil changes and tires or suspension upgrades, that's where you can gain some real world improvments, properly dialed in suspension and good sticky tires make a big difference on just about any bike.

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seruzawa

· #13 · Feb 26, 2008

But.. but...

sarnali2 said:
I wouldn't touch that one with a ten foot pole, run, don't walk away.......

To recap, the bike has been beat to tears, down at least twice, has high miles and bolt on upgrades that may or may not work.

You can do a whole lot better than that for your money. if your heart's set on a ZX6, try to find a stock one. Whatever you get, remember stock is best. Most performance upgrades rarely result in actual real world improvements and nothing is free, if they do add horsepower it's usually at the upper rpm's and they take away from the lower and mid range where you spend most of your time. Save your money for oil changes and tires or suspension upgrades, that's where you can gain some real world improvments, properly dialed in suspension and good sticky tires make a big difference on just about any bike.

... how can you hold your head up at the Burger Barn if you don't have that titanium pipe that's in all the mags?

sarnali2

· #14 · Feb 26, 2008

Well Duh.........

seruzawa said:
... how can you hold your head up at the Burger Barn if you don't have that titanium pipe that's in all the mags?

Take some fine grit sandpaper to the stock system to give it that dull and scratchy look just like a Ti pipe.........

64369

· #15 · Mar 7, 2008

about 2k for a good first bike.

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