How much would you pay...

Yamaha FJR Motorcycle Forum

Help Support Yamaha FJR Motorcycle Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

speresie

Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2005
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
For a wrecked 06 FJR? This particular unit went down at 40 mph. Obvious major damage to all fairings, saddlebags, windshield bracket and handlebars. It is currently unrideable because the front fairing is shifted 1-2 inches, enough to interfere with the fork movement. Frame, engine, and drivetrain appear to be fine, but of course you never really know. Thought it might make a good project bike. So, how much would you pay?

 
Last edited by a moderator:
My impression it that it does not have a salvage title, but I don't know. Some guy bought the bike from the guy who wrecked it with the intention of sending it to Europe but that fell through. I take it you can't insure a salvage-titled bike? Can you insure it for liability? Liability is all I would have. The bike has 10k miles on it upright, and about .03 on it's side.

 
My impression it that it does not have a salvage title, but I don't know. Some guy bought the bike from the guy who wrecked it with the intention of sending it to Europe but that fell through. I take it you can't insure a salvage-titled bike? Can you insure it for liability? Liability is all I would have. The bike has 10k miles on it upright, and about .03 on it's side.
Yes, you can insure a salvage title machine. The only thing with a salvage title is the type. Some are not rebuildable (parts only title) and some are. However, if the machine was not paid for by an insurance company (bike owner absorbed costs with no insurance claim), then the title has not changed. The biggest deal will be resale. Resale will be significantly less since it has been wrecked and if the title is salvage, it will always be very much less. If you plan on riding your money's worth out of it, who cares?

 
Well the guy is asking around 7k which is way too much in my opinion. I was thinking it may be worth 4k if there was no frame or fork damage. My plan would be to fix the fairings myself, not really caring what they looked like, only that they are in the right spot and stay on. Maybe 1k for new windshield mount, right side handlebar, misc parts/fasteners to get the bike to where it's not all that pretty but wholly rideable and fun.

 
I was just looking into what insurance companies think of salvage titles a little over a week ago. American Family is who I use and my agent told me that the rule of thumb on a salvage vehicle is this: a vehicle that has been titled and driven will typically have an insured value of 10-12% less then if it had never been salvaged. If it was a brand new machine, something that was on a lot and totaled by hail damage or some kind of natural disastor for instance, will have an insurance value of 20% less then if it had never been salvaged. He also warned that this does fluctuate with some vehicles or models.

 
I bought a salvaged 1987 Concours several years ago with upper fairing damage and a broken mirror. I paid about half of a non-salvaged bike's value. I fixed and repainted the fairing and replaced the mirror. Then had to have it inspected and retitled. After that, I rode it for a year and then sold it for $1000 more than I paid for it. If you're going to ride it and have fun, who cares what the resale value is.

 
I am looking to buy it, fix it up and ride it. This is not a money making endevor...it is a money saving endevor. I would like to know what it is worth in it's current condition so I know where to start bargaining. I guess it should be used value -20% for salvage title -repair costs. I guess the big ??? is repair costs. New fairings, new bags, new windshiled bracket and windshield, handlebar, etc.

 
A friend of mine has bought a bike on e-bay that had been wrecked and thought if he rebuilt it he could sell it for a profit. He rebuilt the bike, including a professional frame straightening, and because the bike had been in a wreck, (with the frame now straighter than new), and no one wanted to buy the bike because of its history. In CA you have to disclose if the vehicle has been wrecked or salvage rights have been gained. Now he has a nice bike with no problems but is stuck with it until someone really wants to buy. If you plan on buying this bike and selling it rebuilt later, this is something to think about. Doing it just for yourself, you could maybe save some bucks. PM. <>< :)

 
Last edited by a moderator:
$7k? You're not going to be saving a lot of money there. Although you will not be replacing the panels, when you are computing the worth of the bike you will have to pretend you are.

Kelley blue book for an '06 is 10,795. Taking off 10% for salvage title as previously suggested puts the value of the bike in pristine shape at about 9,800. Now you need to know how much it is going to cost to put it back into pristine shape (even if thats not your plan). So figure out what parts need to be replaced and get the price for them from a dealer. I would add another 20%- 25% to that for repair and for the parts you didn't know needed replacing. Subtract this figure from 9,800 and that gives you a rough idea of what the bike is worth.

BTW Kelley would probably take off for high mileage on this bike. I didn't check that, but it has been debated on this forum before. My guess is that your $4k is closer than his $7k, especially without checking the frame.

 
speresie - You'll spend about $4,000 to $5,000 in parts, so start from there. There are broken and bent parts that you will not know about until you start breaking the bike down. ( I found out the hard way. Thought I had about $2000 worth of damage, ended up putting about $4000 into it, and I did all the labor.) :blink:

 
$7k? $4k? Not even! $2500 is the price point you should be looking at. Plastic alone can run $6k on the FJR. If you're doing it for yourself, and doing your own paint, or going naked, fine. If you're trying to save money, forget about it and keep shopping the used bikes. You can have an '03/'04 bike for $8k if you hunt for it and are ready to jump when one comes up.

I've BTDT a couple of times with the wrecked bikes. Lost my ass on one, came out even on the other. The last one was a Ducati SS750 with frame damage at the seat area, but strait everywhere else. $300 of welding from a guy that knew cromoly and was an excellent welder, then another $1500 of plastic, headlight and odds and ends. Bought it for $1200. Sold the bike because I didn't fit it well and wasn't comfortable on it for very long. Already had the FJR, so maybe spoiled a tad. :rolleyes:

Sold for $3400 with everything up front about the bike's previous damage and condition. It still needed lower panels and better mirrors, but was looking pretty good. People would come expecting a perfect showroom bike for the low price I was asking, then walk away because it wasn't the garage queen they wanted for 2/3s the normal price. One nice thing about it, the guy that bought it was a rider and rides the bike. Recent divorce and he got custody of his son. Not a lot of cash for toys for himself. It was nice to see someone buy the bike that really enjoyed it and actually rides it. He came 150 miles and was expecting worse than what he found. Smart buyer and zero BS. Those buyers are rare.

 
Top