No I'm not selling, but it wouldn't matter now because the YES on my '05 expired a year ago this month, totally unused by me.
So why am I such a big proponent? Because I was a used bike buyer back in '06 and I appreciated greatly having the YES warranty in force on my bike purchase, even though I was lucky enough that it wasn't needed.
I bought my '05 from a used bike dealership (via eBay sale). I paid around $9k for a year old bike with 10k miles on it, which seemed like a decent deal at that time. I would have been extremely apprehensive about such an expensive purchase of a used bike except that it came with the transferable YES warranty for 3 years to come. That assured me that I would not get stuck with someone else's troubles. In my position as a buyer at that time, I would have gladly paid more for the bike by more than the cost of YES coverage for the protection and backing of the manufacturer.
If you were involved in a shop, then you should already know that the "book" value on motorcycles are pretty much of a joke. For one thing, unlike for cars, they have no adjustment for mileage. They tell you what nominal retail and wholesale is for the bike based on age, and what the nominal mileage is for the bike of its type and age, but no guide for the adjustment for mileage not in that range. There is also no variable for "condition", which can be a big factor in bike resale prices. A bike that has been ridden hard and put away wet, much as many folks on this forum are apt to, and maybe flopped on the pavement a few times for good measure, will sell for a lot less than a garage queen only ridden on sunny days and cleaned and polished after every ride. Yet they are valued the same "by the book".
Using book values on cars works because they are (mostly) transportation appliances. Special interest cars are different, as are pretty much all motorcycles. Yes, they can be used as economical transportation, but for most of us they are a hobby. Something we are passionate about. This is especially true in the northern climes where the riding season is shorter and a bike can't be relied upon as sole transportation. People will definitely spend a whole lot more for hobbies that they are passionate about than for a mere transportation appliance. But, in a down economy, it is also the hobby items that take the biggest hit in actual sales value as people trim their personal expenses.
I can't explain the thought process of the dealership where you traded your FJR. All I can say is there a lot of people in business that are not too knowledgeable in what they do. There is no question in my mind that, if they had retained the YES, and made that well known to potential buyers, they would have definitely been able to get more for the bike than what they did. What possible justification is there otherwise? The fact that they got barely more than wholesale seems to me to be evidence that they took the wrong approach and are just pretty crappy salesmen.
I agree 100% with you on your other points about add-on farkles value: All other accessories are pretty much of a wash. It is one big mistake that sellers often make when valuing their used bikes. They assume that because they wanted the farkles that everyone will want them. Maybe, for the exact right buyer, but maybe not. You will always get more money by separating the sale of the farkles from the stock bike. That way you know for certain the buyer of the used farkle really wants it, and it is worth something to him.
Farkles that are not easily reversible are a bit more of a problem. Ask a Realtor about selling homes with built-in swimming pools. Does it increase the value of a property? Not really because it eliminates so many buyers who do not want a pool and don't want to pay the cost of removing it. Same thing applies to most of the farkles.
But I really think that a YES warranty is different from "farkles" in that it is actually protecting the buyer from a major financial loss in the even that their brief inspection of the bike being purchased happens not to reveal a major hidden mechanical problem. Especially at the paltry cost that they are available at.
If you don't need or ever use the YES, it is really no big deal. I mean really, what is $350-$400 on a $9-10k (or more when new) bike purchase? But if you do need it, it can be a very, very big deal.
PS - I'm very curious which Boston area dealership you worked in. We may have mutual friends we don't know about. PM me if you don't feel comfortable saying where in public.
