Law Dog
After looking this thread over, I'm going to disagree with the forum here. I work in New Port Richey, just a few miles from Tarpon Springs. I could take a look at this thing with you if you need some help.
The bike is probably worth an additional 1500 if it were in perfect condition - because of the low miles. But this is debatable. It does, after all have a salvage title. And low miles don't automatically mean great condition. It's been sitting somewhere a long time, being 8 years old and averaging a few hundred miles per year. That means it's value is in YOUR eyes alone, because you'll never sell it for "what it's worth" with that title. The pannier can be had for about 150-200 on this forum if you are willing to wait. You can take the other pannier off and ride it that way, many guys do. It just takes a few seconds. The bike actually looks great without them, so it's not that big of a deal. You don't need another fairing, IT HAS ONE. You need to get it painted. Taking the fairing off is time consuming, but doable. I would figure about 1000 dollars in time and cost for getting this done properly, but that's from a cheap body shop. Many cheaper shops can make a bike shine, but paint quality would become a factor due to the Florida sun's ability to fade and oxidize a cheap paint shop in a few years. I would doubt that you could replace it for that cost. Remember I'm factoring in the "cost" of your labor to remove it. A better quality shop would probably get 800-1000 for the paint work alone: paint that shined like factory paint and would not oxidize in a couple years (think economy paint jobs)... remember these prices as gues-ti-mates. If you plan to keep it for many years, and drive it till it's got a zillion miles and only worth 2500 bucks when yer done... then the salvage title won't matter much, you will have indeed gotten your money's worth out of it. But only if you keep it. So if you do indeed buy it, you'll do so with this in mind. Is it worth it? Maybe. I'd like to see about a 4k price, but that's only if the bike checks out. Just replacing a fairing doesn't always fix underlying damage, and that's a factor. The seller's "story" would matter as well. I'd need to know exactly was was done, who did it, and what other damage there was/might be. Remember that the asking price is just that.
Another IMPORTANT factor: how's you wrenching skills?
Now, that said: There's a bike just like (the AE, or automatic clutch model) it in Lutz with 11k on it for just over 7k... a pretty good price:
CLICKY Maybe he'd come down?
There's another in Orlando, an 05 for 5k.
CLICKY HERE Looks pretty nice, might just have about 30k miles, though they didn't quote the miles, they did say that the valves were just adjusted so I'm guessing. With the extra farkles, this might be exactly what you want. Don't be afraid of a few miles on these bikes, they'll go WELL over 100k easily.
Here's an 07 in beautiful black cherry in Sorrento for 6900 with 21k on it.
CLICKY HERE.
Knowing the prices on similar bikes in the area can be a good bargaining tool for squeezing a better deal out of the seller. Hope that helps.
Gary
darksider #44
