Would you buy a bike that was used as a trainer? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Would you buy a bike that was used as a trainer?

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havefun

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Went and kicked the tires of a '06 Virago 250 last night with wife, looking for something for her to start her riding career on.

Engine sounded good, clutch was fine. Felt a little bit of exhaust leak from the lower muffler joint. Couple of little scratches and dings, here and there, but what "beginner" bike that is 10 years old, wouldn't.
Did a short buzz around the neighborhood. Nothing apparently wrong. Mileage was under 8k.

Woman bought it from a shop about 3 years ago, has had it maintained by same shop. However, hadn't picked up the Used Vehicle Information Package, nor had she seen one, when she bought it. I told her I was interested, but wanted to see the UVIP first.

Due to her work schedule, it would be the weekend before she could get one, so I went and got one for the bike today at lunch.

There are a couple of discrepancies. It was first registered in 2010, which seems odd for a 2006 bike. Secondly, Humber college was the first registrant. They kept it for 3 years, then transferred ownership to the shop.

Being a trainer, the mileage is probably way off. Don't most schools remove the speedo/odometer? As well, it probably sat and idled a lot, so I'd be concerned about upper cylinder wear. As I said, clutch seemed strong, and putting in new clutch plates/springs myself, isn't that big a deal. Now that I know the bikes history, I'd want to check the compression on it, before committing though.

Anyway, I contacted the seller again, and brought up the fact that it was a trainer, and she was surprised/annoyed that it was never disclosed to her.

So, now I'm on the fence. Wife loved the bike and the seller seemed open to negotiating the price down, based on the new information. But am I going to get stuck with something that I will have trouble reselling in a couple years, when she is ready to upgrade?

Would you buy a bike that was used as a trainer?
 
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id be more concerned with micro-fractures in the frame from being dropped so many times.
 
if the price is right and it runs well, get it. It will be bought by the next beginner when you're done with it...if it's still in running order.
 
She's not going to be putting 100,000 km on it. As above, I would look it over and if it seemed ok and the price was right, buy it, ride it for a year or two and sell it for roughly the same price.
 
My first bike was a 250 cc cruiser that was over 20 years old at the time and had been ridden and dropped by multiple owners. It ran fine for me, and I had no trouble getting rid of it afterwards.
 
Back in 2001 I bought Suzuki GN 125 that was used at Sheridan for my wife starting out. Other than tank scratches and a kinked chain the bike was rock solid. Curse myself for selling it off and getting a Ninja for her. Have it checked by a competent shop and go for it if all things are good. Any deficiencies then use a bargaining chip. You are right that lights and guages are usually removed so will look new. Mileage will be way off!
As for frame cracks, that cracks me up......
 
DoubleJ said:
Back in 2001 I bought Suzuki GN 125 that was used at Sheridan for my wife starting out. Other than tank scratches and a kinked chain the bike was rock solid. Curse myself for selling it off and getting a Ninja for her. Have it checked by a competent shop and go for it if all things are good. Any deficiencies then use a bargaining chip. You are right that lights and guages are usually removed so will look new. Mileage will be way off! As for frame cracks, that cracks me up......
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I would expect that a competent mechanic would give the bikes a going over, before they were put on the open market by a school. Levers would probably be new or close, since that's what usually gets damaged. Bikes tend to crash to the right at the schools, so check that side first.
 
Thanks for the feedback. Appreciate it.

Any thoughts on the 4 year gap, from model year, 2006, to first registration by Humber in 2010?
 
havefun said:
Thanks for the feedback. Appreciate it.

Any thoughts on the 4 year gap, from model year, 2006, to first registration by Humber in 2010?
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That is a bit unusual. I have a Yamaha scooter, 2008, that was sitting at the dealer for 2 years and then it was sold brand new in 2010. I think 2 years is possible, but 4 would require an explanation.
 
My first bike had 18 previous owners and only 32,00km on it. It had been dropped many times, and was cosmetically challenged, but was in excellent running condition. I bought it for $900, put on 14,000km and got $1150 for it when it's time was done. It was an excellent bike!
 
havefun said:
Thanks for the feedback. Appreciate it.

Any thoughts on the 4 year gap, from model year, 2006, to first registration by Humber in 2010?
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Either the old stock as stated as Marcos or do they have to register all of the bikes when they get them? They are being used on private property, maybe they forgot to submit the paperwork, course bikes aren't normally plated are they?
 
Like GreyGhost suggested, they may not have been registered previously. Perhaps something changed in 2010 (administration?) That caused them to register them.

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Is it being sold certified? If so then it would have been given a good inspection and any major issues would have been caught. If not, might be worth going over the frame yourself carefully to make sure there's no cracks or issues, but I'd think that any major issues would have come out of the woodwork long ago...but keep in mind you could be on the hook for whatever it needs. I'd try to buy it certified given the situation, personally.

Either way, Lowball the offer based on it's now known history and run with it - offer to pay for the certification (and leave any parts required up for negotiation) if that makes the deal more palatable for the seller. Remind her that when the time comes for you to sell it yourself that the next owner may also take issue with the fact that it was a school bike and accordingly you may not get top dollar for it so that should keep your offer in perspective.
 
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If I was buying, I'd adjust down for the fact it was a school bike. If I was selling, I wouldn't give a break cause it's an in demand good starter. lol
 
Thanks for all of the feedback everyone!

Negotiated a price that worked for me. So went ahead with the deal. Arranged to pick it up. But by the time I get there, its dark.

Tank was more than 1/4 full, so I figure I'm good for the short 15 minute ride home. About 2 min into the ride, maybe a minute, after I closed the choke, the bike starts running terrible. No power, backfiring. Pull over and make sure that the gas petcock wasn't partly closed.

Bike was idling ok with a bit of choke, so set off again. Same issue, as soon as there is any load on the engine. However, able to maintain 50km/h (barely) if I keep the choke partially on, so I just keep going to get home. All the while, thinking that I just made a huge mistake. About a minute from home, the bike just dies, and won't start again. Now I'm ******, but luckily close to a gas station. I push it in, and top up the tank with some premium. After a bit, the bike starts, and I'm able to make it home, and into the garage it goes. A problem for another day.

This afternoon, I started the bike again, and its smoking like mad. Pulled the plugs, they are completely fouled. Clean them up, and regap them. Check the air filter, all good. So, I fire it up. Its better, but still smoking. Give it a couple min to warm up, then turn the choke off, and notice that its really rev'ing. Find the idle thumbscrew (really, why they put it there, where you need a screwdriver to get at it, is beyond me), and adjust it down a bit (well, a lot). Bingo, smoking exhaust disappears. Bike rev's properly. After a little drive around the neighborhood, its back to the bike that I test drove a couple days ago.

I dunno, if someone else came by, to check out the bike, and messed with it. Because it definitely wasn't like that, when I first rode it.


Anyway, dropped by the local autoshop, after a little hiccup with the brake sensor (forgot to adjust it, after moving the rear brake lever position to something more tolerable), bike is now certified, and waiting for wifey to take it for a ride.

I had her practicing clutch/throttle/brake action today, on our slight incline driveway. Roll the bike ahead a few feet, let it roll back a few feet, repeat for 20 minutes. She's a champ now. No stalling at stoplights for her!

But, I might as well price a new set of clutch plates now. :D The first 10 minutes was rough. Screaming engine, barely engaged clutch, lurching, stalling. Even got a minor wheelie. Was painful, yet humorous!
 
Good to hear it worked out.

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Wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole. Good luck ever selling it.

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Congrats on your purchase and getting your wife to ride, use it for what it is intended for "training bike".
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