For better or worse

[pdedse]

I've gone through a bit of mc activity of late.

My trusty ol' 2007 KLR650 was finally shown the pasture via trade-in for a SuzukiDR650. I sold my Kawasaki W800 Café for same price as I bought it a year ago--mainly to pay the rest of the DR650...and settled in on the idea of two bikes that I consider my long-term keepers: the DR and the CB1100.

But then I got to thinking...I didn't do too bad on that W800. Wouldn't it be fun, I says to myself, to buy another "classic" looking bike, ride it a year and then sell it? Treat bikes like "one-year-stands" rather than like a solid, long term marriage. This way, I thought, I could try several more bikes over the years. I might lose a few dollars here and there, but the plan is to buy left-over new bikes that are discounted, or second hand bikes that are reasonably priced--maybe buy them end of year when others want to sell but there aren't lots of buyers.

So I started seaching and searching and I've always wanted to try a Royal Enfield. Went in a week ago and test rode a RE INT650...very nice. So I start looking more specific like, but thinking I'll need a few months to find what I want. But then this one popped up--the very color, low mileage, the exact add-ons I'd consider (taller seat, handlebar risers, tank pads, rear rack)... and reasonably priced at $5500. So what do you do when the stars align? Plus, I got passed by an orange Toyotal truck on my way to see the INT650.

So I test ride the bike, thinking, naw, too soon. But it rides really nice and the orange looks pretty...and it's my second favorite color. New the 2022 INT650 sells for 6000 and they want 6850 which includes freight and setup...registration/title costs can make it about 7300 out the door. That's too rich for me. Thinking the seller would say no, I asked if he would accept $5200. Now that's about the lowest price I've seen across the nation for a 2022, low mileage INT650.

He said yes. Hmmm.

Picked it up today, went for a nice 60 mile ride in the blustery-cold, but dry afternoon. It's great fun. Throttle grips are cute, but they feel real nice. Impressive machine...FOR SALE come next October! We'll see.

Has a wonderful throaty rumble, pulls much better than I expected, 47hp.

 

[peterbaron]

Congrats, very nice bike, enjoy it

 

[the Ferret]

Neat looking bike, very classic looking. Congrats

 

[pekingduck]

That's a nice complement to the CB1100, both classic style, but so different.

 

[ymtnpoah11_imp]

Sweeeet!

 

[Cormanus]

Yeah ... well done, pdedse. Enjoy it.

 

[noroomtomove]

I'll give the colour Oranje a thumbs up.

Regards NRTM

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

Tidy 'lil lump pdedse. Congrats!

 

[Nachodaddy]

Beautiful bike, great story, great idea. :biker:
Congratulations!
That will will look great next Autumn against a back-drop of a forest full of orange leaves.

 

[KiowaEagle_imp]

Nice addition! They're great bikes. Seem very well made for the price.

 

[misterprofessionality]

Ill have to pick your brain about the financial aspect of the"one year stand" philosophy. How inefficient is it, do you think, compared to keeping bikes long term?

 

[Gone in 60]

That's a cool bike! I hang out at the Bike Shed in L.A. and grab a coffee there on the way home from the museum. They rep Royal Enfield and have lots of their merch and some display bikes. Recently, they have started offering Enfields for rental, including that little orange beauty. I'm planning to give one a weekend or so, but wonder how much different it would be than my Bonneville. Looking forward to your review!

 

[Charlie Bravo_imp]

That's a way-cool UBM. I know a guy who buys a bike and sells one every year. It's like a revolving museum exhibit, alway something cool to look at in his garage.

 

[pdedse]

Thanks for the well wishes on the INT650.

Ill have to pick your brain about the financial aspect of the"one year stand" philosophy. How inefficient is it, do you think, compared to keeping bikes long term?

I likely worry about "am I spending too much" / "is this a good idea" as much or more than the next person when it comes to finances, what's a good value, etc.

I've never done the new-bike-every-year or two, then sell, repeat...I tend to keep vehicles as long as possible. Last year I bought a leftover 2021 W800 Café. The MSRP for it was around $9600, but it was offered at $6000. Having missed out on the W650 (a bike I was trying to buy before the CB1100 came along), I thought what better chance, garage space be darned.

With freight/set-up, title and 4 years regsitration, the true out the door price was $7140 (OR has no real sales tax). I put 4000+ miles on it in 12 months. The tires were badly worn, I changed the oil, added grip puppies...that's it.

The place where I bought my Suzuki DR650 to replace my aging KLR wasn't interested in trade-in on the W800--manager wasn't familiar with the bike and didn't think it would sell to his normal customers. He's likely right...the bike never sold well, therefore the large discount.

I heard about Rumbleon (online "cash for your bike" business) and read a number of negative reviews...but a few positive ones as well. I thought what the heck; sent them the info on my bike and they offered $6200. I scoured the internet for used w800 prices and there were lots of people asking 6-7k...but lots of them were not selling very quickly either. My thinking was that if a dealer was having a hard time selling the w800 at 6k new, how well would I really do via Craigslist. So I accepted their offer of 6200. I was skeptical, but it all played out just fine...I send them the title, they send me a check, I deposit it, wait for it to clear...within a few weeks they pick up the bike. Easy peasy.

So the out the door price of $7140 - 6200 = $940 / 12 months = $78.33 per month of ownership. That's a very cheap rental and totally worth it for me.

In hindsight, I could have made less of a "head/money" decision and kept the w800, played with a new set of handlebars to improve the tight riding position, but the pangs of regret are not great. But no mistake about it, the W800 is a fun, fun bike to ride. Kawasaki has come out with the 2023 W800 (they no longer import the café version), and it's gorgeous, has upright riding position = less stress on the hips/knees/elbows...but way overpriced...again. I fully expect there to be 2023s available a year from now that will be discounted. It will be on my radar.

So for my INT650: my price was $5200. What's the worst I could sell for in a year? 4k? That would be $100 per month of ownership. I see people asking 5-6k for their 3 year old INTs with 3-5k miles on them. If I really had difficulty selling it, I'll call Rumbleon again. They told me that key for them is if the bike is in nice shape and less than 5k miles. Anything with more miles and their prices start to drop substantially. Lots of reviews on them complained of low-ball offers--that's not surprising to me, they are trying to make $. But I think I lucked out because of the extreme drop-off of the W's MSRP and what I paid. If I had paid 9k plus for my w800, an offer of 6200 would seem a low-ball offer.

And if after a year on the INT650 I really like it, well that's not a terrible thing...it's amazing how much space you can find in your garage when motivated.

Thought it would be fun to see cost per month on my KLR650: purchased for $4500, trade in got me 2200: $2300 cost to me over 14 years / 168 months = $14 per month, not including all the tire / oil changes, add-ons, etc. So yep, lots cheaper to keep the bike longer...but I'm getting older and enjoy the different rides, and I'm fortunuate to have my two, very different from each other, long-term bikes.

Way too many words!

 

[peterbaron]

Pdedse, do not spend all your money on bikes… save some for your trip to the Maritimes, as already planned

 

[the Ferret]

Guess Rumbleon wouldn't want my 69,000 mile CB or 22,000 mile NC lol.

I used to find good deals on used bikes like my 2001 FZ-1 which I bought used for $3k rode 2 years and sold for $3100. So all it cost me for 2 years was maintenance and insurance. But you have to be willing to take chances on older bikes breaking down....and ride 10 year old bikes. I find after 10 years they've lost about as much value as they are going to lose.
That 2001 FZ-1 would probably still bring $2500 today, 10 years after I bought it.

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

Maybe keep it long enough pdedse and you might start to make money on it. Not sure how many Forum members will be around by then though. But who knows? Maybe the cost of EV batteries will skyrocket and internal combustion engines will be in ultra high demand.

 

[pdedse]

Pdedse, do not spend all your money on bikes… save some for your trip to the Maritimes, as already planned

I know 3 bikes is absolute max for me. The CB1100 stays put, the DR650's ultimate destiny is supposed to be in Costa Rica for retirement, 4-5 years. Meanwhile it will be my eastern OR, high desert bike.

Who knows, maybe the INT650 does the cross country trip? I could envision this: ride it as much as I want till mid to late summer, then ride it to the Maritimes area, visit my sister in Cape Cod; leave the bike there and fly home. I call Rumbleon and arrange for them them to purchase bike and pick it up from CC. I could see after riding that long that I may not have the time / interest to return to OR. Fun to think about.

 

[Nachodaddy]

There is a '22 INT650 on the Phoenix AZ, Craigslist with 1330miles on the clock for $6,000, if anyone is interested.
https://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/mcy/7560332989.html

 

[pdedse]

Guess Rumbleon wouldn't want my 69,000 mile CB or 22,000 mile NC lol.

I used to find good deals on used bikes like my 2001 FZ-1 which I bought used for $3k rode 2 years and sold for $3100. So all it cost me for 2 years was maintenance and insurance. But you have to be willing to take chances on older bikes breaking down....and ride 10 year old bikes. I find after 10 years they've lost about as much value as they are going to lose.
That 2001 FZ-1 would probably still bring $2500 today, 10 years after I bought it.

Ya' never know. I thought my '07 KLR650 with 53k miles would be tough to sell, so I went the trade-in route. But apparently the dealer sold it for over 3k a month later, so maybe I should have tried CL. Oh well.

Maybe I'll contact Rumbleon to see what they would offer for a '14 DLX with "under 70k miles".

There is a '22 INT650 on the Phoenix AZ, Craigslist with 1330miles on the clock for $6,000, if anyone is interested.
https://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/mcy/7560332989.html

That's a pretty color combination; the orange that I bought was the only one out of RE's 6-7 color options to not have the black wheels. I like both looks.